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Chapter 21
Lydia, her father Rodrick, and her mother Vivian were seated in the dining room, just about to begin their meal that mother and daughter had worked on together most of the afternoon. It was Rodrick’s birthday, after all, so there needed to be a special meal for such an auspicious occasion.
“This all looks simply magnificent, thank you, ladies,” Rodrick said gratefully.
Lydia looked around the table and saw all that they had prepared. There were roasted potatoes, a turkey, squash, homemade bread, gravy, and much more. She was exhausted after having done all of the meal preparation with her mother, but she was even more emotionally exhausted after having ended things with Percy the day before.
She was feeling anxious about the next few days and the engagement set to come from Edmund any time now. She knew that she had made the right decision, though, as Percy was obviously never going to be smart enough to be proud to be publicly seen with her.
“Our pleasure,” Vivian said graciously. “You can give much of your thanks to Lydia, as she did much of the labour for this evening’s meal. I know that with her talent in the kitchen, in addition to many other positive qualities, she will make a fine match someday soon.”
Her mother winked at her, and Lydia felt the butterflies that had disappeared from her stomach for a moment reappear. But she did her best to smile back at her mother, as she knew that she would be waiting for that reaction.
Lydia was just about to respond to her parents when she heard a sharp rapping on the front door. She looked from her mother to her father and said, “Are we expecting any guests this evening?”
Rodrick and Vivian both shook their heads. “Not that I am aware of,” her father informed her. “Unless we have an emergency patient, in which case ...”
Lydia sighed. She was not unaccustomed to all of their celebrations being interrupted by her father’s job, but that didn’t make it any less disappointing. However, she quickly rose from her chair and went to the front door to see who needed help.
Her heart nearly stopped when she pulled it open and saw Percy standing in front of her. “Good evening, Lydia,” he said, sounding quite out of breath. “Might I possibly intrude upon your evening? I promise that my business is most urgent and that it will please you to hear it ... I hope.”
Lydia nodded wordlessly, still in shock, and opened the door so that Percy could come in. When her parents saw him enter, they both reflexively stood up. “Good evening, Lord Wentworth,” Rodrick greeted him, dabbing his mouth with his napkin. “Is someone in your household in need of immediate medical assistance?”
“Oh no, nothing of that sort, my apologies for concerning you, sir,” Percy reassured Rodrick. “No, my business here this evening is of a more ... personal nature. You see, sir, I have come to ask for your permission to marry your daughter.”
Lydia’s eyes opened so wide that she thought they might fall right out of her head. “M ... Marriage?” she sputtered, looking from Percy to her parents and back again.
“Goodness, my boy,” Rodrick said, looking as shocked as his daughter. “This is a rather surprising announcement, is it not?”
Percy shook his head. “It isn’t to me, sir, but I well understand why it would be to you. You see, Lydia and I have spent time together at the last few gatherings and balls, but before tonight, I was too afraid of my own feelings to ask for your permission to be with Lydia. However, I have come here this evening after having realized that Lydia is, by far, the most magnificent woman I have ever met, and so I have decided to embrace this fear that I had been feeling before and take a chance on my heart.”
Percy was looking right at Lydia the whole time he was saying the parts about her, and she felt herself being swept away by his words. She did not, however, allow herself to get so caught up in his romantic words that she forgot what he had done to her. She kept that in the back of her mind as a reminder.
“I ... I just don’t know what to say,” Rodrick said, continuing to look utterly baffled. “Lydia? What do you have to say about all of this?”
Her father looked to her, but she was still as speechless as he was. Percy, however, interjected for her.
“I was wondering if I might have a private word with Lydia so that she might have a better understanding of what has transpired since we last saw each other, as we had a disagreement that I would like to clear up,” Percy explained.
“By all means,” Rodrick told him, gesturing to the other side of the room. Percy gently steered Lydia in that direction, and then they spoke to each other in hushed tones. Lydia knew that her parents had to remain in the room for the sake of propriety, but she very much wished that they would just disappear into the next room for a few moments.
“Lydia,” Percy began, “I need first to tell you that I am so terribly sorry about all of the misery I caused you. I knew from the moment I met you that you were someone special and that I wanted to spend time with you forever. But my own foolish insecurities and worries about my sister held me back from being with you in public. I now realize that I treated you very cruelly and can see exactly how I made you feel as though I was leading you on. I have been told many times in the past that I can be cold and aloof ... and it seems that I acted like that around you too. I know that my apology doesn’t do much, but I needed to apologize anyway.”
“And now that I’ve said that,” Percy continued, “I wanted to tell you that of course, I’ll understand if you still wish to be with Edmund. I know that I do not deserve your forgiveness, and I did not come here today expecting it. But I also needed to tell you that I love you and that I want to be with you. I’ve told my mother about you, and although she sees society in a very different way than I do ... she has agreed to let me follow my heart. And Lydia, my heart has led me directly to you. I love you, and I want to spend the rest of my life proving to you that I might one day be worthy of your love.”
Lydia said nothing for a few seconds. She needed time to process everything coming to her so quickly, and what a change this was from what he’d said two days ago! She considered what he had said and thought about how he had hit upon all of the things in their relationship that had hurt and bothered her. But then she also thought about how deeply he had scarred her by treating her the way he had. She thought for a moment that she didn’t know what to do ... but the truth was, her heart knew exactly what she wanted.
Lydia flung her arms around Percy and embraced him as tightly as she could. “I love you too, Percy Wentworth, and thank you for working through all of that and accepting responsibility for your actions. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, too, so we’d better go over there and ask my father for permission!”
They both laughed quietly and then turned back to Rodrick and Vivian, who were still looking utterly baffled. “Doctor and Mrs Seymour,” Percy began, “I know that this is all very sudden, but I know that I can provide the best life possible for your daughter. I love her more than words can describe, and I will strive to make her feel as special as I know she is every single day. Might I have your blessing to marry her?”
Lydia looked expectantly to her parents, and although this was all very sudden, she hoped they would understand why she wanted to be with Percy.
Rodrick, however, did not look impressed. “Lord Wentworth, you have unfortunately come to request my permission for Lydia’s hand at an inopportune time. Edmund Russell has already come to ask for my blessing, and while I have not given it to him as of yet, I do intend to the next time that he comes to the house.”
Percy, however, just smiled back at the good doctor. “That is perfect, then. If you have not yet given him your permission, then you could give it to me instead, as I know that I can give Lydia a far better life than Edmund Russell.”
Rodrick raised an eyebrow at him, turned to Lydia, and said, “Darling, could I have a private word with you?” Lydia nodded, and they went into the next room, leaving Vivian to speak with Percy for a few moments.
