“It is not right, is it?” Annabelle asked as she paced Catherine’s oversized bedroom the following morning. The cream and pale blue décor was designed for calm, but she could not feel that way today. After a night of barely any sleep, Annabelle still had unbridled terror racing through her system. “Lord Ashdown will not ask my father for my hand in marriage, will he?”

Catherine flickered her eyes over to the Stanbury sisters who immediately shook their heads. Catherine was much better at delivering bad news than them. She seemed to have a better way with words.

Catherine sighed loudly as she searched her brain for the right words to calm her friend down. “He might does, if he has taken a liking to you. He might also be interested in the dowry you come with.” Annabelle shot her friend a terrible look, that was not what she wanted to hear. “I know you might not like that,” Catherine did her best to defend herself. “But I feel it is better for you to be prepared for what might come next.”

“Maybe I should speak with my father today, maybe it would be better for me to tell him in advance that I do not want to marry Lord Ashdown.”

“I do not think that is a good idea,” Catherine shook her head rapidly from side to side as she disagreed with Annabelle. “I do not believe your father will appreciate your opinion on the matter.”

“I cannot have an opinion on the man I am going to marry? The father of my children? The person I have to spend the rest of my life with?”

Catherine did not even bother to answer that. They all knew the answer, once Otto Hathaway had made a decision, it would happen no matter what.

Edith shuffled uncomfortably in her seat, she did not know how to deliver the knowledge that she had balling up inside of her, but she felt compelled to get it out somehow. She did not wish to make her friend feel worse, but it didn’t feel right to keep secrets from her either.

If this affected her future, then she deserved to know.

“Annabelle, I think there is something you should know,” Edith told her quietly. Regret laced her tone, but the weight shifted from her shoulders just the tiniest bit. “I do not think Lord Ashdown is the one for you, I think you should find whatever way you can to get out of marrying him.”

Annabelle rushed to her friend’s side and she gripped tightly onto her arm as she stared desperately into her eyes. “What do you mean? What do you know?” she begged.

“I do not know anything about him at all, but our elder brother used to work with him at the bank a few years back.” Edith glanced over to Harriett who gave her a helpless shrug. She did not know what was the best thing to do. In the end, Edith continued on. “I mentioned Lord Ashdown to Edmund this morning when he was visiting and his opinion of him is not positive.”

Annabelle slid backwards and tried to catch her breath. She knew that there was something wrong with Lord Ashdown, she could just sense it. Still, she was not sure how she felt to have that confirmed. “What did he say?”

“That he is a brute.” Edith bit down guiltily on her bottom lip. “And that he likes the company of courtesans.”

Annabelle instantly felt her whole body still. There was no way that would be invented, it just was not the sort of thing that one would lie about. And she knew Edmund well, he was a man who took life very seriously. He would never say something unless he had seen evidence of it himself, he did not gossip

“Oh my goodness. I was not expecting that.”

Edith threw a comforting arm over her friend’s shoulder, but Annabelle shook it off as she raised back into a standing position.

“Well that simply confirms it, I have to find a way not to marry this man. I have to somehow stop my father from allowing this to happen.”

“It still might not happen,” Catherine tried to reassure her friend. “He might have only said that to try and rile you up.”

“I suppose so, I just do not want to turn a blind eye to it in case he was being serious.” Annabelle’s brain spun, she did not know what to think anymore. It was all so confusing. “What do you think I should do?”

“I would leave it,” Catherine said confidently. “I do not think you truly have anything to worry about.”

“Maybe you should try speaking with your mother?” Edith suggested helpfully. “She might have some idea of what your father is planning.”

“Maybe she could stop him too,” Annabelle agreed with a nod. “She is the only woman in the world that he ever listens to. Not all the time, but it is worth a shot.”

Harriett was not convinced. She knew that Annabelle needed to consider every option, just in case she could not control life in the way that she hoped. “You know, I think a lot of men involve themselves with courtesans. Many society women turn a blind eye to their husband’s affairs, that is common knowledge. If you do end up having to marry Lord Ashdown, maybe that side of him will work to your advantage.”

Annabelle rolled her eyes dramatically. That was the last thing she needed to hear. “But I do not want to marry him, I do not want to be a wife whose husband has affairs. I would much rather have a husband who wants to treat me well.”

“I have faith in you,” Catherine said as she rubbed her friend’s shoulders comfortingly. “I am sure this is something that you will figure out. Your father will probably not want to see you wed until you are twenty years of age anyway.”

Annabelle nodded, but she was barely listening to her friend. A plan was forming inside her mind and it was one that heavily featured her mother. Annabelle had never relied on her mother for much, she usually preferred to be independent, but this was not something she could do alone.

