“Yes! There,” Lizzie said happily. “And Lady Louisa!”
“Still.” Elinor sighed. “I would like to be part of a couple as well.”
Lizzie didn’t know what to say. She didn’t want to offer empty words of consolation. She glanced at Colin, who seemed even more at a loss. Thunder, most likely sensing the tension in the carriage, saved the day by nuzzling Elinor’s feet until she laughed and petted him. The rest of the journey was spent in far more pleasant conversation.
When they arrived, Charlotte and her husband greeted and welcomed them. Thunder was handed over to their game master to be cared for in the Sinclairs’ kennel for the duration of their stay, which Elizabeth agreed to with a heavy heart, since she was loath to part from him.
“He’ll be fine,” Talbot whispered to her as they were being ushered into the manor. “He’ll play with other dogs, maybe even find himself a lady dog,” he smiled mischievously, and despite herself, Elizabeth smiled too.
After she took off her travel clothes, relieved herself, and rested a bit, it was time to dress for dinner, and Mary joined her in her room, carrying a suspiciously familiar dress.
“What is that?” Elizabeth asked in what she hoped was an intimidating tone of voice.
Mary’s response let her know it wasn’t. “A dress.”
“Mary,” Elizabeth said threateningly.
“You left the packing to me, and you gave your old dresses to Elinor,” Mary said defensively. “What else was I supposed to pack, other than the dresses the Duke had made for you?”
“How did you even get them?”
“Pa went to the Duke’s house, and Mrs White packed them all up for him,” Mary said smugly.
Elizabeth gingerly touched the coquelicot raw silk of the dress, recalling the carefree days she had been living when she first laid eyes on it.
“What about my hair?” She asked in a conciliatory tone, and Mary smiled.
*
Dinner was at eight, and when Elizabeth came downstairs at half an hour to, a maid informed her that most of the other guests were gathered in the “Blue” sitting room. When she showed her into the room, how the room got its name immediately became clear to Elizabeth.
The thick rug, the heavy, tasselled drapes, the embossed, expensive-looking wallpaper, the intricately woven brocade on the chairs – they were all some shade of blue. Elizabeth hated it.
“And through this door, you enter a smaller, more intimate parlour, where I usually receive guests,” Charlotte was explaining to Lady Louisa when they both spotted Elizabeth.
“It’s wonderful to see you,” Elizabeth told Louisa honestly after they had exchanged greetings. “I didn’t know the Baron would be here,” Lizzie said as the man in question entered the sitting room together with Talbot.
“Good evening, ladies,” both men greeted them.
Their hostess then excused herself to go find her husband. The assembled guests chatted amiably for a while, and soon, Elinor and Lizzie’s cousin Andrew joined them.
“How are your brother and Miss Caroline?” Elizabeth asked the Baron, suspecting that both Louisa and Elinor cared about the answer.
“Just last week he wrote to inform me that his wife was brought to bed of a boy, and his name is Gideon, after his grandfather, who is beside himself with joy,” the Baron recounted happily. “In fact, after my stay here, I plan on joining them in Scotland to meet my nephew.”
“How wonderful,” Elinor said, looking both happy and sad. “Congratulations.”
They all joined in wishing the little boy and his parents well, and Elizabeth quickly announced that she wished to walk about the room with Miss Elinor. Just as they turned to leave the group, Amelia and Oliver came in.
Elizabeth experienced a strong visceral reaction to seeing her former fiancé for the first time sincethat night.She felt ashamed, anxious, and very uncomfortable. She felt a steadyinghand on her lower back and saw that Colin had stepped closer to her.
“Good evening, everyone,” the Corporal said in his military voice.
He seemed different. More tanned and muscular. His face was less open. Elizabeth hoped she was wrong in finding it less kind somehow.
Amelia looked as uncomfortable as ever, which was comforting because it was familiar.
Everyone exchanged greetings and small details about their journeys to Basingstoke.
