Page 6 of A Lady's Passion Knows No Distance
“These are all trivial things,” Lady Goldman said, waving her hand at Caroline as though to dismiss her. “A wife is only to support her husband and bear children. Age does not matter, nor does commonality. You must think of the greater good, of your furthered status in our community.”
“I agree with your mother,” Lord Goldman said before Caroline could protest. “Lord Canton is older than you, Caroline, but he’s a good man. He’s wealthy, has a good estate, and would be sure to make you happy.”
“But there must be more to marriage than just money and security. What about love?” Caroline demanded, her fists curling together.
“Your mother and I are fond of each other,” Lord Goldman said, looking over at his wife. But Caroline wasn’t sure of that statement. After all, Lady Goldman had only ever borne one child.
“You are still young, Caroline, and perhaps don’t understand the ways of our culture. Unless you receive a better offer, one you find more agreeable, then Lord Canton will be your husband,” Lady Goldman said firmly.
For a moment, Caroline stared at the two of them, feeling betrayed that she would be forced into a marriage she did not agree to.
Caroline put her eyes to the floor as she curtsied low. She kept her mouth shut and tried to keep the tears from her eyes until she was at least out of the room. And as she neared the stairs, she had to clasp her hand over her mouth to keep her sobs from bubbling up. Gripping her gown with her free hand, she hurried up the stairs, needing the sanctuary of her bedchamber. It was only behind the locked door of her own private space that Caroline let her body succumb to the grief of being forced to marry Lord Canton.
Caroline undressed herself, pulling off her silk gown, untying her petticoats, and letting everything just fall to the ground. In only her chemise, she crawled into bed as tears fell down her cheeks. She clutched her pillow and wished that she was holding onto William, feeling his strong arms around her and helping her feel better.
“What am I going to do?” Caroline asked the darkness of her room once the candles had all been burnt out. Eventually, sleep claimed her, but her night was dark and dreamless.
~*~
The next morning, William sat in a chair next to his father’s bed. He’d helped the older man get up and get dressed, and when Grendel had arrived to fix breakfast, he’d helped his father back into bed with a breakfast plate to eat and rest. It had been a particularly bad night of coughing and his father looked more exhausted than ever. William watched him eat slowly, trying to think of something he could do to ease his father’s pain.
“Are you drinking the tea the apothecary prescribed?” William asked after a time.
“Yes, William. Grendel makes me three cups a day and doesn’t leave me alone until I have drunk every last drop of the nasty stuff,” his father replied with a smirk.
“And the salve? Do you have any more?”
“A little. I didn’t use any last night, thinking I was getting better.”
“Then that must be why last night was much worse. I’ll send Grendel to the apothecary for more salve for your chest, that you might breathe easier at night,” William said as he stood.
“William, why are you doing this?” his father asked, reaching out and grabbing his arm before he could leave the room. For a sickly man, his grip was still strong.
“What do you mean? I love you, Father. I don’t want to see you unwell for the rest of your life. This cough will go away eventually,” he said. He walked over to his father and removed the older man’s hands from his arm, holding it for a moment.
“You should be living your own life, William. You’ll be eighteen in a few months and should be more worried about being married to a woman you love and starting your own family instead of tending to me all the time.” William could see the tears in his father’s eyes and knew that the man was wallowing in self-pity.
“And what makes you think that I haven’t been doing all of that this whole time?” William said with a smirk as he sat back down, releasing his father’s hand.
“What do you mean? Have you fallen in love with someone?” his father asked, seeming truly interested.
“Yes, Father. I have fallen in love with a woman and have been trying to figure out how to marry her,” William admitted. “But it’s very complicated.”
“Does she love you in return?”
“Yes, Father,” William said with a chuckle.
“Then why on earth could it be so complicated?” he demanded. William could tell that his father was becoming rather excited at the idea and was pleased to see some colour return to his face, as he often looked so pale.
“Because the young lady that I am in love with, and who loves me in return, is Lord Goldman’s daughter,” William said softly, looking into his father’s eyes and watching him carefully. He rarely kept anything from his father and felt it was finally time that he confessed this, as well. After all, he felt rather lost in what to do and could use some guidance.
“I can see why this would be complicated,” his father said, looking away from him for a moment. “I’m sure you already understand this, Son, but Lord Goldman will never give one of his footmen permission to marry his daughter.”
William nodded his head and sighed, closing his eyes for a moment as he tried to control his sadness. “I do surely understand that, Father. That is why I said it is complicated. I see no future with Caroline, with the way things are right now. Unless I do something very heroic like save the man’s life, I know that Lord Goldman would never agree to me marrying her.”
For a few minutes, the two men sat in silence. William wondered what his father was thinking the entire time, and as he looked up at the man, who was trying to eat once more, William could see a dark sadness upon his face. He hoped that by sharing his feelings for Caroline with his father that he hadn’t forced the man to think about his own deceased wife. It was his grief, William was certain, that kept the man in bed most of the time.
“I must go now. I will be back this evening,” William said as he stood from the chair and made his way towards the open door.
