Love is in the Air

by Denise O'Hara

Jeanie turned around and saw her niece. She pointed at her and was bent over after she started to laugh harder and harder, louder and louder. Caroline began to seethe. She bent down, picked up a fruit and aimed for her aunt.

  “Caroline Bingley! Do not dare!” came the order from her mother.

  Jeanie looked up then and still laughing said, "Go on, hit an old lady, why don't you, Miss Snooty Patooty!" Caroline stood there looking at her aunt, then back at her mother and lowered her arm, dropping the fruit on the ground. She turned and started walking to the buggy. Ambrose was next to Jeanie standing by the cottage door. As he put the water barrel back in place, he picked up a pear. He put his hand containing the rotten fruit on top of her head and gently pressed down. “Be nice! And her name is Mrs. Gibb.” When he reached the buggy, he got in next to his wife and said, “Good day, ladies. It was a pleasure meeting you. We will be back in the morning for breakfast. And no leftovers!”

  As the buggy drove away, Helen began to laugh, and Jeanie joined in. The sisters walked back inside the cottage, and Jeanie said, “I like that little fella.”

  The buggy rounded the corner, and Caroline scooted over very close to Ambrose. She tucked her arm in his and leaned close to him. “You are my hero, Mr. Gibb.”

  Ambrose gave his wife a sideways glance and grinned. “You were not kidding. Jeanie can be monstrous. But to tell you the truth, I like that little monster.” Most of the neighbors in the hamlet were returning home from the fields and waved to the laughing couple as they passed.

  Chapter Three

  “There are some superior horses bred here. I have bought a few before. Did I ever tell you about the one that broke his leg when a man walked in front of him? Poor horse,” he said with a smirk on his face.

  Caroline looked at him and rolled her eyes. “Yes, I believe I have heard that one before.”

  The Gibbs had hired a chaise and were taking Helen and Jeanie to the races.

  “So you like to squander your money on horse races, do you? When Charles and Jane were here, they just stayed put and did not need to go traipsing all over the country,” Jeanie commented.

  “Where do you get your information from, Jeanie? I said we were going to look at the horses because I am interested in buying one, not that it is any of your business,” replied Ambrose.

  So it went back and forth between Ambrose and Jeanie. Caroline and her mother exchanged looks at the witty sparring going on between the two.

  When the back and forth arguing stopped, Caroline said, “Did I tell you what Harry said at our wedding? It was the cutest thing!”

  “I think she likes Harry better than she likes you, Amby,” said Jeanie, repeating the nickname she had heard Caroline use earlier. “She sings his praises every chance she gets.”

  “Tell me about it. I only hope she likes our children half as much!” he answered.

  Caroline playfully tapped his arm with her fan. “Oh, you are ridiculous. Of course, I will! They will be just like my Harry,” she said with a grin.

  When they arrived at the races, Ambrose found the ladies seats under an umbrella and ordered refreshments for them before heading off to look at the horses. He was gone for a little over an hour and had narrowed his choices down to a chestnut named Amber Dream, and a white stallion named Lightning Bolt when he heard the commotion.

  People were laughing as they gathered around the older woman, yelling at a jockey who had just lost a race. “You did it on purpose, you did!” she was saying. “You held him back!” Jeanie’s face was red as she yelled at the jockey.

  Ambrose pushed his way through the crowd to reach Jeanie. “Excuse me, is there a problem here?” he asked, making eye contact with Jeanie.

  “She is accusing me of cheating!” replied the exasperated jockey. “I did no such thing! I did the very best of my abilities, sir. It just was not our day!”

  Jeanie was breathing hard and looking at the ground.

  “The show is over people. Please go back to what you were doing,” instructed Ambrose to the crowd now starting to disperse. “I do apologize for this, lad. Here, go and get yourself a lemonade and cool off,” he said as he handed him a pound note.

  “Come on, Jeanie, let us return to Helen and Caroline,” he said as he led her back to the other ladies.

  “Everything is back to normal now,” said Ambrose to Caroline and Helen still sitting where he had left them.

