Margaret bit her lip to keep from smiling, and she covered her face with her book.
“Nothing, Aunt Sarah,” Jane said as her aunt came to sit with them. That morning, her aunt had looked a little better after having had a good night's sleep. But she still had a little worried look on her face.
Is the situation with Edward really troubling her so?
“Jane, I thought I might give you a bit of advice.”
It took everything inside Jane not to groan aloud. Advice was the last thing she wanted that day. She wanted to sit, and be silent, and read, and stay far away from any ballrooms or balconies.
You also want to kiss Nathaniel again.
“Very well, Aunt,” she replied, putting down her sketchbook and closing it quickly so that Margaret didn't notice she hadn't really sketched much of anything.
“Shall I go, Lady Barnet?” Margaret asked, but Jane’s aunt shook her head.
“It is merely some advice for all young ladies during their Season, which you could also benefit from, I’m sure.”
Jane frowned. Had her aunt not taught her everything she knew about behaving as a proper young woman? Jane felt she could have logged hours under such instruction from her aunt. But she did her best to look as patient as possible as she listened.
“I have just received a letter from a dear friend who was at the soiree last evening. You met her. A Lady Fortnum.”
Jane remembered the old woman. She had been rather rotund, red-faced from the heat, and she had waved her fan in front of her face constantly throughout the evening.
“Well, she has written to say that you are beginning to be the topic of gossip, and not in a good way. She fears it could become scandalous if not handled.”
“Scandalous?” Jane's eyes widened and her heart fell.
Could it be possible that someone besides Iris had seen them in the conservatory? If so, Jane knew what had to happen next, and it was the last thing she wanted to do.
Chapter 25
Jane waited, afraid what her aunt was about to tell her. She desired Nathaniel greatly, but she could not be forced to marry him. She hardly knew the man and to bring gossip upon her family made her feel sick.
It will ruin everything.
Folding her hands in her lap, trying not to appear too distressed, she waited while her aunt continued. “Well, I shouldn’t say it is gossip quiet yet. And, I think Lady Fortnum is being a bit premature in saying that it could be scandalous. Nothing has happened!”
Jane sighed with relief.
“She merely mentioned that there have been a few musings. She wrote to say that it was noticed you were gone from the ballroom for quite some time. She remembered you left Lady Emily's Ball for a period of time, too.”
With her fingers tightening around one another, Jane’s chest tightened, and she felt a trickle of dread in her belly mixed with relief that it did not seem to be about her and Nathaniel’s kiss.
“I see. Why is she paying such close attention to me, I wonder?” Jane teased, but it came out rather more like a nervous scold.
Why is anyone, in fact?
Her Aunt Sarah's brows knit together. She had not seen her aunt look so worried or stern in the whole of her life. She wore a yellow gown that day, and it usually matched her cheerful personality, but that was not today.
“You are the heiress, Lady Jane Caldwell, daughter to the former Earl of Claridge,” Aunt Sarah said slowly. “Your name is on everyone's lips this Season because of what your father has done. He has given you more money than any father usually gives their daughter. Money that is your own.
While it is normal for you to only receive the bulk of your inheritance once you marry, that is also a far greater number than many people have ever seen in their lives. Everyone has their eye on you this season, wondering what sort of match you'll make. Suitors are eager to pay suit. Therefore, you cannot simply do whatever it is you wish.”
Jane was about to protest when her aunt held up a hand. “I know that it is unfair for young ladies during their Season or ladies anywhere and at any time. But you must behave with decorum.
While I know you have no real wish to marry, it must be done. And in order to find a proper husband, one who is worthy of such great wealth and responsibility that will come into their hands, you must not go sneaking off out of balls and events. It looks unseemly.”
Jane could feel herself going pale. She looked at her aunt for a few seconds without saying anything.
