It took Lady Abigail a week before her fever broke and the sickness passed. After that, it was two more weeks before she felt well enough to get out of bed. The illness that had overcome her so suddenly had taken quite a toll on her frame.
The Duke of Wintercrest informed his sister that he was not happy to have his house become a revolving door as, each day, both the Earl of Heshing and the Earl of Gilchrist stopped by to ask on her condition.
As Abigail sat in bed, the duchess, now growing uncomfortably large with child, sat by her side and read or just kept Lady Abigail company while she recovered.
They didn’t speak too much about the two gentlemen who seemed to call each day, as Lady Abigail, herself, was too scared to bring the matter up. She was sure that the duchess would favor Lord Gilchrist because of their close connection.
Lady Abigail, for her part, was not of strong enough mind to even consider what it meant to have both gentlemen coming by each day. She knew as she grew in health and strength, she would have to determine which way her heart was leaning, as both men were making an unmistakable gesture.
Soon, Abigail was feeling herself again. She was a little disappointed that the season was soon coming to an end, however, and her small group would be returning to Wintercrest for the duchess’ impending birth.
It was her first evening out since her illness. It was a lavish ball, one of the last for the season. She was happy to see all the smiling faces, such as Lady Louisa and Lady Fortuna.
She couldn’t help the sting of regret, knowing that Lord Gilchrist wouldn’t be in attendance. She had, of course, assumed he wouldn’t go, but a small bit of her hoped he would have anyway.
She seemed to forget her regret when the Earl of Heshing appeared and spent much of the evening dancing with her. She was happy to see him again, as well. She had realized that with his devotion to her wellbeing, there must be something deeper to the man than just the superficiality she had seen in the past.
The Earl of Heshing was also seeming to want to make his intentions clear to both her and the rest of the crowd that night as he kept to her side. She was happy for the company as he was a charming gentleman.
She told herself that Heshing was a good choice and that if the moment came that he asked for her hand, she wouldn’t refuse him. It would be a good choice to make, and her and Gilchrist could remain friends.
Though she spoke the words in her mind, she knew in her heart that they couldn’t be true. There was a reason that in the time she spent with Gilchrist, she had mentioned everything about her coming and going, except for Heshing. She knew deep down that he would be unhappy to hear it.
If she were truly honest with herself, she cared too much for Gilchrist to share anything with him that might bring him pain. Lady Abigail was sure that the resulting separation of their friendship would bring her pain as well.
As Lady Abigail dance through the night with the Earl of Heshing, she didn’t see the furrowed brow of her disapproving brother or the worried look on her sister-in-law's face. It wasn’t until the carriage ride home that Lady Abigail noticed that the other two in her party were filled with concern.
“Whatever is the matter with you two?” she asked on the return carriage ride to their London house.
Both the duke and duchess exchanged looks.
“It’s just that you seemed very close to Lord Heshing tonight,” the duchess said as delicately as she could muster.
“And what is wrong with that? Is it because I have chosen him over Lord Gilchrist?”
Until the moment that Lady Abigail spoke those words, it had not fully sunk in that her actions that night did reflect a decision of one gentleman over the other. She worried whether she had made the right one, but it was too late to change it now.
“We only want your happiness,” the duchess quickly responded. “Of course I was overjoyed to see you and Colton getting close, but if that is not where your heart is, I respect that. It is only…”
“Only what?” Lady Abigail encouraged, unsure of why they would be so hesitant toward Lord Heshing.
“It is only that there have been some concerning things spoken of Lord Heshing,” the duke answered for his wife.
“Concerning things? Such as the fact he likes to race horses? You knew this already. You cannot dispute the man for such silly propriety when you yourself did the same,” Lady Abigail retorted.
“There were some rumors going about the gentleman’s clubs that he took heavily to gambling.”
“He has told me he enjoys the activity and I find no fault with it. It seems he also wins often, so all the better,” Lady Abigail defended.
The duke gave a long sigh. He was about to tell his sister something he would rather not.
“When you were ill, Lord Gilchrist came by often. Over the course of time, we discussed a multitude of things. I mentioned that Heshing had also been coming around. He told me a very unnerving tale of the gentleman.”
“Go on,” Lady Abigail said with her chin held high. She was willing to accept any tale that might be told with courage.
“It seems that, once a month, Gilchrist goes to White’s to meet with a solicitor for business. It was on this occasion that he found Heshing arguing with the proprietor. Heshing had racked up a substantial sum of losses in one night and refused to pay the bill the house had footed for him. For this reason, his membership was revoked.”
“I am sure it was just a misunderstanding that Lord Gilchrist misheard.”
“I suggested the same thing,” her brother continued. “But Gilchrist informed me that he was right in the middle of the conversation and had to even make sure that Heshing was removed from the building due to his severe outburst.”
Lady Abigail sat back in her chair, truly shocked by this news. Lord Heshing had always made it seem like he had never lost a bet. She would never have considered him to be such a man as to lose and then refuse to pay money owed. She was certain that, somewhere, there had to be a misunderstanding.
He was too kind and light-hearted of a gentleman to picture him giving outbursts and creating scenes in public places. She just couldn’t bring herself to reconcile the man she had grown to know to the one her brother was describing.
“I am well aware that Heshing may show up at our door tomorrow asking for your hand after a night like tonight,” the duke continued. “I am afraid to say that, after the things I have learned of him, I could not, in good conscience, allow such a match.”
“Are you saying that I would need your approval and you would not give it?”
It had been well understood, in years past, that the duke would allow his sister to marry anyone of her choosing.
“I will not deny you on paper, but I will not approve of such a match unless Heshing can vouch for his behavior in a satisfactory manner.”
Lady Abigail looked between her brother and the duchess. She hoped that Isabella would come to her aid as she had in times past when the duke was being unreasonable. Instead, Isabella couldn’t look her in the eye.
It was then that Lady Abigail realized that the duchess agreed with her husband on the judgment of Lord Heshing. Part of her wanted to accuse them for choosing Gilchrist over Heshing, but in her heart, she could not consider Gilchrist to give false information that would affect the lives of others.
Lord Gilchrist spent the entirety of the season locked behind doors because of the wrongs others had said about him. Never would a man who had experienced such mistreatment dream of doing the same to another without just cause.
“And if I choose to marry Lord Heshing despite your disapproval?”
No one spoke after Lady Abigail asked this question. Every member of the carriage knew the answer.
The duke and his wife could see no way of accepting a man who seemed to have no honor. If Lady Abigail chose this course that was started that very night in front of the whole town, she would find herself separated from her family.
She thought back to the day that Heshing had taken her in his gig. He had spoken of his lonely existence without another family member to comfort him.
If she chose this path, she would be estranged from at least the duke and duchess, if not the others as well. Was she willing to give up her close connections with her beloved nieces and nephew? To never know the small baby that grew in Isabella’s belly?
She partly felt enraged that her brother would ask her to make such a choice. To not even be willing to speak with Heshing and discern for himself the truth of the matter. She was sure if she asked Heshing, he would clear this misunderstanding.
Lady Abigail thought about the Earl of Gilchrist again. She didn’t want to make him out to be a falsifier of information, but in this one instance, he just had to be wrong. She was certain that by morning she would find a reasonable way to resolve the issues between her family, Lord Gilchrist and Lord Heshing.