“Of course,” Lady Philippa said, and set her hand in Jenny’s.
There was something not quite right here, Lucas thought as he pushed the chair up the slope. Jamieson had been dismissed out of hand, had he? But there was no chance for private conversation. There were fellow guests to greet as they went and, in a few cases, to converse with at somewhat greater length before they proceeded.
The sun beamed down from a clear blue sky, and it was actually better than a summer day, which might have been oppressively hot. There was still a spring freshness to the air today.
—
The Marquess of Roath offered to take Jenny home and come back later for their aunt if necessary. But Jenny smiled warmly at him and told him not to be silly, she was not an invalid. All she needed, she told him, was a big glass of lemonade, a place in the shade to drink it, and Pippa to keep her company. He fetched them each a glass, found an unoccupied couple of chairs with a small table between them in the shade of a willow tree, pushed his sister’s chair up close to them, positioned one of the chairs for Philippa, and then left them together there. He strode away to join a group of men, including their host, at the far side of the terrace.
“That was all very imperious of me,” Jenny said apologetically.“You will be thinking I have been taking lessons from Grandpapa, Pippa. I have presumed upon a friendship I insisted upon. Perhaps you would—”
“Perhaps I am quite contented to be right where I am with you,” Philippa said. “You have not presumed upon anything. I believe we are friends. Ihopewe are.”
There was something a little desperate about Jenny, though, it seemed to Philippa.
“He asked me to marry him,” she said abruptly.
“Mr.Jamieson?” Philippa said. “Without speaking first with your brother? Or your grandfather? Though perhaps that was not strictly necessary since—”
“He told me he was aware I am of age,” Jenny said, cutting her off. “How could henotbe?”
“Ah,” Philippa said. “And?”
“And I asked him,” Jenny said, “if it was my fortune that was the main attraction. He did not deny it.”
What?Philippa set her glass on the table. He hadadmittedit?
“He told me he could not deny it,” Jenny said. “It would become too clear to me when a marriage contract was discussed. He told me that his father is in deep financial straits and that he himself has no more than a modest income from investments his grandmother left him. He admitted to needing to repair his fortunes by marrying money. I must commend him on his honesty. Many men in his situation would have been hot in their denials.”
“But?” Philippa said.
“But nothing really,” Jenny said after pausing to drink some of her lemonade. She held the glass with both hands, neither of which looked quite steady. “He followed that candid admission with more or less what one would expect. He has a deep regard for me. A profound respect. It would be the greatest honor of his life to call mewife. Et ceteraandet cetera. I must commend him again for not claiming to feel any great passion for me.”
“What answer did you give him?” Philippa held her breath.
“Oh, I was tempted,” Jenny admitted. “For his honesty is something, is it not? Though I do wonder if it faltered a bit with his claim ofdeep regardandprofound respect.I am realistic enough to understand that I can never expect a declaration of undying love from any aspirant to my hand.Regardandrespectare good things, though perhaps more meaningful without the lavish adjectives. They would last and very possibly grow into affection over time. Affection is averygood thing. Yes, I was very tempted, Pippa. And of course he is good-looking and very charming. And I suppose he cannot help his father’s extravagance.”
“You said no?” Philippa said. Oh, poor Jenny. She clearly liked Mr.Jamieson, and he had been very attentive to her.
“I did not,” Jenny said with a sigh. “I told him I needed some time to consider my answer.”
“Do you love him?” Philippa asked.
“Ah. Now,thereis a question,” Jenny said, lowering her glass to the table. “Probably not. But I have never actually wanted to fall in love. I have always thought it would be too painful. For I could never expect to marry. I have always known that if I ever did have an offer, it would almost certainly be from someone who wanted or needed my fortune but had to marry me in order to get it. I have always believed that I could never... marry such a man just because I wanted marriage. I have always believed that I would want to be... valued at least as much as my fortune. Not necessarily loved butvalued.I would also want tovalue, to like and respect, any husband I took. That was an impossible dream, of course, and I have never wasted much time on it. I am not in love with Mr.Jamieson, Pippa. But for a while... Well, I was tempted.”
She was speaking in the past tense, Philippa noticed, though she had told Mr.Jamieson she needed more time to think.
“There is no chance, then,” she said, “that he was telling the full truth? That he really does honor and respect you?”
“I do not know.” Jenny’s voice sounded bleak. “Or perhaps I do and just need a little time to steel myself to admit it. Does he smile too much, Pippa? I have rarely seen him with any other expression on his face. Sometimes it looks to me very like a mask.”
Jenny might indeed not be in love with Mr.Jamieson, Philippa thought, but she was clearly upset by whatever feelings she did have for him.
“I told him,” Jenny said, “that he must talk with Luc before I give him any definite answer. He said he would.”
“That was good,” Philippa said.
But Jenny looked at her with eyes that had lost none of their bleakness. “I wonder if he will,” she said. “But even if he does... Luc does not like him. He has never actually said so any more than Aunt Kitty has. But I know that neither of them likes him.”
