Hearts Entwined (Victorian Love #3) - M.A. Nichols Page 0,53

marriage and a happy partnership that would bring the added blessing of saving your family as well. Yet you would rather abandon us because you want some romantic fantasy with Mr. Dixon? Is the happiness Mr. Kingsley offers not enough?”

Victoria’s thoughts darted about at that accusation. “It wouldn’t be impossible for you to marry. If I found a Mr. Kingsley, sure you could—”

But Miriam let out a huff, shaking her head as she released Victoria’s hand. “Do you think such gentlemen are easy to find? I’ve watched you struggle for years to find such a man, and I do not have your bearing and wit. I am pretty enough, but there are plenty of young ladies who are prettier and come with a proper dowry.”

Stepping away, Miriam straightened her skirts, her lips trembling. “I fear for you, Victoria. Do not make the mistake of tossing aside Mr. Kingsley. You will be happy with him and bless the lives of your entire family. Is Mr. Dixon worth losing all of that?”

Victoria’s heart ceased beating, which was for the best, as it felt as brittle as a leaf and was liable to crumble away into nothing. Miriam strode away without a backward glance, leaving her elder sister to wonder how many times one’s world could be upended in a single day. Both Miriam and Elijah had appeared unexpectedly, setting it all in a dither before abandoning her to pick up the pieces.

Elijah’s kisses were still fresh on her lips, and his tender voice echoed in her ears, begging her not to surrender, but Victoria knew there was no debate as to her course of action. Even if she wrapped herself in justifications now and embraced his offer of marriage, no love or joy could survive for long if it came at the expense of her sisters’ future. Far too many ladies were left spinsters with little to no income, and Victoria would not allow her sisters to be among them.

Hettie and Phyllis had talked of beauty, youth, and connections overcoming financial deficiencies, but that was growing rarer nowadays. Those two young ladies may not recognize the metamorphoses their world was undertaking, but Victoria was not blind to it. The Great Hunger was bleeding many coffers dry and forcing more and more heirs to choose a well-dowered bride. The years between now and when her three sisters would marry weren’t likely to improve the situation.

Miriam was correct. Mr. Kingsley was a good man, and Victoria would be honored and content to be his wife. It was far better than she’d hoped for, and to wish for more was pure greed.

Chapter 20

Never had Oliver been more grateful for the privacy of his thoughts. Granted, the gentlemen around him would be unlikely to raise a fuss over the string of foul language streaming through his head as he tugged and twisted the fishing line. Likely they would laugh at his pedestrian choices, as even in his thoughts he didn’t favor any true vulgarity.

With the rod under his arm, Oliver attempted to decipher the knotted mess in his hands. He would far prefer to hand the ridiculous thing over to one of the servants who served as ghillies, but it was a matter of pride to undo one’s own tangle. Even the more frivolous members of the group handled their gear, as though doing otherwise was an indictment on one’s character.

And so, Oliver was left to grumble and grouse.

It was ridiculous that he was struggling today. Though neither he nor Father were avid fishermen, Oliver was no novice to be tangling his line so thoroughly. Already, he’d lost two flies to the muck and weeds haunting the bottom of the river, and now it seemed his rod was determined to punish him for the mistreatment.

Gentlemen dotted Fyrne River, though the lazy trickle of water hardly warranted the name. It may have been an apt description in some long-ago time and on rare occasions when the heavens dumped great deluges, but in most instances, it was a mere stream.

The forest pressed in around them as the fishermen cast out their lines, their poles arcing forward and back with the elegance of a dancer as they positioned their flies—or attempted to. The sound of the water lapping over the rocks was drowned out by the gentlemen around him; Mr. Flemming, Mr. Nelson, and Mr. Dosett debated the finer points of flies and technique while the younger gentlemen contented themselves with a different battle of wills, in the form