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“She is very beautiful,” he said, thinking of her flashing, ice-blue eyes, that silky, raven-black hair. The swell of her bosom above her bodice. Against his will, his loins suddenly stirred. He coughed, crossing his legs to hide his arousal at the thought of her. “I suppose she is very refined and looks just as you would imagine such a lady to look, Lucy.”
When she is not disguised as a lad on a jaunt, he thought, suppressing a smile. He still could not believe how audacious she had been that day, the risk she had taken.
“Did you agree to the Earl’s condition?” His aunt did not look as enthralled by the description of the lady as his sister did. “It is a big decision, Alexander. A marriage is for life. Beauty fades and then you are left with the reality of it and if two people are not compatible you may end up regretting it, even if youarean earl living in a palace.”
“I told him I would think about it,” said Alexander slowly. “I agree with you, aunt. Itisa big decision and the thought of being forced into marriage with anyone sticks in my gullet a bit. I would not marry someone I did not at least like for all the tea in China.”
Lucy frowned. “But youdolike her, do you not? You said she is spirited?” His sister clearly wanted some kind of fairy tale to happen between him and the lady.
“Very spirited,” said Alexander, gritting his teeth. “Lady Olivia knows her own mind. She is not enamoured with the thought of marrying me and her grandfather will not force her hand. So, it is not my decision alone as to whether it will happen.”
Lucy’s frown deepened. “But you must try at least, Alexander! Get to know her better and she may come around to the thought of marrying you. You cannot just let such an opportunity go.”
“If the Earl will not force her hand in the matter, then how can the inheritance of the earldom be conditional upon the marriage?” asked his aunt, pursing her lips. “You could say you are agreeable to it, but if the lady refuses and her grandfather will not force her, then that is hardly your fault.”
Alexander sighed. He had thought the same thing. He honestly thought the Earl had not expected his granddaughter to put up such a fight over the matter. The Earl claimed that Olivia wanted to stay at Essington Manor with her mother, to keep their home intact, and had anticipated she would capitulate to his plan without much grumbling.
He underestimated her, thought Alexander.She wishes to marry for love. The earldom and the manor house are not everything to her after all.
“I shall think about it,” said Alexander slowly. “There is much to consider. Whether the Earl will still let me inherit even if the lady refuses the marriage is up in the air, even if I say I am agreeable to it.” He shrugged.
“I will go back to the manor and talk with the Earl after his granddaughter leaves for her season in London and we shall take it from there. I thought it best to leave the family alone to acclimatise to the news. It is as much a shock to the Lady Olivia and her mother as it is to me.”
“She is going to London for the Season?” Lucy’s voice was filled with yearning. “Oh, how I wish we could spend time in London as well, brother! I would very much like to meet her. We could rent a house there. You could get to know her better and then be in a better position to know whether you would like to marry her.” She gazed at him avidly.
Alexander frowned, about to refuse her outright, when his aunt spoke.
“Perhaps that could be a good plan, Alexander,” she said in a pensive voice. “Lucy has been bored stiff here lately and it would be a distraction. I would like to meet the lady too. It would be a very good opportunity to slowly get to know her. I am sure the earl would approve that you are doing everything in your power to win the lady’s confidence and would look more favourably upon you even if she still refuses to marry you.”
Alexander’s frown deepened. An extended stay in London had not been part of his plans. He had been intending on sailing with theMary Elizabethto the Caribbean islands to trade in spices in a few weeks. A voyage that would take him the better part of six months or more.
But now, everything was topsy-turvy. The inheritance of an earldom was within his grasp and he would be an utter fool to just sail away for months. Anything could happen in those months. By the time he got back, the earl might have changed his mind entirely. The Lady Olivia could be already married. His chance might be gone.
His aunt was right, he thought. He needed to give this his full attention for the time being, to consolidate his position with the Earl. He still did not know whether it would be a good thing to inherit the earldom, or whether he could agree to a marriage with Olivia, but he owed it to himself to find out. Chances like this only came along once in a lifetime. Who in their right mind would just sail away from it, leaving it to the vagaries of fate?
His voyage to the Caribbean could wait for the time being. A season in London was only a few months at most. His other ships were still trading. Perhaps he could even find someone else to captain theMary Elizabethfor the voyage. Nothing was insurmountable. It was his company after all.
And now, he felt a small stab of excitement at the thought of spending more time with Olivia. If she let him. He smiled slowly. Knowing her, it would be a battle royal. But that was half the fun of it.
He turned to his family. “A townhouse in Mayfair, perhaps? Would that suffice?”
Lucy let out a cry of joy, rushing to him across the living room, enveloping him in a hug. Alexander laughed to himself. It would be good to spend quality time with her as well. London, here we come,he thought, with another stab of excitement. Lady Olivia Oakley was going to be shocked, indeed.
