Page 17 of A Lady’s Fairytale Come True
“In this case, yes. And not only will you do this, not only will you marry this girl, if she agrees. But you will give her everything she deserves. You will treat her perfectly. You shall ask her father’s permission to court her, you will compliment her, you will make her feel like a queen. And that is final,” she said, her nostrils flaring with determination at the end.
Nathaniel had nothing more that he could say. At a loss, he turned his back and left the room, then the mansion, and then dashed to his coach, riding away from the plans that had been made for him. Plans he didn’t want.
His rage was still getting the best of him, but he didn’t care. His grandmother had been foolish to make this decision for him. He couldn’t believe that she would do something so foolhardy. And how could she be so determined it was the right thing? More than that, how could she promise him to a random woman he knew nothing about?
The woman he was to marry, this Olivia Dig-Douglas? Dingham? Whatever it was, he knew nothing about her! Although there wassomethingnagging at the back of his mind…This was entirely a mess and he blamed his grandmother for it. What a horrible idea of hers this was.
He made his way home, desperate to forget the events of the morning and the fact that all of this had occurred. Wondering how he might get out of it, Nathaniel went into his study and began to read, to put his mind to anything but thoughts of marriage to this woman.
It was madness. All of it. Madness and lies. After all, his grandmother had pretended to be on his side, had pretended that she wanted him to make a choice.
But Nathaniel was pulled from his thoughts when Miss Hobbs knocked on the door of his study.
“Come in,” he called in a harsher voice than he meant.
She entered and looked at him with caution. “My lord, Mr. Kirby is here,” she told him.
Nathaniel’s face softened. “Oh, good. Please send him in,” he instructed.
Stephen entered the study and the two men greeted one another. Nathaniel had always considered his cousin a very close friend and was glad to see him, especially now that he was having such a difficult time with everything.
“How are you?” Stephen asked.
Nathaniel sighed. “Have you spoken with grandmother of late?” he asked.
“No, what is it?”
“After praising me for calling off my engagement with Miss Hawthorne, she has arranged for me to marry a young woman by the name of Olivia…Dingle? Why can I not remember her surname?” he asked, annoyed at himself.
“She what?” Stephen asked in surprise.
“Yes. I know. It is madness. She has arranged a marriage for me to a young woman I know nothing about. Furthermore, she has told me that I have no say in the matter. It is our of the blue, entirely,” he said, allowing himself to stew in his frustrations.
“I cannot believe it. Why would she do that?” Stephen asked, desperate for answers, though not so desperate as Nathaniel.
“I wish I understood it myself. You know, I wish to always show her respect, but I cannot believe she has made this decision for me, without my knowledge.”
“I am surprised as well. It is not the sort of thing she is prone to do,” Stephen laughed.
Nathaniel shook his head. He knew that he was behaving like a child, but felt he had every reason to be angry.
A thought hit him then. Behaving like a child. It seemed, suddenly, as though a solution were before him. How had he not thought of it sooner?
He would go along with it as his grandmother insisted. He would meet the young woman, he would be obedient in all appearances.
But that didn’t mean he had to make a good first impression. After all, he might not be allowed to refuse this offer, but the young woman certainly could. And if he made her detest him, he would be free.
Yes, it was perfect. And he felt quite confident that he could make it happen.
Chapter 10
Olivia had not been able to think about anything other than the crazy proposition she had received. For days she tried to find excuses not to share it. Her sisters pressed but she told them it was not yet time. Her father remained suspicious, but she maintained her excuse and left things vague.
But time was passing and Olivia knew that she had to give an answer. Soon. She would not be able to hide the truth from her family forever and Lady Kirby was waiting for a reply. What could she do but get her sister’s help in making the decision?
“Louise,” she whispered, trying to get her sister’s attention in the darkness.
They were lying in their bed and Gemma was asleep on her cushion on the floor. Olivia knew that Louise hadn’t quite fallen asleep yet and thought it was the perfect opportunity to have the conversation that daytime never seemed to afford them.
