Clementine turns to a trusted advice column after an ill-advised bout of early morning skinny dipping leaves her quite literally exposed and at the mercy of Rose, the gardener’s assistant, whose bamboo cane proves surprisingly persuasive. A blushing confession of barefaced mischief, botanic discipline, and a young lady’s deepening appreciation for blooms and blushes.

The Skinny Dipping Incident

Wisdom for the Wayward receives a breathless confession from Little Dithering, where one debutante's morning dip turns unexpectedly educational…

Dear Aunt Agatha,

I write in the spirit of discreet confession, and in the faint hope that you may reassure me that I am not, in fact, utterly beyond redemption.

By #VeraRanscombe

When Delia Hastings is summoned to the headmistress’s study during her final week at St. Eleanora’s Summer School for Young Ladies, she expects a stern talking-to, not a formal correction in front of her peers. But tradition runs deep at St. Eleanora’s, and decorum must be restored. What follows is a quiet reckoning: six strokes, six memories, and a lesson in grace that may stay with her far longer than she ever expected.

“No summer ever came back, and no two summers ever were alike.” (Christina Rossetti)

Chapter 1: Miss Hastings is Summoned

Delia Hastings stood in front of the desk with her hands clasped before her, not because she had been told to, but because anything else felt entirely out of place. She had hoped it would prevent her from fidgeting, though she still felt jittery, her tummy fluttering like a butterfly.