“Oh no. I, too, prefer the quiet tonight. Besides, my feet, remember?” Elizabeth waggled her oversize slippers at Sophia.
Sophia sighed heavily and sat forward. “Yes, they do already have jesters at court, don’t they?”
Laughter again filled the room as Sophia stood. Catherine got to her feet as well. “I must leave too. I find myself tiring more easily as of late.”
“I remember it well,” Elizabeth said, walking to the door and ringing the bell. “I do thank you for joining me this afternoon. It has been a pleasure.”
Their light chatter filled the entrance as their carriages were brought around. Afterward, Elizabeth wandered around the empty house, unsure of how to fill her time. She took a seat by the window in the drawing room and picked up her embroidery. She stared at it but didn’t raise the needle. After the gaiety of her friends’ company, the silence was stifling.
“Can I bring you anything, my lady?”
“No, thank you, Hastings. I believe I’ll go up and see the boys. I am sure William would like to discuss the pony situation for the hundredth time.”
She took the stairs slowly, the familiar loneliness more acute after the promise of yesterday. Baby steps, she reminded herself. Baby steps.