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1 year and four months after the wedding
Sophie gazes up at the painting, taking in the lady in silver's face. She was certainly beautiful, though there was something a little sad in her eyes, standing there, gripping her mask tightly in one hand.
Ben had spent months on the restoration. It looks perfect in its place in the gallery.
“Such an interesting story behind this piece.”
Sophie blinks and glances behind her as an older man settles on the bench in front of the painting. “I thought they didn't know the artist.”
The man chuckles softly. “Not officially. But there was a young man with the initials B.B who kept popping up in the gossip rags at the time. He was, allegedly, an artist of little note.”
“Oh,” Sophie says quietly, turning back to the painting.
“He was at the center of a terrible scandal,” the man goes on. “He fell in love with a lady's maid who worked in his mother's home.”
Sophie blinks and steps back a little, sitting on the other edge of the bench to listen.
“Some say they ran away together, and were never seen again,” he tells her. “But the society pages list him as getting married to someone else some years later.”
“He let her go,” Sophie concludes.
“Or she ran,” he shrugs. “Either way, a sad ending. But it's said he painted this in tribute. It was his only finished work. If it was indeed him.”
Sophie nods. “How do you know so much about it?”
The man chuckles. “Before I retired I was an art historian. And before that, as a young man, I worked at Somerset house. I gave tours.”
Sophie grins fondly. “That must have been fun.”
“Oh, no, it was dreadful,” he tells her. “Sneezers, crying children, chatters…Americans.”
She laughs at that and he shushes her playfully.
“Young lady, this is an art gallery, not a circus,” he chides with humor in his voice. “Now, what of you, are you an artist?”
“I am a photographer,” she tells him. “Magazines, news publications…I did a few fashion shows but they were about as dreadful as your gallery tours sound.”
He smiles. “Photography is an art all its own.” He looks to the painting. “How would you have photographed her, I wonder?”
Sophie gazes up at the painting, thinking it through. “From above. I would have had her knelt on the floor with the dress puffed out around her, looking up. Mask discarded to the side. Arms outstretched behind her to show off the bodice.”
“Scandelous for the Regency era,” the man tells her.
“But striking,” Sophie tells him.
“I agree,” he grins a little, looking at her, vaguely impressed.
Sophie grins back, tilting her head at him. He looks a little familiar. There’s something about his grin - crooked and accommodating - that reminds her of -
“Benedict!”
She blinks and turns, finding the older man getting to his feet to hug her fiance tightly.
“Not with the full name,” Ben laughs softly, hugging him in return. “Hi, Grandad. Thanks for coming.”
“Of course I did,” he tells Ben, rubs his arms. “You invited me. I was just chatting with this delightful young lady about the painting you restored.”
“You mean Sophie?” Ben asks, grinning, delighted, pulling away and reaching for her.
“Aaahhhhhh, so this is Sophie,” Ben’s grandfather says, turning to them as Ben wraps an arm around her. “Hello. Proper introduction, I’m Charles Ledger. Ben’s grandfather.”
“It’s so nice to meet you,” Sophie smiles, shaking his hand. She turns to Ben. “We were discussing the Lady in Silver.”
“Grandad has always been a little fascinated with this one,” Ben tells her.
“After hearing about it, I understand why,” Sophie smiles. “If she really is a maid, it makes it all the more intriguing.”
Ben looks back at the painting and grins a little as he then looks back at Sophie. “She looks a little like you.”
Sophie gives a soft, startled laugh. “I don’t know about that.”
Charles chuckles at them. “Come on. Let’s get something to eat so I can get to know this young lady better.”
Sophie takes one more look at the Lady in Silver and then follows Ben and Charles.
I remember how "fans" went after Harriet when she went with Luke to that event, nothing of this crazy people is surprising. They are not fans, they are online stalkers.
Sadly the crazy fans try to ruin it for the rest of us.
My blog is for positivity. Let’s ignore the assholes and get giddy when we have positive news like we had this weekend.
We got to see Luke on stage, Yerin in the audience supporting her “husband”
We got to see them both attending Wimbledon dressed to the nines both looking chic as fuck!
