***
Ophelia felt horrible as she stood at one end of the balcony, still in the well-lit area but quite far away from everyone else. She needed a moment to herself to collect her wits again and not be upset about such tiny matters. However, she should not have run away from Edward with such haste, especially since she knew he was already worried about her.
Extremely so.
She had seen the concern in his eyes as her mood shifted, and she stopped herself from crying. What had even happened to her? One minute, she had been perfect, and the very next minute, she had caught herself hoping for all of it to be real and true. She had remembered how despite being Edward’s equal in terms of blood line and rank, she had posed herself as somehow lower and made him see her as that.
She would never be able to have her own Season, her own ball gowns, a man who would court her for who she was. She wasnever going to find a suitor or make a match or fall in love or get married. That fate was not meant for her, and Ophelia both knew and understood it perfectly well, no matter how painful the truth of it was.
Despite that, she had almost broken down at the thought of it.
It is all because of Edward. Just because of him.
She had never longed for those things or wished to have any of them, except after meeting Edward because his presence in her life made her wish to be equal to him just so they could be together outside of mere pretences.
But all of it was impossible, and the sooner she accepted it, the better.
“Ophelia?”
She quickly wiped her tears, hearing his voice behind her, and not wanting to appear weak,
“Lord Cavendish,” she said, turning around after she felt slightly composed.
“We already discussed how you must call me Edward if we are to make everyone believe we are courting.”
“Edward.” She managed to smile.
“Would you please tell me what happened back there on the dance floor? I am worried for you, Ophelia.” She looked up at him, his concern towards her making her heart even softer, but she controlled herself. She could not break down before him once again.
“I simply started missing home,” Ophelia lied, “I thought of my sisters who would love to be in a ballroom such as this and could not help missing them. I am sorry if I got you worried; that was never my intention.”
“You must never apologize,” he immediately said, stepping a little closer, and Ophelia looked up at him.
“I won’t,” she said with a smile, “thank you for fetching me and making sure I am doing okay. Your concern is very heartwarming, and I feel privileged to have it for myself.”
“Your emotions matter to me, Ophelia,” Edward replied, “always remember that.”
Her heart skipped a beat.
“Can we return home?”
“Absolutely,” he said. “You must stay here while I fetch the carriage, and I will send Rosalina to get you, and we can return together. Is that alright?”
“Of course,” Ophelia replied, watching him walk away quickly.
The moment Edward left, Ophelia felt a tap on her shoulder from the other side, a little surprised to find Lady Alice standing there. She had an instinctive reaction to hide her face in case Alice recognized her, but she knew that would only make her appear suspicious.
“Who are you?” Lady Alice asked, confusing Ophelia even further.
It was clear she did not remember Ophelia. How was that even possible?
“Lady Rosalina’s cousin, Ophelia Jennings,” Ophelia replied good-naturedly, despite the hatred and disdain dripping from Ophelia’s face, “and you?”
“It does not matter who I am, but you must remember that I entered Lord Cavendish’s life far before you did, and his entire family knows me. Rosalina and I happen to be friends, and Edward and I share a deep friendship and understanding.You cannot return from France one day and decide to claim Edward as your own!”
It all made sense. Alice was jealous.
“I never did any such thing,” Ophelia replied. “Edward took one look at me and decided to court me. Clearly, even after knowing you for years, he does not think you are good enough or worthy of being his wife.”
