“Encourage him to find some gumption, profess his love to his darling Michele, and then ask her to forgive him for nonsensical behavior?” She nodded. “Oh yes I did, proving I, contrary to your opinion, am on my way to becoming a most excellent assistant matchmaker.”
“Encouraging Clarence to abandon what’s expected of him to pursue a forbidden love, given that society frowns on unions between gentlemen and divorced ladies, proves you have no business being a matchmaker, assistant or otherwise. If he doesn’t come to his senses, he’s guaranteed to bring scandal to the Higgenson family. It would have been more beneficial to him if you’d convinced him Miss Hannah Howe would make him an excellent wife.”
“That wouldn’t have been beneficial for him or Miss Howe, and especially not better for Mrs. Lanier, who, from what Clarence told me, adores him.”
Walter raked a hand through his hair. “On the contrary, it would have been better for everyone involved.”
“We’ll have to agree to disagree on that, because Clarence, after a mere three minutes of my questioning him, blurted out he’s hopelessly in love with Michele and cannot imagine a life without her.”
He scratched his nose. “Perhaps, instead of an assistant matchmaker, you should consider a job with the Pinkertons. They’d probably relish the opportunity to hire a lady capable of getting a man to confess in under five minutes.”
“It wasn’t as if I was brutally interrogating the man until he folded. After he told me he thought he and Miss Howe would rub along nicely together, I merely told him that was complete rubbish, and that a gentleman should expect more out of marriage than simply being able to claim they married a woman of good social standing.”
“But gentlemen of society don’t marry ladies who’ve been divorced.”
“Is that written in one of those society manuals?” Gwendolyn shot back, holding up a hand when he opened his mouth to reply. “Don’t bother telling me if it is. I’ll only be more disillusioned with society than I already am. But returning to what you see as a lack of competency on my part, my encouraging Clarence to seize the day and go after his love is exactly what matchmakers should do.”
“Not if it ruins the reputation of someone in the process, that someone being Clarence.”
She plucked another shell from the sand, considered it, then tossed it aside. “I would hope Clarence’s reputation can survive something as trivial as marrying for love, because what you don’t seem to be grasping is that being madly in love with a woman is not the type of love a gentleman ever forgets. Because I’ve decided to take my position as an assistant matchmaker seriously, prodded into that decision by you, I would have been doing Miss Howe and Clarence a grave disservice.”
“I have no idea how I could have possibly goaded you intotaking your position seriously. I’ve been doing my best to dissuade you from your current occupation because I’m of the firm belief you’re not qualified to be an assistant matchmaker.”
She pinched the bridge of her nose. “You’ve been very clear about your opinions regarding my matchmaking skills, and I’ve taken your skepticism as a direct challenge, one I intend to win. I’m very competitive, you see.”
“My skepticism was never meant to challenge you. It was meant to encourage you to abandon your current profession.”
She dismissed that with a wave of a sand-encrusted hand. “You’re only trying to get me to abandon matchmaking because you want me to take up the role of governess—something that’s never going to happen.”
“What if I offered you twice the salary Mrs. Parker is paying you?”
“You could offer me five times the salary I’m earning, and I’d still say no, because I’m now on my way to achieving imminent success with my matchmaking endeavors.”
“That’s an appalling business decision. You should consider your bottom line above all else.”
Gwendolyn shrugged. “Perhaps, but it’s my decision to make, horrible or otherwise. Besides, I’m committed to Mrs. Parker for the summer, and I’m a stickler for seeing my commitments through.”
“You’ve also committed to securing an advantageous match for Hannah Howe, and yet you just sent a prime candidate into the arms of another woman.”
“Hannah deserves better than to be shackled to a man who would never love her.”
“I highly doubt Miss Howe believes she’s going to marry for love. Most society ladies are content if they hold a small bit of affection for their husbands and hope those husbands return that sentiment.”
“And that way of thinking has all the makings for a greatromance novel,” Gwendolyn said with a roll of her eyes. “May I assume you and your late wife enjoyed one of those polite marriages where the phrasemadly in lovenever passed either of your lips?”
It was becoming evident he’d somehow lost control of the conversation. “Vivian was perfectly content with the polite marriage we shared,” he argued. “She wasn’t expecting a love match and seemed happy with our life together because I gave her anything her heart desired.”
“Unless her heart desired more than a courteous relationship with you.”
“Vivian’s objective when she made her debut was to marry a gentleman in her social circle. Her requirements in a husband were straightforward—she wanted to marry a gentleman who could provide her with a house on Fifth Avenue, a cottage in Newport, keep her dressed in style, and escort her every so often to her favorite society events.”
“That seems more on the lines of a business arrangement than a marriage.”
“Most unions within society are business arrangements.”
Gwendolyn frowned. “Should I assume you’d be comfortable marrying a lady possessed of the same sentiments as your late wife?”
“Of course.”
