Star Crossed

Part 11

It had been a long time since Mary had been to a country ball. She knew only a few of the dances, and had to politely decline the invitation of a gentleman who asked her for a dance she had never before seen. She worried about Daniel, being at home with his uncle, and hoped he would be alright without her for one evening.

Robert approached them the moment she, Ethel and Ruth stepped into the hall. He took Ethel's arm and smiled toothily at her sisters.

Ruth was ecstatic. "Oh!" She whispered. "My first ball. I am so very nervous, Mary."

Mary took her arm. "There is not a thing to be nervous about. If you are too afraid, let the gentleman lead, lead the dance, lead the conversation. I shall keep a watchful eye over you."

"Oh, thank you, Mary."

Mary stood with Ruth chatting about their favourite dresses among the ladies dancing, and before long a very strapping young man approached Ruth, flashing an irresistible smile. Mary imagined Ruth's heart soaring and her knees trembling.

"How do you do?" He said, his voice silky and divine.

Ruth curtsied, her rosy cheeks burning and her eyes sparkling. She, too, looked irresistible. "How do you do, sir?"

"May I have the privilege of the next dance? Pray, forgive me, we have not been introduced. I am John Williams."

"Ruth Adams. You may have the next dance."

Much pleased, Mr Williams momentarily moved away, though the pair could not keep their eyes diverted.

"Oh, Mary, he is so handsome and charming, whatever shall I do? I am acting so silly and shy and flustered and helpless!"

"Believe me, Ruth, you are playing your part perfectly. There is nothing a young man loves more than ..." she stopped mid-sentence, something having caught her eye all the way across the room. The most familiar pair of eyes, more familiar than her own face in the mirror, stared wistfully at her. She could not breathe, she could not move. She was stunned.

At last, the next dance began, and Ruth was swept onto the dance floor. Mary, able to look away, quickly rushed through the crowded room, leaving via the entrance hall. There she was momentarily alone, and she pushed herself against the wall, trying to breathe, trying not to go blind with shock. Suddenly she felt seventeen again, unmarried but desperately in love with Ephraim.

And now he was here.

She had not seen him since the day he had come to see her secretly after his wedding to Lady Bentley, and Daniel had been too shy to even look at his father. Her heart wrestled with itself. When she gained sufficient strength, she moved into the closest, quietest room she could find, which was the library. There, she moved to the bookshelf to study the collection.

A scrape against the floor made her jump. She turned around.

Ephraim.

As he moved in, she saw his eyes were glistening. His chin trembled. She was reminded of how he wept when they had said goodbye, when he had told her their awful reality. She had seen him suffer so many times. But she knew she had not even begun to see even half of what he had suffered since the night he was forced to divorce her.

In a moment, he had opened his arms, stumbled forward, and swept her up, sobbing so that her body shook each time he shook. His cheek rested against hers. She had forgotten how blissful it was to be close to him, to be in his arms, to hear him breathe, to touch his hair.

He wept and wept until she could no longer retain her dignity, and she wept too.

At last, he spoke.