Eliza closed her eyes, steeling herself against the tears that sprang to her eyes at once. “Mama, I do not know what to do.”
Her mother sat down quietly. “You are expecting Lord Montrose?”
“Very soon, yes,” Eliza replied, feeling her heart begin to bleed within her all over again. “I do not know what I shall say to him.”
Her mother nodded sympathetically, her eyes lingering on Eliza’s pale face. Eliza continued to study the drawing room door, as if by looking at it, she could prepare herself for her betrothed’s visit.
It had been two days now since Lord Montrose’s shocking announcement that they were already engaged, despite the fact he had not asked her to marry him. She had not known what to say or what to do, finding herself almost in a state of fainting as she had been driven home. Lord Montrose had been filled with mirth at her reaction, telling her shocked mother that Eliza had simply been overwhelmed by some wonderful news which would soon be shared with them all.
It had been left to Eliza thereafter, to tell her mother the truth about what had occurred.
Lady Whitehaven had gone utterly silent as Eliza had recounted the story, seeing her mother’s eyes flashing with anger and frustration. Of course, Eliza knew that her brother would have no concerns in agreeing to Lord Montrose’s request to marry Eliza, for he had no knowledge of the matter and would simply presume that it was a courtesy request. Lady Whitehaven was, however, quite angry that Lord Montrose had not spoken to her of his intentions for Eliza before writing to the papers and had expressed as much to Eliza. She had not, however, been able to express this to Lord Montrose, for he had been conspicuously absent from Eliza’s company these last two days. He was due to call upon her this afternoon, having written a note to her the previous day asking her to forgive his absence and stating that he was caught up with friends and acquaintances who all wished to celebrate with him over the joyous news of his engagement.
“I shall have plenty to say to Lord Montrose,” Lady Whitehaven stated, firmly. “You need not concern yourself in that regard, Eliza. I shall begin the conversation with him and speak quite plainly.”
“But it will not remove me from my engagement,” Eliza replied softly, the truth tearing at her heart. “That is the difficulty I am presented with and, as yet, I confess that I cannot see a way out of my circumstances.”
Lady Whitehaven sighed and looked away, filling Eliza with even more despair.
“Lord Montrose has behaved most improperly,” Lady Whitehaven agreed, after a few moments of silence. “He has presumed that you would accept him and has therefore taken it upon himself to announce your engagement to all of London!” She threw up her hands in exasperation. “And I have had to turn away a good many callers, all wishing to see you and give you their individual congratulations.”
Eliza winced, closing her eyes tightly for a moment. She could not imagine having to accept felicitations for something she wished would not occur. It would be terrible indeed to have to endure such visits, one after the other. “Thank you, Mama,” she said, quietly, clasping her hands tightly in her lap. “You are very kind.”
“It is the very least I can do,” Lady Whitehaven replied, her voice softening. “I must tell you, Eliza, that I think the very best thing for you to do is to simply cry off.”
Startled, Eliza looked at her mother in shock. “Cry off?” she repeated, horrified. “Oh, Mama, I could not do so!”
“Why ever not?” Lady Whitehaven asked, sounding quite matter of fact. “You do not wish to wed Lord Montrose and therefore there is no reason for you to continue with the engagement.”
Eliza shook her head, her fingers tightening together. “Because you know that it would ruin my own reputation – which, of course, I do not particularly care about – but that it would also profoundly affect my sisters and even my brother.” Her heart squeezed painfully, sending a wave of tears to her eyes which Eliza fought back. “I cannot allow such a thing to occur, Mama. It would be entirely selfish.”
“And yet,” Lady Whitehaven said, softly. “I do not think that any of your sisters nor even your cousin would find such a thing too ard
uous to bear.” The corners of her mouth lifted in a faint smile, as though she were trying to encourage Eliza to listen and to consider what she was suggesting. “Even Titania, who is the only one who has loved all that the Season has to offer, is quite determined that you should not marry Lord Montrose.”
A faint smile caught Eliza’s lips, her heart lifting just a little. “That is most kind of her – most generous of them all – but I cannot let them be tainted in such a way.”
“Your sisters also went to speak to Lord Avondale.”
Eliza’s heart stopped in her chest for a moment, shock rippling through her.
“He is broken-hearted, it seems,” Lady Whitehaven continued, as Eliza gripped the edge of her seat in an attempt to control her crashing emotions. “He believes that all is lost and has returned to his estate.”
Eliza closed her eyes, heat searing up her spine as she thought of the last time she had seen Lord Avondale. The way he had kissed her had sent flurries of happiness rushing through her, letting hope spiral from her core. It had been a shock, of course, but by the time she had realized what he was doing and had begun to return his kiss, he had stepped back and apologized for his lack of self-control.
She had not told him just how much she had wanted to return his kiss, how much she had longed to be back in his arms again. Instead, she had returned inside, determined to consider matters – only for Lord Montrose to prevent her from doing so.
“Will you truly pass this opportunity by, Eliza?” Lady Whitehaven asked, softly, her words penetrating into Eliza’s mind. “Lord Avondale is still deeply in love with you, it seems. His desperation to speak to you about what he did some years ago is still apparent and if only you would listen to him, then you might find your way back to the happiness you once had.”
“I wanted to,” Eliza whispered, still battling tears. “I wanted to listen to him, Mama. He spoke to me about Rebecca, told me that there was a good deal more for him to say, and yet I was not quite prepared to take in what he had to say.” She let her hands loose in her lap, forcing steadying breaths into her lungs. “He told me what Lord Montrose had said about Lady Barclay and said that, if I permitted him, he would tell me the truth about Rebecca very soon, once I had taken some time to think about what he had said of Lord Montrose.”
“Very considerate,” Lady Whitehaven commented, quietly.
Eliza nodded. “Very,” she whispered, brokenly, unable to prevent herself from comparing the two gentlemen. “But now he is gone to his estate and I find myself engaged to Lord Montrose! What am I to do, Mama?”
Her mother smiled. “Cry off,” she said, simply. “Your sister wishes it. I wish it. Go to Lord Avondale and find the truth. I know he will not reject you, simply because you have cried off from one engagement. In fact, I think that he will be heartily glad to hear it.”
Eliza battled within herself, knowing that if she were to cry off, then the scandal that would follow could very well affect her sisters’ chances of happiness. They would bear the shame of her broken engagement, for society would look upon the family with disdain, suggesting that she was flighty and unappreciative of what had been given to her. She had no doubt that Lord Montrose would do all he could to garner sympathy from all and sundry, making himself out to be quite the martyr – and she would have to endure the looks and the whispers and the rumors about her that were certain to fly about society almost at once.