by Jane Charles
“It’s more than caring,” Isabella observed. “Wingate suffered the same forlorn look when he came to the conclusion that he might have to entertain the idea of marrying Miss Palmer.”
“I can only hope that it works out best for him.” Hannah sniffed, refusing to fully give into her tears. She’d not show such weakness in front of anyone.
“How can you give up so easily?” Bianca asked.
“You’re the last person who should caution against anyone giving up easily,” Roxburg snorted.
“It was a different situation,” she retorted. “But, do not make the same mistake that I nearly did,” she said to Hannah. “This is your heart, your future, Wingate’s heart and future.”
“It matters little if he chooses his family and Miss Palmer over me, and I cannot blame him if he does.” She knew well enough that often men and women must sacrifice their own happiness for the betterment of the family and if he were truly so far in debt, this may be his only choice and she’d not think poorly of him.
“How can you be so calm?” Jillian cried. “Your betrothed is considering marrying another.”
“Jillian,” Sam warned quietly.
Hannah blinked at Jillian. “My betrothed? You’re mistaken, Wingate was simply courting me.”
With a huff, Jillian crossed her arms across her chest and fell back against the settee then glared at her husband. Isabella then arched an eyebrow in challenge toward Nate.
Unease settled into Hannah’s belly and she turned to Nate, who sheepishly glanced away.
What had they done?
Chapter 15
He was to repeat his father’s mistakes, or he inherited his mistakes. Either way, Ashton saw no happy future for himself. Especially one that did not involve Hannah.
He’d accepted the secret betrothal and looked forward to the time when Hannah was his without acknowledging any emotion, other than desire. Now that it’d been taken from him, he felt nothing but pain and despair.
It didn’t matter if Miss Palmer turned out to be perfectly pleasing and sweet. She wasn’t Hannah and would never be Hannah.
He paused, looking out the window of his chamber. When had he fallen in love?
Why had he not acknowledged it before now?
Because he wasn’t certain of her feelings for him. And, given that their betrothal was a secret, it was a legitimate concern that she might not care as deeply for him as he did her.
She was the one who valued a long courtship, so that a couple truly came to know one another. He was willing to grant her that, though he needed no such time. He knew in his head, heart and gut that she was the one and that they’d be quite happy together.
At least he hadn’t professed his heart, and now never would. And, with any luck, she’d never know the pain he was experiencing at this moment.
“Blast you, Father.”
He tilted the glass back and drained the rum before pouring another.
Ashton ignored the scratch at the door. He was not in the mood to speak with anyone right now.
And, he wasn’t nearly drunk enough to be numb.
“Ash, let me in,” Eve called.
She was the last person he wanted to see or speak with because she’d badger him. His dear sister couldn’t appreciate the extent of their troubles. He’d told her enough, but in truth, father had sheltered her from the realities of life, as all ladies are sheltered. Each Season she could buy the gowns she wished and had pin money when shopping. She lived on an estate when not in London and had her own personal maid.
He pinched the bridge of his nose. If he did not marry Miss Palmer, all of that could be taken from Eve and it just wasn’t fair.
It wasn’t fair that any of them should suffer because his father had continually failed to make sound financial decisions.
Ashton’s debts were beyond manageable in England, and added to what faced him here, he might as well sail home and turn himself over to the authorities to be locked up in debtors’ prison for the rest of his life. It was preferable to marrying a stranger. Either way, he’d be miserable.
Except, if he married Miss Palmer, his family would be spared.
Ashton didn’t actually know anyone who had gone to debtors’ prison but doubted that it was a pleasant experience. And, if it were only him, Ashton would chance it. However, he’d not leave Eve unprotected.
Of course, any one of his brothers could see to her care. Except, she’d be ruined in the sense that as soon as the ton knew of the family circumstances, very few doors would remain open to her. It was one matter to live with debt as so many did in Society, but it was quite another when it became public knowledge, especially to the extent of what he owed to the creditors.
Vance and Jude at least had careers and were self-sufficient, and rarely went into Society. They wouldn’t miss their quarterlies nearly as much as Chadburn, at least he hoped….
No, Ashton had to marry and erase what debt he could if only for his family. Then he’d sell everything in England and pray his luck turned.
“I’m coming in so I hope that you are clothed properly.”
He should have locked the door.
“How much is my dowry?” Eve demanded
He nearly snorted and was reluctant to tell her the truth.
“Well, how much?”
Ashton didn’t bother to turn from the window and continued to look out toward the ocean. “I’ll not sacrifice your dowry to stave off creditors.”
“You will if I say you will.”
“It matters little anyway.” He took a drink.
“It matters to me.”
Ashton sighed and turned. “You used to have fifteen thousand pounds.”
Eve frowned. “Used to have. Is it gone?”
“Father used some of it, probably in desperation. Only five thousand pounds remain.”
“It’s still five thousand.”
“I will not use your dowry.” He turned to face her. “Despite your intention to be on the shelf, it’s possible that a gentleman might come along and you’ll fall in love. I’d not send you to him penniless.”
