Total pages in book: 91
Estimated words: 86167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 86167 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 431(@200wpm)___ 345(@250wpm)___ 287(@300wpm)
“Perhaps he ate too much of the trifle at dinner,” offered Jane.
“I can’t blame him. It was delicious,” said Rosalind, leaning into her friend. “Perhaps he only had a stomachache.”
“There are times…” Elizabeth paused, feeling rather as if she were poised at the edge of a cliff. “There are times I do worry we are not suited. But I’m a flexible person. I understand others, perhaps, more deeply than most, and I believe the two of us can learn to love one another. I do like his sense of justice, his upstanding character. He is a good man who does not drink to excess or carouse, like some of the previous men I was engaged to. He’s rich, handsome, and considered a great success among his peers.”
“He is all those things,” Rosalind agreed. “But he is not very fun.”
“Well, you’re married to Marlow, who’s terribly fun, so of course you imagine Lord Fortenbury lacking,” said Elizabeth, trying not to sound defensive. It was hard when one was being attacked from all sides. “Lord Fortenbury—Gerald—can be funny. He has a dry sense of humor, I would say.”
“As long as he doesn’t turn it on you,” said Jane. “Townsend teases me now and again, but nothing he knows will hurt my feelings. He would not do that.”
“I was not that hurt about the piano comments, truly. I haven’t been practicing enough. Lord Augustine tried to help me, but…”
Thinking about August made her even more muddled. She took a bite of sugar biscuit, letting it dissolve on her tongue.
“I’m not that worried,” she said, as much to convince herself as them. “Anyway, all four of you are happily married, so you’ll be able to give me advice on anything that might go amiss.”
“Of course, we’re happy to do that,” said Rosalind. “Goodness knows that marriage, especially at the beginning, is delicate work.” She fell silent, biting her lip. “But I do wonder… You have your gift, Elizabeth, your special ways of knowing. Do you sense anything about him? You know, any special feelings or…” She lowered her voice. “Warnings?”
Elizabeth put down the biscuit and brushed away stray crumbs. “I’m not supposed to talk about my unusual powers of perception.”
“You’re among friends.”
“Well, I… To tell the truth…” She swallowed hard. “I’ve tried not to look at him too deeply in that way. When I’m close to someone, really close, the perceptions can skew.”
It was the truth. She had not tried to divine feelings or possibilities from any of her fiancés, because it terrified her to do so. What if she found they didn’t like her? That they only wanted the prestige of marrying the Duke of Arlington’s daughter? What if the energy she perceived was unpleasant, cold and hard and distant?
You’ve perceived that Fortenbury is cold and hard and distant. You just don’t want to admit it to yourself.
She supposed he would come around when they were wed, because he was that sort of upstanding man. He believed it was proper to care for one’s wife and be faithful to her. She’d perceived that about him, and he’d told her the same in so many words early in their courtship. The other doubts, the coldness and distance, could be overcome with familiarity.
She had to trust everything would work out.
Because she had to marry him. Another broken match was out of the question. She would be untouchable if the honorable Lord Fortenbury dismissed her after all her other failed engagements. With her advancing age and history, she’d not be viewed as a catch no matter her lofty lineage. She didn’t wish a life of spinsterhood. She wanted to marry like her sisters and her friends, and have love and comfort, and children.
“Papa chose him, you know,” she said. “And he is an excellent judge of character.”
“Of course he is, dearest.” Rosalind squeezed her hand. “It’s only that sometimes I worry you are troubled.”
“I’m not! Well, only in the way any bride would be. Getting married is quite an undertaking.”
“But a happy marriage is a joy,” said Ophelia.
“Yes, try not to be nervous,” said Jane. “You’re such a wonderful, bright, loving person. Any marriage you undertake will surely be happy.”
“That’s what I believe.” Elizabeth seized on her friend’s words. “I believe any marriage can be happy if the participants wish it to be so. All of you seem supremely happy. You ought to give me your best advice now that I’m mere days from the altar. What’s most important to know?”
“Be honest in all things,” said Jane. “And accept each other as you are.”
“Laugh with your husband each day,” said Rosalind. “Especially when things get tense. Have fun together as much as possible.”
“And stand up to your husband if he’s being a stubborn arse,” offered Ophelia. “Don’t tolerate bad behavior.”
“Yes, that’s important,” Jane agreed. “Along those lines, you must also reward your husband when he’s being a fine and honorable man. Offer incentives for good behavior…”