Page 67 of Indecent
Bennet didn’t want her to feel bad. “If you have advice for me, I will gladly take it, Great-Aunt Esther.”
This mollified her, and she smiled again, revealing her dimples once more. “You’ve always been such a good boy. And now you take care of everyone. What a trial it must be.”
“It’s his duty,” Aunt Judith interrupted. She speared Bennet with a dark stare. “That is why I’ve come. Assuming the rumor was true—and how I hoped it wasn’t—you do need advice, though not about whom to marry. There’s a simple solution. You must stop paying those exorbitant fees for that hospital in Lancashire.”
Bennet rested his elbow on the arm of the chair and gritted his teeth. It was all he could do to keep from massaging his forehead in agitation. “That is neither simple nor a solution. Aunt Agatha is precisely where she needs to be, and I won’t discuss her care with you. I’m well aware of what you think.”
Aunt Judith pursed her lips, her eyes narrowing in disdain. “You’re being foolish. The poor thing is barely aware of her surroundings. I know you love her—we all do; she’s my sister for heaven’s sake—but it’s not an unkindness to save money so the rest of us don’t suffer.”
“Do you know whatwouldbe a simple solution?” Bennet asked. “You both could move to Aberforth Place. There’s plenty of room.” He couldn’t decide which aunt looked more appalled.
Great-Aunt Esther spoke first. “You can’t ask that of us. Bless you, my boy, for taking care of them, but you can’t ask me to live with the crazy people.”
Bennet nearly growled. He detested when she used that word. “They areeccentric.”
Aunt Judith rolled her eyes. “Cousin Frances sometimes doesn’t know what day it is. Is she still making her clothing out of old draperies and bedclothes?”
“Yes, and it’s quite economical, I don’t mind saying.” He smiled blandly and enjoyed their exchanged look of discomfort.
Aunt Judith clasped her hands in her lap. “If you insist on leaving things as they are, then I suppose we must help you find a wealthy wife.”
Bennet looked to his aunt. “Since you don’t care for moving to Aberforth Place, another solution would be for you to marry a wealthy husband.”
“You know why I have never married,” Aunt Judith said tightly.
The same reason he hadn’t and didn’t want to. Neither of them wished to pass the family condition on to another generation. “You are past your childbearing years, I should think.”
She blew out a breath and glanced toward Great-Aunt Esther as if she expected support.
Great-Aunt Esther shrugged. “He makes a valid point, although I imagine it would be difficult to find a husband at your age. I never could.”
“You couldn’t even during your Seasons,” Aunt Judith retorted.
Bennet ignored their bickering. “My point is, unless you’re willing to contribute to improving the financial situation we find ourselves in, I would kindly ask you to keep your opinions and counsel to yourselves. Unless and until I ask for them.” He tried to sound pleasant while chastising them.
The two women exchanged another look, but Bennet couldn’t be sure what they were communicating.
“Whom are you courting?” Great-Aunt Esther asked. “Or thinking of courting?”
“No one at the moment,” he said truthfully. He didn’t want to mention Mrs. Merryfield, probably because if he did, they’d make it their mission to ensure the match happened. While he should want that, he just…didn’t. “While I appreciate you wanting to help, it isn’t necessary. I’m sorry you came all this way for something that could have been accomplished with a letter.”
Great-Aunt Esther flicked a glance at her niece. “Judith was sure she could convince you to cut corners with Agatha. I also wondered if you could send Frances away too, then you’d have another cottage on the estate to let.” At his answering glower, she lowered her gaze to her lap.
“And why should Agatha and Frances suffer while the two of you make no economies? I will no more turn out Aunt Agatha from the only home she’s known these past thirty years than I will Cousin Frances or either of you, despite the fact that I should in order to settle my father’s debts and restore the estate to profitability.”
“My father promised I would always be taken care of,” Aunt Judith said indignantly.
“As his heir’s heir, I will take care of you,” Bennet snapped. “But your household in Bath is bloody expensive.”
Aunt Judith blanched. “Careful, Bennet,” she whispered. “You must control yourself or you’ll end up like him.”
As if he needed her to remind him. Bennet let go of his anger. “My apologies.”
Aunt Judith’s features softened, and her gaze turned sympathetic. “I understand you don’t wish to wed—and you know I support that. That’s why I thought you would be open to sending Agatha somewhere less costly.”
“I appreciate your concern. Truly. Believe me, I’ve been trying to find another way. I’ve sold nearly everything of value at Aberforth Place. Poor Great-Aunt Flora is running out of places to press her flowers.”
This prompted smiles from everyone, and Bennet relaxed. They might be a mess of a family, but they were still a family. And he would go to any lengths to keep them all safe and happy, including kidnap an heiress. Put like that, there was no reason he shouldn’t marry Mrs. Merryfield.
