Chapter 17

Adelaide awoke the next morning and had to pinch herself. Could what happened the night before have really happened? She looked at the beautiful sapphire and diamond ring that still sat on her finger and smiled. Yes, it could! For the first time since she could remember, she actually slept in and missed breakfast. She bounded out of bed, her eyes shining, and a big smile upon her face.

Betsy helped her dress into a day dress made of periwinkle blue muslin with cap sleeves; lace adorned the hem of her skirt and the edge of the bodice. Then, Betsy arranged her hair in ringlets that framed her face, secured with pins. Once she had finished, Adelaide stepped lightly down the stairs and toward the dining room, where she hoped there would be something to eat. She was starving.

She was surprised to see Jonathon already there; after all, he did say he would call on her. Jonathon arose when he saw her and lightly kissed her on the cheek, placing his arms around her waist. She rested her head on his chest; she could feel his heartbeat through his navy blue waistcoat.

"Good morning, my love," he whispered in her ear. "Or should I say, good afternoon."

She laughed, playfully punching him on the arm. "Good morning, Jonathon. I must apologise for my tardiness, I fear I slept in."

"I am only joking, Adelaide. Come, have something to eat. I have already eaten, but I shall enjoy watching you," he replied.

They sat down at the table next to each other, Jonathon's arm lying across the backrest of Adelaide's chair.

"Where is Her Grace, this morning?" Adelaide asked.

"I think she has chosen to give us some privacy, my love," he replied. "I cannot say I mind."

"I do not either," Adelaide said, blushing.

"I was thinking, we may visit your brother this morning," Jonathon said. "He has moved into Lockwood House already. Why not welcome him properly."

"Are my parents still there?" she asked quietly.

"Yes, they are, my dear," he replied, with a sly smile. "However, I will be with you. We can inform them of our good news."

"I must admit, it would be quite a treat to see the look on Margaret's face," she giggled.

"Is that the only reason you are marrying me?" he asked in mock surprise.

"No, of course not, I love you," she said, kissing him on the cheek.

"As I love you, my darling," he replied, turning her head and kissing her lightly on the lips. "Come, we should be going."

They arose from the table and collected their things from the hallway to guard against the weather. The carriage waited for them at the curb, Jonathon handed her up before ascending himself and sitting down next to her. His arm placed around her shoulders. On the short carriage ride to Lockwood House, they held each other and kissed, not wanting the carriage ride to end.

The carriage stopped outside the residence. Jonathon handed Adelaide down and they walked together, arm in arm, to the door. After they butler showed them to the drawing room, they found Andrew and William sitting and talking. They stood up when Jonathon and Adelaide entered, their eyebrows raised in question.

"Good morning, gentlemen," Jonathon said, seating himself in a chair.

"Good morning, Jonathon, Adelaide," they replied.

Adelaide sat next to Jonathon, her hands folded demurely in her lap. She had to admit to herself that she was nervous about seeing her family. She left it to Jonathon to tell her brother and Andrew about their good news. Once he had, William came over to Adelaide and hugged her; pleased that finally she had found some happiness.

"Where are Mama and Papa, William?" she asked.

"Upstairs, my sweet," William replied. "I have not seen them very often and do not wish to quite frankly. They do not even leave the house."

"So they would not know our good news then?" Jonathon asked.

A knowing grin formed upon Williams face, he summoned his butler and asked for his parents and Margaret. They arrived with suspicious expressions upon their faces. It seemed to Adelaide, her parents had aged substantially since she had last seen them at the hearing. When they saw Adelaide, they scowled. According them, their loss of station in society had all been down to her. They still had not thought it had been their fault all along.

"You wished to see us?" Mr Lockwood said, for that was what he was called, since he lost his title.

"Yes, you do remember His Grace and your eldest daughter do you not?" William asked.

Mr Lockwood scowled. "Of course, she is the reason we have lost our station in society," he said.

"No, Father, that was your doing," William replied. "However, your schemes have not worked, as you are about to discover. Jonathon, you have the floor."

"Thank you, William," Jonathon said. "I thought you might like to know, especially you Margaret, that Adelaide and myself are about to be married."

