The air in her room was cooler than the balcony. Helena took a seat by the bed and waited for the door, pausing to admire herself in the gilt frame mirror that partnered her wardrobe. Of all her friends she was by far the best looking. She caught her breath and calmed her pulse.
What was she doing? She thought. She’d never led a sheltered life, but still, nothing like this. There’d been gossip with her friends, the kind of chatter about suitors in which any unmarried lady, no matter her standing, would engage. For the finer details about the male sex, and sex in general, there had been a particularly knowledge handmaiden a years past, an excellent teacher. But once rumours of Helena’s freedom with certain members of the household had spread to her wider family, there’d been a concerted effort to find her a husband. But what if they were right?
As Helena began to have second thoughts, a knock on the door brought her back to the earthy desires that sent her heart racing.
“Enter.” She calmly uttered.
The two men who stepped in were even taller than Helena had thought, and she stood up to greet them.