Page 17 of A Lady's Key to Passion

He still believed she was the pick of the bunch of eligible ladies in Seaborne. He had been forced to dance with most of them at the Kensington’s ball, so he thought his opinion was valid.

“Is that what you are doing with Miss Grey?” asked Percy.

To his surprise, Freddie flushed, looking uncomfortable.

“What is the matter, old chap?” Percy was bewildered by the reaction. “What did I say?”

“I just do not wish to talk about what is going on between Miss Grey and I,” said Freddie in a quiet voice. “I do not see her as a conquest. It is not a game for me. I think I might be falling in love with her, Carlisle. There is no artifice in it. That is the only way I can explain it.”

Percy smothered his surprise, picking up another sandwich. For some reason, Freddie’s words had made him feel ashamed. And something else. He couldn’t quite articulate the emotion, for it was very unfamiliar. In fact, he didn’t know whether he had ever felt it before.

It might just be envy.

He shook it aside in disbelief. How could he be envious of Freddie’s calm declaration that he was falling in love with Miss Grey? He didn’t believe in romantic love. He despised it. It was all a game for him. And it could never be anything else.

Chapter 10

The next day, Percy was walking through the town when he saw Marianne in the distance. Lady Aldridge had clearly just been shopping—a footman was carrying an assortment of boxes beside her. He hesitated. He liked Marianne and wanted to approach her, but he still felt mortified by the botched proposal to his sister. Had Jane told her?

But then, Marianne turned and saw him. She smiled, giving him a jaunty wave. He had no choice but to say hello to her.

“How are you, Percy?” she called. “Would you like to have tea?”

He smiled. “Of course. That would be lovely.”

They walked to the tearoom, sitting at a table near the front window. They didn’t talk until the order had arrived. Then Marianne fixed him with a stern look.

“What were you thinking proposing to Jane that way?” she asked.

He grimaced. So, she had been told. It was hardly surprising, now that he thought about it. The sisters were obviously close. Back in Brighton, Marianne had often talked about her only sister, saying she missed her.

“I know,” he said, putting his hands up in a gesture of surrender. “It was clumsy and foolish, and I do not know what I was thinking at all. I have apologised to her.”

Marianne gave a wry laugh. “Percy, when you told us you were looking for a wife, I did not know you thought you could procure one out of thin air!” She leaned forward. “If you had cast your eye toward my cousin Lucy, I am sure you would have had no difficulty. But Jane is different. She has no ambitions to marry for title or wealth. In fact, she doesn’t want to marry at all.”

Percy nodded. It was true then. Lady Jane Metcalfe hadn’t lied when she said that she wanted to remain unmarried. It was just him.

“Why?” he asked, suddenly filled with curiosity. Knowing the reason might just help him to understand her better and win her over. “Why does she not want to marry?”

Marianne sighed deeply. “Jane is quite…an individual. She marches to the beat of her own drum.” She frowned. “As to your question, I am afraid I do not know the answer. She has never told me why she is so vehemently opposed to the idea. All I know is that she has consistently expressed it for many years, from around the time our mother died. And all my attempts to sway her have fallen upon deaf ears.”

Percy was amazed. In high society—or any society, really—spinsterhood meant social death. Ladies were reared from birth to desire marriage, to see it as their ultimate goal in life, and there was a stigma around those who remained unmarried. Any woman who wished to remain unmarried was therefore considered very odd indeed.

He was well aware of the injustice of it where the sexes were concerned. An unmarried gentleman was not considered an oddity in the same way. He was merely sowing his wild oats until he decided to marry. And if he never did marry, he would not become a social pariah in the same way as a lady would.

Most ladies he knew who were spinsters had never chosen the life. They had missed their chance, or the chance had never arisen, or some such thing. Most were bitter and regretful that they did not have families of their own and were considered a burden upon their families. They also mourned the loss of their social status.

He thought of what Freddie had said—that perhaps Lady Jane was averse to the thought of marriage because of a broken heart. A heart so broken she had vowed to never have another man. He shifted uneasily. For some reason, he didn’t like the thought of that.

“Did she fall in love with someone and lose them?” he asked in a quiet voice. “That could be the reason for her reluctance.”

To his surprise, Marianne burst out laughing. “Jane? In love? I highly doubt it,” she said. “She spurns all gentlemen.” She frowned. “Although she does haveonevery good male friend. A friend she has had since childhood. But I never believed she thought about him in a romantic way.”

Percy’s heart quickened. “Who is he?”

“His name is Mr Charles Crawford,” said Marianne. “He is the same age as Jane. His family lived next door when we were growing up. He and Jane were always as thick as thieves, and they have remained close, even though Charles and his family live in a neighbouring village now. He still comes here from time to time to visit her.”

Percy frowned. His hackles rose. Marianne had no knowledge of it, but that didn’t mean that Jane and this Charles Crawford weren’t secretly in love, or perhaps they had a love affair in the past that hadn’t worked out. There were any number of possibilities.

---