Introduction

Ummm...just pieces of the story I'm trying to write..nothing finished

But she was in love. Of that you can be sure. The man she loved was bright and high-spirited and above all, utterly gorgeous. He was perfect in Charlotte's eyes. In fact, she was prone to despairing just by looking at him because she was constantly reminded that he was always out of her reach and out of her league.

His features were fair, with his eyes a deep, crystal blue and his wispy blond hair kept long, as was the style of the day. His skin was flawless with an even olive shade so that his face seemed to glow. His nose was delicate and turned up in an almost feminine way, but that did not make his profile any less dashing. His smile was enough to weaken even the most hardy woman's resolve and melt the coldest woman's heart. An impossible flirt, he kept her always in confusion about the depth of his feelings for her, for she had never had someone so lovely joke and play with her as he did.

He was a natural favorite among everyone he knew, the women especially. And lately he had been seen out more and more with Julianne Wickham. Julianne was fashionable and lively and even Charlotte had to admit that they complimented each other so well whilst taking a turn at a ball or a party, or strolling arm in arm outside at a barbeque. His behavior with Julianne Wickham was no different than the attentions he showed Charlotte. It was only harder to get his attention when other ladies - prettier ladies - were around.

Charlotte knew she was no catch. She had inherited her father's broad shoulders and short legs and thick figure. She constantly battled with her weight despite eating hardly anything all day long. She wanted to cry everytime her maid laced her into her stays for it was all her maid could do to lace her littler than 27 inches. She had even tried fasting to no avail. Her weight and body seemed to always stay the same. Her black hair was frizzy and obstinate and refused to lie straight no matter what she did and lacked the beautiful shine that she saw in other ladies' hair. "Just wash with rain water, dear. That will solve the problem," her mother frequently offered. But it never helped. Nothing did. Charlotte felt she was doomed to be an ugly duckling for as long as she lived. She hadn't minded it so much when she was younger, but now as she began to see all her friends getting married or engaged, she became a little forlorn whenever she thought of her life and that she might never be married. Her father and brother, Nathan, often brought home gentleman to supper for her benefit, she knew, but they either paid all their attention to her younger sister, Amelia, or treated her with a cool indifference that was embarrassing for her. At these times, she hated her father and brother for it, though she knew they had the best intentions at heart.

She could hardly believe that she was her mother's daughter who had been a belle in her day. Amelia was fast becoming the most popular girl in her crowd as well and it was she who had inherited her mother's willowy frame and utterly feminine nature. Her older brother, Nathan, had had his pick of any of the girls in their county and he and Gloria Livingston were now planning their wedding for next year. The fact that Charlotte was not beautiful bothered her mother, Dolly, more than Dolly liked to admit. But she just told herself that the girl was a late bloomer and that someday some handsome man would recognize the inner beauty in her daughter and sweep her off her feet. She never worried about her other two children as she did for Charlotte. To Charlotte's father, Jessup, Charlotte was perfect in every particular, just as perfect as Amelia and Nathan. Doting father that he was, he never failed to grill the gentlemen he brought to dinner about why they did not take to his daughter as he thought they should have the next time he saw them. They always owned that they were not looking for a wife at the moment, that they were much more interested in making money and building their future, "but what a jewel you have in Amelia!" Jessup was not so deep a man that he did not take their testimony at face value, but Charlotte knew the truth. She simply was not desirable enough and she did not fault those women around her who were. She realized that she must make do with what God gave her and no matter what, be as gracious and as good a lady as her mother was.

The rules of gentility came natural to both girls but it was Amelia who excelled at being the most agreeable and accomodating of the two, which ultimately led to her being the better liked of the Carter sisters. Amelia's charm went far in making her a favorite among everyone they knew, and it was Charlotte's own beloved Jackson that had dubbed her younger sister, "Little Sunshine."

Dolly Carter and Vivian Wickham, Julianne Wickham's mother, had grown up together and were the best of friends, and it was their hope that their daughters become the best of friends. Of course, Amelia and Julianne got along just fine and were close in their own rite, but there was something about the girl which Charlotte did not like. Julianne was unendurably uppity and as spoiled as could be. In fact, she had seen firsthand the sort of scene she could cause if she was not given her way. As a child Julianne had hated to share, always pulled Charlotte's curls or kicked or pinched her, and had cried and whined incessantly to get what she wanted. In short, she was a brat. Not much had changed over the years except now it was more subdued. So whenever she heard compliments about Julianne's character, she had to stifle a giggle, knowing what kind of girl she really was.

It was this knowledge about Julianne's character that made Jackson's preference for her all the more unbearable. How could he be so enamored of her? What was it that attracted Jackson to her? Physically, she was an attractive young woman. She was tiny girl, barely five feet tall. Her features were small and kittenish. Her heart shaped face was broad across the forehead and pointed at the chin. She had clear blue eyes and a rosebud mouth that was set in a permanent pout. Her skin was as white as snow, so white that the blue of her veins could be seen beneath. Her strawberry blond hair had bright auburn streaks blended in. Her hair was beautiful, unlike Charlotte's drab brown hair. She was also an impossible and vicious flirt, and could not abide anyone being the center of attention besides herself. Amelia's disposition was much the same and when you put the two of them in a room together, it was all one could do to keep from throwing themselves out of a window, at least, in Charlotte's view. Men seemed to love it, like flies to honey.

Charlotte considered flirts silly and hardly worth her time and so she really had no friends. Except for Jackson. In Jackson, she had a rapport that rivaled her own brother's, for she had never been too close with her brother. In fact, she knew her brother not at all. Charlotte felt she made everyone in her family uncomfortable at times because she went against the grain. But the important thing to her family was that she still retained her decorum when it mattered.