The Heart of a Vicar by Sarah M. Eden EPUB & PDF – eBook Details Online
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- Authors: Sarah M. Eden
- Language: English
- Genre: Clean & Wholesome Romance
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Nottinghamshire, England
October 1816
ACCORDING TO HIS BROTHERS, HAROLD Jonquil was born a vicar. And when one
was born something, one learned to act well the part.
He stood outside the church doors, as he did every Sunday, offering the
appropriate nods of acknowledgment to his parishioners as they left,
pretending as though interacting with dozens upon dozens of people didn’t
take every drop of reserved energy he had. He didn’t struggle to interact with
people as much as his brother Corbin did, but it was still a battle. He never
entirely knew what to say, falling back again and again on an authoritative
recitation of scripture or sermons, hoping no one would realize how inept he
really was. That near-constant uncertainty was exhausting.
He accepted the various comments on his sermon, whether expressions of
praise or criticism, with solemnity. He neither smiled nor frowned; a vicar, he
had come to learn, was meant to be a study in neutrality, ever calm, ever
rational, ever dependable.
Ever exhausted.
Ever boring.
His oldest brother, Philip, stepped from the church. Philip had been born to
be an earl, yet no one could convincingly argue that he fit that mold at all. He
was flamboyant to the point of absurdity, his mannerisms so overdone that he
was rendered rather ridiculous, and not the least interested in hiding his
thoughts and feelings behind a neutral mask. Philip’s behavior inspired
annoyance in at least one of their brothers. Why was it earls could fill their
roles in nearly any way they chose but vicars could not?
Philip’s wife, Sorrel, walked at his side, one arm through his and the other
firmly gripping her cane. She had suffered horrific injuries in an accident
many years earlier. Though efforts had been made to restore some of her
mobility and to relieve the constant pain she endured, she was not, and likely
never would be, truly whole.
She had often been absent from services over the past year. Sorrel had
endured two very difficult and ultimately heartbreaking pregnancies and was
in the midst of another, though few beyond the family knew as much. Her
already fragile body was struggling. Not to mention the house party at
Lampton Park, the family seat, about six weeks earlier. The gathering had
taken a toll on Sorrel, one from which she hadn’t recovered. Indeed, she
seemed to be struggling more.
“I am pleased to have you here this week, Sorrel.” Harold offered a dip of
his head. He’d found over the years that it served as a good general gesture,
one suitable to most any occasion, and it saved him the difficulty of trying to
think of the correct thing to do when he was already worn down.
“I do hope you mean to bestow a blessing on our heads, Your Grace.”
Philip bowed deeply from the waist, addressing Harold in the way one would
an archbishop.
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