“As I mentioned when I first began,” Sandy said, “this isn’t a subject you were anticipating, so I’ve shocked you. A thousand replies will have flooded into your mind as to why you should refuse my request, but I beg you to consider Margaret.”
“You’ve discussed it with her?”
“Of course. She and I have been contemplating this since she was sixteen and I was eighteen. Back then, we bowed to family pressure and stepped away from the brink, but we’re adults now. In the past, we behaved as was demanded of us, and we both wound up miserable. We’re ready to choose our own path, but I told her we have to have your permission.”
“Gad, you’re putting me in an untenable position.”
“Not really. Why would you care if she and I wed? You’re rarely here, and she’s been despondent for years. You’ve never been particularly close to her, so you can’t appreciate how difficult those years have been.”
The remark was galling. “I don’t need a lecture from you about my relationship with Margaret.”
“I’m not giving you one. I’m merely pointing out that this is what she wants. It’s what she’s always wanted, and it would make her so happy. Can’t you find it in your heart to furnish her with the thing she’s always desired? Your mother wouldn’t, but how about you?”
It seemed as if Sandy had thrown down the gauntlet and challenged him to a duel. If they were fighting, it was definitely a low blow for Sandy to have dragged Jacob’s mother into it. He didn’t like to ever be compared to her.
As evenly as he could, he said, “Without ever having had the chance to confer about it with my mother, I can assure you there were many reasons she wouldn’t have consented.”
“I know. I’m not an idiot. I’m the hired help, and Margaret is a daughter of the manor. She’s a Ralston, and I’m the stable manager. It’s like a backward version of Cinderella.”
“What would people think?” Jacob muttered before he could swallow the words.
“It doesn’t matter what they’d think. She and I would like to live a quiet, contented life together. If there are neighbors who don’t like it, why would it concern her or me?”
Jacob sat very still, struggling to figure out how to explain his rationale without sounding like a complete ass.
Two weeks earlier, Margaret had relentlessly chastised him for his flirtation with Joanna, so he’d broken it off. He’d been rude, abrupt, and callous about it too.
Every minute since, he’d been kicking himself. He’d nearly saddled up and ridden over a hundred times, but he’d constantly told himself that Margaret was correct. He had to save Joanna by leaving her alone.
Yet while Margaret had been so viciously haranguing at him, she’d been pursuing a secret engagement with their horse trainer!
It would have been humorous if he wasn’t quite so angry.
His temper was flaring, and he was loathe to insult or offend, but honestly! Margaret couldn’t have thoroughly pondered the ramifications.
The gossips would have a field day. Their relatives would have a fit. Acquaintances would shun them. The servants especially would be furious. There was no more bitter person than a servant who’d had one of their own up-jump to a higher spot he didn’t deserve.
Underneath it all, there was Jacob’s very British belief that every man should stay where he belonged. The men of Sandy’s family had worked for the men of the Ralston family for generations. They didn’t slip in a side door and abscond with the master’s daughter.
It was a terrible attitude to have, but it underscored how he was guided by the rules of the society that had bred him. How could Sandy assume he’d be amenable? No doubt Margaret had egged him on, and in an odd way, he felt betrayed by her.
She’d placed Jacob in an impossible predicament, having sent Sandy to embarrass himself, so it seemed as if she was deliberately trying to make Jacob hurt her.
How were any of them to escape the morass unscathed? If he didn’t allow them to forge ahead, Margaret would never forgive him, and he couldn’t imagine how he’d interact with Sandy in the future. He might even quit and move away, but how could that help the situation?
He sighed, being forced into an agonizing choice, as if he were a king in the Old Testament. Unfortunately, he wasn’t as wise as those ancient fellows. He had to open his mouth and speak, but despite what words emerged, he would humiliate Sandy and crush his sister.
Sandy was tired of waiting for a reply. “Well? Put me out of my misery, and tell me your opinion. Before you begin, let me admit that I have loved Margaret all my life and will love her until I draw my last breath. I hope that will count for something with you.”
Jacob rippled with regret. “I’m sorry, but I can’t agree to this. My parents would have been mortally opposed, and according to you, my mother already intervened once to stop it. I just can’t give her to you.”
“Why? Because you’re so grand? Because you’re Miles Ralston’s son? Because you’re a naval captain?” Sandy’s tone was very snide. “I recognize how far you are above me, but I’m not asking to wed you. I’m asking to wed Margaret, and I wish you’d think about her rather than yourself.”
“I need to talk to her about this.”
“Why?” Sandy sneered. “Will you remind her of how lowly I am? How inappropriate a candidate to be her spouse? It will simply ignite a quarrel. You can’t want that.”
“I’ll clarify my objections. I’m sure she’ll understand.”
“You’ve just emphasized how little you know about her.”
“I know what kind of husband she should have, and we should end this conversation or we might utter comments we don’t mean and can’t retract.”
“That’s probably a good idea, but what now? I told her we had to obtain your permission. You’ve refused to provide it, so where does that leave us?”
“At the moment, I can’t
