Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Edward was seething with anger as he sat up on his horse, refusing to return home in the carriage with Rosalina. He knew none of it was her fault, and she had no idea how ridiculous the soiree was going to be, but he still needed a few minutes to calm himself down. It had been his first large social gathering after returning to London, and it had turned into a massive failure.

I cannot believe how desperate the women of the ton can be.

He continued to ride just ahead of Rosalina's carriage, his mind still occupied with how the evening had unfolded. Where he had only wanted to step out to have some distance between him and Ophelia, his decision had been nothing but a mistake. When their hands had accidentally grazed against one another's the other day, at the picnic, Edward had felt something.

The feeling had been so foreign that he hardly recognized it and could certainly not give it a name, but it had been terrifying. He had no place in his life to feel such emotions, and it was for the best of both of them that he maintained his distance from Ophelia to prevent such occurrences. However, staying locked up in his study would have been a far better idea than subjecting himself to an evening with London nobility.

He was not going to put himself through that again.

Now or ever.

As soon as the manor came into view, Edward stepped down from his horse, hearing Rosalina's footsteps right behind him. She already looked guilty enough to force him into attending the party, and Edward did not want to blame her either. She had always been supportive and even tonight, she had tried to save him from every prying mama and young woman.

"Edward," Rosalina called out as he ascended the stairs. He stopped, turning towards her as she stood in the middle of the darkened hallway, considering it was already quite late in the night.

He hated how these things always ended so late.

"Rosalina, I am already quite done after tonight. Please."

"I am not saying that your annoyance is unjustified." She sighed, walking towards him. "But you must understand that you happen to be the most eligible bachelor of the Season, making you the prime catch. When you partake in social settings, you will be subjected to the exact same behaviour you had to witness tonight. You cannot do anything about it."

"Of course I can."

"Care to explain?"

"I will simply stop attending." He shrugged, completely unbothered. "When I do not mingle with the nobility, I will no longer be considered a prime catch because I am certainly not putting myself through that again."

"But Edw–"

"You are aware I only went tonight to have a good, peaceful time and meet a few old friends since the Season is just beginning, but it turned into a marriage market." He sighed. "Rosalina, I have no desire to get married and indulge myself in courting anyone. This is nothing but a headache for me."

"Edward, you promised Mama that you would be attending a few balls and parties at least, and now that everyone knows you are in London, the invitations will come flooding in, and it will look rude if you do not attend," she reasoned, "at least do it for the sake of that promise."

"Did you not see how Lady Alice behaved the entire evening?" he asked, feeling annoyed once again.

The evening had already been awkward enough for him, but to add to the unpleasantness of it, he had a run-in with Lady Alice, who refused to leave his side the entire time. She even forced him to dance with her, and as a gentleman, he could not deny her constant insistence at the risk of appearing unnecessarily rude. Edward knew she wished him to court her, but he was never going to go through with it, and the sooner she accepted it, the better.

"Trust me, I have communicated to her enough times that you are simply not interested, but she fails to understand."

"She will understand when she cannot even find me at a single ball."

"Edward, you are very much a part of this ton. You cannot back off from everyone and simply maintain distance."

"I cannot have women trying to scheme their way into my life and force themselves on me. I already have enough problems of my own, Rosalina. I cannot afford to have any more of them." He sighed, feeling defeated.

He really was exhausted after this ordeal of an evening.

"Scheming reminds me that you must stay far away from Lady Arabelle and Lady Miranda," Rosalina said, suddenly looking angry.

"Why?"

"I accidentally heard the two of them talking, and they were discussing how they will try to woo you and perhaps get caught in a scandal where you will be forced to offer marriage to one of them to appear honourable."

Edward had never been more disgusted.

"Trust me, I won't be caught up in any scandals. I am done with the ton already."

"But Edward–"

"Good night, Rosalina."

"Edward, I know you are extremely angry right now, but cutting yourself from the ton is hardly a good idea. You will have to interact with them during my wedding festivities anyway."

He had already turned around to ascend the stairs, but Rosalina continued to follow him, trying to change his mind. Although Edward's mind was already made up.

"I will interact with them during your wedding but not otherwise. My mind is made up, please do not waste your breath trying to reason with me."

He looked at Rosalina's disappointed face before entering his bedchamber, feeling slightly at peace.

Maintaining distance was his best option right now.

"Good morning, darling Cousin."