  “What is your meaning, Mr. Gibb?” asked Helen. “Where did you run off to, Jeanie?”

  “We can talk about it later,” he says looking at Jeanie, who was still looking at the ground. “I tell you what,” suggested Ambrose, “I have narrowed my choices down to two horses. I would appreciate it if you ladies would accompany me and help me decide between the two. What do you say?”

  “Oh, I would love to, dear!” replied Caroline. Helen agreed, and the three women followed Ambrose to the horse viewing area.

  “I am trying to decide between the white stallion and that fine chestnut over there,” he told the ladies. “Jeanie, what do you think?”

  Jeanie mumbled, “I do not know.”

  “I find I am partial to the chestnut,” said Caroline.

  “I think I like the stallion,” was Helen's answer.

  “Well, since I could go either way, you have the tie-breaking vote, Jeanie,” said Ambrose. “Which will it be?”

  Jeanie mumbled something Ambrose could not quite make out. “Come again?” he said, leaning in closer to hear her.

  “I am feeling strange. I think I am drunk,” she whispered to him.

  “What are you talking about? Where did she get spirits from?" Ambrose asked the other two women whose puzzled looks told him they knew nothing about this situation.

  "The waiter brought us the ale," Jeanie quietly answered. "It must be complimentary here. He gave it to us, and I knew I should not drink it, but I was so thirsty in this heat that I could not help myself. When I saw that cheater, the alcohol started talking."

  Ambrose looked questioningly at Caroline. "Did you get ale? I ordered lemonade for you all."

  "No, I was brought lemonade. It was stronger than I like. I believe they did not use enough sugar. But it was lemonade, I am sure of it," Caroline answered.

  "It was bitter ade, not ale?" asked Jeanie. "I was not drunk?" she said loudly. "It must have been the strange taste of the ade mixed with the heat. That must have been what made me feel so unusual."

  The owner of the horses came up and asked Ambrose, "Have you made ye mind up yet?"

  Taking a step toward the owner of the horses, Jeanie said, "Ye said I was to be the tie breaker. Which one do you like, Caroline?"

  Caroline smiled at her aunt and said, "I am partial to the chestnut."

  "We will take the white horse." Jeanie spat into her hand and quickly grasped the owner’s hand to seal the deal. "After that fruit debacle, we will take the white horse. It took me two days to get those gnats out of my house!" she said before she started laughing her heartiest laugh.

  Caroline tapped her husband with her fan to stop him from laughing along with Aunt Jeanie.

  "You have to admit, Caro, there is never a dull moment with your aunt around," he said.

  Caroline looked at her mother, and they both shook their heads and gave in to a smile.

  Chapter Four

  On the last day of their visit, Caroline and Ambrose brought two more barrels of fruit.

  "Not again! What is with you two and the fruit? Just buy some cookies from the bakery next time!" Jeanie asked.

  "It has been thoroughly inspected and is of the highest quality, Aunt Jeanie. I am sure your neighbors will appreciate having fresh fruit for a change," said Caroline. "It is peaches this time and we have tried them. They are delightful."

  "Jeanie, come help me hand these out to your neighbors, and I have a little something extra to throw in as well," Ambrose said. He and Jeanie took the buggy down the road a bit to give Caroline some private time with her mother.

  "I
am so happy you came to visit, Caroline, but I am even happier that you and Ambrose found each other. He is good for you." Helen said.

  "Thank you, Mother, that means so much to me for you to feel that way. “Mother,” Caroline asked the question she had thought about frequently, “did you love Father?"

  Helen smiled, "Yes, I did love your father. I was attracted to your father from the start because when he set his mind to something, he went after it and was certain to be successful in whatever he set out to achieve. I liked that about him, and when I was with him I felt like I could do anything as well. What I did not foresee was that his ambition would take him away from me so often. Had I been older, perhaps I would have understood what to expect. I actually was jealous of his work at times. Do you know who helped me make it through those lonely times?"

  Caroline smiled, "Your children, I suppose."

  "Please do not misunderstand me, Caroline, but as much as I adored my children then and still do now, I have to tell you, having children is a lot of work. And for much of the time, I had all the responsibility of raising Louisa and Charles, and you too, until you were almost a teenager. There was a time I became resentful toward your father. Come with me. I want to show you something."

