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Isabel wrapped her arms around herself against the light afternoon breeze. “Of course, I do not mind. I have a few spare rooms left. Is that the favor?”
Richard shook his head. “No.”
Isabel raised her brow. “Richard, please. You are making me nervous.”
Richard let out a deep breath.Get on with it. Just say it!“I want to….” He cleared his throat again. “I’d like to make an announcement during the closing ball of your party.”
“Of course,” Isabel agreed readily. “What is the announcement?”
Richard glanced behind Isabel and watched Miss Claremont enacting a play with the children. They were all laughing as she twirled around in a circle. Her hair glinted with the afternoon sun, and her skirts swooshed about her ankles. One last glance, he told himself, and then on to his duty. He cleared his throat. “My betrothal.”
Isabel turned to look behind her, then glanced back at Richard. “To whom?”
Richard tore his gaze from Miss Claremont and regarded Isabel with a serious grimace. “Miss Beatrice Fowley.”
Isabel looked puzzled. “Miss Beatrice? I don’t think I know her. What does she look like?”
Richard shrugged. “I do not know.”
“You do not… You have never seen your future bride?”
“No.” Richard let out a deep breath. “Well, I suppose I have. We all have when we were children. Not that I remember.”
Isabel looked more and more confused by the minute. “I’m sorry. I do not understand. You are marrying a woman you have not seen in years?”
“Yes.”
“How is that possible?”
“Quite simple, actually. After the disaster that was my last year’s betrothal, I decided that I needed someone less… picky. So I sifted through all my contacts, found a young lady who was of age and in need of a husband, contacted her father, and made an offer.”
Isabel shook her head as if getting rid of unwanted thoughts. “You sifted through your contacts and made an offer to a lady in need of a husband? You are talking about this as if it is a business transaction!”
“It is.”
Isabel was not blinking. Richard started to get worried about her. “You are arranged-marrying yourself? Richard, why? Why would you do that? You can marry literally anyone you want.”
“Well, notanyoneI want. The one I wanted to marry withdrew her interest at the last moment if you remember.”
Isabel stiffened. “Do not lay that at my feet.”
Richard raked his fingers through his hair, getting more agitated by the moment. Somehow, he hadn’t anticipated such a reaction from Isabel. “I am not. This was not your fault, you know that. But I can’t keep walking around and waiting for fate to strike me. I am not looking for love. And should I remind you that you did not marry for love either?”
“I had no choice!” Isabel exclaimed. She adjusted her shawl around her shoulders and pulled it tighter around herself. “I had no choice, and I was lucky that we fell in love in the process, but not everybody is as lucky as I.”
Richard scoffed.
“Yes, I know you dislike Vane. I don’t care. But you… You are picking a person you haven’t seen in over two decades! And you are talking about this as if you are selecting cattle. Why can’t you pick someone else? Someone you actually know. Someone you actually like!”
“I am honoring our father’s friendship with this man!” Richard tugged on his cravat. He didn’t want to argue. He had enough doubts about this entire arrangement as it was. But it was too late. The agreement had been made, and the family was on its way to the house party. “I thought you’d understand.”
“Honoring? By sticking his daughter in a loveless marriage?”
“Love and duty go hand in hand. You learn to love people you are responsible for.”
“Right.” Isabel shifted from foot to foot. “Like you were responsible for us, is that it? Did you grow to love us because you got stuck with us after our parents passed away?”
“Do not be ridiculous, Isabel. This has nothing to do with that. We are a family. But to build a family one requires more than passion.” His gaze skittered away toward Miss Claremont once more. “One requires a clear head. The decision has been made.” He returned his gaze to his sister. “Will you allow me to make an announcement during your closing ball or not?”
Isabel heaved a long sigh before nodding. “Of course. I just wish—”
“Thank you.” Richard gave a sharp nod and walked away.
