“Your father was quite the ladies’ man. I think finding him in her bed was the last straw. Now we mustn’t speak of such unpleasant things.”
Sebastian wasn’t surprised by Nanny’s story. He knew how strict his mother could be and the lengths she would go to rectify an unpleasant situation. Sebastian imagined he’d be driven to have affairs, too, if he were married to Lady Lily Irons. “I have no memories of him, Nanny.”
“Sebastian, your mother found out she was pregnant after she sent your father away.” She tried to smile as she reached for his hand. “I’m so sorry, my dear boy.”
Sebastian shrugged. There was no point in grieving over someone he never knew. “It doesn’t matter. I’ve had you to raise me. I couldn’t ask for anyone better.” And with that, he dropped the subject all together.
Friday morning, Sebastian escorted Nanny to breakfast. “Let’s eat in the kitchen with Henry and Alice,” she suggested. “There is no sense in using the formal dining room when it’s only the two of us. I like Henry and Alice’s company.”
Sebastian didn’t argue. Since his exile had begun two months before, he and Henry seemed to be forging a relationship, despite the bumpy start. In a way, Henry had become a surrogate father—teaching Sebastian to drive, showing him how to repair the greenhouse, and working in the stables with the horses. Suddenly Sebastian found that life at Edgewood Estate was not all bad. It seemed as if he had found an unconventional ‘family’ with Nanny, Henry, and Alice.
Alice smiled as Nanny and Sebastian entered the kitchen. “Good morning, I’ll have breakfast ready in a moment.”
“We’d like to eat in here this morning, Alice.”
“Okay, I’ll get the dishes from the dining room.” Alice stopped in the doorway. “Oh, Sebastian, there’s a letter for you that’s just arrived today from England—it’s on the table.”
“Thank you, Alice.” He picked up the letter and looked at the return address. It was from Penny. He stared at it for a long time, not sure if he wanted to open it. Curiosity eventually won out and he ripped the flap of the envelope, pulling out its contents. Inside, on crème-colored Symthson stationary, Penny had written in beautiful cursive.
Dearest Sebastian,
I hope you are well and making your way in America. I’m sure the culture shock has been difficult, so I did not want to disturb you while you settled in. Things are progressing with Alistair. He’s taking me to the Live Aid concert next week. It will be our first public outing as a couple. I’m more than a little nervous. I wanted to let you know that I think of you often and miss you terribly. I cannot seem to shake the memories of our secret week, nor do I want to. I hope you are on the way to finding the peace and happiness you so deserve.
With much love,
Penny
After reading the letter, three things entered Sebastian’s mind: he didn’t know if he should crumple the letter in his fist, tear it into a million little pieces, or carefully tuck it away.
“Are you all right?” Nanny asked in a concerned tone. “Was it bad news?”
Sebastian shook his head. “It’s nothing, Nanny. I’m fine.” He slipped the letter in his pants pocket.
A few minutes later, the four of them were sitting together eating eggs Benedict. “What are your plans for today?” Nanny asked Sebastian.
“I don’t know. I groomed the horses yesterday and visited the library the day before that.” He tried to be pleasant, but the news from Penny had left him with little appetite.
“Have you talked to your sister lately?”
Before Sebastian could respond, Alice jumped into the conversation. “You have a sister?”
“I have two older sisters and a brother.”
“Sigourney lives in New York City,” Nanny explained to Henry and Alice. “You should go visit her, Sebastian. I know she would love it.”
“I don’t have a car, Nanny.”
Henry glanced at Nanny, who nodded her approval. “You could take the train,” Henry suggested.
Sebastian had often thought of visiting Sigourney, but assumed his ‘house arrest’ would prevent him from leaving the grounds of Edgewood. What were they thinking encouraging Sebastian to take a trip to New York? The city was brimming with temptation at every turn. Maybe that was exactly what he needed after two months of perfect behavior—a little fun in the city and a means to forget about Penny, who again entered his thoughts. “Can we leave after breakfast?”
