Page 7 of The Pursuit of Elena Bradford

7

Elena followed Ivy out into the hall and quietly shut the door behind them. Finding the ballroom would not be hard. Dancing all night with this or that man perhaps stepping on her toes might be. But she couldn’t put it off. Dance she must.

First, she wanted to talk to Ivy without being overheard. Their mother’s breathing had been calm and even as though she were asleep, but Elena thought Mother might have been pretending in order to hear more once kisses were mentioned. Ivy’s kisses. It could be they both had not noticed Ivy becoming a young woman or this neighbor boy a man.

Elena did remember Jacob. A sweet boy despite his tendency to mischief. He was from a good family. She thought his father was a teacher. Perhaps a professor at the local college. Yes, that sounded right. There were brothers and maybe a sister. All older, Elena thought. One of the brothers was about her age, but they were never the friends Ivy and Jacob were.

Try as she might, she could come up with no memory of Mrs. Pennington. She shrugged. Mother would know. If she knew about the romantic feelings between Ivy and Jacob, this trip to Graham Springs might have another purpose in addition to Elena finding a suitable husband. Her mother might hope the separation would cure Ivy of thinking she was in love.

Thinking she was. Who was Elena to judge whether Ivy’s love was merely a young girl’s fancy or something that would truly last for a lifetime? Just because she had never sought or been surprised by love didn’t mean Ivy had followed the same path. Elena’s path was not the expected or normal one. Girls fell in love. Young women wanted to marry.

She needed to keep that in her thoughts now and try to awaken that normal desire in her heart. Thoughts of Kirby Frazier popped into her mind. The man interested her. An artist with obvious talent. A man of daring. Of good looks. The kind of man Elena could imagine falling in love with. But was he the kind of man who could save her family from poverty? She doubted that since he was so nervous about his damaged canvas. The canvas he had to depend on to convince the owner of the Springs to let him stay.

She pushed those thoughts away. One problem at a time. She considered Ivy walking beside her. The hallway was empty. Perhaps everyone else had already found the ballroom. She did think she heard music, but then there had been music around them ever since they climbed down from the stagecoach, except when they were in their room. And then, if their mother had allowed them to open the windows, they might have still heard music from somewhere.

“What does Mother think about Jacob and you?” Elena kept her voice light as they continued down the hall.

“I don’t know.” Ivy kept her head down, staring at the floor.

“Look at me.” Elena stopped in the middle of the hall and caught Ivy’s arm to stop her. “Does Mother know you have a romantic interest in the Pennington boy?”

“He’s not a boy.” Ivy faced her and lifted her chin. “But Mother thinks he is. She thinks I’m still a child. You probably do too.”

“You are only sixteen.”

“Plenty of girls fall in love at sixteen. Two girls I know married at that age, and very few are not either married or at least betrothed by the time they are twenty.” Ivy jerked away from Elena and rubbed her arm. “You are the odd one out here. Not me. Just because you couldn’t find somebody to love doesn’t mean I couldn’t.” Her eyes flashed with defiance, then just as quickly filled with tears.

Elena took a breath and touched Ivy’s cheek. “Shh. You don’t want to have tear streaks on your face. I’m sure Jacob is a wonderful young man.”

Ivy sniffed and swiped a tear from the corner of one of her eyes. “He is wonderful. But he didn’t want me to come here.” She blinked as more tears threatened. “He’s upset with me. But I really had to come. Mother wouldn’t let me stay home.”

“Of course not.” Especially if she knew Ivy had romantic trysts planned with a young man. “You did have to come. And now you need to stop worrying about Jacob and enjoy our time here. True love will survive a few weeks apart.”

“How do you know?”

“Obviously not from personal experience, as you aptly pointed out.”

Ivy ducked her head. “I’m sorry. That wasn’t nice of me.”

“Truth is truth. But don’t you think your love can survive time apart? It seems if Jacob has been away at school that it already has.”

“But he didn’t have any choice about going away to school.”

“And you didn’t have any choice about coming here. We are here, and I think whatever happens with Mother’s grand plans for me finding the proper husband, being here and taking the waters will be good for her. Perhaps it will cure her of those dreadful headaches.” Elena put her arm around Ivy’s waist to turn her back toward the stairway. “Now, come along. Let’s go enjoy the music. I think I hear it already.”

In an instant, Ivy was smiling. “Oh, I do too. Thank you, Elena. You always know what’s best. I’m so fortunate to have you for my sister.” She moved away from Elena, almost dancing already.

Elena couldn’t keep from smiling. If only she could be as enthusiastic. After a moment, she followed, even though she would rather have gone the other direction. Out the door into the night, where she would surely find a garden of flowers. Perhaps even roses. Not kisses. She had no interest in romance in the moonlight.

She sighed. Tonight she couldn’t chase after peace among the flowers. She had to dance. And keep an eye on Ivy to be sure she didn’t dance her way into trouble. That thought brought back memories of when the twins were born.

Ivy was three and Elena was nine. Because the twins needed so much care and their mother’s recovery from the birth was slow, Elena was tasked with watching Ivy most of the day. She had resented the loss of her own freedom to read and draw. At times, she even had to miss school to see to Ivy.

She hadn’t wanted to do it, but she hadn’t shirked the responsibility put upon her young shoulders. She did what was expected. She always did what was expected. Except, she supposed, being married or betrothed by the age of twenty. Now, it might have been better if she had followed that normal, expected path. Then she could be in her own home, tucking in a sweet baby girl or boy instead of being ready to forgo love for the security of her family.

With a sigh, she trailed Ivy down the winding stairs to a room glowing with light and sounding of music. Couples swirled around the dance floor. A few older ladies sat around tables and sipped drinks, obviously not inclined to dance with the many available partners. Men outnumbered the ladies two to one. They stood around the walls, eyeing the dancers as though choosing which they would hurry toward before the next song.

