Three Sisters, One Man - Part One

    The warm summer breeze lifted the curtains as the sun slowly rose over the town. Three beds with gold and white puffy comforters filled the room. Two girls sat up with identical brown hair and brown eyes. They stretched long, ivory arms to the roof and yawned. They smiled at each other then looked at the other bed.
    “It’s your turn,” one of them said but the other shook her head.
    “No. I woke her up last time.”
    “Chicken,” the first muttered and swung her legs out of bed. She approached the lump of covers and poked it warily. “Sister,” she whispered. “Sister, dear, it’s time to wake up. Sister!” Her eyes twitched and she picked up a pillow. With a grunt, she began to swing it down. “Wake up!”
    A hand shot up from the blankets and caught the pillow.
    “Back. Away. Donna.”
    Donna stumbled over her nightgown as she hastily made her way back to her bed. The other twin watched with her legs brought up to her chest. She looked at Donna who looked back at her. The third and final sister sat up slowly.
    She had messy black hair and dark green eyes. She looked nothing like her sisters but looked identical to her father.
    “Good morning, Rose,” the other twin, Sasha, whispered.
    Rose just glared and got out of bed and went to the washroom. When the door was safely latched, Donna let out a long breath and glared at her twin.
    “You’re doing it next time,” she snapped and Sasha smiled weakly.
                                                                                              =+=
    “Good morning ladies!” their father boomed as the three sisters descended the stairs.
    “Good morning, Father!” Sasha and Donna sang, hugging him.
    They wore identical red dresses with gold filigree and a maid had pinned their hair in intricate braids. Fredrick Priest hugged the twins and the two bustled off to their mother. Fredrick smiled as he held his arms open for his third daughter.
    “Rose,” he said and she stepped into them.
    He hugged her tightly as she wrapped her thin arms around him. She was in a grey dress with green designs. She left her black hair alone. To her sisters, Rose looked plain and too ordinary. To her father, Rose was the radiant flower he had named her after. She was the jewel of his eye. She stepped out of the hug and he kissed her forehead.
    “Are you ladies ready for a light breakfast?” he asked as Rose hugged her mother.
    They moved into their large dining room. They lived in the largest home and they were very well off. Her father was once a general but an injury had him bound to his house. He didn’t regret it, though. It gave him more time to spend with his beautiful wife and three charming daughters.
    Sasha and Donna were 19 and Rose was 25. That was another thing that set her apart from her sisters. She was considered a spinster since she hadn’t married. Sasha and Donna were constantly on the lookout for men. So far, the ones looking promising were the Smith brothers down the way.
    Rose sat to her father’s left, her mother to his right. Sasha and Donna sat across from each other and started to chat away about boys. Rose turned to her father, a little nervous. She was about to ask something that was not heard of with a woman. He noticed her hesitance and put the paper down.
    “Is something wrong, Rose?” he asked, his lips turning down into a frown.
    “Well,” she began and was aware of all of them looking at her. “It doesn’t look like I’ll be marrying soon…” Her father put his hand on hers. “So I was wondering if I could learn how to read.”
    Silence. She ran a hand through her hair as her father put his hand back on the paper. She couldn’t bring herself to look at him.
    “Mathias,” he called and one of the servants scurried in. “Go call Dr. Panacus, please,” he said and Rose looked at him, eyes wide.
    “Yes sir,” the servant bowed.
    “Fredrick,” her mother began but he silenced her.
    “Rose has every right to learn to read,” he said and Sasha laughed. “What?”
    “Rose reading?” she snorted. “Daddy, it’s bad enough that she isn’t married. Having a sister that can read is just embarrassing!”
    Rose rolled her eyes and stood.
    “Where are you going, dear?” her mother asked.
    “I’m not hungry,” she answered. “I’m going to the market to get some fabric,” she added and her mother nodded.
    The day was hot as she left, an umbrella resting on her shoulder to shield her delicate skin from the sun. People were out of their houses, talking and gossiping. A woman waved for Rose to come over and she acquiesced.
    “We were just talking about the new family that moved here,” Kelly said and Rose asked what she was talking about. “The Kingsleigh family. Well, more like the Kingsleigh siblings. It’s just a man and his sister.”
    “Where did they come from?” she asked, running her hand on her forehead to remove the sweat that had built up.
    “England,” she whispered and Rose lifted an eyebrow in appreciation. “I know!”
    “I have to go,” Rose said. “I’m running an errand.”
    “Ok. Bye!”
    “Good bye,” she returned, curtsying a little.
    The market was buzzing with life and she smiled a little. She liked the market because she got to socialize and get away from her annoying sisters.
    “ROSE!”
    Rose groaned quietly and turned to see the twins running up to her. When they reached her, they were talking at the same time and she gathered they had heard about the Kingsleigh man. They wanted to meet him and she shrugged them off her arm.
    “Then go find him,” she said. “Excuse me, please.”
    She disappeared into the crowd and wandered over to the fruit cart. She inspected all the different fruit, occasionally swiping at her forehead. She found an apple she wanted and reached for it. At the same time, a hand met hers and she jumped, withdrawing her arm, and turning to the left to see who was standing there.
    Both she and the man froze. He had charcoal hair and blue eyes. He was very, very handsome. The golden watch tucked into the pocket of his vest revealed how rich he was. It seemed like the world had disappeared as she stared into his eyes.
    “I am sorry,” he said and she almost fainted at how thick and low his voice was. It only made him that more handsome. “I didn’t realize you were there.”
    “It’s ok,” she breathed. “I wasn’t paying much attention myself.”
    The vendor was watching with a wide smile on his face as the man extended his hand.
    “My name is Samuel Kingsleigh,” he said and she placed her hand in his.
    "Rose Priest,” she returned. “It’s a pleasure.”
    “The pleasure is all mine,” he muttered and kissed her knuckles.
    She smiled at him and he took something out of his pocket.
    “You look very warm,” he commented.
    His voice was soft as he pressed the kerchief to her forehead. The vendor’s smile grew some more as Rose blushed.
    “Thank you,” she squeaked and he handed it to her.
    “Keep it,” he insisted. “The days will only get warmer, I hear.”
    She smiled weakly and was about to ask him something when she was pushed out of the way by her sisters. She sighed as they started to work their charm and the vendor handed her an apple.
    “On the house,” he said and she smiled sadly.
    Without another glance, she walked away. As she headed for the fabric cart, she looked at the kerchief. She smiled a little. It had his initials on it in gold lettering. A pang struck her, though, as she reminded herself of her age and her title among the town.
    She sighed sadly and tucked the kerchief away.