Page 97 of In Search of a Husband
“Kate,” the marquess said, closing the door behind them.
“You may call me Miss Bancroft.”
He snorted, glancing up toward the sky. “It’s damn cold here. Perhaps we can discuss this inside.”
“You didn’t take issue with the cold when you led me outside that March night almost two years ago.”
“And you followed, I recall.”
“Yes, my mistake. What do we need to discuss exactly, my lord?”
“Marriage.”
She slammed her eyes shut, afraid she might scream. “Correct me if I am wrong…” Kate opened her eyes on a slow exhale. “But you made it very clear you did not wish to marry me.”
He stretched his arms up as if surrendering to a hostile enemy. “I nearly died. That changes a man.”
The crisp leaves crunched under her boots as she circled the stone patch of the garden. The tumbling mess of roses had dropped its gorgeous show to leave a tangle of sharp thorns in its wake. She gazed up at the castle, looming over her as it had when she first arrived, yet it no longer held uncertainty for her.
“I can imagine. Even so, I will not marry you.”
He rubbed the back of his fist against his mouth, his dark, thick brows pinched. He was beautiful even now, but that did not sway her heart. “I recognize arriving here as we did was a shock. I advised your father to take a different approach. After I recovered, I realized my mistake, and how a partnership with myself and your family could benefit the both of us.”
“I fail to see how I would benefit from marrying you.”
“Marriage could restore your reputation. It would take time of course, but I am offering to marry you, and we can repair the damage done. I am prepared to rebuild with you.”
Kate scratched at her brow, her temper far too strong to censor what she truly wished to say. Or perhaps, it was that she no longer cared.
“Let me be clear. You were injured, quite seriously. But I remained in London for over a year, and you were well recovered before I left for Scotland. I received no letter, no apology. When I attempted to visit to see how you were doing, I was turned away. I am sure you heard about that because your neighbors watched as if they were at a show at Drury Lane. I was humiliated, again.”
“I did not know?—”
“No!” She held up her hand, avoiding any further excuses from him. “I wish to speak, and you will listen. Marrying me doesnothing but help your family’s dwindling coffers and allows you access to a powerful family. Please do not insult me by attempting to sell me a pretty lie that you wish to rescue me. I do not need your help.”
“That is hardly fair, Kate.”
“Miss Bancroft,” she corrected once again. “And you are right, none of this is fair, but it is my burden, nevertheless.”
“You are being ridiculous. Please, calm yourself. You should be thankful I came here and offered my hand. Who will marry you now?”
“Don’t pretend your quest for freedom is any different from mine just because I’m not tupping my way through London, Hugh.”
He rolled his eyes, so casually cutting, as if above being in her company. She could hardly believe there was a time in her life where she risked everything for this… boy.
“I believe we are done here. No, I will not marry you, and no, you will not change my mind.”
She stormed around him, ready to rush inside when he reached out and shut the door on her.
“And your parents? You will tell them no as well? I would love to see you tell your father no because I just traveled to Scotland with that man, and he will not accept that for an answer.”
“He can’t make me marry you.”
“If you choose not to marry me, they will not support you. They will have nothing to do with you. And you will be stuck here in Scotland withering away, teaching arithmetic and reading to two spoiled little girls. And then what? Your future is nothing but bleak misery if you refuse my proposal.”
She spun around and slapped him, red flashing before her eyes. “Do not dare speak of my charges in such a way. They have shown me more bravery in three short months than you have ever shown in your twenty-nine years.”
The marquess turned his head back coolly and glared at her. “I am not an evil man.”
