Chapter 10
Feeling more than a little embarrassed at having just had a coughing fit in front of the entire ballroom, Elijah slipped out into the gardens and situated himself on the nearest bench.
Still clutching the handkerchief to his mouth, Elijah tried his best to regain his breath, the coughing finally subsiding. And when he removed the handkerchief from his mouth, he saw the telltale signs upon the white material that all was not well. Though not quite as much as usual, the crimson splotches on the material were enough to make Elijah’s stomach clench.
It was only when he was certain the coughing bout was over that he carefully folded the handkerchief so that the blood could not be seen and shoved it right back into his pocket, ready for the next time that something untoward might happen.
Sitting with his head thrown back to feel the moonlight upon his face, he breathed deeply, trying to ignore the rawness he now felt in his throat. Finally, he lowered his face again when he heard heeled shoes on the patio.
Half-expecting Lady Belmont to have come in search of him, no doubt to reprimand him for leaving her standing alone on the dance floor or even to check what his coughing was all about, he found himself smiling.
“My Lady, I…” he began, but he quickly cut himself off when he realised that the woman walking towards him was most definitely not Lady Belmont. However, she was petite and pretty, and her dark hair was glossy in the moonlight, though it did not shine nearly as brightly as Lady Belmont’s would have.
Forcing all thoughts of the lady healer out of his mind, Elijah stood formally. “Forgive me, My Lady, I believed you to be someone else.”
“It is I who must apologise to you, My Lord,” the woman responded, dropping down into a low and very respectable, if not a little over-exaggerated curtsey. “I did not mean to disturb you, though I have greatly anticipated our meeting.”
At that, Elijah raised an eyebrow. “Is that so?”
The lady glanced down at her feet with a shy expression on her face. “Forgive me, we have not been formally introduced, but I found I was too impatient to wait. I am Lady Daphne Vickers, and I have long awaited the chance to make the acquaintance of the son of the Earl of Durham.”
Elijah scoffed at that, feeling as though he knew exactly why she had come before him. Silently, he thought,it is my younger brother you ought to be accosting, not me.Edward was to be the next Earl of Durham, not Elijah, not when he would soon be dead and buried.
But he could not very well tell this woman that, or likely every single member of theton, including the rest of his family, would know of his situation by the morning.
It was no secret why she had come before him, likely encouraged to do so by an overbearing mother to put herself before one of the supposedly most eligible bachelors of the Season. In a way, Elijah actually felt sorry for her. And deep down, he knew there was only one thing he could do to ease the pressure being put onto her.
I did promise myself I would make the most of my last few months,Elijah thought, knowing what he was about to do was likely foolish, but the already hopeful look upon the young woman’s face spurred him on.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Daphne,” he assured her with a dip of his head, stepping forward to add, “I was just about to return to the ballroom if you might like to join me. Perhaps for a dance?”
Her dark eyes widened. Clearly, she had not anticipated gaining his attention quite so easily. With another quick curtsey, she said, “Oh, yes, I would be honoured.”
And so, feeling more than a little guilty about how he had left Lady Belmont, he led Lady Daphne back into the ballroom by his arm. It was not as if he could go to Lady Belmont and apologise or even ask to dance with her again. It would only incite gossip if he were to be seen dancing with the same woman twice in one evening, and that was the last thing he wanted after the slip-up he had made before they danced together the first time.
No, it was best to leave Lady Belmont alone for the rest of the evening. At least, he told himself as he led Lady Daphne onto the dance floor. Yet, he still could not stop himself from glancing about the room as they took their position, hoping he might catch a glimpse of the beautiful blonde amongst the crowd.
“You are a most wonderful dancer, My Lord,” Lady Daphne announced as they began to flit about the dance floor, his leading coming naturally after so many years of being forced into dance lessons by his mother.
“With a fine partner, My Lady,” Elijah assured her, only half listening to her as his thoughts were still upon Lady Belmont no matter how hard he tried to rid himself of her. It became even more infuriating when he found he could no longer see her amongst the other guests. Perhaps his leaving heron the dance floor had had a more profound effect than anticipated.
“My mama says you have come to Oxford to rest after a busy Season, My Lord,” Lady Daphne said, and Elijah struggled not to scoff.
“Something like that,” he responded, glancing down at her and seeing her admirably gazing at him. “I found London had had quite enough of me.”
“Oh, I cannot believe so.”
The conversation continued similarly, with Elijah searching the faces at the edge of the ballroom. By the time the dance ended, the pain in his stomach had resurfaced. Lady Belmont’s medicine, which he had taken before leaving for the ball, appeared to be wearing off. With gritted teeth and remembering he had left the vial back home, he quickly said his farewells to Lady Daphne, thanking her graciously for her company on the dance floor before he promptly hurried to find his cousin.
He was all but certain that with the pain would come a more serious coughing bout, and he feared he had already drawn enough attention to himself for one night.
When he found Harold at the edge of the ballroom, close to the doors leading to the entry hall, Elijah could already tell that his cousin was merry and enjoying himself.
“Ladies, cousin,” Elijah greeted as he approached, bowing first to the two ladies Harold had clearly taken a shine to. Had Harold been a little more like himself, especially as he had been in the last few months, he might have believed he wished to court them both.
“Are you well, cousin?” Harold asked, barely glancing away from the two ladies who blushed back at him as though they were greatly enjoying his company.
“I find I am not so well, Harold,” Elijah admitted, trying his hardest not to allow too much of the pain he was feeling into his voice. “I do believe I ought to retire for the evening.”
