Page 85 of This Marquess of Mine

She spent the next few minutes detailing her father’s demand and his subsequent change of heart.

By the time she’d finished, Paxton’s usually-cheerful expression had clouded. “I had no idea you were under such pressure to marry,” he said. “But now your father has changed his mind?”

Olivia nodded. “I don’t really understand it, but yes, it seems he has. He said he regrets the decision now, and he even apologized for it. And for not being a better father.”

Surprise bloomed in Paxton’s eyes. “It’s about time,” he said, nodding his approval. He was well aware of her complicated relationship with her father.

“He wants us to get to know each other better,” she said slowly, hesitating over her next words. “He’s…invited me to join him in Surrey, to spend some time with him and my stepmother, and I—” She paused on the pavement and turned to face him, half-aware of her aunt hovering a few feet away. “I would like to do it, Paxton. I realize a long engagement is not ideal, but I do hope you are willing to wait for me. I would only be gone for a few months at most, and I…”

She trailed off at the slow shake of Paxton’s head.

“No?” she asked, more than a little surprised by his refusal.

“No.” His voice held no malice, only resignation and regret.

Olivia frowned. “But…why?”

A half-smile touched his lips, and he drew in a deep breath. “You know how difficult it is for me to deny you anything,” he said. “Just as you know I would wait for you forever if you asked it of me. Because I love you.”

Olivia blinked, surprise parting her lips. Paxton…loved her? She knew he admired her, and cared for her a great deal, but…love? He’d never said that word before.

Paxton’s eyes flicked over her face and his smile turned rueful. “But I know you do not feel the same. If you did, you would never have asked me to wait.”

She frowned and parted her lips to argue but he raised a hand, staying her words. “That was not an ultimatum,” he said. “It was an observation. If you truly wished to marry me, you would ask me to go to Surrey with you. As your husband. You would know you could have both.”

His eyes were a mix of affection and frustration as he took both her hands in his, right there on the street for everyone to see.

“Go to Surrey,” he said. “Go to your father. Spend time with him. Be happy. It’s all I’ve ever wanted for you.”

He was letting her go.

Emotion caught in her throat, and she swallowed hard. “But…what about your mother? What will you tell her?”

Paxton drew in a deep breath, displeasure crossing his face. “I suppose I’ll tell her we realized we wouldn’t suit.”

Olivia pursed her lips. “She will not be pleased.”

It was an understatement for the ages.

“No, she won’t,” he said with a small smile. “But she will forgive me eventually. She always does.”

“Well, you are her only son,” she said, returning his smile. “She hardly has a choice, does she?”

He nodded. “True. Though I suspect she would forgive me even faster if I married Miss Withers.”

Olivia regarded him for a moment and then, softly, she asked, “Is that what you mean to do?”

His gaze sobered a bit, and he shook his head. “I don’t know. Maybe. But I think I’ll nurse my broken heart a little longer before I decide.”

Self-mockery tinged his smile and Olivia’s heart squeezed with guilt and gratitude and love—the love of friendship. She did not deserve this man’s kindness.

And she would miss him.

“Thank you,” she whispered, her eyes misting with emotion. “You are a wonderful man, Gregory Paxton. I hope you know that. And I wish you all the happiness in the world. You deserve it.”

She squeezed his hands and then gently slipped them free of his grasp.

Free. She was free. The tightness in her chest eased, and it was then she knew with complete certainty that this was right. This was good.

She would have married Paxton, and they would probably have spent many contented years together as husband and wife. But he was right. She did not love him, and if she had married him, it would have been for all the wrong reasons.

No matter what happened now, at least she had that to console her.