She needed help.

* * *

As expected, Annabelle found her mother in the dining room taking her time over the endless courses of lunch that she was being served. Josephine never left her bedroom without looking like she was about to attend a society event, even if she had no intention of even leaving the house. Josephine Hathaway was always a Lady, no matter what. She had her red hair twisted up into a complicated looking chignon with jewels decorating it, her face was painted with full makeup, and her lilac silk gown pinched in at her hips and showed off all of her curves.

“Good afternoon, Mother,” Annabelle said, much too brightly, giving herself away. She usually did not have much to say to her family, so she was being very obvious. “How are you feeling today?”

“I am feeling good, thank you.” Josephine eyed her youngest daughter curiously. “And how, may I ask, are you?”

“Oh, Mother,” Annabelle panted desperately as she slid into the chair beside her. “I do not know what to do, I really need your help.”

Josephine’s heart skipped an excitable beat. She loved being needed, it made her feel much better than anything else ever could. All the money, all the dresses and jewels she owned, were nothing compared to the warmth in her chest when someone she loved needed her. It did not often happen, even less so now that her daughters had grown up. She felt herself jump on the opportunity desperately.

“You need help? What can I do?”

Annabelle paused for just a second, she hoped and prayed that this one moment of weakness would not backfire on her. “I met a Lord at the celebration last night...”

“A Lord?” Josephine leapt on this information with glee, taking it completely the wrong way. “Which Lord? A Lord you like?”

“No, nothing like that.” Annabelle shook her head rapidly. She did not want this to be misconstrued at all. “His name is Lord Watson Ashdown, a friend of Beatrice’s husband.”

“Lord Ashdown? I do not think I know the name.”

“Well he asked me to dance and when I refused him...”

“You refused him?”

Annabelle did not have time to deal with her mother’s shock at her rudeness. She needed to get the rest of the story out, so she continued to talk right over her. “...he told me that I would dance with him at our wedding.”

“He believes that he will marry you?”

“I do not know.” Annabelle shrugged helplessly. “But I do know that I do not want to marry him. I do not want my wedding to be for at least two years anyway, and I do not want it to be with him.”

Josephine folded her arms across her chest as she examined Annabelle. She got the impression that Beatrice was not immediately keen on Abraham Urwin but she had not ever complained. Her eldest child was fantastic at following the rules, no matter what was asked of her, even if she did not like it. She never put Josephine in a position where she would be forced to intervene.

But Annabelle was not like Beatrice, she never had been.

“Do you have reason for not wanting to marry him?”

“Yes, I do!” Annabelle’s eyes lit up, she felt like she was truly being listened to which was exactly what she needed. “I got a horrible feeling from him right away, before he even came to speak with me. Then he made comments that were not gentleman-like at all. He was very rude to me.”

“That might have just been a bad first impression. Maybe your feelings will change later on...” Josephine knew many people that did not adore their husbands at first, including herself.

“No, it is not just that. Edith and Harriett’s brother, Edmund, used to work with Lord Ashdown. He said that he is known for being brutish, and also for spending time with courtesans.”

Josephine held up her hands to silence her daughter with a relieved smile on her face. “If that is the case then you have nothing to worry about. You know better than anyone how important reputation is to your father. He will not risk it for some young Lord who asks for your hand. Even if he asks Otto, he will have his offer refused.”

Annabelle sunk into her seat, relief flooded her. She was right to come and speak to her mother, this was the best thing for her. Now she knew for sure that no matter what happened, she would remain unwed for the time being. This had only furthered the opinion that she shared at Beatrice’s ceremony... she did not want to get married for a very long time. Her life was just perfect as it was, there was no need to change a thing.

“Thank you, Mother,” she gasped with standing up to circle Josephine’s neck with her hands. “I appreciate you helping me.”

“You are welcome, sweetheart.” Josephine relished the moment of physical contact, it had been a long time since her daughter had shown her any kind of affection. “You know that I am here for you, whatever you need. I hope you will come to me if you ever need help in the future.”

But Annabelle was barely listening anymore, her head was soaring with happiness. The whole mess with Lord Watson Ashdown was all but forgotten. His comments dissolved in her brain, the ice-cold sensation he gave her vanished, the tension fell away from her muscles. Annabelle felt like herself again, which was utterly perfect.

“Of course, Mother. That I will. Thank you again.”

As Josephine watched her daughter flounce out of the dining room, she smiled to herself. She had distanced herself from her daughter as she grew up because it was what she wanted, but now she wanted to be fully involved in her life once more.

Maybe this would be a one-off, maybe everything would now go back to normal, but she hoped not. She hoped that she could help her child more. It felt wonderful.