Chapter 28 - William #3
"So we've covered courtship, but got lost a bit on how a gentleman asks a lady to marry him," Dora said.
William appreciated her attempt to redirect.
"Is that what we were discussing?" Katherine blinked. "I still thought we were speaking of courtship techniques."
"You recommended Greta Green as a courtship technique?" Dora asked, aghast.
Katherine shrugged. "It worked well enough for Richard and me. We were very happy in our marriage."
"I doubt more than one out of every fifty elopements could claim the same, especially when they barely knew one another."
She gave a sly smile. "Richard was a very persuasive man."
William had been staring down at his tea cup, fervently wishing he'd brought his flask. As it was, he was the only one drinking tea. He wondered if it might be rude of him to ask one of the dashingly handsome footmen for a spot of whiskey.
He didn't see who'd thrown it, so it came as a surprise when the pillow hit him in the shoulder. His delicate teacup rattled; he caught it before it fell, but tea drenched his thigh.
"I'm so sorry!" Irene clasped thin fingers over her mouth. "I was aiming for Katherine."
He looked toward the footmen, trying to catch one's eye. He was definitely going to ask for whiskey now. Aunt Marie beat him to it; she snapped and murmured something to one of the men. The footman turned and exited.
William frowned. "Forgive me for saying so, but are all your male servants wearing hand-me-downs?"
"Certainly not. What a terrible thing to ask!" Marie said.
"It's only that their pants are all…" His murmuring trailed off; he adjusted his cravat.
"It's Dora's fault." Irene looked heavenward. "She slipped the tailor a few pounds to make their trousers snug."
"I beg your pardon," Dora said, eyes twinkling. "What a shocking assertion. Why on earth would someone do such a thing?"
"Focus, ladies," Janie snapped. "How are we ever going to succeed in our endeavor if we cannot have one productive conversation with a gentleman who's come to us for help?"
Endeavor? William wondered.
He opened his mouth to ask, but it was as if Janie's words had cast a spell over the assembled ladies. Even Katherine had sat up straight. They wore expressions ranging from attentive to determined.
The footman returned with a silver tray bearing a sparkling champagne flute and offered it to William. He accepted it gratefully, even though he much preferred whiskey—the bubbles in champagne tickled his nose.
Dora said, "Ladies like presents. If they claim not to, it's because no one's ever bought them the right one."
"And don't let anyone convince you looks don't matter. Ladies enjoy looking at a handsome man as much as men like pretty ladies."
Janie waved her off. "There's no problem on that issue. Dahlia finds him very handsome."
He leaned forward. "She does?"
Janie nodded her head tartly. "You're a very handsome man. Why do you think all the ladies were swarming about you at the ball last night?"
William frowned; he hadn't noticed.
"My advice is to leverage every asset you have in pursuit of this goal," Aunt Marie said. "You have a good mind and a keen business sense. If Dahlia were a business asset that a gentleman competitor were trying to take from you, how would you deal with that?"
"I'd apply pressure until they left it alone."
"Precisely."
"She's far more valuable than a business asset, Aunt Marie."
The woman pursed her lips, clearly irritated, even as Dora sighed happily and tilted her head.
"Of course she's more than a business asset," his aunt snapped. "My only point is you must address this issue on multiple fronts. There’s the emotional side of things, and the practical side. If you can get some of those extraneous gentlemen to go away, why wouldn't you?"
"Actually, I'd appreciate that very much." Janie nodded. "Cook cannot keep up with the demand for scones—I much preferred the days when there were leftovers for a midnight snack."
"It's even better if Dahlia somehow finds out that you've done so." Katherine gave a sly smile. "Every lady secretly wishes to be the object of a man's jealousy."
“I’m surprised by your advice," he said. "I thought showing any sort of jealousy was a bad thing."
"Who gave you that terrible advice?" Dora wrinkled her nose.
"That's simply rubbish. Jealousy is delicious, my dear."
"But make sure it stays well within bounds," his aunt advised. "Jealousy is like cayenne pepper. A little bit flavors a dish nicely. But too much will leave you retching."
"How will I know how much is too much?"
"Follow your instincts. You've got an excellent head on your shoulders. Besides, if she doesn’t like it, the lady will let you know decisively."
"In what way?"
"She’ll tell you to leave her alone."
“What do I do if she does?”
Janie spread her hands wide. "If she tells you to leave, you must do so. To do otherwise would put an end to your endeavors immediately."
"All of this seems extremely high risk," he said. "Isn't there a way to show her how I feel without the risk of pushing her away forever?"
"Love is nothing but risk. At the outset, in the middle, and especially toward the end. Love means that someone will get hurt eventually."
The ladies nodded solemnly, sharing sidelong glances. Suddenly, William understood their friendship a bit better.
"All of us loved our husbands to varying degrees. All of us mourned for them with the same intensity with which we loved them while they were here. It's the nature of things. So if you're not willing to risk anything, you're not willing to love at all," Dora said.
Aunt Marie nodded. "You have to decide whether you want a marriage that’s filled with love, or if you'd rather have something much safer.
If it's the latter, come back and let us know.
We can set you up with a lovely, stupid kind of girl who will give you heirs and never any problems, and she'll be delightfully boring until the day you die. "
William wrinkled his nose at the idea. "At this point it is Dahlia or no one. I was quite happily single and could have remained so for the rest of my life."
"That’s exactly how it should be. Not any of this list nonsense.” Janie waved her hand.
"It's different for ladies, as you well know," Dora argued. "It’s well and good for a man to say that he doesn't wish to marry, but what does a lady have if she says the same?"
"I agree. The system is completely unbalanced. Somebody ought to fix it." Irene pursed her lips.
"We've had this conversation a hundred times. The fact remains that this will not be changed in our lifetime. Perhaps in the future ladies will have more opportunity, but we’ll all be ash before then; we might as well focus on what we can accomplish now."
The ladies shared another enigmatic, meaningful look that had William wondering anew what scheme they were planning. It was frightening, the thought of this group of immensely wealthy women all pointed at the same problem. William swigged the rest of his champagne and did his best not to sneeze.
“Now,” Katherine said, leaning forward. “Let’s talk about kissing…”