Page 8 of The Earl's Error
The moment the door shut, Lady Melford rounded on Joceline. “What possessed you to permit them into our home?”
Joceline blinked in surprise. “I – I did not. The butler told me that Lady Albury made her way into this house without even asking if she could do so and he had no choice but to show her to the parlor.”
Hearing this, Lady Melford snorted, walked back to her chair, and sank back down into it, a grimace on her face. “That is precisely like her. I should have expected it.”
“I – I do not understand,” Joceline said, slowly. “Do you not like the lady? I thought you were very close friends, delighted to see each other again.”
This made her mother snort. “No, not in the least. That is what we pretend to be but I do not like her in the least bit! She is always far too demanding, doing her best to stand up against the rest of us in society, as if she has to prove thatsheis of higher standing than the rest of us.”
Joceline frowned. “She was the wife of an Earl, however.”
“But that does not matter!” her mother exclaimed, her face flushed red. “Do you not see? Your father, even though he is a Viscount, is richer than some of the Marquesses in society! But yet Lady Albury, rather than simply be contented with her acquaintances and her standing in society, is always determined to prove herself to be better than us all. That is the only reason she came here.”
“You mean by speaking about the ball.”
“Indeed.” Lady Melford grimaced. “I chose not to state that we too were throwing a ball, for our event must be different from hers. Though it can still be more impressive than her ball.”
Joceline, not understanding why their soiree had to have more success than Lady Melford’s ball, chose to keep her mouth closed rather than say anything more.
“I shall have to start planning immediately. And,” the lady continued, waving one hand at Joceline as though she were to pay rapt attention to all that was being said, “it must beafterherball so that we can see what she has done and then improve upon it.”
“Yes, Mama.” There was nothing else for Joceline to say though, inwardly, she considered that if her mother was now to become distracted by this rather than pursuing her love of reading and learning, then that might do rather well for her!
“Her son appeared to be very dull, which does not surprise me.” Lady Melford scowled. “An Earl he may be but he does not have any great character, does he? He did not say more than a few words, though that, no doubt, came from his mother’s presence. She has him under her control, I am sure, just as she manipulated and coerced her husband.”
This did not sit well with Joceline and she shifted uncomfortably in her chair, disliking hearing such things about a lady she did not even know. “He did try and speak to me,” she said, coming to the defense of the gentleman though this only earned her a roll of her mother’s eyes. “That was before your arrival.”
“Think nothing of it. That gentleman is not someone that you need to consider, my dear. That entire family is disagreeable and I should very much like us to stay away from them… though I must continue with my pretense of friendship, of course.”
“Of course,” Joceline murmured, looking down at her hands.
“I will have to go and begin thinking about this soiree!” her mother continued, as though she had not heard Joceline. “There is much to be done.”
Watching her mother walk out of the room, Joceline frowned as she thought about all that she had learned. One thing she determined she never wished to be was false, for witnessing both her mother and Lady Albury speaking to each other as they had done whilst inwardly despising each other a great deal was rather distressing to consider.
“Though I may now be free to meet with my friends as often as I wish,” Joceline murmured to herself, her eyes going to her book as a small smile tugged at the edge of her lips. “And that can only be a good thing.”
4
One week later
“I do notlike that you organized this ball without my permission.”
Lady Albury sighed heavily and fluttered her fingers in Theodore’s direction. “Now is not the time to complain about it, my son. Our guests will be here momentarily!”
I wish that I had found a way to prevent this.
In the last week, Theodore had discovered a fresh despondency when it came to his mother. Seemingly as punishment for refusing to fetch the heirlooms from the estate, Lady Albury had not only planned this ball without his awareness but had only mentioned it when they were in company, meaning that he had not any opportunity to prevent it! He had wondered why she had insisted upon bringing him to call upon Lady Melford and her daughter, a little suspicious that it had been done to introduce him to a young lady that his mother thought suitable. Once the conversation was at an end and they were returned to their carriage, however, Theodore had come to understand that the visit had been done solely to pushforward an old rivalry, to bring it back into the light. He had been deeply angry with her for the announcement of the ball and had told her in no uncertain terms that it would not take place, only for her to inform him that the select invitations had already been sent out.
Thus, here he was on the night of the ball, wishing that he had a way to step back from it all.
“As I have said, the guests will be here in a moment so we must go down.” His mother offered him her attempt at a warm smile. “Now, do not look so despondent. This evening will be an excellent one, I am sure.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Theodore noticed a footman stepping out of the shadows, a parcel in his hand. The footman stayed back in the shadows, clearly waiting for a moment to come to the fore and Theodore beckoned him closer at once. “Yes?”
The footman inclined his head and then came towards them, though he handed the parcel to Lady Albury rather than to Theodore. “This came only a few minutes ago, my lady.”
At once, Lady Albury grasped the parcel, a gasp escaping from her.
