Miles chuckled. “I love eating food, but I would not make a career out of that.”
Edwina rolled her eyes. “I would be a falconer to just earn some extra money until I can access my dowry at twenty-five.”
“I am trying to be supportive, but surely there is something else you could do,” Miles insisted.
“This is hard,” Edwina remarked, blowing out a puff of air. “Not everyone can be an earl.”
Miles shook his head. “It is not as if I asked for this responsibility. I was content serving in the Army.”
“I know, and I am sorry for making light of it,” Edwina said. “I just don’t know what to do. I feel lost.”
Taking a step towards her, Miles responded, “I am here, and I will help you in any way I can. I promise you that.”
Edwina smiled. “I know. Thank you.”
“Just so you know, I would marry you today, tomorrow or in a week,” Miles said. “We can marry in name only, if that is what you would prefer.”
Her smile dimmed. “Do you not require an heir?”
Miles’ gaze became distant, tinged with a sense of anguish. “I would never ask you to risk your life over that.”
“Not everyone dies in childbirth,” Edwina said.
“I can’t risk it… I won’t,” Miles insisted, his jaw clenching.
Edwina’s eyes held compassion as she remarked, “I know you want to protect me, but even you can’t predict the future.”
Miles shifted his gaze away from Edwina. “No, but I won’t tempt fate,” he said. “My title will be passed to a cousin.”
“Just to clarify, you are now offering me a loveless marriage that is in name only,” Edwina remarked.
Shifting uncomfortably in his stance, Miles responded, “Yes, but I will buy you whatever you want.”
“What I want is not something you can buy, Miles,” Edwina said. “I daresay your offer is getting worse and worse.”
Miles held her gaze. “Tell me what to say, and I will say it.”
Edwina offered him a weak smile. “For the longest time, it felt like I was trying to make sense of my life, but now I seethere is no sense to be made. I just need to live my life and embrace my journey.”
Bennett’s irate voice came from behind them. “Dear heavens, you two are taking far too long to return to the manor.”
Miles turned to see his friend approaching them with purposeful strides. “I’m afraid we got caught up in our conversation.”
“You were supposed to retrieve Edwina, not lollygag,” Bennett said, coming to a stop next to them. “Dare I ask what you two were discussing?”
Edwina spoke up. “I am thinking about becoming a falconer.”
Bennett’s brow shot up. “You expect me to believe that?”
“No, it is true,” Miles confirmed. “Lady Edwina has decided to either become a falconer or a golfer.”
“What nonsense are you spewing?” Bennett asked.
With a tilt of her chin, Edwina replied, “I am not going to marry Lord Hilgrove and I thought becoming a falconer would be rather lucrative.”
Bennett huffed, looking clearly unimpressed by Edwina’s declaration. “Have you tried to train a bird before?”
“No, but surely it can’t be that difficult,” Edwina replied.