At that she rolled her eyes. “I don’t wish to ever marry. You know that.”
He stared at her. “I didn’t intend to marry until it became necessary for an heir. I was willing to wait as long as possible, until…” Hannah.
“Until Lady Hannah?” Eve quirked a brow.
“It matters little now my intentions,” he took another drink.
“You can still wait. You don’t need to marry Miss Palmer.”
Perhaps his sister might never understand.
Eve sank down into a chair. “You love her? Lady Hannah?”
Ashton blew out a sigh. He could lie and try to hide the truth from himself, but it mattered little as it was still there, seeded in the depths of his soul, roots planted, and stronger than he’d anticipated. He should have realized it much sooner, but there was no need as he hadn’t anticipated losing her. Now that he’d be denied, he grasped just how strong his attachment had grown.
“Do you?” she asked quietly.
“Yes.” He came forward and settled upon the chaise. “It was unexpected and I’m rather surprised, but I do care for her. Yes, love. I just don’t know how she feels about me and now I’ll never learn.”
“Don’t say so. Hope is not lost. I will not allow it to be.”
“I’d rather face the reality of the situation than hope for the impossible.”
“Oh, you’ve always been so…so… practical.”
“I must have learned it from mother since our father lived in folly.”
“I suppose,” she sighed. “But please, don’t marry Miss Palmer. You don’t know her. You haven’t even met her. That is how our parents’ marriage began.”
Arranged between their parents. They hadn’t even seen each other until they met at the altar. An archaic arrangement, but Ashton’s parents also agreed to the match when either one of them could have withdrawn, especially his father.
Who agrees to marry sight unseen?
Yet, he was considering doing the exact same thing and it sickened him.
“What does Jillian mean that Wingate’s my betrothed?” Hannah demanded of her brothers.
At least Nate and Sam had the decency to appear ashamed.
“It was a decision we all agreed to after the storm,” Sam finally answered.
She was going to kill them, painfully.
“You had no reason, or right, to force a betrothal.”
“There was no forcing,” Sam insisted.
“Yes, there was,” she argued. “Wingate and I are just now coming to know one another, and he never would have considered a betrothal so soon if you hadn’t forced him into it.”
“He really didn’t need force,” Nate insisted.
“If he was happy with the circumstance someone would have told me, but since it was kept a secret, obviously someone was not pleased, and I assume that is Wingate.” Hannah stood and strode to the sidebar and refilled her brandy. How dare they!
“Had you known, what would you have done?” Nate asked.
“I would have made you break it of course.”
“If we hadn’t.”
She slowly turned. What could she have done? “I would have—”
“—Gotten on the first ship back to England because you’d not be forced into anything.”
How did he know what she was going to say?
“You’re rather stubborn, and we warned Wingate, which is the reason you weren’t told because he didn’t want you running away.”
Hannah pursed her lips and glared at them before she took a sip of the brandy. “Well, apparently he is to wed someone else, so it no longer matters.”
“He’s still not certain he’s to marry Miss Palmer,” Bianca said.
“Does he really have a choice?”
As much as she hated losing him, at least she’d not always wonder if he had married her because he was forced or because he wanted to.
Hannah glared at her brothers again. “I thought better of you. Isn’t it enough that Mother and Danby attempt to manipulate my life? Must you do so as well? Was the courtship even real?”
“Wingate asked to court you in London, Hannah,” Nate’s tone was firmer. “Stop being stubborn and listen.”
She took a step back.
“He wanted to court you. He readily agreed to the betrothal. He didn’t even try to talk us out of it. He wanted to tell you. We explained why he shouldn’t.”
“And we were right,” Sam added. “You are reacting exactly as we predicted.”
“He wants to marry you, Hannah,” Nate finished.
“Well that shan’t be possible now, will it.” Damn those tears were threatening again.
A part of her wished the betrothal was still a secret and would have remained as such for all of eternity because Wingate marrying another now hurt all the more.
Hannah wandered back to her seat and sank down onto the cushions. “How much does he owe Mr. Palmer?”
“Approximately twenty thousand pounds due by the first of the year.”
Hannah’s eyes widened. “That doesn’t give him much time.”
“Which is why Roxburg and I are deciding on a fair price to offer for the plantation,” Sam answered.
“I’m assuming the estate isn’t worth that much?”
Sam shook his head.
“There must be more that we can do,” Hannah mused. Even if she didn’t win Wingate in the end, she hated to see him forced into a marriage he did not want. Except… “How can he be forced to marry Miss Palmer when he is my betrothed?”
“Palmer doesn’t care since he’s not married,” Roxburg answered. “He fully expects Wingate to break the betrothal.”
“What if I’m not willing.” Hannah still didn’t know what she could do to save him, but her refusal to free Wingate might possibly give him more time to figure something out. “He is a marquess and a gentleman does not break a betrothal. It will see me ruined, and as I won’t cry off, thus freeing him, there is little Palmer can do.”