  Caroline followed her mother into her bedroom. She pulled a large quilt out from under her bed, placed it on top of her bedcovers and unfolded it. Inside were a large stack of letters tied with a ribbon along with many other items from her children's childhood, trinkets, and mementos from her travels and such. She untied the letters and started looking for one in particular. When she found it, she handed it to her daughter.

  "From Father?" Caroline smiled and said, "I did not know Father was much of a correspondent, much less one to write love letters."

  "He was not. These are love letters, but they are not from your father," Helen said. "There are different kinds of love, Caroline. These were all from your Aunt Jeanie. And they saved me from letting the resentment toward your father swallow me up and become bitter. Why don't you read this one?"

  “My Dearest Sister,

  “I am worried about you. You listen to Jeanie: you knew exactly what you were getting when you married Edward. So stop feeling sorry for yourself! When he gets home next month from his business, you hug him and kiss him. Have that nanny of yours take the children, and you go have a special holiday. Just the two of you. Go eat at those fancy restaurants you two like and spend some of that money he is piling up. You can get me a little present if it makes you feel better. I would not reject a new book. Or two. You know what I like. Enjoy the time you have together. When Edward leaves again, you bring the children here and have a rest. You well know your Jeanie will take care of you! Kiss those children for us and tell them we love them. We have more love between us than we need to make it through anything as long as we have each other.

  Your loving sister,

  Jeanie”

  Caroline looked up at her mother. "It sounds exactly like Aunt Jeanie. I beg your pardon, but it seems rather harsh."

  "Harsh is one way of looking at it. Direct, straight to the point, maybe. But for me it was just what I needed. Jeanie knows me better than anyone ever has or ever will. Did you notice she never said a bad word about your father? She never did while he was alive, even though she did not like him. She cared enough about me to tell me what I needed to help me through the situation. I followed her advice. Your father and I had wonderful memories of our little getaways, as we used to call them," Helen said.

  Taking Caroline's hands into her own, she said, "I loved your father even when it was not easy. Sometimes we all have to be reminded to do that. If things ever get hard in your marriage, come for a little holiday and visit your mother, or Louisa, or Jane. Go to a close friend who has a good marriage and will help you make it work, not someone who will join you in seeing what is imperfect in Ambrose. Please do not always think everything has to be your way, and always have some fun with your husband." Helen hugged her daughter and kissed her cheek tenderly. "I love you, Caroline."

  "I love you, Mother."

  After releasing her daughter Helen picked up a drawing among the items on the bed. "Do you remember this, Caroline? Charles had made it for me before he went off to school."

  Mother and daughter went through the memories that had been wrapped in the quilt. They talked, remembered the stories connected with each, and enjoyed their morning together. They had just put the tea on when Ambrose and Jeanie returned from their errand.

  "You have a real good man here, Caroline. You better be good to him," said Aunt Jeanie.

  Caroline went to her aunt and kissed her on the cheek. "Thank you, Aunt Jeanie."

  A very surprised Jeanie whispered to Ambrose “I think you may have a drinker on your hands, Amby. I have my suspicions it was her who spiked my ade at the races.”

  This time it was Ambrose who opened his mouth to defend his wife, but when he looked at Caroline, she winked and smiled at him, as she shook her head.

  They spent the next half hour having their tea and talking about the children, who did not want to eat the fruit offered. "I had to eat quite a few peaches today to show them it was safe after that fruit debacle," said Aunt Jeanie.

  After they left and were on their way to meet with Nellie and Harold to return to the yacht, Caroline smiled contentedly and said to her husband, "Thank you, Mr. Gibb, for bringing me here. You knew just what I needed." She reached over and gave him a kiss.

  Ambrose pulled the reins and brought their buggy to a stop on the deserted road. "You are not getting off that easily, Mrs. Gibb," he said, pulling her to him and kissing her until she was in need of air. "We are still on our honeymoon, you know. I intend for it last for a very long time."

  "Perhaps," was his wife's response.

