Page 77 of Love Abandoned

She usually enjoyed the boys’ boisterous conversations, but she found them exhausting on the way home. Her face was stiff from her attempts to smile, and as they rode along the drive, she counted the minutes to when Hannah would take them to the nursery. They pulled into the courtyard, and the boys leaped out, with Hannah and Sebastian following them a little more slowly. Elizabeth was tempted to tap the roof and ride away, to tell Simon to keep going until the horses could go no further.

She slid across the seat, took Gordon’s hand, and stepped into the courtyard, and her heart immediately lightened.

“Has she been here long?” she asked Gordon.

“About a quarter of an hour, my lady.”

Elizabeth rushed past Sophia’s carriage and up the steps, where Hastings was waiting for her in the entranceway. She tugged at the ribbon of her bonnet. “Where is she?”

“I have taken the liberty of ordering tea for the small drawing room, my lady.” He took her hat. “Far away from the boys,” he added with a slight smile.

“Thank you, Hastings. You are a wonder.” She left him in the entranceway and scooted through the corridor, past the breakfast room, to the small drawing room. She paused in the doorway and smiled. Sophia, looking voluptuous in a daring green silk gown, was far too overdressed for an afternoon call. Elizabeth adored her audacious confidence.

“Bella,” Sophia said, looking up and meeting Elizabeth’s gaze. “I feared you were never coming home.”

Elizabeth laughed. “Gordon told me how long you’ve been here, you fraud.”

Sophia shrugged innocently. “It seemed so very long,” she said, smiling.

“As has your absence, my friend. I missed you dearly.” Elizabeth walked to Sophia and kissed each cheek before taking a seat beside her on the settee. “How was London?”

“It is dark and dreary and no place for me right now. It is getting busier. All the mamas coming with their babies.” Sophia shuddered theatrically. “I do not enjoy watching them shop their daughters around like a peddler’s wares.” She leaned in closer. “And I do not like how old I look beside them.”

“There is no one who can compete with you,” Elizabeth said, although she knew Sophia was not remotely interested in competing in the marriage market. “Your beauty is timeless.” It was no exaggeration. Sophia was stunning. Eyes as dark as her hair, a smile so white it seemed impossible, she had a body that was a siren song calling all men. More importantly, a warm vitality radiated from within, making Sophia the most beautiful woman Elizabeth had ever met.

“Ah,mia cara donna, this is why you are my best friend.” She leaned back against the settee. “You are blind to my faults.”

They both laughed but grew quiet as the tea service was brought in and prepared. “Did you accomplish what you needed to do in London?” Elizabeth asked when the door closed behind Hastings.

“I did. Everything is in order, so now it is time for fun.” Sophia frowned. “I did not see a response from you on my list. You will come to my masquerade, no?”

Elizabeth was about to decline. It is clear which woman he prefers, isn’t it?Mrs. Elder’s biting remarks still stung. She considered telling Sophia about the encounter but quickly decided against it. She would get sympathy and comfort, but she’d had more than enough of commiserations. No, it was time to stop wallowing in her grief and accept the things she could not change.

“I would love to come to your masquerade.”

Sophia squealed and hugged her tight. She released Elizabeth and clapped her hands. “You have made me very happy. I think you will be made very happy too. Find someamore.”

“How can you even suggest such a thing?” Elizabeth asked, although she was certain Sophia was teasing.

“But if you are…what is it you say? A horse in a field,mia amica. If it is true, you have some rights. You have given two heirs. You need not rob yourself of attention.”

Sophia wasn’t teasing. Elizabeth shook her head in disbelief. “Are you suggesting I seek another man’s company?”

Sophia sipped her tea, wagging her eyebrows up and down. It would be comical if it were not attached to such a shocking proposition.

“You know I would not, could not, do that.”

“Why,bella? What is good for the gander is good for the goose, no?”

Leave it to Sophia to put Richard’s perfidy out on the table for discussion. “Well, let’s skip all the moral reasons, since you are correct: Richard seems to have done that. But he does not risk getting with child.”

“Ah, a practical woman. It is a fair argument. But there are ways to ensure it does not happen. You have not seen me grow round,mia amica.”

“You have…you stop…you?” Elizabeth could not formulate a question. She knew Sophia entertained men—it was a luxury of widowhood—but she’d never contemplated her lack of conception.

Sophia put her cup on the table and sat back. “I have never wanted children. I never will. I make no apologies for it.”

“Of course not,” Elizabeth said, finally coming to her senses. “You owe me no explanations.”

---