Chapter 15
“Ithank you, Lord Ashworth.” Eleanor stepped away from the gentleman just as quickly as she could, having been taken by surprise by his sudden company.
She had just finished playing the pianoforte as part of Lord Gateshead’s soiree and, in stepping away from it, had found herself confronted by Lord Ashworth.
For some reason, he had taken it upon himself to come to the front of the room, had put out his arm, and walked with her back to her seat. “You are most kind.”
“Of course.” Lord Ashworth beamed at her, then lifted an eyebrow. “I see there is a vacant seat beside you, is there not?”
Eleanor glanced at it. “Oh, no, there is not,” she said hastily, praying that her aunt would return very quickly from wherever she had gone. “My aunt – ”
“And now, Lady Florence?” Lord Gateshead welcomed the next young lady to the front and, before Eleanor could protest, Lord Ashworth came to sit down in the empty seat next to her.
“I shall remove myself once your aunt returns,” he whispered, as Lady Florence went to sit at the pianoforte. “I am sure she will not mind.”
Eleanor closed her eyes, but not before noticing the interested look her father was giving to Lord Ashworth.
He had not taken a good deal of interest in any of the gentlemen that Eleanor had been in company with of late, having been assured by Lady Cumbria that all was well, but this, Eleanor knew, would be of note to him.
Her throat closed up as she clasped her hands tightly in her lap.
She did not want her father to think that Lord Ashworth was a gentleman worth considering, and certainly did not want him to push her towards him! Not when Lord Finchley was so near.
And still, so very far from me.
Looking down at her hands, Eleanor only half listened to the music as it filled the room, thinking about Lord Finchley and the hope that had been in his eyes when he had realized that there was, now, a single piece of information that might lead him towards the truth.
Her own heart had filled with expectation at his urgent desire to go in search of the hackney driver, and she had wanted to cry out for joy as he had hurried away, fervent in her hope that this would lead them back together again.
But still, there was the chance that it might come to naught, that he would continue to stay back from her and her future, therefore, would lie elsewhere.
I cannot bear that thought. Closing her eyes, Eleanor’s body trembled for a moment as a vision of her future without Lord Finchley passed through her mind.
That would be dreadful indeed, for it would have none of the love nor the happiness that she had at present, simply by being in Lord Finchley’s company!
“Are you unwell, Lady Eleanor?”
Opening her eyes, Eleanor slanted a glance towards Lord Ashworth. “Not at all, Lord Ashworth,” she said, just as quietly. “I am closing my eyes to listen to the music, that is all.”
“Ah.” He smiled, but the lines on his forehead from his frown did not disappear. “Lady Eleanor, I was hoping that I might call upon you very soon. I presume you would be amenable to that?”
Eleanor’s heart began to hammer furiously, although she was saved from answering by the gentle applause that came in support of Lady Florence’s performance. She swallowed thickly, seeing his expectant look but struggling to find an answer.
“Lord Ashworth, if I might?”
Relief poured into her like cold water as her aunt returned to her seat, Lord Ashworth vacating it very quickly indeed. She did not look up at him, did not thank him for his company or the like, but instead, simply sat quietly and looked straight ahead as the next performer was announced.
“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 Lord Ashworth 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 uncertainty also! 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.
“A hackney, mayhap?” she suggested, for the carriage had been required by her father and thus, had returned to the house once Eleanor and Catherine were at the milliner’s. “Or should you like to send for your carriage?”
“A hackney will suit very well,” Catherine replied, sounding just as tired as Eleanor herself felt. “Goodness, I did not think I would be as weary as this, but the sunshine has been very strong and I must admit to being tired from last evening also.”
Hailing one, Eleanor tilted her head and caught her cousin’s eye. “Are you sure that it is not that you have been quite unable to sleep given that your thoughts are centered only upon one gentleman?”
Catherine’s only response was to laugh and shake her head, refusing to answer but giving an answer all the same. With a smile still on her face, Eleanor gestured for her cousin to climb inside, only to pause.
“Might I ask,” she said, making her way to the driver, ‘what your name is, sir?” She offered him a light smile and handed him a coin or two, hoping that it would encourage him to answer.
The driver blinked, his cap pulled low over his eyes. “Thank you, m’lady. The name’s Matthew, and I can assure you, I will take you safely wherever you need to go.”
Excitement bubbled up within Eleanor in an instant, but she kept her expression fixed, refusing to let anything other than her small smile sit upon her face.
“Excellent, I thank you. Well, Matthew, might you first take us to one townhouse and then to another? I will make sure to pay you well, I assure you, so long as you drive safely.”
“I assure you, I shall,” he answered with a nod. “That will be no trouble, my lady.”
Her heart beating quickly, Eleanor gave him where she first wished to go and, with that, climbed into the hackney and shut the door.
“Whatever is the matter?”
Eleanor leaned forward, her anticipation growing by the second as the hackney began to roll its way forward. “By chance, I thought to ask the driver his name.”
Catherine’s eyes rounded. “You do not mean to say that – ”
“Yes, yes it is!” Eleanor exclaimed, as Catherine stared at her in clear astonishment. “And I am now taking him to Lord Finchley’s townhouse. I only hope that it is the right Matthew and that he might be able to garner some answers from him.”
“If it is he, then you might very well be close to finding the perpetrator,” Catherine breathed, her face paler now. “Oh, Eleanor, let it be so!”
Eleanor could only nod, turning her face to the window and gripping her hands tightly together in her lap.
Each second seemed like an eternity, the hackney moving with a good deal more slowness than she had anticipated.
It did not matter, she told herself. Very soon, she would be at Lord Finchley’s townhouse and, with her, the hackney driver that could lead them not only to the truth but also to their potential happy future together.