Page 5 of Jillian’s Wild Heart (Ladies of Munro #4)
W ith the scent of Miss Kinsey lingering upon his arm and a plethora of new knowledge regarding the keeping of chickens filling his mind, Lewis Bradford entered the study of his friend, Viscount Howell.
“Take a seat,” said the viscount, gesturing to a plush leather armchair at the side of the room. He took up position at an angle to Lewis, half-sitting against the edge of his desk so that his tall frame still towered over his guest.
Lewis did not take offense at this seemingly ungenial stance.
It was merely force of habit. Lord Howell was a formidable man of business, a tyrant in negotiations, so opposite to his more benign nature in private.
His imposing stature, supported by the fact that he preferred to stand, made it clear who was in charge of proceedings.
It was intended to put the opposition on the back foot and secure his advantage from the start.
He tended to forget that such machinations were not required among friends and they had learned not to pay it any mind.
“I shall save you some time,” Howell said as Lewis lowered himself into the comfortable chair. “Your idea is a terrible one, and you should discard such thinking with immediate effect.”
Lewis froze in the middle of settling himself, his features unmoving except for his eyebrows, which shot upward and remained there. “I haven’t said anything yet,” he protested. “How can you reject a subject that hasn’t even been raised?”
“You want to marry Miss Kinsey. And you want my opinion. I have given it to you. Now you may begin your arguments, as I am sure you have many. I shall hear them patiently and show you the flaw in each, one by one.”
“I feel perhaps I should stand,” said Lewis, feeling a tad ruffled, “if this is to take the form of a court case. Though I have to wonder, if you are to be the opposing counsel, who shall be the judge?”
“Common sense shall prevail.”
“You seem to think you have a monopoly in that commodity. But I have thought this through for some time. My plans are practical. Common sense has been applied at every juncture.”
The viscount looked up as if considering an argument written on the ceiling. “That may be true,” he conceded, “and yet common sense did not rattle around in your head by itself. There would have been a stout measure of other less sensible thoughts, nay, feelings that colored your views.”
Lewis felt the heat of his embarrassment rise in his neck and color his cheeks. “Well, you should know,” he countered weakly. “You have been in this position yourself.”
“Which is why I can say with confidence that your situation is worse. More fluff and less logic.”
“You do not wish me to be happy?”
“That is exactly the sort of nonsense to which I am referring. Happiness does not come from the desiring of it. The match must be able to stand the test of a lifetime.”
“But I don’t have nearly as many factors to consider as you did,” argued Lewis.
“You are Munro’s foremost citizen, a viscount needing an heir, which your fine wife has provided you.
I am but the younger son of a baron. I can marry purely for happiness.
And I intend to. Enough of my life has been made up of duty without much in the way of reward.
Miss Kinsey offers me a lightness of being I have not felt before. ”
“And what do you offer her?” asked his friend.
“Why, everything! My heart, my home, the security of a sound income.”
“Can she be happy in the home of a gentleman? You see how she struggles in Munro House. She bears it for Ellena’s sake, but she is always relieved to return to Trenton Grange.”
“Our abode will have nothing like your estate,” Lewis said with confidence.
“There is no comparison. She will be able to do some gardening without folk questioning it. I’m certain our blooms will be the envy of all Munro if she has her father’s skill.
And we can keep chickens. I will try my best to include the reminders of her childhood home in our own. ”
Lord Howell tweaked his mouth into a restrained grin. “Chickens, hey? You really do love this woman if you are talking of poultry running about your grounds. Whatever will your parents say?”
“They will just have to endure it if they choose to visit. Their home is run as they choose. It shall be the same for mine.”
“And when Miss Kinsey—I mean Mrs. Bradford—desires to run about, as she is wont to do, where will she find an outlet for this urge?”
“I hope to have a large, shaded lawn where she can do as she needs within the privacy of our property.”
“Hmm, too small for her levels of energy.”
“Then… Munro Park. It is certainly large and varied enough.”
“Not private enough. Even the wife of a barrister must maintain some decorum in the public eye.”
“We’ll take the carriage and go for a picnic farther afield,” said Lewis with some exasperation.
Howell looked at his friend with squinted eyes. “Not so easy to accommodate her after, all, would you say?”
“We’ll figure it out,” Lewis insisted. “Everything is new in the beginning. Within a year, it will be so familiar as to no longer require thought.”
The viscount focused his unflinching gaze upon Lewis. “If you are so confident, why do you seek my advice?”
There was a pause. It was but a moment, but it was enough.
“It will be challenging to blend our worlds,” Lewis admitted.
“But I am determined to manage it. I had hoped that your experience with Lady Howell, who was herself no part of the ton , would give you insights you might share with me. I had thought you might advise me how to proceed to attain success in this venture. I did not expect you to discourage me.”
Howell shook his head. “Ours is too great a friendship for me to withhold hard truths from you. I fear the challenges you will meet will not be as easily overcome as you surmise. We would not want Miss Kinsey’s vivacious nature to suffer.
If she were to marry a farmer, she could continue as before.
