Even after her parents’ sobering conversation, Claire couldn’t wait to go down to the party, where she knew Chadwick would be waiting for her with his friend Patrick O’Connell and also probably—hopefully—with a ring. She kept the delicious anticipation alive until she arrived in the parlor, where the first person she saw wasn’t Chadwick, but rather her Aunt Eliza speaking with an older gentleman with a full gray beard and hair. She tried to duck back into the hallway, but it was too late. Eliza had spotted her.
“Claire, darling, come meet one of my fellow sponsors of the Union Symphony!”
Claire looked around for an escape, but there was none, and still no Chad. The party had started half an hour ago—where could he be? She reluctantly approached Eliza and her friend, who stood beside a gi
