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“If hedoesdo it, I suppose it will be a small compensation for the years my stepmother spent calling me a spinster becausehefled before we could be properly wed.”
When she thought about it, this problem might be solved anyway if she could learn where and why Lord Reginald had fled all those years ago. If it happened that he had eloped with a dairy maid, that would free her of any matrimonial obligations, surely.
Marcella added a few more demands, many of them imports which she insisted come directly from France. But there were others—specific lamps which she wanted from New York, fine fabrics from India, and very specific paintings from Germany.
They were all dreadfully absurd requests, which she fully expected would be ignored, but they’d hopefully be vexing to her betrothed.
“You know,” Adeline said, “there is one outcome that you haven’t considered in all of this.”
“And what is that?” Marcella asked.
“What if you like him? What if all those years away from thetonand high society have turned him into the sort of man you’d find admirable?”
Marcella shook her head. “I’m quite sure that isn’t the case. You didn’t know him as well as I did. He was always doing cruel things to people. Well, I shouldn’t say cruel. He was mischievous, though, and oftentimes, his behavior would cause unforeseen problems. It only worsened after his mother died. I don’t know that any man could change that much.”
Even if Lord Reginald had changed, though, all the other problems with marrying the man remained. He would desire too much of her time and would likely dismiss her writing as feeble scribblings, much like the rest.
“We all change, though,” Adeline pointed out. “I’m quite sure that you aren’t the same now as you were when I met you.”
Marcella clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. “Pray tell, dear friend, whose side are you taking in this? I was under the impression that you agreed with me. This marriage I’m being forced into is entirely unjust.”
“I agree,” Adeline replied, “out of principle and because you are my friend. But I just wonder if maybe you ought to give Lord Reginald a chance before you dismiss him outright. This might be a blessing in disguise, so to speak.”
As if anything done without her free will could be a blessing in disguise. Adeline would think that, though. She didn’t understand, and shewantedto be married. A Duke’s son was a good match for anyone. Dozens of other young ladies would be delighted to find themselves in Marcella’s exact position.
If there was any blessing in disguise, Lord Reginald would take interest in a lady who desires him, rather than clinging into an engagement made for us by our fathers when we were but babies.
It was as simple as that. Besides, love didn’t really exist like it did in stories. No, in real life, her marriage to Lord Reginald had a very clear ending, and it wasn’t a happy one. It was one where two ill-suited people learned to tolerate one another and spent as little time together as possible.
“No,” Marcella said. “I’m quite sure this is the best course of action. And besides, if it’s fate or a blessing, I’m sure that Lord Reginald will read my letter in good humor and still be attracted to me.”
That was, of course, not very likely, for Marcella had taken great pains to sound as haughty, superficial, and vain as she possibly could. Poor Lord Reginald, recently returned home, would take a single look at that letter and decide that Marcella simply wasn’t worth his time, much less his hand in marriage.
Then, Marcella might even feign a few tears for her father and stepmother, but inside, she’d be gleeful. She would renew her efforts at being a proper writer, and she was quite sure that once she found some literary success, her father and stepmother would be forced to concede that she could support herself without a husband.
“If you say so,” Adeline replied, watching as Marcella folded her letter. “You could’ve at least included a few lines about how lovely I am. How marriageable.”
“Well, think of it this way,” Marcella said, “the worse I look, the better you’ll look standing beside me, my dearest friend. After that letter, one kind word to Lord Reginald should be all it takes to appear a decent woman.”
This was a good plan, and Marcella’s only regret was that she wouldn’t be present to see the look on Lord Reginald’s face when he opened her letter and witnessed what would surely be the most ridiculous requests he’d ever gotten.
