AN: Hi, everyone! Sorry for the humungous delay in posting this chapter... Hopefully this will make up for it...
Fortunately, the next day was Tuesday, and Miss Evershed was up early to dress for her outing, scolding herself somewhat for taking three quarters of an hour merely to decide which gown to wear. At last, she chose a short-sleeved cambric walking dress in a becoming shade of blue and her most comfortable half-boots. Lady Radford, much amused by the amount of care her usually pragmatic niece was taking over her appearance, could only press a cup of chocolate and several slices of toast upon her for breakfast, and hide her smiles at Ruth's obvious distraction. The morning was spent in near-total silence on Ruth's part, and by half-past eleven, she had risen to pull on thin cotton gloves and a light spencer jacket in readiness for Sir Henry's arrival.
Miss Evershed was nervous. This was the first time that she and Sir Henry had planned any sort of outing together, although he had occasionally accompanied Lady Radford and herself to social events. In fact, it would be the first time that any man had wished to escort her anywhere for a very long time. Irritated by her own quivering hands, she dug her nails into her gloved palms and took a last look in the mirror. Fortunately, Sir Henry was known for his punctuality. As the grandfather clock in the hall was striking the hour, a sharp rap came on the door and Berry stepped briskly forwards to answer it. Sir Henry waited there, his head twisted round to keep a sharp eye on the small boy who already sat in the landau. Miss Evershed stepped briskly forwards and passed out of the door, leaving Berry to cast an admiring glance at her as she was helped into the carriage by Sir Henry. At close range, Master Carter was of average height and build for his age, with a mop of bright blonde hair and glowingly intelligent hazel eyes. He flashed Ruth a bashful grin, showing off a gap where he must have recently lost a milk tooth, as she settled into the seat next to him, and said in a halting voice, "Pleased to make your acquaintance, Miss Evershed."
Then, to Sir Henry, who had just entered the carriage and was seated opposite them, he asked in a stage-whisper, "Was that right, Uncle Harry?"
Sir Henry choked down a laugh, and replied solemnly, "Very good, Wesley." His eyes, however, glimmered with amusement as he smiled at Ruth. He was not driving himself today, so he could devote his entire attention to his companions. Wesley was clearly highly excited by the prospect of the balloon ascension, and, being an obviously bright boy, was more than happy to discuss his recently gained knowledge of the subject with the less enlightened Ruth. Sir Henry allowed him to chatter on for most of the journey, and then, when he could no longer hold in his frustration at not having spoken much above the commonplace to Ruth since he had called upon her that morning, he smiled and announced, "I took the liberty of asking my cook to prepare a packed nuncheon for us, Miss Evershed. I understand that balloon ascensions can be rather time-consuming."
Ruth smiled and nodded. "So I have heard." SIlence fell for a moment, and then she said, "I trust that your business in the country was concluded to your satisfaction?"
Sir Henry inclined his head, silent thanks for her inquiry. "Quite well, thank you. I shall be delighted to remove to Middlethorpe next week - at my age, Miss Evershed, one finds that each Season drags more than the last."
Ruth gave a short laugh, hidden behind her hand. Amused, she replied, "I must confess that I am beginning to agree with you. Even as a girl, the Season held little interest for me. I had no intention of marrying, after all." She sobered somewhat, and added, "At sixteen, I saw all the disadvantages of marriage, and none of its virtues…" Her voice faded away, suddenly aware that she had drawn their conversation into an entirely improper vein. Sir Henry reached out hesitantly and briefly clasped her gloved hand. The warmth of his fingers seemed to sink into her very bones. "I think that, in our youth, Miss Evershed, we all of us form impressions which are later proved incorrect."
She nodded and forced herself back to cheerfulness. "Aye - and now I must content myself with being a wise old maid!"
He frowned, his hand seemed to tighten on hers, and a look of query flashed across her face. He opened his mouth to speak, but too late - Master Carter, who had been eagerly looking out at the streets and houses passing him by and not paying the least attention to the conversation of his elders, cried out, "We're here! Look, Uncle Harry, I can see the balloon!" Sir Henry's hand withdrew from Miss Evershed's, and he turned his attention to Wesley's amusement as the landau was guided by the capable hands of Sir Henry's groom into a good position for watching the afternoon's spectacle. Hyde Park was already beginning to fill with all manner of carriages, and Master Carter was as much excited by this as by the sight of the brightly coloured silks of which the balloon was made up. Currently, the contraption was surrounded by a team of engineers receiving orders from another man, whom Miss Evershed assumed to be the aeronaut. Young Master Carter, much excited, scrambled up to stand on his seat, resting his hand on the top of Sir Henry's hat to maintain his balance. Sir Henry uttered a long-suffering sigh but made no comment to his charge, and Ruth had to raise her hand to cover a smile.
