He couldn't continue to hide from the world simply because Juliet decided to shame him, he thought as he contemplated attending the ball. It wasn't as if any mother could force him to marry her daughter, and considering the fact that it was the start of yet another season, he was sure to be getting a lot more invitations than this one. He could attend and if it goes badly, he'd have an excuse not to attend the others. Perhaps if he attended with a date, it would deter some of those pesky women from him?

His mind wandered to Gretchen. She had constituted a large part of his thinking since the night of the play and he had been looking for another excuse to be alone with her again. A ball seemed like the perfect excuse. Of course, he'd have to ask her if she wants to attend.

Would she be willing? He didn't know. He hoped she would, even if he knew that his plans to use her to ward off some unwanted attention might backfire by sending the wrong signal her way; she could start thinking he was interested in courting her.

He sighed —was he? Ethan didn't know how to interpret his attraction to Gretchen. It was impossible to ignore her presence or her absence; his gaze lingered on her for much longer than he was even willing to admit when she was present, and he unconsciously found himself looking forward to their meals together because those were the only times he got to be around her.

“On the contrary,” he said, lifting his gaze to Jacob who maintained his standing position before his desk because he had forgotten to dismiss him. “I would like to throw a ball right here.” He announced.

Jacob frowned, confusion dimming his eyes.

“A ball for this Saturday,” he said, finally reaching a decision. If he threw a ball in the castle, Gretchen would be obligated to attend because she lived in it. Her attendance would be deemed to be common courtesy. “Inform the servants and have things ready. You are dismissed, Jacob.” He finished and watched as the butler left the room.

What was he doing?! Panic suddenly welled up from the depths of his stomach, forcing him to rise to his feet. Surely he was making a terrible mistake by choosing to throw a ball! Was he really throwing an entire ball simply because he wanted to spend time with Gretchen? A frown settled on his face as his heart began to race. Running his fingers through his hair, he began pacing the length of the room. Of course not —he shook his head, trying to convince himself otherwise. Perhaps it was indeed true that he desired to spend some more time alone with her and that a ball was a good excuse to do so, but it was also going to afford him the opportunity to ease himself back into the social scene...

Groaning, he fell back on his seat, reluctantly admitting to himself that he was indeed throwing an entire ball for the privilege of a few minutes spent alone with his child’s nanny.