Page 68 of Married By Twelfth Night
Eager to please her, he bent forward and kissed her cold lips. And then he had to do so again, for a gentleman could not let a lady freeze.
By the time they returned home, they discovered his mother and sister had come to visit Callis Hall in the carriage. It was good to see Mother paying calls on friends, and it was the perfect opportunity to share their plan with everyone.
“We’re getting married,” he said, lifting Grace’s hand in the air with a flourish.
Cheers erupted and they were hugged at least twice by everyone, though Tobias settled for a single handshake. The news of their move came afterward, which invoked a few tears from Mrs. Steele, but their families rallied around them and accepted their proposed wedding date.
“We will have plenty of time to find the right wedding clothes,” Mrs. Steele told his mother.
Tobias grimaced. “Of all the reasons to be excited about a wedding date. By that time, you can have a suit of clothes fitted to the horse.”
Tobias’s comments were ignored in the enthusiastic discussion of a wedding breakfast menu that came next.
Amused, Richard watched more than participated. Seeing their families together—his and Grace’s mothers chattering excitedly side-by-side, his sister and Ruth teasing Tobias about how it would be his turn soon enough, and Mr. Steele nodding proudly at himfrom his relaxed position in the chair by the fire—filled him with inexpressible joy. He’d never felt closer to them than he did at this moment. There was something about coming together during times of trials and blessings that bonded family as nothing else could.
“I nearly forgot,” Mother said, retrieving something from her reticule. “I received a reply from Aunt Edith today.”
“What did it say?” he asked.
Mother winced. “I was too afraid to open it. Despite how you cautioned me, I might have been a tad too direct in my correspondence to her. I greatly fear I upset a sick woman.”
Richard took the letter and broke the seal, bracing himself for the contents. Disappointing his aunt was not something he wanted to do at any time in his life. He cared for her opinion of him, and he believed she offered him money because she cared deeply for him too. His eyes scanned the words. “She writes that her health has not worsened with her travels.”
“Thank goodness,” Bridget breathed.
He read on, his eyes widening. He tapped the letter, not once but thrice. “You will not believe this!” he cried.
“What is it?” Grace leaned toward him.
He lowered the paper for her to see. “She has agreed to give me half the inheritance money if I disregard the stipulations for the bride but still manage to marry by Twelfth Night.”
Amazement filled Grace’s eyes. “Then we can marry sooner?”
He grinned. “Indeed, if you desire it.”
Her eyes sparkled. “I do.” She squeezed his arm; though he would have preferred a kiss, it was far more appropriate with their current company. “Does this mean Bridget will have a dowry again too?”
“Yes.” His gaze lifted to his sister. “Bridget can have a dowry.”
Bridget smiled at them. “I was never worried. I trust the two of you will see right by me.”
“We will, I promise,” he said.
“This is very good of your aunt,” Mother said, before turning to Mrs. Steele. “She is famously stubborn.”
He read further. “She writes that her family disapproved of her lowering herself to marry a merchant for love, albeit a wealthy one, and she did not want to repeat history. She said that the last riddle Grace left her, combined with your letter, Mother, and her long-standing love for Belside, convinced her to alter her decision.”
“Riddle?” Ruth asked. “What riddle could that be?”
Tobias snorted. “Not the one about the mistletoe.”
“Mistletoe? I would like to hear that one,” Mother said.
Mrs. Steele chuckled. “Your son is a poet.”
“My Richard?” she asked.
For heaven’s sake. Had he really delivered that riddle over the dinner table while making moon-eyes at Grace? He smiled sheepishly. “She said specifically it was Grace’s riddle, not mine.”
