Page 9 of A Lady's Passion Knows No Distance
“Is there something that is being celebrated tonight?” Caroline asked, turning to the maid. Miss Ranch stiffened at the question, her mouth parting as her shoulders and arms hung like boards at her sides.
“Forgive me, Miss. I shouldn’t have said anything,” she replied, her eyes moving to the carpet before her feet as her hands began to fiddle with one another.
“Miss Ranch, you are perfectly all right. I have a good idea of what you might be implying, so it’s fine to speak the truth to me,” Caroline said with a smile, hoping to convince the woman to let her know the truth behind her words.
Miss Ranch looked back up at Caroline, her eyes filled with worry as she said, “All the servants have been talking about it, Miss. That Lord Canton plans to propose to you during the course of the dinner meal.”
Caroline looked away from her then, trying to hide her shock and surprise. She knew that Lord Canton was interested in her. But she would have never believed that he would be so bold as to propose to her in front of other families. She began to wonder if that was the reason why he’d sent her a new gown and jewels to wear that night. It was all part of a celebration that she wasn’t supposed to know anything about.
As she looked back at her lady’s maid, she forced a smile upon her face to make her appear as though she was happy about the news when inside, she feared it coming to pass. Miss Ranch seemed to relax upon seeing her reaction, smiling as well.
“What a celebration, indeed,” Caroline said. “I’m going to take a minute to prepare myself before I go down.”
“Of course, Miss. I’ll let the others know,” Miss Ranch said as she curtsied lowly before leaving her alone in her bedchamber. Once alone, Caroline let her smile drop as she focused solely on her breathing. The last thing she wanted to allow her body to do was fall into complete panic. She fanned her face with her hands as she began to pace around her room, trying to imagine what she was going to do. Her heart wouldn’t allow her to accept Lord Canton’s proposal. But when she did refuse him, there would be consequences for sure.
Caroline knew that she couldn’t hide away in her room forever. As she took one last look at herself in the looking glass, her complexion a bit pale, she reasoned that she was now as ready as she’d ever be. She left her bedchamber and paused to close the door behind her.
Lining the hallway leading to the stairs were footmen standing at the ready. They each held an iron candlestick in their hands, another show of her father’s extensive wealth. And with such an occasion about to happen, she expected her parents had planned a luxurious evening.
Caroline made her way towards the stairs, walking at a slow pace as she looked at all the footmen. She wanted to see William, to gain some sense of comfort from simply looking into his eyes. She knew it would be risky to focus so much of her attention on him at any given point while they were in the manor. But sometimes it was a risk she was willing to take, if only to feel like she wasn’t a sheep being led to the slaughter.
As she neared the stairs, she picked up the hem of her gown just a bit so she could walk down easily in her slippers, her other hand resting on the mahogany railing as she descended. The pale-yellow gown she wore reminded her of daffodils and how much she liked to pick them during the early spring around the special pond. Tonight, she would keep William at the forefront of her mind and never allow Lord Canton to persuade her to ever stop loving him.
The sound of soft music permeated the lower floor as Caroline finished walking down the stairs. She stopped at the foyer, glancing around at all the candlelight and fresh flowers in elegant porcelain vases. Under other circumstances, Caroline would have liked to see all the decorations and the house looking so lovely for a dinner party. But now that she understood the reason behind the flowers and the extra candles, it was only a sign of the dreadful thing she was about to do.
She would deny Lord Canton, and more than likely be talked about by all society. No one in their right minds would refuse such an offer. But no amount of wealth or security would compel her to accept his proposal when her heart belonged to another.
Caroline willed herself to move, to make it to the drawing room and participate in conversation with all those that had been invited. But as she walked, she went slowly, her eyes still seeking out William’s. She passed servant after servant who stood ready and at attention, and though she should have guessed it, she hadn’t.
Right before the drawing room door was William, given the task of escorting the guests into the room. She looked at him for a moment, silently crying out to him while she forced her face to appear emotionless. Their eyes locked and when she nodded, he turned and opened the door for her. It killed Caroline inside to walk past him without a second glance when all she wanted was to take his hand and lead him away to an empty room to hide away from the world together.
“Ah, there she is,” came her mother’s voice. The musician at the piano stopped his performance as everyone in the room turned their eyes on her.
Still, she remained emotionless as she folded her hands in front of her, stopping to take in everyone in the room. She saw her parents seated by the large marble fireplace and an extra-large looking glass hanging above it to give the room the appearance that it was much larger than it really was.
Lord Canton sat next to her father and stood as she entered, coming to greet her right away. “Good evening, Miss Caroline,” he said as he bowed and she curtsied.
As he extended his hand towards her, she allowed him to take hers and kiss the air above her knuckles. All the while, she simply looked on, neither smiling nor frowning. She didn’t want to give anyone the impression that she enjoyed his attention or was eager for this evening. Yet, she didn’t want to appear melancholy, either.
“Would you care to sit with me and your parents?” he asked when she didn’t respond immediately.
“Certainly,” she replied simply. When he offered his arm to her, she knew she couldn’t refuse, or she’d be seen as forwardly ousting him. So, she settled her hand lightly on his arm and crossed the room to where her parents were sitting on either side of the fireplace. Whispers filled the air as they walked together, all the other couples and families smiling and looking their way to no doubt commenting on how well they looked together. Caroline sat upon the settee as the musician started to play the piano once more, and to Caroline’s distaste, Lord Canton sat upon the settee with her.
“Good evening, my dear,” her mother said, allowing Caroline to focus her attention on someone else besides the man next to her.
“Good evening, Mother. You’ve done such a marvellous job at having the house decorated for this evening. The fragrance alone from the wildflowers is divine.”
Lady Goldman chuckled and shooed Caroline playfully with her hand. “Tis nothing, my dear. It’s always nice to be able to smell fresh flowers during dinner. It’s such a pleasing experience,” she replied.
“Tell me, who all is in attendance this evening?” Caroline encouraged, wanting to keep her mother talking for as long as she could. And since her mother was a socialite, it wasn’t a hard task.
“Well, let me see. Lord and Lady Munster and their two daughters. Lord and Lady Potters and their son. Lord and Lady Onyx and their daughter,” Lady Goldman said turning in her chair to view the entire room. “Plenty of amiable families from our neighbourhood.”
“How splendid. Do you wish to visit them with me?” Caroline offered, wanting to stand and take a turn of the room. She’d much rather speak with other families then be forced to speak to Lord Canton only. But as she watched her mother’s gaze shift from her to Lord Canton, Caroline was afraid she would refuse the request.
“I believe that is a splendid idea,” Lord Goldman said with a bright smile. Caroline rose with her mother and together they visited with the other families, giving Caroline the opportunity to speak with the other lords and ladies, and visit with the other women closer in her age. As she sat next to the son of Lord and Lady Potters, Caroline was almost tempted to flirt openly with the man in hopes of displeasing Lord Canton. But since she knew that everyone in the room had the knowledge that Lord Canton was going to propose to her tonight, she reasoned that it would look rather ostentatious if she did so. The last thing she wanted people to gossip about her tonight was that she was a loose woman.
Despite all the ways she was trying not to be close to Lord Canton, she knew her time had run up when dinner was announced. Caroline was forced to stop her conversation with one of the daughters of Lord and Lady Munster and follow her mother back to her father’s side. There, Lord Canton extended his arm towards Caroline and she knew she couldn’t refuse him once more.
