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“And your accountant?” her father asked.
John presented a wry smile and took another sheet of paper from his pocket. “Here is the name and address of my own accountant. I shall allow you one week’s time to travel to London, search these men out, and return with the truth. If you are agreeable, I shall then ask for Margaret’s hand in marriage, and this business will conclude. What do you say?” John stepped into the desk and put out his hand for a gentlemanly shake.
Margaret waited with bated breath, desperately hoping that her father would comply. The viscount seemed to hold onto these two sheets of paper in a stupor before replying, “All right, young man, you have piqued my curiosity. I shall make the journey, but I will bring Margaret with me so that she might not find herself in any trouble.”
With this, even Margaret had to laugh. Her father was implying that John might sully her honor in some way in her father’s absence, but this could not be further from the truth. Margaret trusted John completely and had no desire to travel to London with her father.
John looked to Margaret for guidance. “I sense that you do not want to go.”
“You sense right.”
Oh, but Margaret’s stomach flipped. If it were the only way that her father would comply, then she would consent. But she would desperately miss John in the days that she was gone.
“I will only go with Margaret. That is the last say,” the viscount said, leaning back in his chair.
At that moment, not only did Margaret trust John completely, but she was willing to make the sacrifice because she knew that it would come out in her favor. John eyed her lovingly and deeply. In the silence, Margaret became resolved. “I shall go to London with my father, and when that is done, I will return to you, John.”
John’s face fell, as though he was displeased by the prospect of her leaving, but it would be a short interval, and once that was done, she and John could enjoy their happiness.
“As you wish, Margaret. And seeing as your father does not wish for me to come,” John went on, “I can provide you with an escort if you so choose.”
Margaret smiled warmly. “That shan’t be necessary, John. I shall be well.”
And that statement was the utter truth. Margaret felt an overwhelming confidence.
There was deep concern written upon his face. “Margaret, I am not comfortable if my sister, at the very least, does not go with you. If you were to disappear, I would not know what to do.”
The viscount sighed. “Jane shall be allowed to go, but no one else. We will have this business sorted, and if everything proves valid, I will agree to what you are asking.”
Her father finally stood and took John’s hand, shaking it in his own. Margaret felt an intense wash of relief come over her. She knew with utter certainty that John had uttered what was true. All this while, he had the funds to pay off her father’s debts, and he knew of Darkmoor’s treachery.
“Now, if you will allow me a moment alone with my daughter.”
John looked to Margaret, again with concern in his eyes. “Are you comfortable, Margaret?”
Margaret nodded softly. “I am comfortable.”
John approached and took her hand, kissing her fingers before departing. Margaret watched as he did so, thinking him the most extraordinary man that she had ever known. Her father punctuated the silence. “You truly are in love with him.”
“Father, I have never loved a man so.”
“What do you love about him?” he asked in curiosity.
“His goodness, his steadfastness.”
“I believed that Darkmoor could provide for you,” the viscount said, taking a sip of his drink. “I was confident in that. But if it proves true that not only did he abandon his wife, but he also is bereft of funds, then I will release you into the hands of that man.”
It was the first time that Margaret noted the sadness in her father’s voice. It was as though, for the first time, he actually remembered what love is.
“Father, please know that it will make me the happiest woman alive if you say yes. John is a man like no other, and I have grown so fond of him, I do not know what to do without him.”
There were actual tears in the viscount’s eyes, which he wiped away. “You think me a horrible man, Daughter. But know that I do want to see you happy.”
Margaret froze. Her father had never expressed such a sentiment. “Is that true?”
“Indeed. I have not known happiness for many years. All that I have known is desolation. If John makes you happy, and he saves me from my horrible state, then I should be happy to consent to the marriage.”
Margaret did not know what provoked such effusion, but she got up from her chair, came around the desk, and embraced her father from behind. It was the first time that they had embraced in a great while. It felt good to show some affection after all that he had put her through.