The Amtrak train sped along the tracks of the Northeast Corridor toward Penn Station. Sebastian stared out the window watching the scenery pass by, a book sitting unread in his lap. He couldn’t shut his brain off. Images of Penny invaded his mind and he couldn’t tune them out. Why did he miss her so much? It was no use: she belonged to Alistair. He hoped that New York would banish her from his consciousness.
Sebastian knocked on the front door of his sister’s house, a beautiful old brownstone on the Upper East Side. A minute later, a maid opened the door. “I’m here to see Sigourney,” he announced. Stepping into the foyer, he observed a flurry of activity inside. Men were moving furniture in the sitting room. Women were arranging flowers and setting up cocktail glasses.
His sister entered the foyer. “Sebastian!” she exclaimed with delight, rushing to hug her brother. “What are you doing here?” She was dressed in a khaki skirt and Lacoste polo, her long brown hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“Visiting. I was sprung from prison with time off for good behavior.” Motioning around with his arm, he asked, “What are you doing?”
“Throwing a party. What good timing you have. How long are you staying?” she asked, pointing to his overnight bag.
“Don’t know. I just needed to get out of Philadelphia for a while.”
She leaned in and kissed him on the cheek. “Well, make yourself at home. The party starts at eight. I’ve got a ton to accomplish before then.” And with that, Sigourney was gone.
Wandering into the sitting room, Sebastian found the bar stocked for the party. He grabbed a crystal glass and the bottle of scotch and made his way over to an oversized chair in the corner of the room. Ignoring the frenzied activities surrounding him, he poured the scotch and took a sip. The wonderful flavor of oak, leather, and apricot swirled over his taste buds. Leaning back in the chair with a grin on his lips, he thought, This is heaven.
Once showered and dressed for the party, Sebastian walked to Sigourney’s room. Inside, she was sitting at the vanity table, brushing her long brown hair. “Come sit,” she instructed. “I want to catch up with you.”
Sebastian lay on the bed, propping his head with his right hand. “What kind of party is this?” She was wearing designer jeans and a silver silk halter top. Sebastian was conservatively dressed in a suit.
“Oh, I’m just having a few chums over from school. It’s nothing formal.”
Sebastian groaned. “Please don’t subject me to boring musos who like impromptu Beethoven jams.”
“Nothing about Beethoven is impromptu,” she admonished.
“Fine, then tell me you’ll have beautiful women that I can flirt with at this party.”
Sigourney turned to face him and threw her hairbrush at Sebastian.
“What? I’ve been celibate for two months!”
“You must be in a great deal of pain, darling,” she teased.
“Excruciating.”
“Enough about your sex life. Tell me about Henry and Alice. Are they terrible to you?”
“How do you know about them?”
“Mummy, of course.”
Of course Lily would have filled her in on the whole sordid affair. “They’re not so bad. Alice is an amazing cook. Henry has been teaching me to drive and we repaired the greenhouse together,” Sebastian explained.
“Interesting.”
“Yes, I’ve been reduced to manual labor to stave off boredom. I’ve no car, drugs, or sex, and I’m almost out of cigarettes. Which reminds me—please tell me there’s a shop in town where
I can pick up some Dunhills?”
“There’s a British shop on Fifty-Second and Lex.”
“Brilliant.”
Sigourney stood, surveyed herself in the full length mirror, and smiled. “Time to party.”
Sebastian observed the party guests’ arrivals from the chair in the corner of the sitting room. Sigourney greeted every guest—a mix of wealthy, educated, and bohemian people.
One woman in particular caught his eye. She was tall and exotic looking with short black hair, high cheekbones, and glowing dark brown skin. Sebastian had a strong urge to touch her and see if her skin was as soft and luxurious as it looked. He stood and made a beeline in her direction. Sigourney was standing close to the woman. They seemed to share a private joke, laughing as he approached.
“Sebastian, this is my friend Ashia,” Sigourney introduced.
Sebastian took Ashia’s hand and kissed it. Her skin was as soft as silk against his lips. “Pleased to meet you. That’s a lovely name.”
