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Sophia was on the lawn and crossing to the terrace when she heard a loud shriek, and two small girls came running out onto the terrace doing what looked to be slapping at each other before darting away with multiple squeals. A tall, slightly plump woman in her thirties with pale red hair came out after them, followed by a young maid barely older than Sophia and looking just as exhausted.
“Oh, for goodness sake! They do play so roughly!” Even across the grass, Sophia could hear her very plainly. “Janet, go and make sure they don’t ruin their clothes before brunch.”
“Yes, my lady.”
The maid dropped a quick curtsy and hurried off after the little girls, who had jumped down the steps and across the grass, charging towards Sophia.
“Aunt Sophia! Aunt Sophia!” The slightly bigger of the two practically jumped into Sophia’s arms, making her drop her notebook. “Come and play chase with us! Mother won’t play, and Janet is too tired to do it.”
“Hello, Clarissa.” Sophia gave her niece a hug before lowering her back down. Then she embraced the smaller girl. “Olivia.”
“Please play with us, Aunt Sophia,” Olivia pleaded, pouting and trying to look innocent. Sophia laughed.
“You’re going to wear me out before I’ve done anything, you two.”
“Please?”
Both girls were now clasping their hands and giving her pleading expressions. They knew Sophia couldn’t resist; she did love her nieces and nephews, especially her eldest sister’s children. At nine and seven, they were more lively, and Sophia could easily converse with Clarissa without getting bored; she was a very intelligent girl.
She smiled.
“Alright. But can you give me a few minutes? I want to change my clothes. I’ve been out walking.”
“And sketching.” Olivia picked up the notebook. “Are you going to show us your new painting, Aunt Sophia?”
“Only if your parents say you can come in, and someone is there to watch you.”
Clarissa sighed.
“It’s probably going to be Father. Mother won’t let us do anything that gets our clothes dirty. She thinks we’ll knock over lots of paint in there.”
“I don’t have much paint out. It’s not scattered around the room.”
“That’s what Mother said.”
Sophia wasn’t surprised; Katherine didn’t like anything creative. She patted her nieces’ heads.
“Let me put my notebook away and change, and then I’ll join you. Alright?”
“Alright!” Clarissa grabbed Olivia’s hand. “Come on, Olivia! Let’s race to the tree!”
Both girls took off just as the maid Janet joined them. The woman groaned and trotted off after them. Sophia watched them go, feeling some sympathy for Janet. Clarissa and Olivia were adorable children, but they were very precocious. They would exhaust even the fittest of people.
She made her way to the terrace and went up the steps. Katherine was there, watching her with slight bemusement.
“I don’t know why you entertain them, Sophia. They should be sitting down and being quiet, not running around staring at little paintings.”
“It’s something that interests them,” Sophia replied smoothly, ignoring the barb in her direction. “There’s nothing wrong with cultivating an interest. I’m happy that they’re so keen and inquisitive.”
“You wouldn’t if you lived under the same roof as them. My husband says there’s nothing wrong with it, either, but I don’t see how it’s meant to be good for a little girl.”
“It’s called developing interests and knowing what you like to explore, Katherine.”
Her eldest sister sniffed, looking Sophia up and down. The tallest of her other sisters, the two of them were on the same eye-level.
“When you become a mother, you’ll understand. But I don’t see that happening anytime soon. You haven’t had any type of interest from gentlemen, and it’s been a little over three years since you had your first Season. You’ll be lucky to find any gentleman willing to put up with a plain girl like you.”
Sophia tried not to bristle. She knew she wasn’t plain, especially not compared to her sisters. And from the way that mysterious gentleman had been looking at her. But with her sister saying it and giving her that look, it did sting. Sophia wished her closest family members weren’t so good at cutting her down.
