by Abby Ayles
“Helena?” Beatrice whispered. “Do you believe Mama is aware of this? Elias seems quite concerned.”
Helena shook her head. “I have never heard a word of it from her.”
“Should we speak of it?”
“And divulge that we were eavesdropping on others’ private conversation?”
“I suppose you’re right. Also, it would do us no good to cause problems between Mama and Father if she is unaware.”
“Indeed,” Helena agreed.
The conversation of both groups changed soon after, their focus shifting to the pleasures to be had at the upcoming ball. The young men were eager for the event. They complained of the hardships of study and work, and the need for a moment’s respite from the monotony.
Helena had returned to the enjoyment of her book when Baron Glourich’s voice resounded over her. “Are you ladies looking forward to the festivities?”
“Very much so,” she replied. “I have worked long and hard, and I look forward to seeing my efforts rewarded.”
He looked at her in surprise. “Miss Helena, I wasn’t aware that you were involved in the planning.”
“My sister was particularly asked by the Earl,” Beatrice answered. “I can attest to the great pains undertaken in the effort.”
“Did you exert yourself on our friend’s behalf?” he mused.
“I did indeed,” Helena answered.
“Not that she ever complained,” her sister added. “She rather enjoyed the task from all I saw.”
Elias wandered over, and soon after the other gentlemen joined them.
“Elias, I do believe you owe this young lady your gratitude. She has painstakingly exerted herself on your behalf, and on that of us all.”
“Then I believe we all owe her our gratitude,” Mr. Wickle added. He smiled at Helena. “How shall we repay you?”
“I need no repayment,” Helena replied bashfully. “I did not do it for that.”
“You may not have, but I would see you compensated for your hard work,” Mr. Wickle continued. “Is there nothing you wish?”
She considered her answer carefully. “I would be most pleased to see you all enjoying yourselves in the evening. That would be satisfaction enough for me.”
“I do believe that is a reward easily given,” Baron Glourich agreed. “I expect your card of partners must be quite full.”
“No, my lord. I have been otherwise engaged to consider it as of yet.”
“And yours, Miss Leeson?” he asked Beatrice.
She smiled politely. “My card is not full, my lord.”
“Card or no card,” Mr. Wickle interrupted. “Given the efforts of Miss Helena on our behalf, and the availability of Miss Leeson for the evening, I dare say that each of us should offer the option of a dance in repayment for the work done.”
“That sounds quite agreeable,” Baron Glourich answered. “What say you, Lord Chatleton?”
“I say that between Thom and yourself you have planned our evening for us,” Elias mused. His eyes drifted toward Helena. “It should be an enjoyable one.”
She smiled. The day had not yet come and already she had six dances accounted for, which was very pleasing. She wondered which of the six Elias would request.
She had to admit she had hoped to dance with him. It had been many years since they last met, but their correspondence had been unwavering in that time. It only proved to endear him to her in an entirely new way. One that she had never dared share.
Her fondness for her friend had been reborn as the years progressed and she matured. She found her heart beat faster whenever she received one of his letters, as did her wish to see him. It was the reason she had been keen to assist the Earl in his plans. It was not so much for him as it was for Elias himself.
She wanted to give Elias something to commemorate his accomplishments and could find nothing more fitting, even in its somewhat selfish nature. She knew well he hated to dance. She loved it.
She also knew that, for her, he would concede defeat. He would force himself to enjoy the little pleasures he often persuaded himself were of little consequence.
Elias was always more occupied with responsibility than enjoying life. She had always seen it as her duty to help him in this regard. She hoped he would allow her to continue to do so.
Chapter 4
The house was alive as he had never seen it before. His father had kept his word. Tonight was to be a night to remember, a ball as never been witnessed in Balwell Manor history.
The guests arrived promptly, though several arrived early to assist in the preparation for the ball. It was all unnecessary. Helena had taken every detail into consideration, and it was this care that impressed Elias most of all.
Supper was a grand occasion. The first course consisted of three dishes. The second of eight dishes, and the third ten. Each one was carefully prepared and perfectly executed. It was clear that the best ingredients had been procured for the occasion.
Balwell Manor boasted three large additional rooms, one of which had been transformed into the dining room to accommodate the party of forty families. Another had been turned into the ballroom, fully and elaborately decorated with beeswax candles. Some of the paintings had been moved for the most elegant effect. Helena had even seen to having the floors chalked for the occasion. Elias would never have imagined it.