“Thank you,” she replied in a South African accent.
“What brings you to America?”
“I’m studying economics at NYU.”
Sebastian slid her arm through his and steered her to the bar, winking at Sigourney as they left his sister’s company.
“NYU? And here I thought I’d be surrounded by stuffy Juilliard types all evening.”
Ashia laughed. “I assure you, I’m not stuffy. What university are you attending? Wait, let me guess.” She studied him for a moment, looking up and down at his body. “Columbia, right?”
Sebastian grinned. “You are both beautiful and perceptive.” He let her believe whatever truth she wanted to impose on him. “What would you like to drink?
“Cosmopolitan.”
The bartender nodded and looked at Sebastian. “Scotch—neat.”
Ashia stayed by his side the entire evening. Sebastian enjoyed talking, dancing, and drinking with her. He was very glad he had taken Nanny’s advice and made the trip. “Would you like a tour of the house?” Sebastian inquired, eager to leave the crowd and get her alone.
“Let’s start with your bedroom,” she purred, taking his hand.
They made their way upstairs to his room. As soon as the door was opened, Ashia grabbed Sebastian’s jacket and pulled him into a kiss. He backed her up against the wall and greedily accepted the kiss, opening her mouth with his tongue to taste her. He was buzzed from the alcohol and so turned on he wasn’t thinking straight. This wasn’t slow and sensual lovemaking. He just had a strong urge to fuck her, so that’s exactly what he did, up against the wall. They were sweaty, grinding and moaning in unison. When the deed was done, Ashia pulled down her skirt and softly kissed him on the lips. “Thanks for a good time,” she murmured in a sexy voice.
“My pleasure.”
She left him alone in his room. Sebastian was drunk and sated, but still very lonely.
The next morning he woke with a throbbing headache and parched throat. Why did he always give in to the temptation, he wondered, slowly making his way to the bathroom.
Sebastian sat on the closed toilet lid and attempted to open the childproof aspirin cap, with no luck. He threw it across the bathroom in frustration. It hit the far wall and the top popped off, sending dozens of little white pills bouncing off the floor. “Brilliant,” he muttered, getting down on his knees to pick them up.
Turning on the shower to its hottest setting, he stripped off his clothes and stepped into the stall. The warm water seemed to sober him up and lessen the headache. I can’t do this anymore, he thought to himself, attempting to let the flow of water wash the indiscretions of the previous day down the drain. Sebastian stayed in the shower until the water ran cold.
Come Monday he would get back on track. Nanny, Henry, and Alice would be none the wiser of his New York encounter with the beautiful South African. He would go back to Pennsylvania where Henry would take him to the DMV for his driving test. Once he had his license, Sebastian would go to the library and do research on universities that he might like to attend. If Nanny was going to pay for his college education, he had to prove to her and himself that he was taking it seriously. He definitely wanted to do some research on NYU.
Chapter 7 - The Kids in America
Sebastian took a deep breath before he grabbed the metal handle of the glass door. You can do this, he thought to himself. He stepped inside St. Alexander’s High School to the sounds of a multitude of footfalls walking along the highly polished floor. Some students laughed and hugged one another, happy to reconnect after summer vacation; others looked downright depressed to be back. Sebastian was definitely siding with the latter group.
He studied the other young men in their navy blazers and starched white shirts adorned with red striped ties. The young ladies were wearing navy pleated skirts and white oxford blouses. He certainly looked the part, he thought, but Sebastian still felt ill at ease.
After receiving his class schedule and a map of the building from the dean’s office, Sebastian made his way to room 102 for English class. He kept a low profile and tried to avoid any attention. It seemed easy enough through the first two classes of the morning, but then homeroom occurred. This concept was very foreign to Sebastian, who was used to coming and going as he pleased without having to account for his whereabouts between classes at Eton.
Mrs. Royer was this year’s homeroom teacher. She started the period with roll call. There were whispers in the back of the room about him, the new student that had come to St. Alexander’s. Sebastian tried to ignore it, but sat uneasily, the stares of twenty-seven students bearing down on him.
