Elizabeth

Elizabeth is in love with William Keller and he with her. She has just returned from Paris and has not yet slept in her own bed. But now she must go in side and be Miss Holland, not Lizzy. She has to hurry in quietly in the early morning hours so nobody will see her and report back to her mother because just the last night her mother told her to be careful and she was doing exactly the opposite of that. Will begs her to stay, but she tells him she will be back as soon as she can. It is Sunday and it is a day the Hollands leave open for visiters. In the parlor, Liousa Holland has something to tell her daughters that will forever change their lives. They are poor. When Mr. Holland died he left them with nothing. Elizabeth doesn't have a chance to recover when Teddy Cuttington arrives to call. Diana, sitting in the Persian corner of the room, is acting very strange for a girl who has just lost everything and is sent to her room after almost revealing their families secret to Mr. Cuttington. Teddy stays for the respectable time of one half hour and them tells the ladies good day. Shortly after an unexpected visitor arrives. Henry Schoonmaker. Elizabeth has no idea what he could be doing her, she hasn't seen him since before her coming out. She supposes she should be happy New York's most desired was at her house but she is not. Before she knows it she has asked him to go for a walk around Grimacy park and doesn't realize that she was supposed to have waited to be asked, but it is too late. Elizabeth holds her arm rigid so that Henry is barely touching her. She recounts her trans-atlantic story for him but he doesn't seem to care. "My father has planned a dinner party" (107) Elizabeth comments on how pretty it will be if Isabelle is planning and she is sure that the list if very exclusive. Henry laughs but stays silent, why is he being so silent if he came to visit me! "I'm sure you know what it's for"(107) she told him she didn't have any idea, "Oh well i suppose I should tell you that I would be very honored if you would be my wife.' Henry's lips curled around the word wife."