The card room was occupied as the guests dispersed after the meal and began to prepare themselves for the dance, the highlight of the evening.
He hadn’t a moment to himself. Elias greeted his guests and then was forced into a continuous stream of conversation as he began to reacquaint himself with Lendenbarrow society. Dinner was a short respite as the conversation was limited to those closest to him. Unfortunately, Helena wasn't of that number.
Elias was somewhat frustrated. Since his return, he hadn't had a moment to speak with her without constant company. It made determining the changes in her more difficult, as was determining how they now affected him. Were his altered emotions due to their long separation or something more?
“Helena certainly looks lovely,” Thom commented as the group of six occupied a corner of the ballroom.
“She does indeed,” Frederick Porter replied.
“As does her sister,” Baron Glourich agreed.
“However, I do believe Helena is the more appealing,” Thom added.
Elias listened as his friends continued their discourse. It was natural for them to comment on the attractiveness of the women in their company. However, Elias refused to join them.
He couldn’t discuss Helena’s loveliness as he would that of any other woman. Though her charms and figure were not lost on him, she was not any other woman.
“I think they are about ready for the dance,” Baron Glourich commented.
“Who will be starting it?” Thom asked.
“I believe Helena, given the Earl has given her the position of distinction this evening.”
“She made a lovely hostess, did she not?” Frederick commented.
“Indeed, she did,” Baron Glourich agreed. “She has an easy grace and is quite charming.”
“Is she spoken for?” Frederick questioned.
Elias bristled. Spoken for? He turned his attention to his friend. “Why do you wish to know? What concern would it be to you?”
“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed the change in Helena since we last saw her. She is a lovely young woman and quite beautiful,” Baron Glourich defended. “Any man would take note. Look about you. Half the men here younger than forty have noticed her.”
“Yes, Lord Chatleton. Baron Glourich is right. She is the prettiest lady here this evening,” Thom added.
The group agreed. However, their shared opinion only served to make Elias more uneasy. Why were they saying this? She was always the little girl they joked about and treated as a sister and friend. He didn’t like them speaking about her as if she were a woman.
The thought struck him like a mallet. She wa
s a woman. An eligible woman. The thought disturbed him. She was now someone men would look upon with interest, maybe even seek her hand.
“Who should be first?”
The comment drew his attention from the shock of his thoughts.
“I would offer, but I think it should be Elias,” Baron Glourich stated. “After all, he is the guest of honor.”
“What is it you’re planning for me?” Elias questioned.
“The dance is about ready. Helena will need a partner to start, and as we each have promised to dance with her, we were deciding what should be the order.”
“I will be first,” Elias stated immediately. He hadn’t even given a thought to dancing before that moment, despite their agreement previously. Now he found he didn’t wish anyone to dance first with Helena beside himself.
“That is agreed. I will be next,” Baron Glourich replied. The others quickly followed suit determining which of the evening’s dances they would claim. Elias was no longer concerned.
He strode across the room purposefully. Helena’s gaze caught his eye as he approached her. She seemed to be waiting for him but Elias couldn’t be sure. What reason would she have to do so?
When she was a girl and in need of a partner, there was nothing that stopped her from seeking him out and taking him by the hand to join her on the dance floor. Elias had to admit he regretted that change.
The easiness of their former interactions was gone now. The world no longer saw him as a man and her a child, but as two adults. Now, there were formalities and expectations that had never existed before.
He bowed to her slightly. “Helena.”
She smiled at the gesture. “Your Lordship.”
“Please,” he said gently. “Have I not always been Elias to you? Are we not still old, dear friends?”
“Of course we are still friends,” she replied quickly. “But I was a girl then. I am a woman now. I must respect your position.”
Elias never thought to hear such words uttered from her lips. He’d taught her well.
“Given that you respect my position, I demand you call me Elias when it is just the two of us. I will respect your position on decorum. It is something we cannot escape, but I will not have ceremony causing tension between us. You have been dearer to me than a sister, and I would not have that change because of the passage of time.”
“I would not wish that either. I am glad you spoke of it because it has been agonizing for me to address you in such a manner,” she laughed.
“Now that is settled,” he mused. “May I have the honor of the first dance?”
“You may,” she answered with a curtsey as he led her out on the floor. They got into position at the center of the room as Helena called the dance and the numbers.
