Page 52 of A Lady's Propitious Match
CHAPTER 23
The moon lit garden bore witness to a revelation that left Clara’s heart suspended in a state of uncertainty. Christopher’s impassioned plea hung in the air, his words echoing with the promise of escape, of a love that defied the chains of societal expectations. Staring at him in stunned silence, Clara grappled with the tumultuous emotions that surged within.
His eyes bore in to hers, searching for a glimmer of agreement, a shared resolve to challenge the constraints that sought to tear them apart. The wedding that would ruin any chance at love for the rest of their lives.
In that moment, the possibility of eloping with Christopher unfurled before her like a forbidden dream. The world, once familiar, now seemed drenched in the intoxicating allure of rebellion. Since no one would listen to her desire to marry for love, and her parents kept insisting that she wed for a title, perhaps this was the sort of action she needed to take.
To protect herself, and to live out the life that she so desperately wanted.
But she was afraid. There was no denying that she was scared. She had never done anything to defy her family before and certainly not something so huge that it would affect the Belmont name entirely for years to come.
So she was undeniably torn.
The scent of the night blossoms mingled with the uncertainty that clouded Clara’s thoughts. Christopher’s declaration had stirred a tempest within her, tempting possibilities warring with ingrained propriety. Her mind raced, grappling with the weight of consequences that loomed on the horizon.
Could she truly abandon the life she had known — the family ties, the social standing — to grasp at fleeting happiness with Christopher? The very idea both exhilarated and terrified her in equal measures. The tendrils of tradition, of societal expectations,clung to her conscience, whispering warnings of the ruin that awaited those who dared defy the established order.
Christopher’s eyes were pools of intensity, awaiting her response with bated breath. She could feel just how badly he needed her to answer. But she could not find the words. Not yet anyway. Clara’s conflicted gaze flickered between him and the shadows that concealed the life she was expected to lead.
“I… I…” She tried to answer, but still could not yet find the words. Still she was torn.
Duty or love?
Her parents and reputation or a life of happiness?
It was not an easy decision, much as she wished it was.
Might she dare to seize this profound chance, even if it meant being cast out from the only world she had ever known? The answer lingered in the night air, as Clara grappled with the precipice of a decision that could redefine the course of her existence.
She could not decide forever.
She needed to come up with some kind of answer. Especially because she did not wish to leave Christopher hanging, wondering why she was not enthusiastically jumping on the idea.
It was not that she did not feel the same way, it was simply that she was scared.
But before she could get any words out, a sharp gasping sound flew through the air, alerting both Christopher and Clara to the fact that they were no longer alone.
It was Lady Susan Caldwell.
Simon’s mother.
And she was looking right at them.
To make things worse, Lady Caldwell was accompanied by a circle of gossips, and their sounds of disapproval echoed through the night.
Clara’s heart skipped a beat as the shadowy rendezvous that had held the promise of freedom and choice was abruptly exposed to the harsh light of judgment. Mortification gripped her as disapproving glares intensified, casting a spot light on their clandestine meeting.
A rush of heat climbed Clara’s neck as the circle of gossips clucked their tongues, reveling in the scandal that unfolded before their eyes.
In that moment, all Clara wanted to do was to grab hold of Christopher’s hand and to start running right now, all the way to Gretna Green before anyone could capture them. But she was not going to get a chance to do so.
Someone had already alerted Clara’s parents as to what was happening. How they had managed to do so this fast was a miracle. But once the ton started to gossip about something, words could travel fast.
Ice cold fear gripped Clara’s heart, a paralyzing force that tightened its grip as her parents approached with deliberate steps. Their expressions, thoroughly unimpressed, bore the weight of disapproval that hung in the air like a suffocating fog. Clara’s breath caught in her throat, and she exchanged a fleeting glance with Christopher, their shared uncertainty echoing in the tense silence.
As her parents closed the distance, Clara’s mind raced, trying to anticipate the magnitude of the storm about to crash down upon her. The life she had known, the world she had inhabited, now stood on the precipice of irrevocable change.
In that harrowing moment, Clara could not fathom what lay ahead. The life she had carefully navigated, the privileges and expectations that came with her family name, threatened to unravel before her very eyes. The icy fear that gripped her extended beyond the immediate judgment; it was the fear of the unknown, the uncertainty of what would be left in the wake of this profound upheaval.
