“Then, Lord Beresford, I must say I am more than happy with my decision.”
“You have to marry me.”
“She’s given you her answer,” Beast said. “Now, off with you.”
With a huff, a glare, a jutting out of his lower lip, Lord Beresford stormed from the room, slamming the door in his wake.
“I might have had to disown you if you married him,” Finn said. “What an oaf.”
With a soft smile, and a great sense of relief, she faced them. “Thank you for... well, everything. Your love, your support, your understanding. I love you all so much.”
“What now, Fancy?” Gillie asked.
“During all these years, while you’veguidedme, you never once asked me what my dream was.”
“What is your dream, sweetheart?” Mick asked.
She gave him a smile that caused her jaw to ache. “My dream is to marry a man I love, a man who loves me. And I’m going to make that dream come true.”
Crossing the street, she felt free, liberated, excited about the future, couldn’t wait to reconcile with Matthew, to reassure him that she loved him, wanted to be his wife. She was done with the aristocracy.
Later when she went to tell her mum about the decision she’d made, she would ask Matthew to accompany her. She wanted them to get to know each other. She was relatively certain that once her mum saw how he called to Fancy’s heart, she would not only understand her daughter’s decision, but would applaud it. Her mum had been with a man she loved and one she hadn’t. She understood the rewards and the horrors.
She strode past her shop, increased the length and speed of her steps until she reached Matthew’s residence. Smiling brightly, she inhaled deeply, and lifted the knocker, taking satisfaction in the bang as it fell back into place. Mrs. Bennett should be done with all her chores by now, shouldn’t be about to see Fancy fling herself into Matthew’s arms when he opened the door.
Except he didn’t.
She lifted the knocker three more times. Waited. Balled her fist and knocked. Nothing. Sliding over to the window, she raised a hand to shield her eyes and peered in through the window. She knew there was no furniture in the front parlor. She could see a portion of the passageway into the next room but couldn’t see any furniture. Surely, it was just the angle.
She knocked one more time and then tried the door. Locked. A fissure of disquiet went through her. Had he packed up and moved away? She shook off the absurd thought. He was no doubt just having a meeting with his man of affairs. Maintaining his income required his attention. He would return shortly. She would come back later, see if he might join her for dinner at the hotel dining room.
Her steps were much slower as she made her way back to the shop.
Marianne greeted her with a bright smile. “Did your meeting with your brother go well?”
She hadn’t told her clerk the particulars. Rumors would circulate among the upper echelon. No reason for them to be spread elsewhere. “It went perfectly. How was business while I was away?”
“We had a couple of customers who purchased five books between them.”
“I don’t suppose one was Mr. Sommersby.”
“No, miss. Were you expecting him?”
She shook her head. “No. I’m going to be in the office seeing to some business.” Once she was settled in her chair behind her desk, she began working to reassemble the book Timmy Tubbins had brought her. It helped to distract her from wondering when Matthew would return, although it couldn’t stop her from running various conversations through her mind. Where to begin, what to explain, what to omit. How best to get them back on an even keel.
At half five, the bells jangled. After the quiet of the afternoon, her heart gave a lurch of nervousness mingled with a speck of joy. Could it be Matthew? Had he spent the day tearing apart their encounter that morning, analyzing every word said, striving to determine how everything had gone so wrong and what was now needed to make it right once more? She wasn’t certain she knew precisely what to say, how to greet him, but was confident when she set eyes on him, everything would fall into place. Love had that sort of power.
But when she stepped out into the shop it was to see Mr. Tittlefitz leaning on the counter talking with Marianne.
“Hello, Mr. Tittlefitz.” They both gave a startled jump like they’d been caught doing something they ought not. She certainly knew how that felt.
“Miss Trewlove, I was just asking Marianne if she’d like to go with me to the music hall this evening.”
Fancy couldn’t help the swelling she felt in her chest. She’d known these two were right for each other. With a raised eyebrow, she looked at her clerk, who was blushing profusely.
Marianne lifted a shoulder shyly. “I told him I’d be delighted.”
“Then you must be off to get ready.”