Edward stared at Rosalina suspiciously, her bright smile and excellent spirits throwing him off a little mood. He had completely expected her to be sour and angry with him after their argument the previous night, but she seemed to have already recovered from it. Edward was surprised but glad to see she had accepted his decision and would not be pestering him to change his mind.

"Are you feeling alright, Rosalina?"

"Perfect."

"I am quite ecstatic to see our argument has not turned your love for me into hatred, and you do not seem bitter about it at all. It appears you finally understand my position."

"No, that is certainly not the case." Rosalina laughed, sitting on the sofa beside him. "I actually have another reason to be feeling this confident."

"Do tell," Edward drawled lazily, returning his gaze to the newspaper open before his eyes.

He was certain how Rosalina would have devised a brilliant yet completely ridiculous plan the way she always did. She thought of herself as a genius, but everyone around her knew that was definitely not the case.

"I have hatched the perfect plan to make sure you continue to attend events and stay an active member of the ton while not being subjected to the young ladies, their mamas, and the undue attention, which you seem to loathe completely."

"The perfect plan?" Edward scoffed, closing the newspaper. "Let's hear it."

"It is very simple," she began speaking. "All you need to do is find one young lady who you will focus all of your attention on and appear to be courting. This way, no mama or young lady will bother you while you attend these events since now that you are almost committed, everyone will maintain their distance. Hence, to put it simply, you must openly woo someone to keep other women at bay."

"Entirely impractical." Edward rolled his eyes."

"How!?"

"I will still be giving false hope to that one young lady when I have no desire to get married in the first place. That will be extremely unfair to the poor thing, and I am not that cruel."

Loud footsteps followed by Amy's laughter forced them both to turn their attention towards the staircase just as Ophelia stepped into the hall with Amy in her arms. Amy looked fresh and well slept, and Rosalina quickly got up to kiss Amy's cheek. Edward stared at Ophelia but did not say much, the memory of their hands grazing against the other's still alive in his memory. Ophelia did things to him that no one had ever been able to.

"My Lord," she curtsied once Rosalina was done kissing Amy.

"Are you headed somewhere?" Rosalina asked, making Edward mentally appreciate her for asking a question he needed an answer to himself.

Ophelia looked beautiful in her simple, cream-coloured, gown, her hair braided up as the braid rested on her shoulders. He had yet to see a day when she did not look absolutely perfect to the eyes since something about her always made her look attractive.

"I am taking Amy out for a walk in the gardens. She enjoys the outdoors."

"That sounds excellent!" Rosalina said. "I will be here when you return."

Ophelia nodded before heading out, but Rosalina stayed silent until she had left completely to begin the conversation again. Edward was still opposed to Rosalina's plan, finding an obvious flaw in the execution.

"You are right, Cousin," Rosalina nodded thoughtfully, "which is why we will be using someone who is already aware of the circumstances and how this is just an act. You can pretend to woo her, and she can pretend to be wooed when in reality, both of you are aware of the falsehood in this matter. For the rest of the ton, you two will be as much in love as any other couple, but it will just be an act."

"And who exactly will agree to such an insane plan?"

"Ophelia," Rosalina said triumphantly, victory written all over her face.

Edward could see how she prized herself for finding the perfect solution to his problem, but he still thought it nonsensical. It hardly made much sense at all, especially considering that Ophelia did not even belong to the ton, which meant they would have to provide her with a fake identity. How absurd would that be?

And why will Ophelia even agree to it?

Although, the simple thought of having to woo her and spending time with her at balls was enough to make Edward long for it. He knew it could turn out extremely well if they put in the necessary efforts, but would proximity with Ophelia in such a setting be a good idea for him? He was not sure.

"I do not think that is a very good idea," Edward said, trying for his heart to calm down.

"Give me one reason why?"

Edward stayed quiet, unable to find a reason.

"See!" Rosalina pointed a finger at him. "You have no reasons."

"I believe Miss Jennings will never agree to it, and we cannot force her. Hence, it is best to remove all such thoughts from your head and forget all about your little plan."

"I shall talk to Ophelia and convince her without any force, I promise," Rosalina said.

"And what if she does not agree still?"

"And what if she does?"

"If Miss Jennings agrees, I will go forward with it as well," Edward gave in, standing up. He had already had enough of this conversation.

"You promise?" Rosalina asked gleefully.

"I promise," he said, nodding, "but you cannot force her. This must be her decision entirely."

"Agreed."

Edward nodded, immediately exiting the hall. He had some friends to meet anyway.