An Untimely Romance: A Time Travel Romance by J Wells, L Wells

bed, but she tripped on the
dress and fell to the floor like a rag doll.
    “Beautiful!” Ruben
laughed sarcastically, looking down at her blotchy, tear-stained face.
“Pathetic, more like. I suppose you’ll run off and find your boyfriend now. And
talking of Frank, get showered! You reek of him, and I don’t take kindly to
anybody’s seconds.”
    “But, but...” Heather
sobbed inconsolably.
    “It’s too late for
buts,” he scolded, walking towards the doorway.
    He turned the large
brass handle downwards and pulled the door open, before peering out onto the
landing.
    “See you for dinner at
six, girl,” he said, his voice softening.
    He didn’t turn back or
make any further advances, and just closed the door behind him, leaving Heather
in emotional turmoil.
    ~•••~
    Later that afternoon, Heather lay sobbing
on her bed, thoughts of Ruben, Frank and the bizarre happenings around the
manor over the last couple of days running through her head. She felt perplexed
and at an all-time low. Between tears, she gazed at the beautiful dress, which
was now hanging on the outside of her wardrobe. She felt a cold chill.
    “How could I have been
so stupid, so bloody ungrateful?”
    She could have kicked
herself. Her eyes drifted up to the ceiling. Suddenly, the vibration coming
from her phone disturbed her. She rolled over to the chest of drawers and
grabbed it. Looking down at the screen, she saw that Ruben was calling; somehow
she just couldn’t face him, not yet. She felt so guilty about her actions, her
almost childish outburst. But then Ruben didn’t know the half of it, did he? she thought to herself. The phone fell silent, but only for a second, and
then a new message appeared: No questions asked. Pack ya bags, coz in the
morning I’m taking my special girl away for the weekend. Can’t wait to c u l8r,
luv you already, Ruben x P.S. Pack sumat sexy x
    The butterflies
returned to her stomach. He’s forgiven me... she thought, sitting up and
feeling revitalised. She walked over to her bedroom window and looked out at
the immaculate gardens, feeling very proud. Freesdon Manor was becoming quite
the prominent feature in the surrounding neighbourhood, and she felt so lucky
to be living in such beautiful surroundings.
    “An hour and a half and
he’ll be here!” she heard herself saying out loud.
    Dancing round the
bedroom excitedly, she considered what to wear for dinner. She took her time
and smiled at her choice of a red silk vest top – not overly dressy, but it
felt nice against her skin, and complemented her pale complexion and mid-brown
hair. After putting it on, together with her new black trousers, she admired
herself in the mirror. Picking up her phone once again, she sent Ruben a short
but sweet message she was sure he’d appreciate:
    Bags packed ... love you too xxxx.
    She giggled to herself
as she pulled a small suitcase out from under her bed. She heard a light
tapping at the door.
    “Okay, Mum, be with you
in ten. No, actually, come in...”
    Heather couldn’t wait
to tell her mum about the weekend; it would be a chance to have a girly talk
and perhaps start building on their relationship.
    “Just putting my
make-up on; come in,” she repeated.
    Heather stopped
briefly, waiting for a reply, but there was silence. Strange , she
thought, and went to open the door. An unassuming girl of a similar age to her
was standing there, looking down at the floor, almost apologetically.
    “Yes, who are you?”
Heather enquired, feeling rather disappointed.
    “Housemaid,” the girl
squeaked.
    Her skin was almost
transparent, and she had a small frame swaddled in a plain white dress. As for
her hair, Heather couldn’t see very much of it since the majority was covered
by an odd-looking skullcap; the few visible wisps were a light ginger.
    “I didn’t know my dad
had employed a maid, and I’m not sure about the uniform, but don’t worry, I’ll
have a word with him later.”
    The girl didn’t reply,
her