Page 4 of An Arranged Betrothal with an Icy Duke
Lady Hamilton chuckled softly. “I quite understand. It was not so long ago that I was doing the very same thing!”
With a quiet laugh, Edith shook her head. “Ah, but Aunt, you found yourself in a love match, did you not? You have always told us that you fell in love with, as you called him, ‘the magnificent Earl of Hamilton’.”
“I did, yes.” Another small smile touched Lady Hamilton’s lips, her expression softening. “I am still in love with him to this day.”
“Though my mother did not have a love match,” Edith sighed, recalling how her mother had spoken often of the fact that she had not had opportunity to have a love match and had been given a gentleman to marry instead. It did not mean that her parents were not fond of one another, however, thoughEdith silently hoped that she herself might have opportunity to marry someone of her own choosing.
“No, she did not but she is contented and happy.” Lady Hamilton lifted her shoulders gently. “That in itself is a gift, is it not?”
“Yes, I suppose it is.”
Her aunt smiled. “Are you concerned for yourself?”
“I hope that I will be able to make my own choice when it comes to suitors, that is all.” Seeing how her aunt’s smile faded, Edith’s heart dropped. “Though it seems that you might be aware of something that I am not?”
Lady Hamilton pressed her lips tight together, then sighed, her shoulders rounding a little. “I think your father’s desire for an excellent match might outweigh your own, my dear. You should prepare yourself for that.”
Nodding slowly, aware that her spirits had sank just a little, Edith tried to smile. “I know that my father wants what is best for me.”
“As does your mother.”
“Exactly.” Folding her hands in her lap, Edith let her gaze go to the window again. “Though I hope that whoever it is that I marry is supportive of my efforts at the orphanage.”
Lady Hamilton tipped her head. “Well when you marry, you will not reside in London or even near London, where your father’s estate is. It will be at your husband’s estate, wherever that may be.”
Edith’s shoulders dropped. “Oh, of course. I had not thought of that.”
“But I am sure there will always be those who require your love and your kindness, wherever you end up,” her aunt finished, bolstering Edith’s confidence. “And I am sure that whoever your husband may be, he will appreciate that kindness within you also.”
“I hope so, Aunt,” Edith answered, softly, caught somewhere between anxiety and hope. “This evening, we are to go to Lord Bedfordshire’s ball. I am sure that my father has many a gentleman in mind that he wishes to introduce me to!”
Her aunt chuckled. “I am sure that he does but take that in good confidence, my dear and consider this.” Her eyebrows lifted. “Mayhap tonight, you shall meet your future husband!”
***
Edith picked up her violin, her heart already lifting free from the troubled thoughts which had entangled her all the way home. The door firmly closed so as to prevent anyone from interrupting her solitude, she set her gaze to the music and began to play the familiar melody. It was a slow piece, with one or two quicker sections, though she took her time with the piece and let the melody flow. Closing her eyes, the notes came to her heart and she began to play without reading the music, putting all of her emotions, all of her feeling into it. She played through her worries and her cares, letting the music steal them away, sending them out into the room as beautiful music.
The door opened but Edith played on, aware of the presence of her mother. It was only when the piece came to a close, when the very last note played out that she opened her eyes and saw her standing there.
Edith set her violin down, managing a smile as her mother applauded her, a brightness in her expression. Always a little uncertain as to how she felt knowing that others had been listening to her play, Edith set her violin down carefully, then looked back to her mother.
“You play magnificently, my dear,” Lady Tidemore sighed, coming across the room to grasp her daughter’s hands. “That brought a tear to my eye.”
“Thank you, Mama.”
Lady Tidemore’s smile grew. “I look forward to you playing in a fortnight’s time.”
Edith’s heart dropped to the floor. “I beg your pardon?”
“I am to host a musical soiree!” Her mother released Edith’s hands and then stepped back, spreading her arms wide. “We will have many a young lady playing and singing that evening, with mayhap, one or two gentlemen also! But you shall be the most important young lady present that evening, for I am certain that your skill will outshine every other.”
Edith quickly shook her head. “No, Mama.”
“Yes, of course you must play!” came the exclamation, as Lady Tidemore hurried back towards her, reaching for her hands again so that Edith could not escape. “You have such a beauty in your playing, my dear girl. You must share it with others!”
“I do not want to. You know very well that when I play my violin, I play it only for myself.”
“But this will be to show off your skill to others, to the gentlemen who might then come to consider you!” Lady Tidemore squeezed Edith’s hands. “You are a wonderful young lady and I think it is important that the gentlemen of London see that. I do not want you married off to just any gentleman, my dear girl. I want you to be married to the verybestof gentlemen.”
