he grabs the whole loaf and spits at you.”
“Caroline!” Uncle Worth stood up.
“That’s the bare truth, Papa,” said Caroline standing up. “Lord Merrick and I had become friends long before he met Celia, and had not Celia arrived to disrupt our relationship, he would be by now close to a proposal! I will not put up any more with Celia’s interference in my social life!”
She left the room and slammed the door after her.
There followed a silence after Caroline left. Then Worth spoke, his voice broken.
“Celia,” said her uncle, “I–told Caroline I could not ask you to leave, for that is what she wanted me to do. She—uh—promised me, Celia,” he said with a sweep of his arm that included Mrs. Meade, who looked as if she had become frozen with fear as her tears now fell to her hands, on her lap, “that if you do not desist from what she called your pursuit of Lord Merrick and I do not ask you to leave, that she will make life so miserable for your family they will want to be somewhere else!”
“I will have no way of curbing Caroline’s behavior if she makes life miserable here for your family, Celia,” said Worth. “What recourse would I have? Order her to stop? I tried that, it did not work. Lock her in her room?”
Celia had remained quiet while her uncle spoke. And now that he had turned to her, an appeal in his kindly eyes, she saw that he was pleading for her to solve the problem. Celia glanced at her mother as she sat trembling at the thought that they should be sent back to Spitalfields. Celia saw that her mother’s hands on her lap were trembling and her face was wet with tears.
“I must have your word, Celia,” said her uncle in a ragged almost strangled voice, “that you will do nothing to upset Caroline’s plans to secure Lord Merrick’s affection. She was very upset that you went to London with Lady Ellen and Lord Merrick. She expressed to me that when you came to our household, she and Lord Merrick were at a brink of an understanding and that you have disrupted it by “pushing” as she put it, yourself before Lord Merrick. She insists that he is answering your requests out of embarrassment in what she called ‘a wish not to be rude to Caroline’s relations.’ I believe what she says is folderol, my dear, but you must see that I am between the sword and the wall in this.”
Celia felt a sinking in her heart. Was her budding love for Robert to be cut at the stem? Her uncle was openly asking her to do nothing that would encourage his attraction. Oh, but she had already done a lot to encourage it!
“You have my word that I will do nothing to disturb Caroline’s social life, Uncle Worth. I cannot be more specific than that, for to promise I will cease to “push” myself as she put it, before Lord Merrick is to admit to such behavior. I assure you that such behavior on my part does not exist.”
Uncle Worth was content with that and kissing Celia nervously on the brow, quit her company with a quick “Thank you, my dear Celia.”
* * *
Up until now, the few times Celia and Robert had been in each other’s company had been of the kind that do not call attention to themselves. That was until the trip to London. Caroline was now openly hostile toward Celia and ignored her pointedly, except when she remarked sarcastically on the Meades’ dependent state to her fawning friends.
Yet Caroline had convinced her father to allow a ball. She would have the costliest ball gown in lavender made for her, Celia was certain.
A ball was too public. Too much would be seen into Celia’s actions. Yet how was she to avoid it? Could she outright refuse to dance with Robert?
Rather than fill her with joy and expectation the ball now looked ahead like a menace, a “thing” that had the power to destroy her family’s happiness. It churned and churned in her mind until it gave her headaches and she would escape from the preparations going on and her sister’s and mother’s excitement
“Caroline!” Uncle Worth stood up.
“That’s the bare truth, Papa,” said Caroline standing up. “Lord Merrick and I had become friends long before he met Celia, and had not Celia arrived to disrupt our relationship, he would be by now close to a proposal! I will not put up any more with Celia’s interference in my social life!”
She left the room and slammed the door after her.
There followed a silence after Caroline left. Then Worth spoke, his voice broken.
“Celia,” said her uncle, “I–told Caroline I could not ask you to leave, for that is what she wanted me to do. She—uh—promised me, Celia,” he said with a sweep of his arm that included Mrs. Meade, who looked as if she had become frozen with fear as her tears now fell to her hands, on her lap, “that if you do not desist from what she called your pursuit of Lord Merrick and I do not ask you to leave, that she will make life so miserable for your family they will want to be somewhere else!”
“I will have no way of curbing Caroline’s behavior if she makes life miserable here for your family, Celia,” said Worth. “What recourse would I have? Order her to stop? I tried that, it did not work. Lock her in her room?”
Celia had remained quiet while her uncle spoke. And now that he had turned to her, an appeal in his kindly eyes, she saw that he was pleading for her to solve the problem. Celia glanced at her mother as she sat trembling at the thought that they should be sent back to Spitalfields. Celia saw that her mother’s hands on her lap were trembling and her face was wet with tears.
“I must have your word, Celia,” said her uncle in a ragged almost strangled voice, “that you will do nothing to upset Caroline’s plans to secure Lord Merrick’s affection. She was very upset that you went to London with Lady Ellen and Lord Merrick. She expressed to me that when you came to our household, she and Lord Merrick were at a brink of an understanding and that you have disrupted it by “pushing” as she put it, yourself before Lord Merrick. She insists that he is answering your requests out of embarrassment in what she called ‘a wish not to be rude to Caroline’s relations.’ I believe what she says is folderol, my dear, but you must see that I am between the sword and the wall in this.”
Celia felt a sinking in her heart. Was her budding love for Robert to be cut at the stem? Her uncle was openly asking her to do nothing that would encourage his attraction. Oh, but she had already done a lot to encourage it!
“You have my word that I will do nothing to disturb Caroline’s social life, Uncle Worth. I cannot be more specific than that, for to promise I will cease to “push” myself as she put it, before Lord Merrick is to admit to such behavior. I assure you that such behavior on my part does not exist.”
Uncle Worth was content with that and kissing Celia nervously on the brow, quit her company with a quick “Thank you, my dear Celia.”
* * *
Up until now, the few times Celia and Robert had been in each other’s company had been of the kind that do not call attention to themselves. That was until the trip to London. Caroline was now openly hostile toward Celia and ignored her pointedly, except when she remarked sarcastically on the Meades’ dependent state to her fawning friends.
Yet Caroline had convinced her father to allow a ball. She would have the costliest ball gown in lavender made for her, Celia was certain.
A ball was too public. Too much would be seen into Celia’s actions. Yet how was she to avoid it? Could she outright refuse to dance with Robert?
Rather than fill her with joy and expectation the ball now looked ahead like a menace, a “thing” that had the power to destroy her family’s happiness. It churned and churned in her mind until it gave her headaches and she would escape from the preparations going on and her sister’s and mother’s excitement
Similar Books
