Yasmin had spent the day with Maria as planned, but apart from a brief glimpse of Sir Edward in the morning she had not seen him, and he had scarcely spoken to her. He seemed preoccupied, and after a few words of greeting made an excuse and went away. The following day they had travelled up to London, and to add to Yasmin's misery she knew Charlotte had gone with them. Maria had mentioned an important ball which they were all attending the day afterwards, saying Charlotte would stay with them until her father went to London a week later. Yasmin knew there was little likelihood of seeing Sir Edward again before the end of July or the beginning of August, and the weeks stretched emptily before her. Leon watched her broodingly as she moved about the kitchen, but he seemed to know there was nothing he could say to comfort her. Yasmin hoped she had concealed from him how she felt about Sir Edward, and he would assume her despondency was because she was missing Maria, but she could not be certain of this.
