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He was safe.Shefelt safe with him.
And it was a great relief having him accompany her on this new journey.
“Oh, Jarvis, I am so glad you agreed to help me. Ever since my come-out, I have never fancied anyone and haven’t tried to make anyone find me agreeable. But now…” She sighed, her fingers nervously plucking at the tips of her gloves.
Olivia was three and twenty—ancient, truly—and still unmarried. She was awkward and lacked the necessary social grace, or at least that’s the kindest thing society papers ever printed about her. Due to her clumsiness and lack of attention, she’d been dubbed Graceless Livvie. She adorned a few society columns with that moniker, where caricaturists made fun of her failures on the marriage mart. She wasn’t the best dancer; she spoke out of turn, and overall seemed to repel the aristocratic beaux.
If she were born into any other family, she would have been married to the first gentleman who offered her. And as unbelievable as it sounded, she’d still had a few offers for her hand. Her parents, however, loved her and supported her. They refused to give her hand to any gentleman she didn’t fancy and rejected those few who were simply after her dowry.
She appreciated her parents’ support, but that meant she spent many balls a wallflower, and many afternoons alone at home.
Olivia was afraid she’d never find a gentleman she would look upon fondly. And more importantly, she was afraid there would never be a man who fancied her.
She sighed. “I never needed to charm anyone before. Gentlemen never beat down my door, you know that, but I never wanted them to. And now I do. I know it is not going to be easy, gentlemen never notice me—”
“Because they are idiots,” Jarvis interrupted softly with a smile.
Olivia pursed her lips. “Idiot or not, Bradshaw is the one I fancy. And the one whose attention I crave. And since he is your friend, I thought you’d be the perfect person to have as an ally.”
Jarvis frowned. “Well, I wouldn’t call him my friend.”
“You spend time together at the gaming hells and fencing clubs. You can find out what he looks for in a lady.”
Jarvis sighed. “Very well, if you’re intent on courting him… I suppose the first thing would be to determine whether he is looking to marry. I wouldn’t want you to waste your time on a man who doesn’t have honorable intentions.”
“Whatever intentions he has, he will change them once I make him fall in love with me,” she said brightly.
Jarvis looked down at his hands. “I’m sure he will.”
Olivia frowned. “I know it is naïve of me to expect such a result, and I know it will not be easy. I have never charmed anyone in three and twenty years of my existence, but I never applied myself. I know I can do it if I put my mind to it. But only with your help. You know me better than anyone. You know my flaws as well as my merits. If anyone can make me look like a perfect lady, it’s you. And you can find out what Bradshaw seeks in a potential bride and help me become the perfect lady for him.”
“You shouldn’t have to change yourself for one gentleman,” Jarvis protested.
“No, I shouldn’t have to change for the benefit of the entire fashionable society, and I never tried to. I can endure to change for just one man. This is my only chance to marry, Jarvis. I don’t want to live my life as a spinster—”
“I thought you were content with that.”
“I was.” Olivia nodded. “At first. But the older I get, the more I realize that there are many disadvantages to being a spinster. My parents love me and look out for me, but they worry. Constantly. Once they are gone, I am going to be alone and unprotected. Of course, I have my brothers, but they have families of their own. I shall be a bother to them. I should have been wiser before. When I was a debutante, I should have accepted the first gentleman who offered for my hand.”
“Do you mean the old lecherous Pemberley?”
“Or the second…”
Jarvis huffed. “The drunkard and wastrel Huxley? Without a title to his name and debt the size of Mount Snowdon?”
Olivia bit her lip. “All right. Perhaps not them, but I should have exerted myself more to find an appropriate match. Now it is a lot more difficult for me to get the attention of a gentleman while I am wearing my spinster cap!”
Jarvis smiled. “That cap looks adorable on you.”
Olivia narrowed her eyes at Jarvis.Is he making fun of me?
Jarvis threw up his hands in surrender. “All right. I see your point.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “But why are you asking for my help? Why not ask one of your lady friends? Surely they’d be more qualified in this matter?”
“Are you taking back your word? You said you’d help me.”
“Of course I shall help you. I am not saying no, but ladies know more about entrapping men into marriages.”
“Well, I don’t know about other ladies, but my friends aren’t exactly conventional. Annalise broke every societal rule in existence and still married the first gentleman she met during her come-out ball. Caroline spent her entire life avoiding marriage and ended up betrothed to the gentleman her dead uncle picked out for her. And my third friend, Lavinia, is on the brink of becoming a spinster herself! Please, Jarvis. I haven’t asked for anything for a long time. Do this one thing for me.”
