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He returned home to seek out his mother, who was resting in her boudoir. He ought to tell her what had transpired. It would be a dreadful shock to her and he hated the idea of upsetting her, but if Isabel did call off the wedding, then his mother would have to know and the news would be better coming from him.
She was sitting in a chair by the window, gazing out over the park. A book lay discarded in her lap. He pulled up another chair and sat down beside her. ‘Mama, how are you?’
‘There is nothing wrong with me, Mark. I am just a little tired. I like to see Grace, she is a great comfort to me, but Isabel’s outburst has upset me. She should not have spoken to her sister like that. I cannot think what came over her.’
‘She is worried and afraid, Mama. I have just been over to the Manor and learned the reason...’ He paused, wondering whether to go on.
‘You had better tell me at once.’
‘Isabel has told me and the rest of her family that she no longer wishes to marry me.’
‘Not want to marry you! What are you saying, Mark?’
‘Just that. She has changed her mind. She says she does not love me.’ He grinned. ‘That was a blow to my pride, but I will get over it.’
‘Fustian! She is a foolish girl. She has wanted to marry you for years, she cannot have suddenly changed.’
‘But she has.’
‘What are you going to do about it?’
‘Nothing, Mama. It is not up to me, is it?’
‘You must talk to her, persuade her of the advantages.’
‘Oh, I think she knows the advantages. They are apparently outweighed by the disadvantages. She does not love me and because of that is not prepared to countenance being mistress of Broadacres.’ He smiled. ‘So, Mama, you will remain in your place here as chatelaine a little longer.’
‘You mean you are going to allow her to call the whole thing off? You will be a laughing stock.’
‘Better that than take an unwilling bride.’
‘She will change her mind. There are some weeks to go before the wedding.’
‘Mama, I do not think I want her to change her mind. I am content to let her break the engagement. We could go travelling, you and I, when you feel stronger, that is. The gossip will soon die down when the tattlemongers find something else to talk about.’
‘Don’t you mind?’
‘Do you know, Mother, I don’t think I do.’
‘But you must marry, Mark. It is incumbent upon you.’
‘Perhaps I will, one day, when the furore has died down.’
‘And that will be difficult to live down. Every young lady you approach will wonder what is wrong with you.’
‘I hope not every young lady, Mama.’
She sighed and put a hand over his. ‘As long as you do not mind, I am content. I was beginning to change my mind about Miss Isabel Cavenhurst in any case.’
He laughed and bent to kiss her cheek. ‘Then we are in accord.’
He left her to rest and busied himself about the estate, then visited the Rector to learn a little more about the house in Witherington.
Chapter Eight
As Isabel had declined to go with them and the weather continued fine and warm, Mark called for Jane in the curricle the following afternoon, driving it himself. She was ready and waiting, dressed in a morning dress of primrose-coloured sarsenet, trimmed with blond lace, and a matching pelisse. On her dark curls she had tied a cottager straw hat.
‘I spoke to Henry Caulder yesterday,’ Mark told her as they trotted along the country lanes, now in sunshine, now in the shadow of the trees. ‘He told me what he knew of Witherington House. He said it was dilapidated, which is why it is so cheap.’
‘Yes, he told me that. By all accounts it will mean a deal of work to make it habitable. Perhaps the cost of repairs will outweigh the low purchase price.’
‘That we shall have to see.’
‘How much land is there with it? I should like the children to have somewhere to play.’
‘Very little. Most of it has been sold to local farmers as arable and pasture, but there is an acre of garden. We should not want more than that or we would have to employ gardeners.’
‘The boys could help with the gardening. If you remember, the Foundling Hospital told us the children were allotted tasks as they grew old enough to do them. I think it is a good idea to give them a little idea of the world of work. I want to fit them to earn their living, to make begging and thieving a thing of the past.’