“I don’t think that will work, unfortunately,” Sam said.
“Why not? It would in London.”
“Yes, but even though most of the plantations are owned by Englishmen, the majority of them are absent for the most part and being Palmer is one of the richest men on the island, he carries a good deal of authority.” Sam glanced to Roxburg. “I’d say that most of the residents actually fear him more than respect him.”
Roxburg nodded.
Nobody should have so much power that people feared retribution. And, if she didn’t do something, that man would become Wingate’s father-in-law. “How much is my dowry?”
“It doesn’t matter,” Nate answered.
“It matters to me.”
“Not enough,” Sam insisted.
Why were they being difficult? “How much is not enough?”
“Fifteen thousand pounds.”
That alone was not enough but… “If you purchase the property and Wingate and I marry, he’ll have my dowry. The two combined would pay Palmer off.”
“It doesn’t work that way, Hannah,” Sam warned.
“It can if I insist upon it.”
“Wingate would never allow himself to use your dowry, Hannah. If nothing more than because of his pride.”
She rolled her eyes and settled back against the cushioned seat. Pride be damned!
Chapter 16
For two miserable days Ashton had waited for the accounting from Palmer. Two days of not seeing Hannah and wondering what she thought of him. Two days of trying to figure a way out of the mess his father had created. Two days of trying to come to terms with what his life was going to be. Two days of reading and re-reading the agreement Palmer had entered into with his father, where his father had pledged that his eldest son would marry the daughter of Silas Palmer if all debts were not paid in full on or before January 1, 1818. When the document was signed in 1794, Ashton had only been seven years old and Miss Francine had been two.
It certainly explained why his father had never encouraged Ashton to marry anyone, but if Ashton had found a bride before now, would his father have objected and revealed the agreement, or would he have pretended as if it didn’t exist?
The original debt had been for five thousand pounds, but over the years through interest and additional loans it had amassed to the near twenty thousand that Palmer now claimed. Ashton had gone over the records and figures, and even though he had his suspicions of his father being cheated, he could find no proof. Roxburg and Samuel Storm were now reviewing the records and Ashton could only hope they found an irregularity that would at least reduce the amount of the debt.
Not that it mattered much. Any debt was nearly impossible to pay in the foreseeable future, especially by the first of the year.
“Miss Palmer has come to call,” Eve announced as she entered his chamber. The one room Ashton had spent most of his time since Sunday.
“She’s taking tea with Bianca.”
Ashton nodded. It was time to meet his potential, future bride.
“Please, don’t do this. There is still time,” Eve insisted.
He appreciated her concern, but there was nothing he could do. At least not yet, and if in the end, he must marry the woman, he didn’t intend on her being a stranger. “Come along, Eve.” He offered his arm. “We should at least meet her, without judgment.”
She blew out a sigh.
“Remember, this is of her father’s making,” Ashton warned. If, in the end, Ashton was forced to marry Miss Palmer, it wouldn’t do for his sister to have resentment for the miss, as they’d all be living in the same household.
“That doesn’t mean she isn’t just like him.”
“I’ll not judge her harshly, especially without making her acquaintance and it isn’t like you to do so either.”
Again, she sighed. “You are correct. I just don’t like this.”
“I n
ever said we had to like it. We simply must do our duty, for now.”
As they reached the salon, Ashton paused for a moment to study the miss. She appeared anything but comfortable sitting across from Bianca. Her arms were close to her body as she held her teacup and saucer before her, chin lowered, shoulders tense.
A mouse of a girl, was Ashton’s first impression and he wondered if she was scared of her own shadow.
He quickly dismissed the unfavorable assessment. He didn’t yet know Miss Palmer and surely, she was just as uncomfortable with the situation as anyone else, assuming she was aware of her father’s dictate.
She was a slight woman with light brown hair and very pale skin for one who lived on a Caribbean island. She was poised and pretty, but very light of frame. Delicate as the tea cup she held. Nearly fragile and Ashton feared that embracing such a delicate form might harm her.
She was nothing like Hannah, with curves and roundness in all the places he enjoyed.
Ashton pinched the bridge of his nose. He mustn’t think about Lady Hannah, but feared he’d never erase her from his mind, not even years from now, because he was afraid he’d always long for the one that he could not have.
However, such thoughts were unfair to Miss Palmer. She was caught in this predicament as much as he, and it was up to the two of them to make the best of the situation.
With those thoughts, he entered the parlor and introductions were quickly made by Bianca.
The conversation was stilted at best. When questions were directed at Miss Palmer, she used as few words and syllables as possible, and answered so quietly that he strained to hear her.
Was this to be his future?
At least it would be quiet.
“If you are free, tomorrow, I’d like to call on you,” he offered without thinking. “Perhaps you could show me about Barbados.”
With downcast eyes, she gave a slight nod. “Yes, of course. It would be my pleasure.”
His stomach tightened. This was not going well. It might not ever go well, but the two of them needed to at least learn to be comfortable with the other or his marriage would turn out to be as hellish as his parents had endured.