me,” Annis said. “I thank you, though. Someone has to put an end to the silly practice. It might as well start with me, because I don’t care what people think.”
“You are fortunate in not needing to care. Your father’s wealth insulates you. Not every young lady is so lucky.”
“Yes, I know.”
“Well. As the hour is so late, I will come right to the point.” Lady Eleanor fingered the long loop of pearls and diamonds that hung around her throat and all the way to her waist. Her bosom mounded above the décolletage of her black satin gown, and the tightness of her corset meant she could neither sit back in her chair nor relax her stiff posture. Annis wondered how she could breathe.
“Rosefield told me he spoke to you today,” Lady Eleanor said. “You refused his offer, I understand. I hold out hope that I may change your mind.”
“I’m sorry, Lady Eleanor, but no,” Annis said. “Forgive my bluntness.”
“You’re direct. I tend to be that way myself.”
“Yes. I assure you it’s not James’s—Lord Rosefield’s—fault. The truth is that I do not wish to marry.”
“I think many of us wish we did not have to marry,” Lady Eleanor responded, startling Annis anew. The older woman gave a tiny, flesh-trembling shrug. “We’re females. Marriage is our lot. What else can we do with our lives?”
“I intend to breed horses. Establish a fine bloodline.”
“Do you indeed? How ambitious you are. And how will you do that without a husband?”
“I will have money of my own. I have a home, and stables to work from.”
“I fear you will learn no one will buy horses from a woman, or trust that she knows what she’s doing.”
“I do know what I’m doing, though. I have made a study of it.”
“I believe you, but the men who run the world will not.”
“But James believes me!” Annis protested, and realized her error immediately.
Lady Eleanor’s smile was restrained, despite the minor victory Annis’s admission gave her. “Yes, Miss Allington, I believe he does. Wouldn’t that be an excellent solution to your problem?”
Annis folded her arms around herself and looked away from Lady Eleanor’s plump face with its pompadour of graying hair. She was clever, James’s mother. Annis struggled for something to say to her that would not offend but would make her own intentions clear.
Carefully she said, “I was surprised by Lord Rosefield’s proposal. I have no reason to believe he cares for me.”
“That was true,” Lady Eleanor said. “But that has evidently changed.”
“I don’t think he would be happy with me.”
The older woman emitted a gentle laugh. “Happiness is overrated, my dear, and hard to define. Most of us settle for contentment in our marriages. And for some of us lucky ones, friendship. The late marquess and I were the best of friends. I do think you and Rosefield could be friends, too.”
“Lady Eleanor, I am delighted to be your son’s friend, but I will not marry him. It was a kind offer, and I assure you it was courteously made, but I want only to go home to my horses and my life in New York.” She glanced up to see how Lady Eleanor had taken this statement.
Lady Eleanor looked terribly weary. No doubt she longed to be free of her cruel corset, free of the weight of her jewels and the black mourning feathers in her hair. No doubt she longed to be free of the burden of worry she carried.
Annis said sadly, “My stepmother has misled you.”
“Yes. She has.”
“She wants a title in the family.”
“Oh, they all do,” Lady Eleanor said, with a quirk of her lips. “It’s the bargain we make. An heiress’s dowry in exchange for a title for the bride.”
“But I don’t care about the title.”
“So I gather.” Lady Eleanor started to push herself up from her chair, then fell back with a little grunt. Annis, seeing this, jumped up to take the older lady’s hands and assist her to her feet. “Thank you, my dear,” Lady Eleanor said. “I do wish you might reconsider. This is a fine place to live—or it will be, with some repairs and a few modern conveniences.”
“I can see that,” Annis said with sincerity. “Seabeck is beautiful, as is Rosefield Hall.”
Lady Eleanor drew a shallow breath, and when she started toward the door, she stumbled. Annis took her arm. “Please let me assist you, Lady Eleanor. You’re tired, I think.”
Her Ladyship didn’t answer, but she leaned on Annis’s arm as they climbed the staircase. At