Page 35 of Marigold and the Marquess
“Duly noted, Lord Beldon,” she remarked, just wanting to reach her aunt and uncle in order to be left alone with her thoughts. Of course, her aunt and uncle might have a few choice words for her.
She noticed they had almost reached the other side of the dance floor when Lord Beldon held her back a moment. “Miss Farthingale, send word to me if you realize you have made a mistake and need to escape.”
She regarded him in stunned disbelief. “Are you suggesting you would help me run away? And what then? How would running off with you help my situation?”
He took her hand, obviously wishing to raise it to his lips, but he merely bowed over it. “I would elope with you. Just say the word and we’ll flee north to Scotland in my carriage.”
This was all too much for one night. “Lord Beldon, thank you for the offer. But I do not require your assistance.”
“It is offered anyway. I’ll be waiting.”
“Kindly do not.”
“I will be waiting, Miss Farthingale,” he said with greater insistence.
Just perfect.
She had Leo, an avenging angel more resembling an angry demon, who did not wish to marry her, and Lord Beldon, a possible traitor to the Crown, who supposedly did.
Aunt Sophie must have been alerted about her betrothal, for she shook her head and sighed at Marigold the moment she was left in her care. “For pity’s sake, what is it with you girls?”
“Girls? How many of us in the family have been ruined by scandal?”
She rolled her eyes. “Oh, I think just about all of you.”
Marigold wanted to laugh, but dared not. The elders did not view this as a joking matter. However, it was a relief to know she wasn’t the only Farthingale debutante to stumble down that path to ruin.
“I have become quite adept at these hasty weddings since none of my daughters or their cousins seem capable of getting through a Season without landing on the front page of the gossip sheets,” Sophie muttered. “Lady Withnall told me what happened in the library. Honestly, Marigold. I expected better from you.”
“So did I,” she admitted. “I did not wish to marry before I reached the age of twenty. This was not at all in my plans.”
“Well, prepare yourself to become the wife of a marquess. That elevation in status will come with responsibilities. I’m sure Dillie will guide you. She’s done marvelously stepping into the role of Ian’s duchess. Her twin Lily, on the other hand, remains completely oblivious to the obligations of her station. She is more than happy to conduct her research in Scotland and ignore these Society affairs. She claims the marriage mart is a jungle and her baboons have better manners than some of these young men on the hunt for a wife. Ewan indulges her far too much. But what can we say? He loves her and wishes to see her happy.”
“Is that not better than an unhappy match?”
Sophie nodded. “Yes, it is. On the whole, I am very proud of all my girls. They have often shown more common sense and made better choices for themselves than their elders have desired for them. However, could not one of you have had a traditional courtship? Dull. Uneventful. Stretched out to a full year. The gossip rag editors salivate whenever they hear a Farthingale is about to make her debut. We never seem to disappoint.”
Marigold winced. “I am happy for my match, even though it all happened so fast. Lord Muir is not happy about it, however.”
Sophie arched an eyebrow. “If he was kissing you with the fervor Lady Withnall described, I expect he will come around in time and be a model husband.”
“I hope you are right, Aunt Sophie.”
But Marigold knew he wouldn’t.
Leo was a haunted and damaged man.
Her aunt patted her hand. “I am right, Marigold. It took Ian a while into their marriage before he came around and declared he loved Dillie. Of course, we all knew he did. I think he loved her from the first moment he met her. But men are often quite stubborn and he was a very hard nut to crack.”
“I think Lord Muir will also be difficult.”
“You are only moving across the street from us,” Sophie pointed out. “Just walk over if ever you wish to talk.”
She nodded. “Thank you, I will.”
Not only did she have Sophie– never mind that Aunt Hortensia lived with her, for she was a curmudgeon and resolute spinster who would not be helpful in the least– but Marigold also had her cousin Violet and Lady Eloise residing on Chipping Way. It would take nothing to call a family meeting if she needed advice.
This was something to keep in mind if Leo proved difficult.
