Page 2 of The Duchess' Ultimatum
“Which is her decision to make,” Eliza pressed. “All this fussing and it only makes things worse.”
Again, mother and stepdaughter started to bicker as if Penelope was not there, and again Penelope found herself grateful for the chance to be ignored.
Why did I even bother coming tonight? I knew it would turn out as it has done, just as I knew the moment I stepped into the ballroom I would want to go home. Which I will do, just as soon as my sister gives up… any minute now, if I am lucky.
Despite Evelina being the one who was so insistent that Penelope remove herself from the corners of the ballroom and begin to socialize, she was not the reason that Penelope had bothered coming to the ball tonight – she loved her oldest sister dearly, but not so much that she would do so tedious a thing as that.
No, no. Her reason for being here was on account of her father.
It was ironic that her father had requested that she attend when all Penelope wanted to do was stay home so she could watch over him, as she had been doing now for years. He was just sixty-five but with failing health, the type where any day might be his last,and it pained her greatly to be away from him like this. Even if it was for just one night.
Penelope loved her father more than words could describe, which was the only reason she’d done as he asked. However, she was also aware that where he might have asked her to attend the ball this evening, he did not say for how long, nor did he demand that she speak with anyone outside of her sister and friend.
I have done as he requested… why he did so, I cannot imagine. But the promise was kept, meaning that I am free to leave. Guiltless, and just glad to be free from here.
“Might I speak!” Penelope spoke loudly, cutting through the bickering of her sister and friend. They stopped their talking and looked at her. “Oh, so you do see me standing here.”
Evelina scoffed. “Unfortunately for you.”
“I appreciate what you are trying to do,” Penelope assured her sister. “Truly, I know the reason, just as I know why you are doing it.” She reached out and touched her sister on the arm. “But I did not come here tonight to be led around like a show pony so men twice my age can bid for the chance to trap me in a marriage as if I am some sort of prize.”
“It is not a trap,” Evelina said. “Marriage is not…” She clicked her tongue with frustration. “It is a wonderous thing, as natural as breathing, and I just wish you would understand that. That you would only give it a chance.”
“For you maybe,” Penelope said. “But not for me.”
“Penelope –”
“My mind is made up, Evelina,” Penelope cut over her. “And I would hope that you respect that.”
Evelina was twelve years older than Penelope, which made them sisters but not as close as they could be. Penelope had been only twelve when Evelina married her husband and moved away, a marriage which was now happy and love-filled and the very reason that Evelina wanted the same for her youngest sister.
What she chose to forget was how painful the marriage had been when it started. How hard Evelina and her husband had needed to work to make it what it was today. For many, it was a story which proved that anyone could have their own happily ever after if they wished it, a perfect example of why one should choose to marry in the first place.
To me, it has always felt like more of a warning. Yes, there are those who aspire for such things, just as there are those who spurn them. Obviously, I am of the latter opinion.
One day, perhaps, Penelope would want to marry. She could not imagine such a situation, but she wasn’t ready to write it off entirely. But for now, such a state of being was as far from her reality as could be. She had her own life, her own goals, things she would rather be doing than wasting time with courtship and the like.
Speaking of which…
“For that reason, I think it is time that I leave,” Penelope continued, her thoughts now focused on where she would much rather be. “I –”
“Penelope, no!” Evelina cried.
“Thank you for tonight,” she told her sister, meaning it. “I know you only meant the best.” A caring smile then, just to hammer the point home.
“Shall I come with you?” Eliza offered. “Outside, I mean. If you need the company?”
Eliza was one year younger than Penelope, which was the reason they were such good friends. But just because they were close did not mean they shared all the same opinions. Eliza understood why Penelope did not wish to marry, and she supported her fully. However, unlike her best friend, Eliza was that breed of lady who wanted to marry more than anything.
“You stay here,” Penelope assured her with a soft smile. “There are many handsome men about, surely one will catch your eye.” She offered a wink. “It would be their loss, if they didn’t.”
A further five minutes followed of Eliza trying to convince her to stay. But there would be no convincing. Some ladies spent their entire lives looking forward to nights like this one, desperate tomeet the man of their dreams and live happily ever after. But some ladies, or most, were not Penelope Balfour.
Thus she left her older sister and friend behind, soon arriving at her carriage which was parked and waiting. And when she climbed inside and closed the door, she allowed herself her first smile of the evening.
Where she was headed might not be the most exciting of places, but it was where she wished to be. And in the end, wasn’t that all which mattered? Its own sort of happy ending, she thought. What could be wrong with that?
“Penelope? What are you doing home?”
