The sharp edges of the remaining stones dug into my hand. “What is wrong with me, Damon? I know I’m not as lovely as Miss Digby, but what special trait does she possess that I lack?”
“Two thousand pounds.”
My head jerked back in surprise. Whatever I was expecting him to say, it was not this. “You mean to say that Ollie is interested in Miss Digby because she is . . .” I couldn’t even bring myself to say what Damon was insinuating.
“Wealthy?” Damon supplied. “Yes. That is precisely what I’m saying.”
“You’re wrong.” I shook my head. “Ollie doesn’t care about things like that. He would never pursue someone based on their income.”
“He does, and he is. I thought you knew.” Damon walked to the large boulder where I’d laid my gloves and sat. “Unfortunately, he has little choice in the matter.”
“There isalwaysa choice.”
“Not if you are the second son of an earl,” Damon said simply. “He is expected to maintain his position in society but given no means to do so.”
“I understand well that his position in society is precarious.”
“You understand that his position is precarious, but do you understand why?”
“Of course I do. He is a second son and therefore will not inherit Summerhaven, nor the title that comes with it. But that hardly matters. He will inherit Winterset Grange from your mother.”
“Yes,” Damon said. “But the grange will only give Ollie a toehold with which to stand in the world and nothing more.”
“What of his allowance? Your father doesn’t intend to cut him off, does he?”
“No. But the entailment on Summerhaven only ensures a modest allowance for second sons. It is enough to run the grange and provide a humble living, but in order to enjoy the abundant life he has become accustomed to, he will have to marry someone of means like Miss Digby, or he will have to earn his keep through employ.”
Everything suddenly made sense. Why Ollie had been so intent to court Miss Digby and why Miss Digby obliged.Heneeded her money, andsheneeded his good surname. Ollie cared more about riches than he did about love.
I gritted my teeth.
While I knew that other men married for money, it being a practical way for second sons to secure the life they’d grown used to, I’d always thought our love would raise us above the system. The way Mama’s and Papa’s love had lifted them.
All I had ever wanted was to be happy in my marriage the way my parents had been happy in theirs. I wanted to marry for love and love alone. I’d thought Ollie had wanted the same, but I’d obviously been wrong. Ollie had weighed his options and decided me worth very little.
I was so mad at him, and I was mad at Society too. It wasn’t right that a person’s standing in Society should have the power to dictate who married whom.
The coldness of the boulder beneath me seeped into my bones. Water lapped the shore, and the tall reeds of grass rustled in the breeze.
I glanced up at Damon. “Doesn’t it seem wrong to you that Society dictates who a person can or cannot marry?”
“Criminal,” Damon agreed. “But that is the way of things.”
“It should not be so. Such intimate and enduring relationships should be decided by the individuals themselves. It isn’t fair.” I huffed.
Damon made a noise that sounded suspiciously like a laugh.
“Is something funny?”
“Not at all. In fact, I agree with you completely. I was just remembering how you made that same sound that last time we stood here.”
How he could laugh about that day, I had no idea. “You have no need to remind me of that awful day. I remember it well.”
“Do you?”
I gritted my teeth. “Of course I remember.” That horrid day stained my mind like black tea on a white dress.
“What is it youthinkyou remember?”