But as your wife, even though you are a mere gentleman and not titled, she would be expected to maintain the very lifestyle she finds so uncomfortable during her visits here. ”
“I think you forget that we may dictate the way we live, as you have. You are highly selective of your visitors and intolerant of arrogance and airs, even in public spaces, ignoring whoever dislikes your stance in this regard. I would choose to do the same.”
A deep sigh answered this bold statement.
Lord Howell looked at his friend with downcast eyes.
“I wish it were that simple. My position grants me certain privileges with which to counter the loathsome expectations of society. Regardless of what people think of me, they are forced to show respect, at least to my face. And I am not fully at liberty to do as I please, either. There is a minimum of taste and propriety I must uphold. As with you. A barrister cannot do entirely as he wishes. His clients want a man who carries himself with dignity. Knowledge of the law must be paired with a solid reputation. And your wife, whether you like it or not, shares in the burden of that responsibility.”
“Are you saying Miss Kinsey is not up to the task?”
“I’m saying it might be hard for her, even if she were willing to try.”
“Should I not give her the opportunity to decide for herself?”
“My dear Bradford, I fear the young woman is as smitten as you are. There is every likelihood that she will say yes to the idea of marriage simply to be with you. But the reality might be a blow from which neither of you can recover. I should hate to see two of my dear friends made miserable by their pursuit of happiness.”
Lewis tapped his fingers on his knee, his lips pressed together. “You seem to have a rather lower opinion of us than I gave you credit for.”
Howell lowered his lids and shrugged. “I merely speak from experience. I almost threw away my own joy by letting my feelings run away with me. You will remember the course of events, to my shame.”
“Our situation is not the same! You had barely met when you were married. I have known Miss Kinsey for a year. We are no longer strangers to each other. Our weaknesses are already known and have not affected the fondness we share.”
Lord Howell lifted his seat from the table’s edge and resumed his full height, indicating the meeting was at an end.
“Look, Bradford, you seem determined to pursue this matter, despite my words of caution. I can only hope that Miss Kinsey shows more sense. Unfortunately, thoughts of romance and marriage are rarely swayed by logic and wisdom. If I cannot persuade a sensible man like you, the artless Miss Kinsey is unlikely to fare any better.”
“So that’s it?” Lewis could not hide his displeasure. “We are to proceed without your blessing?”
Howell stepped forward and patted his friend’s shoulder.
“You don’t need my blessing, old chap. You don’t even need the permission of Miss Kinsey’s father, as she is of age.
As two adults, you can do as you wish. We will all remain friends whatever imprudent action you might take.
But you must promise me this: do not expect her to change once she is your wife.
That is the way of madness and the fastest route to misery.
Celebrate what you have in whom you have.
Then you may yet prove false my concerns about this match. And remain a man of honor in my eyes.”
Lewis cast his gaze to the lushly carpeted floor. “I suppose this is the best you have to offer, little though it is. I had thought your own happy ending would cause you to welcome mine. But I see I was mistaken.”
“Oh, do stop sulking, Bradford. Keep your promise, and there will be cause enough for celebration. Until then, you have heard my reservations. They have been uttered in love and should not be written off just because they are not what you wished to hear. Come, raise yourself from your doldrums and that chair. The ladies will be expecting us. Ellena has been clamoring to eat with company again. She is quite done with the four walls of her room. You shall have the privilege of being our first guest since we became parents. Besides Miss Kinsey, of course.”
“Well, I suppose that is something,” murmured Lewis, not quite ready yet to cast off his earlier disappointment.
“It is more than just something, old boy. Don’t be such a wet blanket.”
Lewis shook himself mentally. His friend was right.
He was behaving like a spoiled child. Why he should do so was a mystery, as he had certainly not been a spoiled child in reality.
But that sort of thinking would only worsen his mood.
He must discard the frustrations of the past and move firmly into the future.
A future with Miss Kinsey would be a much brighter affair than the circumstances life had dealt him so far.
The promise of her imminent company cheered him considerably.
The thought of a lifetime with her… Well, she must still accept his offer.
Despite the viscount’s gloomy summation of their differences, Lewis still wanted her to say yes .
He would not wait long. It was never known how long Miss Kinsey would stay at a time.
But he would travel all the way to Trenton Grange if necessary to ask for her hand.
Tonight, they would dine together as friends.
A few days hence, they might do so as a betrothed couple.
In as little as a month, they could be married.
It was all Lewis could do to stop himself from taking the stairs two at a time—just as the vital Miss Kinsey was wont to do—to fall to one knee and beg her to be his.
It was only his respect for his host that prevented him from doing so.
Just a few days… Perhaps the longest days of his life.
But he would bear them with fortitude. She would say yes .
She must say yes . The wait would be worth it.
He could finally slip his fingers through her golden hair and cup her waist with his arm, drawing her closer, closing the distance, until nothing stood between them, and the rest of the world became a distant memory.
There was much he wished to leave behind.
Miss Kinsey, he was certain, was the means to do so.
Her sparkle was a seed that grew in his heart.
Together, they would grow ever brighter and happier. Just a few more days…