Helena wore a gown of gold muslin sheathed in lace. Long, white silk gloves adorned her hands, and her hair sparkled with the ornaments dispersed throughout it. At her throat was a pretty pendant on a simple chain, which drew attention to the dress’s unobscured neckline. He quickly averted his eyes.
She was an angel on the dance floor. Helena took each turn with a grace and elegance incomparable to any woman he had ever seen. He found the more they danced, the more conflicted he felt. The more the image of the little girl began to fade from his mind.
“You surprise me,” she commented in a low voice for only his ears.
“How so?”
“You haven’t complained once about having to dance,” she mused.
He laughed. “Perhaps that has changed.”
“It would be good if it had, for you are a wonderful dancer. You have always been. That’s why I ever wanted to dance with you,” she informed.
“Is that why? I thought it because no one else would have you. They wished to save their toes,” he teased.
“I have never stepped on anyone’s toes,” she replied with a smirk. “If I had, I should’ve crushed yours to pieces for the number of times I made you dance with me.”
“You see, I was prepared and carefully averted danger,” he continued to joke.
“If I was such a fright to dance with, why did you ask me this time? You must admit it that it is a first.”
He wasn’t sure how to answer. He couldn’t very well tell her what had been said and the effect it had on him that had prompted his desire to see her on the dance floor. He looked to his friends momentarily.
“You were taking so long to get the dancing started, I thought it best to help you along.”
“I see. Then I am grateful for your help,” she answered. “And you were in a hurry to dance?”
“I was thinking of the happiness of the guests. Was it not you who told me that this evening was for their pleasure and not my own?”
“Yes, but I would not want you so put out as to suppress your own enjoyment.”
“You need not fear. I am quite content where I am.”
A blush rose up to Helena’s cheeks. The rosy color warmed his heart at the sight. When had she become so beautiful?
“We haven’t had a moment to talk,” he said a few moments later.
“No. It has been a very busy time for you since your return.”
“If you would permit, and knowing you have committed yourself to at least five more dances, would you join me for a walk later?”
“It would be my pleasure,” she answered with a smile as they continued to move about the floor.
The first dance ended too quickly in Elias’s mind, and he was forced to give Helena’s hand to Baron Glourich, who was eagerly awaiting his chance. One after another, Elias watched as his friends took a turn about the floor with Helena. He found himself consumed with questions as he watched her smiles and laughter with each of them.
What were they saying that amused her so? Was she particularly fond of them? Was there someone else to which she held some affection? He had never had such thoughts before and now he found himself tormented by them.
The moment the last of his friends had danced, Elias positioned himself to prevent any other prospective partners from intervening. If they asked, she could not refuse, and by the looks on the faces of the young men in the party, there were a number who wished the opportunity. They would have to wait.
Elias escorted Helena to the balcony. A few of the guests lined the stone rail as they sipped their drinks and talked.
The moon was full overhead. Its pale blue light illuminated the grounds ethereally.
“It is quite beautiful,” Helena commented as she looked out. Elias found that though he agreed, it was not the grounds that had his eye.
“You are quite changed,” he commented distractedly.
Helena turned to him, a small smile on her face. “I am not so changed.”
“I almost didn’t know you. I looked on you the day I returned and tried to place where I knew you.”
"You did look rather surprised," she answered.
“How could I not have been? I had come to find my little sister and found her nowhere in sight.”
“That is all I have ever been,” she said somewhat hesitantly.
Until his return, he would have said that yes, it was so, but now he couldn’t give such an answer.
“Is it not agreeable to be my sister?”
“Of course it is. I have loved you like a brother most of my life.”
Elias noted her careful use of words and the inability of her eyes to meet his.
“You have enchanted the entire party,” he stated. “I think every woman wished to be you tonight, and every man wished to dance with you.”
“That is of little consequence to me,” she replied.
“Is it? Then what is of consequence?”
“Your happiness.”
Her words pressed upon him like a head on a pillow. “Does it mean that much to you?”
“It does.”
“Be at ease then,” he answered. “At this moment I am very happy.”
Chapter 5
Calm returned to Balwell. The ball was now
several days passed, though it was still the talk of the parish. Helena expected that would continue for some time to come, but she was otherwise occupied. Elias had her full attention.
They were seated for breakfast at Balwell Manor. The Earl was sitting at the head of the table, while her father assumed the seat at the other end. He was occupied with the newspaper and Beatrice, while her mother and the Earl were deep in conversation over the prospects of him spending a few days at Sutton Street with them in the fall.
