“But what if someone comes?”
“No one will. Everyone’s napping at the house it’s so hot. Even Fiona, who normally practices in the afternoons.”
Against my better judgment, I unpinned my hat and pulled my loose-fitting dress over my head. I had a plain cotton slip on underneath. Even without the dress, I felt cooler. Cymbeline took off her dress, revealing that she wore her bathing costume instead of a slip. She held out her hand. “Come on, let’s go in.”
We splashed into the water. Cymbeline let go of my hand and dived headfirst into the deep middle of the creek.
She came up out of the water and shook her head like a dog. “Don’t look so scandalized,” Cymbeline said. “This is how we can swim when no one’s around.”
I wasn’t sure about getting my head wet, but I gingerly tramped into the water until I could no longer touch. The water cooled my overheated skin. “This is heaven.”
“If I could spend all my time down here, I would,” Cymbeline said.
We swam for a few more moments before hauling ourselves out of the water and collapsing in the grass.
I watched a lone cloud float above us for a few minutes. Cymbeline seemed lost in thought. I stayed quiet to give her time to think. After a few minutes, she rolled over onto her side and looked at me. “Louisa, I’m sorry about that night. You deserved to have some fun, and I ruined it. Sometimes I hate myself.”
“But it wasn’t your fault,” I said. “Viktor said it too. As did you. There’s no reason why a young woman shouldn’t be able to get fresh air without being afraid for her life.”
“Yes, but the truth is, we can’t.” She rolled to her back again and put her arm over her eyes. “I’m as mad at myself as I am the rest of the world.”
“You shouldn’t be.”
She lifted her arm from her face and turned just her head to look over at me. “I shouldn’t have gone out there, but I couldn’t stand watching Viktor and that Emma acting so chummy.”
“I thought you didn’t want Viktor?” I asked her without an essence of humor. This was a delicate subject. I didn’t want to drive her away by teasing her. I understood contradiction only too well.
“I don’t know what I want,” Cymbeline said. “Other than I don’t want him to be with anyone else.”
“The way he ran out to rescue you, I don’t think he wants anyone but you. He knew the exact time you’d left.”
“He did?”
“He pulled out his watch and saw how long you’d been gone and panicked. Ran outside without hesitation.”
Cymbeline returned to her side. “He was very brave, wasn’t he?”
“He and Theo both.”
“Did you ever hear the story about how he saved Josephine?” Cymbeline asked.
I smiled. “Of course. Everyone knows that story.”
“Ever since then, I had to stop thinking of him as my nemesis.”
“Friend instead of foe?” I asked.
“Right.”
“Did you ever think that maybe the reason you wanted to beat him at everything is because there’s a part of you that’s liked him all along?”
“It’s occurred to me, yes.” Her mouth twitched into a smile. “Even though it makes me mad. He’s always been so good at everything.”
“As have you.”
“But what use are any of my talents? I’m doomed to a life as someone’s wife or die an old maid with nothing to show for any of the hassle of living. What will I have accomplished with my life? Nothing.”
“A family?”