Helpfully, she suggested, "Wesley, I think we ought to eat some nuncheon, now. You shall get tired standing there if you have nothing to eat." Reluctantly, Wesley slid back down into a sitting position, as Sir Henry's groom passed over a wicker basket, and the baronet himself flashed her a grateful smile, which Ruth returned. Sir Henry's cook had outdone herself; the basket contained bread, cheeses, cold meats, a range of fruits, and some freshly baked cakes. Soon, all three occupants of the carriage were eating hungrily, leaving little opportunity for conversation. However, Wesley soon stopped eating, far too excited to consume more than a slice of bread and a morsel of cheese. He surreptitiously laid aside his plate and was just on the verge of clambering back into his former position, when Sir Henry noticed and, grasping him firmly around the shoulders, restored him to a seating position. "Wesley, I should be obliged if you would finish your meal." His voice was stern, and Wesley pouted, on the verge of childish tears.
Ruth decided that this would be an opportune moment to intervene. "It is a pity that you are not hungry, Wesley. I had planned to treat you to an ice at Gunters' after the ascension, as a thank you for allowing me to accompany you, but that would be useless if you are already full." Her tone was lightly offhand, but her words had the desired effect. Wesley returned with gusto to his meal, eyes wide as he attempted to comprehend the prospect of this afternoon of delights. Sir Henry watched him, much amused, and then murmured to Ruth, "I apologise. I sincerely did not invite you in order for you to be managing Wesley all afternoon."
She shook her head. "I am used to it. Compared to my nephews, Wesley is a model of good behaviour…"
The rest of the afternoon passed off very well. The balloon ascended safely, its brightly coloured silk showing up sharply against the cloudless blue sky, and floated away. Wesley amused his companions very much by his greatly exaggerated guesses of how far it would travel before landing, and then Sir Henry's groom began to drive the carriage from the park. As promised, young Master Carter enjoyed his ice at Gunters', paid for, despite Sir Henry's persistent protests, by Miss Evershed. By the time they had returned to the carriage, the sun was lowering in the sky, and Wesley was keeping his eyes open only with difficulty. Upon re-entering the carriage, Wesley clambered up to sit on Ruth's lap, closing his eyes gratefully and pillowing his head on her shoulder. Sir Henry looked concerned for a moment, but this faded when Miss Evershed made no sign of protest. Indeed, he could not help admitting to himself, as he sat opposite her, how much he enjoyed the sight of her cradling his godson.
The journey to Captain Carter's house was spent in quiet conversation upon commonplaces - the time they had spent apart, the news Ruth had received from Elizabeth and Captain Levendis, and the rather less pleasant news that Sir Henry had been receiving from the Continent. "My absence from town necessitated my refusal of several invitations, I fear," Sir Henry commented, when Ruth enumerated the functions she had attended over the past few days. The thought of his absence recalled to her mind her meeting with Oliver Mace, and a slight frown crossed her face. Even in the dark of the carriage, Sir Henry seemed to recognise it, and cast her a somewhat querying glance, leaning forwards to stare into her eyes.
"'Tis nothing," she smiled at last. "Merely the fact that I met an old acquaintance of yours at a card party last week. You have only just reminded me of it…"
His face brightened with curiosity. "An old acquaintance? Who, pray?"
"Oliver Mace."
The engaging smile vanished completely. Sir Henry sank back in his seat, wordless with shock. "Mace!" he uttered finally. Then, attempting to shake off a reaction which he knew would have already ignited the flame of suspicion in Miss Evershed's bright mind, he added, "I believed him to be still in America."
Ruth shook her head, trying to remember Mace's exact words. She would not make reference to the relationship he had believed to exist between herself and Sir Henry, however. "He has returned, in any case. He asked me to pass on his regards to you when next we met, and then he left… How - ?"
But the carriage had stopped, and Sir Henry had risen to receive a still-sleeping Wesley from Miss Evershed's arms. The boy stirred, but did not wake, and Ruth watched Sir Henry carry his charge to the door of Captain Carter's house, where his bundle was received by a waiting housemaid. Ruth was quite willing to resume their discussion of Mace upon his return, since her curiosity had been much piqued by Sir Henry's reaction, no matter how much she had expected it. However, from the moment of his re-entrance of the carriage, he talked so determinedly upon other subjects that Ruth felt it wise to subdue her inquisitiveness, for the present moment at least. Whatever the cause, Sir Henry and Mace were not on good terms. And Sir Henry appeared politely insistent on not revealing any more than that.
Eventually, the carriage stopped at Lady Radford's door. Sir Henry disembarked and assisted Miss Evershed down from the carriage. They stood together on the doorstep, neither knowing what to say. At last, Ruth stuttered," Th-thank you for a - a lovely day, sir." He smiled down upon her, tenderness glowing from his face, and then he slowly bent and kissed her gloved hand. "And thank you for being quite yourself, Miss Evershed, as always." She wanted to ask him his meaning, but at that moment, Berry pulled opened the door and admitted his mistress's goddaughter. "Goodnight, Miss Evershed," Sir Henry finished, hiding the grimace that the butler's appearance had occasioned.
Her glowing smile mollified him much. "Goodnight, Sir Henry. And thank you, again."
He whistled all the way home.
