A Woman of Honour

Chapter 15

On the evening of the ball, Ralph stood at the bottom of the staircase in the entrance hall, waiting for his mother's arrival. He had spent most of the day locked away with his steward, with the excuse that he was attending to important estate business. Anyway, his mother had made it perfectly clear that she did not require his help.

Ralph was perfectly happy to leave the arrangements for the ball in the capable hands of his mother. She had, after all, been the mistress at Belmont Hall for nearly forty years. And, in that time, she had hosted some of the most extravagant balls in the country. In fact, Lady Huntingdon was famed for her ability to organise a grand ball, and Ralph doubted that tonight would be any different.

Since early that morning, he had seen his servants scurrying around, readying the Hall for tonight. The floor of the ballroom had been highly polished until it shone, and elegant arrangements of fresh flowers had been placed strategically around the room. The room was lit by hundreds of candles that burned brightly in the ornate chandeliers that hung from the ceiling. The dining-room had been laid out for a lavish supper that would be served later in the evening, and the adjoining morning room had been converted into a card room. His mother had thought of everything.

She had even suggested to him that the ball would provide him with the perfect opportunity to announce his forthcoming betrothal to Miss Hepworth.

'Ralph,' she had said to him after breakfast that morning. 'It is time you stopped procrastinating and go and speak to Lord Hepworth. He is expecting you to talk to him at some point before the ball.'

Ralph feigned innocence. 'My dear mama,' he had said casually, 'and why would I want to speak to that old bore?'

'You know full well,' she had answered crossly, 'he is expecting you to make an offer for his daughter before the end of the day.'

Ralph had raised his eyebrows at this remark. 'His lordship will be waiting for a long time. I have about as much desire to wed Miss Hepworth as she does to wed me. The poor chit is positively afraid of me and has not said nigh on two words to me all week.'

'Ralph, don't be obstreperous,' his mother had replied testily, 'you are not marrying her for her wit.'

'Please, mama,' Ralph had said with a sigh, 'then why would you want me to marry such a poor creature?'

'To secure the succession, why else?' she had answered irritably. 'She has an excellent bloodline, a substantial dowry, and she will make you the perfect countess.'

'You make her sound like a broodmare,' Ralph had answered shortly.

'Don't be so crude,' she had answered sharply. 'You have to marry her, I promised Lord Hepworth.'

'Madam,' he said dangerously, 'you have no right to make promises about my future on my behalf. I suggest you go and find Lord Hepworth and tell him that there will be no betrothal between our two families.'

'You are just like your father,' his mother had replied as she stamped her foot and prepared for a tantrum.

'Madam,' he said coolly, unmoved by her histrionics, 'I am nothing like my father. Now, go and find Lord Hepworth, and I will not have anything else said about the subject of my marriage.'

Ralph had left his irate mother and had gone to his steward's office. The conversation with her had disturbed his equilibrium. Over the past few days, his mother had not spoken to him about marriage. He had hoped that her silence was an indication that she had seen the folly of her choice. However, after this morning's encounter, Ralph knew that he had to be on his guard. He did not put it past his mother to devise some scheme that would force his hand.