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“He said he would consider the offer,” her father said.

A reprieve, then. The Earl was not sure he wanted her. Perhaps Astrid ought to have felt offended, affronted, but the only thing she could bring herself to feel was relief.Maybe I won’t have to do it,she thought.Maybe he’ll tell Father no, and I’ll be able to stay here for a few more years.

The thought steadied her just enough that she was able to recover her composure and take a bite of her stew. The liquid warmed her from within, centering her even more. She took another bite and felt more like herself.

“Why?” she asked. There were a thousand questions on her mind right now, but this was the one that kept rising to the top. “Why would you offer him that?”

“You’ve got to marry at some point, Astrid,” her father said.

She knew he was right. But that wasn’t the point. “I’m not asking why you would offer my hand to a man,” she said. “I’m asking why you would offer it tohim, and whynow.”

“What do you mean?”

“Has Lord Middleborough ever shown any interest in me before?” Astrid asked.

“You’re a lovely young woman,” her father hedged.

“That’s not my question and you know it,” she said. “He’s a nobleman, and I’m…well…”

“Beautiful, charming, clever—”

“Common, Father. Men like him don’t marry girls like me. Why should he even consider what you’re offering? What would make him want to choose me, when he could almost certainly have a high-ranking lady?”

“There are…” her father swallowed hard, “there are rumors about him. Rumors that will make it hard for him to find a wife.”

Astrid frowned. “What kinds of rumors?”

“Unpleasant ones.” Her father’s cheeks colored, and Astrid realized he felt uncomfortable with what he was about to say. “They say he uses women for his own pleasure and discards them without a care when he’s finished with them.

She gasped. “This is the man you offer me to?”

“The stories aren’t true,” her father said quickly. “He isn’t what people say he is. But rumors grow, and he will have a hard time living them down. Most members of thetonwill have nothing to do with the poor man.”

Astrid felt short of breath. “How do youknowthe rumors aren’t true?” she asked.

“I know the man,” her father said. “I’ve worked with him for many years. I know the sort of man he is. He’s quiet, yes, and he’s standoffish, and many find him unlikeable for those reasons. But he isn’t a cruel man.” He looked up at Astrid, meeting her eyes for the first time. “I would never send you to the home of a cruel man, Astrid. I love you too much to allow that to happen.”

“So…” Astrid struggled to comprehend, “you offered me to him because you pitied his plight.”

“I suppose that’s right,” her father said. He was looking away from her again. “I knew you would be a bright spot in what was otherwise a sad life. You always have been for me.”

“And you didn’t think of asking me first?”

“I’m your father, Astrid,” he said. “I don’t need your permission to make a marital arrangement for you.”

“No,” she said quietly. “You don’t. But I thought…Father, I always thought that you wouldcarehow I felt about it.”

Look at me, she begged silently.Look at me, Father.

But he didn’t.

“I can see that I was wrong,” she whispered. “I suppose I should have known better.”

“I do care, Astrid,” he said quietly.

“May I be excused to my bedroom?” Suddenly she couldn’t stand to be in his presence for even another moment.

“You haven’t finished your stew,” her father pointed out.