Lady Ann's Holiday: Chapter Thirty Three - Part One

 

Servant & Lady

1

Ann had a delicious breakfast in the hotel dining room with Richard, sitting quietly thoughtful.

“Ann dear, you seem of dour disposition today,” said Richard. “Are you alright?”

She smiled quickly and falsely. “I’m fine, thank you darling. Just considering what it will be like to be home. So much… has changed since I was there last.”

“Indeed it has my dear. You’re soon to be married to the most eligible bachelor in England. Your life is about to be transformed in ways you can’t possibly imagine.”

Ann gave something that was half way sigh and half smile. “You’re righter than you know.”

Richard went back to his paper and Ann toyed with her food, not thinking anymore about what decision she would make; she’d done enough dwelling on that, sleepless in the night. Instead she tried to imagine what it would be like seeing… that dirty man again for the first time in almost a month.

A smile played on her lips and then became broader. There had been such an extended rise toward their meeting again at last, it was hard to believe it was really going to happen. When the exchange had first happened, she’d had an entirely different idea of what it would be like. Back then she had purely been doing this under the orders of the former Ann, hoping for some kind of reward of affection. Now, so much had changed, making her understand exactly how low in value any reward would have been.

Now, instead, she had all the power. She was the refined lady; he a bootlicking servant. If she chose she could keep this life forever and condemn him to that one. As a lower class working man, that urchin simply had no say in the matter.

It was delightful to chew that power over in her mind, to relish the control she had over that feeble man’s destiny.

What would it be like to entirely relinquish that power? Some part of her tingled at the idea of that, the same somewhat erotic side that had existed in the original Lady Ann and drawn her to the swap in the first place – that made her push the change to the lower limits of her status and intelligence.

She practically buzzed at the concept of surrendering all her beauty and wealth in return for nothing but poverty, filth and ignorance.

She closed her eyes and shook her head.

Was she really so rash and foolish as the original Ann that she would consider such a thing purely for the masochistic excitement?

She looked at Richard’s stern brow and concentrated gaze on his newspaper.

No. She wasn’t a foolish woman. She was strong and proud and refined. But she had had her doubts. She had been desperate to be a man again – to have that strength, anonymity and sexual promiscuity.

She sighed and covered it up to avoid Richard’s querying glance by putting her cup to her lips.

They would leave right after breakfast and catch the train the rest of the way. Then she’d see.

When she saw Burt…

When she saw him, she’d know what she was going to do.