The city of Washington had been large and daunting, and looked nothing like Bath, though it paled in comparison to London. She was somewhat relieved to cross the Potomac River and into the countryside. They soon reached the gates of the plantation, and it was an incredible sight as the sun was beginning to set. They rode through fields of tobacco and vineyard-covered hills, before entering a wooded parkland. When the trees stopped, a beautiful white mansion stood before them abutted by a large river. It was unlike anything she had ever seen. Her sketch had not begun to do it justice. She was already itching to begin painting it. Her eyes drifted towards the crowd of people standing before the house. Her palms began to sweat as she searched nervously for his face. At last she found it, and next to him, arm-in-arm, was a beautiful, elegantly dressed young woman with perfectly coiffed brunette curls. Gwen shrunk into the corner of the carriage with her heart in her throat. She knew she had made a grave mistake.