The colour visibly drained from Margaret's face, she turned on her sister, hate evident in her eyes. "You," she spat. "Why, could you not allow me to have what I want? Why could you not stay in the country where you belong? It is not fair."

Jonathon went to confront her but Adelaide stopped him, placing her hand on his arm. "Allow me, darling," she said quietly. She went and stood right in front of her sister. "The problem with you is, dear sister, is that you have gotten what you want for most of your life and when you do not, you throw a petty little tantrum. You are an ignorant, spoilt little girl who has finally discovered the world is not always fair and I for one will be eternally grateful."

Mr Lockwood raised his hand as if to strike Adelaide. Quick as a flash, William and Jonathon took both of his arms and restrained him. He struggled in their grip, trying to break free, but they had a firm grip and he could not. Jonathon placed his face right in front of Mr Lockwoods, so close he could see the veins in the whites of his eyes.

"If you ever strike the woman I love, I swear your life will not be worth living," he snarled.

"You can pack your things and leave," William said. "I have been good enough to allow you to stay here. However, since this little display, I fear I cannot. You shall leave as soon as you are packed."

Mrs Lockwood raised her hand to her face. She looked stricken. "What is to become of us?" she cried.

Still not willing to put his family out on the street, he said, "You shall leave for Lockwood Hall, where you will stay indefinitely. Moreover, if I hear you have been abusing the servants, then you will be out on the street with not even a farthing to your name. " He turned away and dismissed them.

Uproar of activity followed his announcement as the Lockwoods went about packing their belongings. At Williams' direction, footmen started to bring down their trunks and leave them at the door. When everything was ready, the Lockwoods came down and walked outside, not even saying goodbye. The footmen loaded the trunks onto the carriage and the Lockwoods alighted, not looking back as they moved off.

Adelaide and Jonathon did not go out to see them off, they did not want to. Instead, they stayed in the drawing room with William and Andrew. William rang the bell pull to summon the butler to order some refreshments. The butler returned with ratafia for Adelaide and wine for the gentlemen. They wanted to celebrate finally being free from the Lockwoods, the source of Adelaide's pain for her entire life.

They finished their drinks and Jonathon and Adelaide bid their farewells. They walked out to their carriage and made their way home to Winthrop House. When they arrived, Jonathon handed Adelaide down and they walked into the house. Once in the drawing room, they saw Eleanor entertaining Lady Westbrook. They rose when Jonathon and Adelaide entered. After exchanging the normal bows and curtsies, they seated themselves.

Jonathon described what had happened at Lockwood House. When he had finished, Eleanor clapped her hands in excitement. Lady Westbrook had a pleased expression on her countenance. She was still deeply ashamed for believing that Adelaide had committed the atrocities her parents had claimed. She was now happy it had worked out for the best, with the Lockwoods sent away in disgrace, which was what they deserved.

"You should have seen Adelaide, Mother," Jonathon said. "She really stood up to Margaret. She still stayed ladylike though."

"Well done, my dear," Eleanor cried. "I have noticed you becoming more confident lately."

"Thank you, Your Grace," Adelaide replied. "I must admit it did feel good telling her what I thought. It was a long time in coming."

Soon after, Lady Westbrook departed, leaving Jonathon, Eleanor, and Adelaide alone in the drawing room, talking about the upcoming ball they were hosting. They continued to talk until midafternoon when Jonathon announced he had to leave. He stood up and kissed his mother and his beloved on the cheek and left, leaving Eleanor and Adelaide alone.

Eleanor placed her arm around Adelaide's shoulder. "Engagement seems to become you, my dear," she said.

"Oh, yes, Your Grace," Adelaide cried. "I love Jonathon so very much; I think I have for quite some time, only recently I have realised it."

"He loves you just as much, my dear," Eleanor replied. "I have never seen my son so happy with a young lady. I must be honest with you, he has been interested in young ladies before, but he has never proposed to them. I was beginning to wonder whether he would."

"He has?" Adelaide cried, stricken.

"Do not worry, my dear. He only has eyes for you now. He has for quite some time."

"How long, Your Grace?" Adelaide asked, extremely surprised. She was sure he liked Margaret.

"I noticed it at Lockwood Hall, at the ball. He did ask you to dance the waltz did he not?"