Three men spotted Ivy and jostled for position in front of her when she stepped onto the ballroom floor. She laughed, peeked back at Elena on the stairs behind her, and took the hand of the closest gentleman. At least, Elena hoped he was a gentleman. She hoped they were all gentlemen.

If the man second in line was disappointed to not win the dance with Ivy and instead was left with Elena, he didn’t show it. He bowed slightly. “Would you honor me with this dance, miss?”

And so, the dancing began. A different partner each time the music changed. Some young. Some old. Many of them of that age where one could not be sure of their years. She wondered, as she smiled and worked to keep her toes out from under their feet, if she looked the same to them. Of indeterminate age. If so, none of her dance partners had been gauche enough to ask.

She smiled at the thought. She was only twenty-two. That was hardly old enough for gray to streak her hair or wrinkles to crease her face. She had looked decent enough in the mirror in their room. The blue of her dress brought out the blue in her eyes. Her hair was a nice, rich brown. Her waist was trim.

It was only seeing Ivy in the mirror beside her that made her feel old. The girl sparkled with beauty and youth. Elena looked over her partner’s shoulder to seek out Ivy among the dancers. She hadn’t stopped dancing since they got to the ballroom. As soon as she parted from one man, another was by her side.

Elena supposed the same could be said about her. The difference was inside Elena. Her cheeks might be flushed but merely from the heat in the room and the exertion of the dances. Not the glow of excitement that had Ivy’s eyes sparkling and a smile ready on her lips. But perhaps that was only obvious to Elena.

The man guiding her around the dance floor looked down at her. “You and your sister have added beauty to our dance floor this night, Miss Bradford.”

“How kind of you to say.”

She searched her mind for his name. He had told her, but all the names of this man and that had become a jumble in her mind. Johnson, or was it Thompson? Or had he merely stated his given name? No, she thought not. He appeared too formal for that. He might be in his forties. He did have the air of success about him. That surely meant he was well to do. He wasn’t exactly handsome, but pleasant enough looking. A person wouldn’t cringe to see him across from her every morning at the breakfast table.

A flush at her wayward thoughts warmed her face. The man could very well already be married. Probably was. A man only looking for a dance partner, not a wife. However would her mother determine which ones Elena should keep her best smiles for? The ones who met her mother’s criteria for a son-in-law.

The more she thought about her mother’s plan, the less chance she thought it had of success. All they were doing was frittering away money they could ill afford to spend. A chancy gamble when the stake on the table was Elena’s hand in marriage.

She kept her smile bright as the man—Mr. Thompson, she decided—spoke about all the wonders of the Springs.

“Dr. Graham has spared no expense making this the Saratoga of the West.”

“We arrived late today with no time to look around before dinner,” Elena said.

“I am confident you will find everything to your liking. This isn’t my first visit. Taking the waters can cure miseries of the body and mind.”

“That’s wonderful to know.” Should she tell this man she had no such miseries that needed a cure, even as she wondered what he might have in need of healing? “My mother is hoping for relief from headaches she has at times. I’m simply along in support of her needs.”

Needs in more ways than one, but she wasn’t telling this man that. Or any man there. At least not until progress was made on their true purpose.

She was glad when the music ended. Glad to have the man go seek another partner. Just the thought of whether he might meet her mother’s requirements for a suitor made Elena wish to never see him again. She needed to put such thoughts from her mind. Nobody was seeking her hand in marriage this evening. They were merely asking for a dance.

“Your smile appears to lack enthusiasm.” Kirby Frazier held a cup of punch out to her. “Is the song not to your liking?”

He looked very dashing in his waistcoat and evening jacket. She had seen him dancing with other women. He appeared to be very light on his feet, and his partners had all been smiling.

“No, no. It’s a lovely song. I suppose I’m just a wallflower for this number.” Elena took a sip of the lemony drink. She held the cup up. “Thank you for this. Very refreshing.”

He took a drink from his own glass. “It has been a long day for some of us.”

“And an eventful one.” Her smile came easy. “I trust your talk went well with Dr. Graham and that he liked your painting. He seems a man of great enthusiasm.” She looked out at the dancers. The doctor had convinced one of the older ladies to take a spin around the dance floor with him.

“The man appears to think dancing, shooting, and his spring water can heal anything that ails you.”

“Shooting?” Elena frowned slightly.

“Target shooting. I’ve been told the good doctor is the country’s best shot. No contest. He has a rifle club here, but should you hear the guns, don’t be concerned. It’s all for fun.”

“My dance partners have been telling me that most everything here is for fun. Even the healing waters.”

“Do you need healing?”

She wasn’t sure if his question was serious or in jest. Did she look as if she needed the healing powers of this spring water?

“I suppose we all need healing in some way.” She kept her tone light.

“True enough.” He took her cup to set on the tray of a passing servant. “Come, dance with me, and heal my need for a beautiful partner.”

When he held out his hand, she took it with a smile. “You haven’t seemed to have any problem finding those this evening.”

“There is beauty and then there is beauty. Surely you as an artist know that.” He peered down at her as he led her back out onto the dance floor.

Elena had no fear for her toes as they moved smoothly into the dance steps. Under her hand, his shoulder felt muscular and young in comparison to some of her earlier dance partners. A man like this would be easy to love. And had he really indicated he saw some kind of beauty when he looked at her? She pushed that thought aside. That was obviously no more than a glib line to tickle her ears, and in fact, it was sweet to hear whether she thought it true or not.

Perhaps she had finally met a man who might convince her marriage could be a good thing. Not that she could allow herself to fall in love with him. She was fairly certain his pockets weren’t stuffed with money.