“Are you quite all right, Eleanor?”
Tears came unbidden to her eyes, and Eleanor took in a long, steadying breath as she battled to keep her composure.
“Lord Ashworth seems eager for your company,” her aunt continued, as Lady Sarah began to sing a folk song, her sister accompanying her on the pianoforte. “What think you of that?”
“I do not want his company.” Turning her head, Eleanor looked straight into her aunt’s eyes, her chest heaving as she battled her upset and worry. “Aunt, Lord Finchley wishes to… resume a connection, but he cannot as yet.”
Lady Cumbria searched Eleanor’s face for a few moments, then nodded slowly. “He cannot as yet, however.”
“No, he cannot.”
“Do you wish to tell me why that might be?”
Eleanor shook her head. “I cannot. It is not my place.”
“But you are willing to wait for him.”
“If I can.” Closing her eyes against a flood of tears for fear that they would splash down over her cheeks, Eleanor squeezed them tightly shut. “My father will certainly commend LordAshworth to me, in a very strong fashion, I am sure. Recall that he wants me to marry by the time this Season ends.”
“And he does not know of Lord Finchley’s potential interest.”
Opening her eyes and feeling dampness on her lashes still, Eleanor nodded.
“Then you need not worry,” Lady Cumbria said, as Eleanor gripped her own hands tight, using the sensation to stave off her tears. “I will speak to your father.”
Eleanor’s chest constricted. “What will you say? You cannot say anything about Lord Finchley for fear that he will not be able to do as he hopes after all.”
Lady Cumbria turned a little more in her seat, took Eleanor’s hand, and looked straight back into her eyes. “I do not know the situation, as I have said already, but given the clear affection you have for him and the love he has for you, I am quite certain that you will both find a way. You will not be happy with any other, Eleanor, I am quite sure of that. Indeed, to let yourself be pursued by another, to let yourself accept courtship from anyone else other than Lord Finchley will be to bring nothing but desolation and sorrow upon yourself! That is not something that you want, surely?”
Eleanor shook her head, her tears returning.
“Then I will tell your father that there is the expectation of a strong connection being formed between yourself and a particular gentleman, but that he – the gentleman, that is, for I will not say it is Lord Finchley – is making certain that some investments are sound or some such thing. That way, it will explain the delay but give your father the reassurance that he needs.”
Wishing that she could hug her aunt, Eleanor contented herself with setting her other hand on hers. “Thank you.”
“Of course.” Lady Cumbria smiled gently. “Recall, I know what it is like to have such feelings and to have such uncertaintyalso! But you will find happiness in the end, Eleanor. I am sure of it.”
“You did not accept him, then?”
“I did not have the opportunity,” Eleanor replied as she and Catherine, along with their maids, meandered slowly through the London streets, having already visited the milliners and the bookshop. “Your mother returned before I had time, for which I was very grateful!” She smiled at the memory. “She saved me, not only from his question but from his pursuit, I think.” Seeing Catherine’s curious glance, she quickly explained. “Your mother thinks that Lord Finchley and I should do all we can to pursue a happy future with each other. She told me outright that she knows I would not be happy with any other and would be resigning myself to a life of misery and sorrow. Therefore, she has promised to speak to my father about Lord Finchley – without saying anything about him specifically – so that Lord Ashworth is set back from any thought of courtship or the like.”
“You must be very relieved,” Catherine replied, as Eleanor nodded. “I – I must tell you something also.”
“Oh?”
Catherine’s cheeks grew red. “Lord Preston has asked to walk with me in the park tomorrow.”
A smile slowly began to spread across Eleanor’s face. “I hope you have accepted him?”
“I did, without any sort of composure,” Catherine replied, giggling. “I was much too eager, but I did not want him to think that I had no interest in his company!”
Eleanor laughed along with her cousin, slipping her arm through hers. “I am very glad for you, Catherine. I think Lord Preston an excellent gentleman.”
“As do I.” Catherine let out a small sigh of seeming contentment. “It would be quite wonderful if we were each to find happiness with two such delightful gentlemen, would it not?”
“It would be a joyous moment indeed,” Eleanor agreed, letting her thoughts carry her forward into a future where she stood beside Lord Finchley and made her promise to him. “Let us hope it may come to pass.”
With another soft sigh and a smile, Catherine looped her arm through Eleanor’s, and they continued on their way, their steps slow and Eleanor feeling herself growing weary.
