Page 16 of On a Midsummer Night
“A man of Mr. Ramsgate’s stature and reputation would have much to offer a bride. Stability, naturally, as well as his good name.” She licked her lips. “But I think that you’re right. He is not looking for love in his marriage. Would you be able to live with that?”
Her cousin nibbled her lip, staring at Beth with large eyes before slowly shaking her head back and forth.
“All right then.” Beth leaned forward intently. “So, what are you going to do about it?”
“I don’t know,” Lucy admitted, the pulse point at the hollow of her throat racing.
Beth linked their hands together. “Well, I suggest being honest with Mr. Ramsgate. Tell him that you admire him but are not ready to marry. Or would you prefer to start with your parents instead?”
A sharp gasp fell from her lips. “I couldn’t do that. And even if I tried, my mother would never listen. She’s never cared about what I want. Ever.”
That claim was hard to dispute. What Aunt Meredith wanted for her daughter, Aunt Meredith got.
“Perhaps you should approach your father directly. Would he consider what you want?”
“I doubt it. He’s firm in his belief that our marriage will keep Henry with the railway.” Lucy’s gaze went glassy, and she exhaled noisily. “And even if he did, I don’t know that he would side with me against my mother. He usually gives in to her demands.”
Lucy had a good grasp of who her parents were as people, and it frustrated Beth that her parents had no notion, or even interest in knowing, who their daughter was as a person in turn.
Beth arched a brow. “That leaves Mr. Ramsgate.”
Lucy’s throat bobbed. “It does. Do you suppose he will retract his suit if I am honest with him?”
Henry only wanted to marry Lucy to advance his career. He had not made a secret of it. Beth knew that he would blame her if Lucy rejected his courtship. But perhaps . . . perhaps she could assist him in finding a solution for whatever was haunting him that didn’t include marriage.
“As you know, I was acquainted with Mr. Ramsgate previously. I truly believe him to be an honorable man, and he will not want to marry a bride who does not want to marry him.” Beth squeezed her fingers. “You should be honest with him.”
“I wish you could do it for me,” Lucy whined, covering her face with her hand.
Beth gently pulled it away so she could meet her cousin’s stare straight on. “But part of maturing, part of becoming the Lucy you were meant to be, is doing the uncomfortable things.”
Just as Beth was going to have to make herself uncomfortable to help the man who had once broken her heart.
Chapter Six
Henry sensed something was wrong the moment Lucy greeted him in the parlor at Dalton House. While she was as gracious and polite as always, a pucker seemed to mar her brow permanently. And when her blue-eyed gaze kept sliding to Beth, an annoying tension settled in Henry’s bones.
He felt it now as he strolled next to Lucy on a path through the park. Beth followed behind them, always a supportive, sometimes witty shadow for her cousin. It had been harder than he realized to ignore Beth’s presence over the week he had been courting Miss Lucy, for she was always bright and blinding, even when she remained silent. In those moments, her thoughts, her emotions sparked in her dark eyes, and Henry had found it an impossible task to focus on Lucy with Beth so effortlessly eclipsing her.
Lucy glanced over her shoulder then, but not before Henry spied the nervousness that overtook her features. Whatever reassurance she sought from Beth seemed to have worked, for Lucy looked straight ahead again and exhaled a mighty breath.
“Mr. Ramsgate, I fear there is something I must tell you,” she began in a broken whisper.
“You have seemed a bit tense since I arrived.” Henry patted her hand where it rested on his arm. “You are free to be honest with me you know.”
They continued walking in silence for several more yards before Lucy stumbled to an abrupt halt and stared up at him, her eyes wide. “I do not want to marry you, Mr. Ramsgate.”
Even though Henry knew he should fix his regard on Lucy and her sudden revelation, his whole body canted in Beth’s direction. Such a realization made him grit his teeth, and he forced himself to give Lucy his attention instead.
Lucy, whose declaration had derailed all of his carefully wrought plans.
With as much grace as he could muster, Henry bowed his head. “Well, then, of course, you will not marry me.”
“I won’t?” she repeated.
He shook his head. “I have no desire to marry a woman who does not want a future with me.”
“Oh.” Lucy dropped her eyes to the ground. “It’s not that I don’t admire you. I think you are a fine gentleman, and I have enjoyed the time we’ve spent together. I hope that we can be friends.”