"Yes, he did. It felt quite disconcerting being so close to him," she replied, blushing.

"Well, I must see to preparations for our ball. I do not know what I was thinking holding it so close. It is tomorrow night."

She left Adelaide alone in the drawing room to see to the preparations.

* * *

The following night, Adelaide prepared herself for the ball. Betsy helped her dress into an off the shoulder, dusky rose gown. With a plain, unadorned bodice that finished just above her hips, before billowing out into a full skirt. After Betsy arranged her hair into ringlets piled onto top of her head, secured with pins and ribbons, she made her way down the stairs to the ballroom.

Guests had already started arriving, ladies wearing gowns of all shapes and colours, gentlemen wearing their best breeches and waistcoats. They made a slow procession into the ballroom to await the commencement of the ball. Adelaide joined the concourse slowly moving their way inside. She wondered where Jonathon was, she could not see him through all of the guests.

She felt a hand on her elbow, turning around, she saw Jonathon, smiling down at her. She threw her arms around him, not caring who saw. His arms snaked their way around her waist, drawing her closer. He placed a light kiss upon her lips, not even aware that others were watching.

"You look beautiful tonight, my love," he whispered in her ear.

"Thank you," she replied, she stepped back and ran her eyes over his form. "You do not so bad yourself, Your Grace."

He did indeed look handsome in a pair of black breeches, olive green waistcoat, and matching evening coat, his black cravat, tied expertly by his valet. Together they walked, arm in arm, toward the front of the ballroom, where Eleanor waited to commence the ball.

The ballroom, beautifully decorated in white and gold, held a maximum of 200 and it seemed every square inch of the space taken up with people. An orchestra sat in one corner and a refreshment table in the other, before leading out onto the terrace, complete with tables and chairs.

Eleanor clapped her hands to restore some quiet. Everybody stopped talking and waited for her address with baited breath.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I wish to thank you all for coming tonight. Before we start, I would like to announce the engagement of my son, the Duke of Leicester, to a very special young lady, someone I already consider as part of my family, Lady Adelaide Lockwood."

A rousing round of applause followed Eleanor's announcement. Jonathon and Adelaide joined Eleanor on the dais to accept the congratulations offered; both had big smiles on their faces.

"Now, please, everyone enjoy yourselves," Eleanor cried.

She motioned to the orchestra who started to play for the first dance, A Grand March. Couples began to move out onto the dance floor, moving with the music in a set number of steps. Ladies skirts swished out as they moved in a kaleidoscope of colour, twirling about the dance floor.

Adelaide and Jonathon went to find William and Andrew; however, they came upon Lord James Pembroke instead. He did not look pleased. He stood in front of them, a thunderous expression on his face. He had seen Adelaide as a way out of his money troubles, now that William had reinstated her 50,000-pound dowry, and he wanted it. He did not like the fact Jonathon had beaten him to it.

"I should offer you congratulations," James said, tightly.

"Thank you, James. We are extremely happy, now if you will excuse us," Jonathon said, trying to walk past him.

"This is not over, Jonathon, I wanted her," he said, loud enough so that only Jonathon could hear.

"So her dowry could help you out with your gambling debts?" Jonathon replied, scowling. "You only met her once; you do not even know her."

"Hm, maybe what the Lockwoods accused you of, really happened," James, mused. "Trust me, Jonathon, I will find out."

"It did not happen, James," Jonathon said coldly.

"We shall see," James, replied, a sly smile on his face.

Jonathon and Adelaide walked away. Jonathon wondered what James could possibly be planning. Whatever it was, it would not be good. James had always been devious, ever since he had known him. He vowed he would find out what it was and put a stop to it. Adelaide did not need any more rumour and innuendo from anyone; she had been through enough. One problem solved with the banishment of the Lockwoods, just created another with James Pembroke. He tried to push his negative thoughts out of his mind and enjoy the night with his beloved Adelaide.

Author's Notes

For now, this is the end of Jonathon and Adelaide's journey. I am quite sad to say goodbye to them, but they will return later on in the form of a sequel, as there is James that is still a problem for them. For the moment, I feel that I must take a break from them and collect my thoughts. Hopefully, I shall be able to write it very soon.