"Ladies, my friend Miss Augusta," Miss Maria continued introduced.
"Miss Augusta, " the two sisters showed the same courtesy they would when greeting Miss Maria.
"I am glad to meet you, " Miss Augusta smiled as she sized up the two sisters. Everyone knew there were two daughters in the Duke Thomason residence, but this was the first time Anastasia was making an appearance in years.
News of how undisciplined she was has spread through the circle, but seeing Anastasia, Miss Augusta only saw an elegant lady. Nothing seemed improper about her. The more she looked at her, the more she liked the pure aura around her.
When Elisabeth noticed that Miss Augusta was paying a little more attention to Anastasia, the smile on her face faded. In her opinion, she was more pleasing to the eyes, so why should anyone pay attention to Anastasi? She was nothing but her backdrop. "Let go over to the garden, the party is starting soon, " Lady Augusta said after casting a single glance at Elisabeth. It's not that she looked down on her, she had seen Elisabeth several times. Although they did not speak to each other, there was nothing to be curious about.
Elisabeth felt like hitting someone when she noticed this action. She had no idea why Miss Augusta would not look at her properly, so she concluded that Miss Augusta was more satisfied with Anastasia and ignored her.
"lead the way, " Miss Maria said. Although the change in Elisabeth's face was subtle, Miss Maria noticed and felt disappointed. Miss Augusta smiled and led the way into the garden. The garden was large, and the beautiful site of the flowers made it breathtaking as soon as they walked in.
"You have such an amazing garden, " Elisabeth quickly compliments as soon as they enter. She was afaird that someone else would beat her to it. She could not give the chance for Anastasia to keep stealing the spotlight.
"Thank you," Miss Augusta smiled. No one would complain about getting a compliment. Moreover, this garden was like a child to Miss Augusta. She had been dedicated to having such a beautiful garden with a variety of flowers.
"Everyone knows that Miss Augusta's garden is only seconds to the royal garden, " Miss Maria's group, who just stepped into the garden, heard the words of a young lady walking ahead with her friends. They were both gazing at the flowers with a small smile.
Miss Augusta felt a bit embarrassed hearing those words. Her 'small' garden should not be compared with the royal garden. Although she managed to have a few rear flowers, they were nothing compared to the royal garden.
"ahh!" her friend exclaimed softly. " I had no opportunity to be in the royal garden, but this already feels like heaven. Look at the beautiful Roses, " the second lady said. It seems that she really wanted to pick some Roses.
"yes, the roses are so beautiful. I feel that Miss Augusta's garden has some screat techniques to grow such fine Rose, " the First Lady nodded. She and her friend loved roses the most, so seeing such beautiful blooming roses, they could not take their eyes off for a few seconds.
"it's not just the roses. Look at the Camille, the Lavender, the Daffodils... Oh, the Daisies are so beautiful, and those Vibrant Violet, they are so captivating," the third lady joined in the conversation. She loved many flowers and had a hard time picking her favorite. There was a blooming smile on her lips. She had seen many gardens, but the way Miss Augusta arranged her flower bed made it attractive. Moreover, these flowers had been adequately nurtured.
"If I grew such a beautiful garden in my house, I would be happy every day, " The First Lady said. They walked as they spoke.
"Are those forget-me-not flowers? " the second girl asked, pointing at a flower bed ahead. Although the flower forget-me-not was famous, she had only seen it in pictures.
"yes, " The third lady answered. She was like a love-struck fool when it comes to flowers.
"Wow, I usually didn't like the color blue, but having the different colors of forget-me-not flowers together makes me want to plant some, " the second Lady said.
"Why would you want to plant some? I heard that those forget-me-not flowers were specially planted by Miss Augusta's beloved before he left for war and never returned, " the first lady lowered her voice when she said this. She had no idea Miss Augusta was walking behind her and heard this comment.
The first lady did not look around when she spoke as she did not want to look suspicious. After all, it was not a good thing to talk about others' private matters behind their backs.
Anastasia and Elisabeth did not expect to hear someone gossip, so they unconsciously peak at Miss Augusta.
Miss Augusta looked indifferent. She had lived so many years and knew that gossip was part of life.
Moreover, she did not have a problem with someone mentioning her beloved. She had been taking care of those flowers for twenty-five years, and the reason was that she did not want to forget the person who gave it to her. She thought of him every time she looked at those flowers, so she did not feel offended hearing someone comment about it. To her, the flower was not ill-fated. It was the last cherished gift he gave her.
The two friends walking ahead also looked at their friend girl, who spoke with curiosity.
"How do you know this? " the First Lady asked.
"My teacher mentioned it," The third lady replied. The other two ladies nodded their heads. They were all aware that Miss Augusta had become a widow at a young age. The girls stopped talking about Miss Augusta's private life and continued admiring other flowers. The first lady still looked at the forget-me-not with regret. Rose was her favorite flower, but looking at the forget-me-not flower, she felt she could have it as her second best.
The two groups soon arrived at the sitting area, a few ladies were sitting and chatting causally.
Miss Augusta was from an influential home; she had decided to be a teacher after her husband's death since they had no children, and she did not want to marry again.
So attending her party were three of her old students, two of her current students, and her friends and their students or daughters.
"Maria, " a lady who was sitting called out when she saw the group. She was seated in the company of two young ladies.
"Agatha, "Miss Maria smiled but cursed her luck in her heart. Since they were young, Agatha loved to compete over everything with her. Miss Maria knew that the two ladies sitting beside her were her daughters.
Agatha got to her feet and hugged Maria, "It's so good to see you, it's been a while," She had a friendly smile on het lips.
"I am happy to see you too, " Miss Maria said against her conscience. If she could, she wanted to stay as far away from Agatha as possible. She had avoided parties that would bring the two of them together, but she could not reject Miss Augusta as they had been good friends.
"Right, we have a lot to catch up. Why don't you join my table, " Agatha offered; although she knew that Maria would rather stay away from her, she wanted an opportunity to show off.
Miss Maria smiled and looked at Miss Augusta. It was her party, so she was unsure of the seating arrangement.
"Go ahead, since it was just a small party with friends, I decided to keep things simple, " Miss Augusta said with a helpless look. She knew that Maria would not want to share a table with Agatha, but there was nothing she could do. Miss Augusta decided to keep the seating arrangement simple because she was expecting twenty-five guests. She felt that everyone was within the same circle and knew each other, so that part could be skipped.
Who knows her decision would put her friend in such a difficult situation?
"Alright," Left with no choice, Miss Maria could only accept the invitation with a smile.