"Milady, Sir Jasper seeks your audience." Called the maid of Elizabeth VonStout. She curtseyed and left Elizabeth's study. Elizabeth sighed, dropped her inked pen and massaged her temples with her thumb and index finger. She had told Jasper that she didn't want anything to do with him, yet he kept coming back, more determined each time.
With another sigh, she got up and left her study with the guest lounge as her destination. As soon as she stepped in, she was met with the sight of Jasper extending a bouquet of flowers to her. The bouquet contained tulips and roses, but mostly roses.
Her gaze shifted from the bouquet and to Jasper's face as an icy glare formed on her face. At first, she was just annoyed with his advances, but now she was really starting to hate him. She didn't understand why he refused to stop pestering her. She wished he would just scurry off like the other suitors who asked for her hand in marriage.
"How many times do I need to turn you down?! I want nothing to do with you! Just leave and don't come back!" She yelled, face red in anger.
"But how can I leave when you have a tight thread of love around my heart? I can't help but be drawn back to you!" He exclaimed and went down on one knee, "Please be my bride!." He added.
Smack! Elizabeth had reached her annual limit of nonsense and exercised her wrist on Jasper's face. She hadn't planned on doing such, but he had pushed her past her limit.
She stormed out of the room and ordered a couple of guards to escort Jasper out of the premises.
She returned to her work but found that she was having a hard time concentrating. Her mind kept on drifting back to Jasper's words. The thought that her whole world was meant to revolve around one person disturbed her. Could it be that simple? Falling in love? Surely it wasn't. It was simply too confusing to her. She didn't get it.
She closed what she was working on and decided to go horseback riding for some time to calm her nerves. She changed her attire to one that was befitting to ride a horse and went downstairs to the stable. She was greeted by the caretaker of the stable, Edgar, who helped her to mount her horse, Stallion. She named it Stallion because it sounded manly enough for the noble stead. She mounted her horse and steered him towards the forest path, deciding she would stay out till dusk.
Stallion galloped down the dirt path, jumping over logs, rocks and tree stumps. He slowed to a stop as they neared Elizabeth's favorite pond, the one her mother always came to whenever she was feeling bothered or sad.
Elizabeth unmounted her horse and walked towards the glistening water. She stared at her reflection for a while before her gaze shifted to the other side of the pond. The scenery was quite beautiful, but there was one thing that turned the atmosphere sour- Jasper. He walked along the shore of the pond at the other side. His head was low and he seemed to be in thought.
Jasper kicked the occasional pebble, deep in thought. He thought of all the possible ways to get Elizabeth to fall in love with him. He was not one to give up. He had been infatuated with her since her first social event when she turned eighteen.
He lifted his gaze and suddenly, he had found the highlight of his day- Elizabeth was standing on the other side of the pond, staring at him. Although there was a frown on her face, he was still happy to see her at his favourite spot. He quickly jogged around the pond to meet her.
"Hey," He said, "How are you?" Elizabeth eyed him warily and turned away, refusing to talk to him. Jasper sighed in defeat and ran his hand through his hair. Unlike other men of their time who liked to tie their hair back or wear wigs, he preferred to keep his hair short and neatly trimmed.
He sat down on the grass beside Elizabeth and watched her silently. He didn't know what it was about her that made him so obsessed. Maybe it was her attitude. Her hard-to-get demeanor thrilled him.
"What are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked out of the blue, startling Jasper. He didn't think she would speak to him. It was completely unexpected. He looked at her face but saw that she wasn't even looking at him, so he thought he had just imagined it and looked away.
"You still haven't answered my question." She spoke again. Jasper sputtered and choked on his saliva. He thought he had imagined it.
With haste, he said, "I was walking around here. It's one of my favourite spots in the northern province..." Elizabeth sighed and opened her mouth to speak but was interrupted by a deafening thunderclap. They had been too busy thinking to notice the approaching storm until it was right over their heads.
Another thunderclap followed closely behind the first and was accompanied by rain. The rain was so heavy that Elizabeth and Jasper were drenched in seconds.
Elizabeth slipped in the mud, but was caught by Jasper as she tried to run back to her horse.
"There's a hunting cabin close by that my family owns. It's better if we head there until the storm calms!" Jasper yelled over the loud drumming of rain around them. Elizabeth ignored him and tried to get Stallion to turn in the direct they came from but he just refused and stayed put. "Let's go! You'll fall sick if you stay here any longer!" He tried again and pointed in the direction. Elizabeth sighed and pulled Stallion in the direction of the cabin. He obliges which makes her mouth drop in disbelief.
The pair stumbled upon the cabin a few minutes later and Jasper opened the door to let Elizabeth in. He then left with the horses to settle them in the stable behind the cabin. Elizabeth let her eyes wander around the room. With a silent curse, she muttered, "What have I gotten myself into?"
