Page 14 of Wedded to the Cruel Duke

“No, but—”

“And have you been formally introduced to each other?”

“Not that I know of, Lady Townsend.”

“Then, I am afraid I must decline your generous offer on behalf of my daughter!” she said firmly, her eyes blazing. “Not only have you not known her for very long, you have not even been formally introduced to each other. Moreover,Miss Townsendhas claimed earlier that she has never had anything to do with you.”

Charles had never been chastised for nearly two decades and he hadneverhad to propose to a young lady and her family before. He had to admit that it was quite unnerving to hear Lady Townsend declare herself so emphatically against his proposal.

“Now, dear, you cannot say that so quickly,” Lord Townsend began. He tried to place a placating hand on his wife’s shoulder,but her quick glower had him retracting his extremities to relative safety.

“Marriage is a lifetime commitment, Lord Wentworth,” Lady Townsend reminded him sharply. “It is not something to be decided on a whim!”

“Believe me when I say that I hardly do anything without thinking through it most thoroughly,” he responded with a neutral expression. “As I said before, the situation is hardly ideal and the more that it is allowed to languish, the larger the problem will become.”

“Well, he does have a point there,” Lord Townsend shrugged. “The situation is difficult enough in itself.” He turned towards Charles, who had now taken to idly sipping his tea. “If you would excuse us for a moment, Lord Wentworth, we would like to discuss the matter amongst ourselves.”

Charles nodded in what he hoped appeared to be a magnanimous gesture. After all, he intended to make Lord and Lady Townsend his in-laws soon. It would not do well to antagonize them so early on.

“Phoebe, you come along with your mother and me,” Lord Townsend instructed.

Charles watched as Miss Phoebe trailed after her parents with her head still hanging low and he frowned just the slightest bit. She appeared a little defeated, although he was glad to have noted a slight sparkle still in her eyes.

He hoped they would not chastise her too much.

He also hoped that Lady Townsend would come to see things from his perspective and accept that this was the best course of action for everyone involved.

Phoebe thought that she had never been in more shock in her life than when Dennyson announced that Lord Wentworth was at their door and seeking an audience with her and her parents.

But then, he casually threw around the idea of marriage as the best possible solution to their problem.

Well, he is not exactly wrong. Marrying him would solve most of the crisis.

Unfortunately, a hasty marriage was only going to bring along its own set of problems as well.

“I cannot believe you are even considering his proposal!” Lady Townsend seethed at her husband. “Did you not hear how carelessly he proposed? He even confessed to not knowing our daughter or having even been introduced to her! How could hemarryher?”

“People in Society have married each other for much less,” her husband reminded her gently. “And as galling as it is, hissuggestion is not at all that bad. It would salvage Phoebe’s reputation, as well as Minerva and Daphne’s.”

“But still,” Lady Townsend insisted. “How could we marry Phoebe off to a man she hardly knows? What if he makes her miserable? What if—”

“He is not going to make me miserable, Mama.”

Phoebe watched as her parents’ heads snapped quickly in her direction. Her mother wore an expression of great concern, while her father had a sad smile on his face.

“If I marry him, I will be marrying a Marquess,” she pointed out to them. “And he is heir to one of the oldest and noblest titles, as well as two of the grandest estates in all of England.”

Her mother reached out to her and squeezed her hands in hers. Phoebe hoped that she would not notice how they trembled so.

While it was true that she found the prospect of marrying Lord Wentworth daunting, the alternative was far worse. She would be ostracized by all of theton, and her sisters by mere association.

Daphne, who was already trying so hard to prove herself a success in her first Season, and Minerva, who was already too hesitant to even make her bow.

If she did not marry the Marquess and the scandal spiraled out of control, she would be dooming both of her sisters to a fate that was not of their choosing, nor one that was their fault.

“You cannot marry someone just because they are rich and titled, Phoebe,” her mother reminded her gently. “You know that, my dear, brave girl.”

Phoebe smiled tremulously at her mother. “Well, he is rather handsome as well…”