  "What do you mean, perhaps? Are you ready for it to end already?" he asked.

  She kissed him again to let him know she was not ready for any of it to end. "I just have one question for you, Mr. Gibb. Do you prefer to be called ‘Father’ or ‘Papa’?"

  Chapter Five

  Jessamine Gerry was twenty and had been approached quite a number of times by young men of her acquaintances. Most had been men in service like herself, at either Bethany House or Tennant Lodge. But she never accepted their invitations. She had put them off for a number of reasons, not the least of which included her devotion to finding the kind of love her parents had. She had a many memories of her younger years with her parents, and all them were good ones. Though they had died when she was just six years old, she remembered how completely in love they were. The way they looked at each other, cared for each other, and often laughed together were the reminiscences that Jessie cherished most. She had heard that her father had been very shy, but she had no such memory of him. He was always soft spoken and very kind, but in his home with his wife and daughter, she only recalled them being comfortable and happy in each other's company.

  After her parents had died, Jessie was raised by the very kind Mrs. Wilson. Her guardian had soon realized that the girl would need a trade of some kind and took her under her wing, working in the kitchen. Jessie reminded Mrs. Wilson of her dear friend, Carolyn, Jessie's mother, who was both very bright and very kind hearted. She noticed when Jessie seemed to be getting overwhelmed by the loss of her parents the girl found her solace in baking and cooking. As time went by, her skills increased and she would bake delicious new delicacies that far exceeded Mrs. Wilson's pastry skills. The girl was not just good at her job, she also truly loved it. Once and a while she would be inspired by something and create a new pastry that would bring much praise from her employers at Bethany House, Mr. and Mrs. Bingley.

  Jessie had been diligent about saving her income and in the past year had sold to the Hursts the property her parents had left her. It was a lovely place, but once, when she had tried living there, too many sad memories of that tragic day had intruded. She was not sure what lay ahead in her future, but she did like the security the tidy sum she
had in the bank account gave to her. Mrs. Wilson had told Jessie that her father, Barry, was level headed and careful in all he did, including money matters. She very much liked any comparisons made between herself and her parents.

  Jessie had formed a close friendship with Louisa Hurst, as they had worked together taking care of the invalid at Bethany House. As a distraction to herself and Jessie, Louisa had talked quite a bit on a great variety of subjects while they worked together. One of the subjects was her brother-in-law. She had hoped for a connection to be formed between him and her sister Caroline Bingley. But alas, that did not come to be. She was worried that Matthew had thrown himself into building his career and might have missed his chance of finding love and would end up having to settle. Oh, it was done all the time, for various reasons, but what a shame it would be for it to happen to such a good man like her brother-in-law! As Louisa talked, Jessie thought of Mr. Hurst with whom she had exchanged a few brief words in the garden at Bethany House. That meeting had been an unusual one, and she found afterward that she was curious about Mr. Hurst. She asked Louisa questions concerning his work and character, all the answers showing him to be a well-liked and agreeable gentleman. Louisa had no idea Jessie was paying so much attention to what she was saying.

  Louisa was, therefore, surprised when she was suddenly made aware of her brother-in-law’s interest in her friend. She knew all too well what others would say about such a connection. They would say Jessie’s parents had been in service and after their deaths she was raised by a cook and she was unrefined because of it. An upstanding family like the Hursts had to make sure that their name was associated with those who understood the higher aspects of society. A kitchen girl could not possibly understand that.

  Louisa knew firsthand what others would say about such a connection. She had been one of those making such remarks in the past. When her brother had wanted to marry Jane Bennet, Louisa thought Miss Bennet beneath him in every way. But now things were different. Louisa was different. After all, she had adopted twins whose mother had been a maid. She also would now take offense if anyone ever suggested that Jane was beneath anyone. What a fool I was, thought Louisa. No, she would not make the same mistake again. She knew and liked Jessie very much, and if Matthew wanted her for a wife, Louisa would be her biggest advocate. Tomorrow night there was to be a small but formal gathering that the Hursts were hosting. Matthew was coming in for the occasion and had asked that Jessie be invited.