The Scarlet Ball

Like a Brother

Ruby Rebeck's POV

We were in the dining room waiting for the cooks and maids to bring us our food. Clarence finally apologized for his awful behavior. I find it must be foolish. He does this everytime and everyone finds his perfect scheme. He tricks others because his wife passed away. He thinks he has a right to treat everyone like he owns the place. I can't stand him or his son.

As a proper lady I must keep my mouth closed. It is harder to keep my silence for so long."Ruby your posture" said Lleyton with a smirk. "Ruby" said my mother as she pushed my back in. I tightened my posture even more. My father was too busy reading the newspaper to even care. He kept drinking his tea. The slurps were so loud. His lag was hung across his other one as he sat beside me. My father's posture was even worse than my own. I shouldn't be told anything.

"This young lady's posture is impostures," said Clarence with a dark chuckle. I just smiled and nodded my head as Lleyton laughed. My mother ordered the maids around to take care of the house. It was going to be my job one day once I married. Maybe Clarence is being an unappreciative guest. As the time flies the more I see what a horrible man he is. I notice how bizarre he tries to make himself become one of us. If I marry, Clarence has no reason to stay.

He plans to ruin my courtings in any means necessary. He knows that if I marry all this won't go to him. He actually wants his brother's money. My dad's money should never fall into his hands. That is why he is here. He knows that if my father dies then he has all the power. He may also see what the baby is. My mother is in her due month. It is almost any time now. Everyone has been buzzing around trying to prepare. This was big news for the Rebecks afterall.

Hayden and his family will be joining us in a second. I couldn't wait for their arrival. "What is taking them so long?" said Clarence. He was becoming very inpatient. "The food is ready," said My mother as she finally sat down. There was a knock on the door. Within a few seconds the announcer called their names. "The Bassets have arrived" the announcer called outloud. They walked up the stairs and joined us. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome" said my mother happily.

"Lord Rebeck, Sir Rebeck, and Lady Rebeck" said Lillian with a short bow. Just then all her kids came running to the table. Hayden is not an only child. His younger siblings are with the nanny learning on how to be proper. I haven't seen them in the last few days. Hayden is the oldest and he is older than me. His brother Flint is the second oldest. Lastly his little sister Elsie. They are all true Bassets. They will keep their father's title except for Elsie who would later in life wed.

She would train to be like me, a proper lady. This rank in titles is not all that it is cracked out to be. They all sat in the chairs that were given to them by their ranks. It was a very weird accommodation. Hayden sat beside me and I was glad that he did so. I was away from my uncle and cousin. I turned to Hayden with a smile. He wasn't caught leaving last night. We were able to meet in private once more. That was a great reward after getting away with it.

The maids came with plates of fresh food. There in the plate in front of me was jam tarts. Those were my absolute favorites. My favorite foods are super sweet strawberries. I can never go without them. My dishes must always have a strawberry from the nearest garden. They grow more fresh each day. I have multiple meals with every meal. It is something I can't go without. It is the best part of eating.

I had a jam tart and even sliced strawberries on my fine China plate. My mom and Lillian had matching China tea cups. They 're starting to get into conversation. I sat there quietly noticing that Lleyton was annoyed. He never liked anyone. I had to keep my attention off of him. I took a deep breath and returned back to the cloudy discussions across the room.I blocked them out.

"Can't you wait for your sibling" asked Lillan. She said that she would stop having children. She does have three kids. She sees that there are enough kids. Lord Kenneth Basset has two heirs and one daughter with some money. They will find their significant others to get them closer to being on the high title ranks as Viscount, Lord, and Lady. That is very important with a family.

My mother is warned to not have many more kids after this one. It is very scary to hear of course. Everyone is usually looking for heirs. It is the longest tradition known for. Marriage and babies. We must have lots and lots of babies. I don't see why they make us. I do want a happy family like me and my parents. I don't want someone like my cruel uncle looking for riches. To me it isn't a better thing to live off of. I find it enduring to keep a proper lady with a proper family.

I'm just hoping that future affairs don't take that away from me. Hayden was talking to his younger siblings. Soon I will be the oldest in the family. My cousin is a little bit older than me. I will have to marry sooner or later. This isn't something that could sound so delicate. Hayden learns to be a lord well I train my entire life to be a Lady. It will be all I know when I am older.