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Chapter Twenty-Three
Belle smiled in happy surprise when she saw Robert walked in through her room door instead of Lily, Julia, or Anne. He came with her breakfast, a broad grin on his face.
“I would have come down for breakfast today,” Belle protested. In fact, she was just about to leave the bed before he walked in.
“And have you breaking your other ankle?” Robert shook his head as he laid the tray on her lap. “The girls were not joking when they said you tend to do things on your own, no matter how dangerous it is.”
“I can’t help myself,” Belle shrugged. “I suppose that’s how I’d gotten myself thrown off my horse in the first place.”
“You may be right,” Robert chuckled.
Belle smiled. “You don’t have any morning house calls today?”
“Fortunately, no. It feels good to be able to spend the morning with my family. I do have a few house calls in the afternoon, however, but I have some more resting time before I’m meant to leave.” He peered down at her propped foot. “Now, let me take a look at this.”’
“Is it still healing as nicely as you said? I hope I haven’t overworked it too much.”
Robert squeezed the area lightly. “It is healing very well. At this rate, you’ll be up and running in no time. I think if you continue practicing your walking then you’re sure to be healed quickly.”
Pride filled her. “It feels like only yesterday I was being carried up to this room in incredible pain thinking I wasn’t going to be able to walk for months.”
“That was what you were thinking?” Robert said as he barked a laugh. “What an extraordinarily wild mind you have. And now look at you now. Nearly as fit as a fiddle.”
Belle laughed. “Oh, right. I forgot to tell you how much I enjoyed celebrating your anniversary with you and Anne a few days ago. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of that.”
“Did you think we would have locked you up here while we enjoyed cake and music downstairs? Of course, you were going to be a part of it. You’re as much a Stanton as the two girls, even if your last name doesn’t say so.”
“You think of me like a daughter?”
“I surely do. And I’m sure that Anne does as well. She dotes on you as if you were her own. Now,” Robert went on, holding his hands up, “that isn’t to say we’re trying to replace your parents, because that is certainly not the case.”
“I know,” Belle said softly, “and thank you. You don't know how much that means to me. I’ve never been a part of such a...loving family before.”
“Well, we’re more than happy to assist.” Robert patted her on the leg in farewell and rose to leave.
“Robert?” she called when he was by the door. He turned to her. “May I ask you something?’
“Of course, anything you’d like.”
“Do you think it’s possible for two people from very different backgrounds to be happy together?”
Robert frowned. “Where is this coming from?”
“I read it in a poem,” Belle said quickly. “And I was wondering if it was really possible. A noble and a commoner?”
Robert regarded her quietly for a moment before her came to retake the seat he had vacated. Belle’s heart plummeted when he shook his head. “It is certainly a romantic tale but one of the sadder ones, Hannah. The lives of nobles are too different from that of a commoner. Title and prestige means everything to those folks, and marrying a commoner is a sure way of losing at least one of them. I just don’t think it’s possible.
Exactly as I’d feared.
She’d been thinking about it for a while, ever since she’d told Stephen how she felt about him. After Lily had come up to help her change, she’d laid in bed with a smile on her face, thinking of all the magical endings she would have with Stephen. When she woke the next day, reality hit.
He was a commoner, a landlord. Perhaps he had enough money to purchase a beautiful dress befitting a noble but that didn’t make him any more like one. Her father would never accept him, and she wouldn’t have cared about his approval had it not been for the marriage contract he’d already signed with the Marquess of Winchfield. She was bound by that contract and if her father didn’t accept Stephen, which was as likely as the sun and the moon crossing paths, then there was no hope for them
She’d asked Robert the question in a burst of desperation, wanting to hear someone else say that it was possible. She supposed hearing the truth was what was best for her.
“All right,” she said, trying not to show how disappointed she was in the answer. “I suppose you are right about that. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
Robert gave her a sad look, patting her on the arm. She didn’t know what that meant but then he was leaving, and she was no longer thinking about it. Her mind lingered on Stephen and the fact that they would never have a future together.