Mrs. Royer looked down at her seating chart and called, “Sebastian Irons.”
“Present,” he replied in a perfect American accent.
It took no more than a mere moment until laughter broke out from the far corner of the room. “The Bradley F. Walters Prep School is down the block,” Sean Moore, quarterback of the football team, muttered under his breath.
Mrs. Royer shot an angry look to the back of the room. “Sean, I will not put up with this behavior in my homeroom. I think you owe Mr. Irons an apology.”
“Yes, Mrs. Royer. Sorry,” he said unconvincingly. He turned back to his friends and continued talking, ignoring the reprimand.
The girl who had been sitting quietly next to Sebastian leaned toward him and softly said, “Don’t let them get you down. Since you’re new around here, you’re not going to get much respect. You might as well be a freshman to them. Sean’s a jerk anyway.”
Sebastian turned to look at her. She was a plain-looking girl. He had to admit that if he passed her on the street he would not have looked twice in her direction. She had wavy, brown, shoulder-length hair, a fair complexion, and wasn’t wearing any makeup. Her smile was warm and inviting, but when he looked into her eyes, he was struck by their kindness. “Thank you,” Sebastian whispered. “I would have called him a daft prick, but thought it might be best to stay out of trouble my first day of school.”
He gauged her reaction; the corners of her mouth turned up slightly. She was trying to suppress a laugh. “Now that’s one I haven’t heard before.” She extended her hand. “I’m Tess Hamilton. Welcome to Alexander’s.”
He returned the handshake. “Sebastian Irons—but you already know that.”
The announcements blared over the PA system and the room quieted. All attention was off Sebastian for a few minutes. The homeroom period was finished with the sound of the ringing bell, and everyone began to rise from their seats. Tess stood and collected her books.
“I’ll be seeing you around, Sebastian,” she said with a knowing smile.
“I hope so,” he replied.
Sebastian followed Tess into the maze of hallways. “Where is your next class?” Tess asked as the sea of students flowed past them like the rushing tide.
“Biology—room 302.”
“Go down the hall and take the stairs to the third floor.”
Seba
stian was about to thank her, but Tess was already making her way down the hall in the opposite direction. She’d been nice to him with seemingly no ulterior motive. It caught him off guard. This transition to ordinary American teenager was going to require far more patience and perhaps more skill than he had estimated. He wondered if he could pull it off.
Sebastian had been dreading lunch, but was relieved when he spied Tess Hamilton in the corner of the cafeteria seated with a few girls. The cafeteria was brimming with loud students catching up with each others’ summer adventures and already complaining about their new teachers and homework.
Sebastian found a table near Tess and her friends and took a seat alone. They were engrossed in conversation and didn’t notice him as he approached. He opened one of his textbooks and pretended to read, but in reality he wanted to eavesdrop on the girls’ conversation—especially to find out more about Tess, the only friendly face in this cold school.
Jordan asked, “Did you guys see the Jag out in the parking lot this morning?”
“No,” Courtney replied as she took a bite out of her hamburger, “but I bet it belongs to the mystery man over there.” She motioned in Sebastian’s direction. Apparently they weren’t too engrossed and had noticed his presence after all.
Jordan looked over her shoulder to see Sebastian sitting at the end of the table alone. “He’s rich and good looking, but he seems weird.”
“Not weird, Jordan, eccentric,” Courtney corrected.
Tess, who had purposely stayed out of the conversation to this point, interrupted. “He’s new here. Can you imagine how hard it must be to start a new school in your senior year?”
“Well, maybe you should go invite him to sit with us?” Jordan suggested.
“He’s studying. I don’t want to interrupt,” Tess reasoned.
“He’s not a gorgeous as Jeff,” Jordan announced, changing the subject.
“Jeff who?” Courtney inquired with a raised eyebrow.
Life's What You Make It: Love's Great Adventure Book 1 Page 7