Free A Different Reflection by Jane L Gibson

I was working.
    â€œI am going to shower and change for dinner, George, if that is alright?” I enquired.
    â€œAbsolutely, me too. It is not very often I get to have dinner with a beautiful young woman. It is certainly a night for me to remember!” he remarked. I smiled at his humour.
    â€œI will see you in about half an hour, George!” I replied as I turned and took my wine with me to my room to change.

Chapter Six

    I closed my bedroom door behind me, tasted my wine (a large mouthful) and then placed it on the dresser before throwing myself on the large, four-poster bed. I closed my eyes and reached out my arms; I couldn’t even reach the edges, this bed was so big! It was soft, with heavy fabric, and I couldn’t wait to wrap myself up in it later that night. I clambered back to my feet and walked toward the window, unfastening my earrings; the rain had not relented since it started and it was getting heavier. It was dark and cloudy, and as the rain lashed on the old leaded windows, I shivered. I drew the heavy, long curtains to close out the cold. On grabbing my wash bag, I ventured out into the hallway, and walked two doors down to where George had explained the bathroom was. Even though I had been given a brief tour, it was hard to remember exactly what lay behind each door. I was relieved to find that I had chosen the correct one, and walked into the vast space that was the bathroom.
    It was decorated in an old style, with the bath in the middle of the floor, but it thankfully had taps and plumbing. I looked toward it and sighed, wishing I had the time to wallow in warm, foamy bubbles in the deep roll-top bath, but half an hour by any girl’s standards was not going to allow that! So I turned to the large shower that was built into one of the recesses and turned it on. I undressed and stepped into the warm and refreshing spray. The large fluffy towels were enormous and almost trailed along the floor, but the feel and smell was divine. I walked across to the mirror, stood and looked at myself, then attempted to put minimum make-up on. It wasn’t like I was venturing out on the town, so I didn’t need much make up. I thought I would try and look flawless in complexion with very little, as I somehow felt that George would appreciate that more. I slipped on my robe and hung the large towel once I was finished and ventured back to my room. As the rain had wet my hair earlier and it did not look too good, I had washed it quickly. With hairdryer in hand, I quickly tousled it as I dried it, leaving a length of natural waves. Tonight I would clip it up to suit my tea dress.
    Once ready, I quickly reached for my phone. I found no missed calls or texts from John but, knowing he was busy, I sent a text anyway, saying: ‘All is going really well. The story is as interesting as I thought. Find out more about George tonight over dinner. This place is amazing! Don’t work too hard – Kat x’. I was in all honesty slightly annoyed that I had not heard from him, so I decided that I would leave my phone in my room to charge. I slipped my nude-coloured heels on, checked my hair, which I had now neatly pinned up, applied some light lip gloss and left my room.
    Returning down the grand staircase gave me shivers, thinking of the balls in past years and the people that must have attended. I had visions of the dresses and laughter and conversation, but was then brought back to earth with a large flash of lightning that lit the slightly dark entrance hall. I scurried quickly down to George’s apartment and knocked as I entered. I couldn’t help but smile as George turned to me, dressed in a suit. It looked somewhat dated, but I liked it. It was dark grey in heavy tweed; he had a cravat that was pinned and a crisp white high-necked shirt. He bowed at my presence and then smiled back. “Why Katharina, you look delightful!” he stated.
    I curtseyed in return, then placed my empty