“I do,” she replied.
“I am pleased to hear it,” he said. “Now, go enjoy your time with Hannah.”
As he watched Marianne walk out of the study, he sighed. He hoped his father would be much more agreeable the next time he spoke to him on this subject.
5
Hannah had just donned her straw hat when Marianne walked into the room and promptly closed the door behind her.
“Guess what I just overheard?” Marianne asked, spinning back around.
“I could hardly suppose.”
Marianne dropped down onto a camelback settee. “My father intends to marry me off,” she revealed.
Hannah gasped as she brought her hand up to her mouth. “That is terrible news.”
“I agree.”
“Did he say why?”
Marianne frowned. “He believes me to be a hellion.”
“I see,” Hannah muttered. “I’m afraid he isn’t entirely wrong.”
“I may be a little eccentric, but I do know my place,” Marianne smiled ruefully, “most of the time.”
Hannah sat across from her. “What do you intend to do?”
Marianne bit her lower lip. “I was hoping you could find a suitor for me instead.”
“You are still in mourning, though.”
“Half-mourning,” Marianne corrected.
“Kate would never agree to this,” Hannah said.
Marianne sighed. “I would imagine so,” she replied, “but I refuse to be a part of an arranged marriage.”
“Your father can’t force you to marry,” Hannah pressed. “There are laws against that.”
“I know, but he could disinherit me.”
“There are worse things.”
Marianne leaned her head back and looked up at the ceiling. “I could always run off and join the circus.”
“Do be serious.”
“I am,” Marianne argued. “I can perform horse tricks.”
“You are a lady and should never go anywhere near a circus.”
Marianne brought her gaze back to meet Hannah’s. “Don’t you ever tire of being proper?”
“I do not,” Hannah replied.
“I suppose you wouldn’t,” Marianne said with a smile. “You have always done everything that has been expected of you.”
“That isn’t true.”
“No?” Marianne questioned. “Name one thing you have done that one might consider improper.”
“Why would I do anything that would risk my reputation?”
“Because it is fun.”
“Then I propose you are having the wrong type of fun.”
Marianne laughed. “Is there any other kind?”
Hannah shook her head. “I must question again why we are friends,” she said good-naturedly.
“It is simple,” Marianne replied. “You would be dreadfully bored without me.”
“I suppose that is true.”
A knock came at the door.
“Enter,” Marianne ordered.
The door was opened, and a maid stepped into the room with a tray in her hands. “Moreland thought that you might enjoy some tea.”
“That was most thoughtful of him,” Marianne acknowledged.
The maid placed the tray on the table. “Would you care for me to pour, milady?”
Marianne straightened in her seat. “That won’t be necessary.”
“As you wish,” the maid said before she departed from the room.
As Marianne reached for the teapot, Hannah announced, “I have decided it is time for me to marry.”
Marianne’s hand stilled as she stared at her in disbelief. “Truly?”
“I am twenty years old and both of my sisters have already entered into advantageous marriages,” Hannah went on to explain.
“That may be true, but are you ready to tie yourself to someone for the remainder of your days?”
“I am.”
A silence came over them as Marianne poured two cups of tea. She set the teapot down, picked up a teacup and saucer, and extended it towards Hannah.
Hannah accepted the offering and took a sip before lowering it to her lap. “I know what you are thinking—”
Marianne cut her off. “Hardly.”
“Why do you say that?”
Glancing over at the open door, Marianne lowered her voice. “Is it a grand coincidence that my brother asked for your help to find a bride, and then you decide it’s time to get married?”
“I beg your pardon?”
Marianne gave her a knowing look. “I would be blind if I didn’t notice that you hold my brother in high regard,” she said. “It has been that way since we were children.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Only to me.”
Hannah pursed her lips together. “It matters not, because your brother has only ever considered me a friend.”
“How do you know that for certain?”
“Because he asked for my help to find him a bride,” Hannah pointed out.
Marianne took a sip of her tea. “Perhaps it is a way for him to get closer to you,” she suggested.
“I think not,” Hannah said. “It is time for me to accept that Martin will never view me as anything other than a friend.”
“He is wrong in doing so.”
Hannah smiled. “Thank you for that, but I must move on. I have spent entirely too much time dwelling on him.”
“Your heart needs time to heal.”
“No, I need to forget about him by finding a suitor,” Hannah argued. “That is the only way I can move past him.”
“I disagree.”
“I’m not surprised,” Hannah replied, “but this is my life.”
Marianne reached forward and placed her cup on the tray. “Have you recruited your sister to help?”
“I have, and Kate has already selected potential suitors for me.”
“I don’t like this,” Marianne said. “You can’t just line up suitors and hope to fall in love with one of them.”
“We are matchmakers,” Hannah stated. “It is a tried-and-true formula.”
“But your heart is already engaged—”
Hannah spoke over her. “I must press forward, Marianne. I can’t continue to pine after someone who has no interest in me.”
“I just worry about you.”
“I assure you that I know what I am doing.”
Marianne didn’t appear convinced by her words. “May I ask which gentlemen you are considering?”
“Lord Blakely, Lord Charles Brooksbank, and Lord Groff,” Hannah listed off. “But I don’t think Lord Blakely and I would suit.”
“Why?”
“Because he is rather dull.”
“The other two are interesting choices, as well,” Marianne muttered.
“There is nothing wrong with them,” Hannah replied. “They are honorable gentlemen.”
Marianne bobbed her head in agreement. “I would agree, and either one of them would make a good choice for you.”
“But?”
“They are too safe.”
“Meaning?”
“Falling in love should be a risk, and I don’t see it being so with those gentlemen.”
Hannah took a sip of her tea in an attempt to delay her response. She wasn’t quite sure what to
