Read Online The Repentant Rake by Edward Marston - Free Book Online Page B

Susan Cheever.
        'In a
day or so,' said her father. 'I've business in London.'
        'Where
will you stay?'
        Sir
Julius pulled a face. 'In Richmond.'
        'Lancelot
is your son-in-law,' she told him with a note of mild reproach. 'You ought to
make more of an effort to like him.'
        'I have
difficulty liking Brilliana at times, so don't ask me to waste any affection on
that blockhead of a husband.'
        'It
was a good marriage for Brilliana. They're very happy together.'
        'How
can any woman be happy with Lancelot Serle?' he demanded. 'Be honest, Susan.
Would you accept a proposal from a posturing ninny like that?'
        She
suppressed a smile. 'No, Father.'
        'Thank
God I have one discerning daughter.'
        They
were just finishing their meal in the dining room. It was a beautiful day and
Sir Julius planned to spend the afternoon in the saddle, riding around the
estate to see how his tenants were getting on in the hay fields. Though he had
delegated most of the management duties to someone else, he liked to keep an
eye on progress and knew that it always improved when he put in a personal
appearance. Farming was what he knew best and loved most. Sir Julius needed to
remind himself of that before he went off to the urban confines of London. He
sipped his wine and looked fondly at Susan.
        'While
we're on the subject,' he began, licking his lips, 'when are you going to
follow your sister down the aisle?'
        She
was dismissive. 'Oh, there's no hurry for that.'
        'Answer
my question.'
        'I've
answered it a dozen times already,' she replied. 'The time to get married is
when I find someone whom I consider to be a worthy husband.'
        'You
have plenty of willing suitors.'
        'Willing
but unsatisfactory.'
        'Your
standards are too high, Susan.'
        'Are
you so eager to get rid of me?'
        'No,'
he said. 'I'll miss you terribly if you go, but it would be wrong of me to
stand in your way out of selfishness. Most young ladies of your age have a
husband and children. Failing that, they are at least betrothed.'
        Susan's
face tightened. 'I tried betrothal, Father. It was an ordeal.'
        'Only
because you chose the wrong man.'
        'I
seem to recall that he was chosen for me. That was the trouble. I was more or
less talked into it by you and Mother. Not that I blame you entirely,' she went
on. 'I take some responsibility. I liked Michael immensely but I could never
love him and as it turned out, the feelings he professed to have for me were
not as intense as he claimed.'
        'Forget
him,' said Sir Julius briskly 'Michael Trenton was a mistake. I freely concede
that. But there are dozens of more reliable young men in the county.'
        'I
want more than reliability, Father.'
        'You
need someone who can offer you security, Susan. That's the most important
factor. We have to accept that I will not be here for ever.'
        Susan
smiled. 'Then I insist on looking after you while you are here.'
        'Why
not find someone to look after you for a change?' 'I will, Father. One
day.'
        A
maidservant came in to clear the table and brought that phase of the conversation
to a natural end. Susan was grateful for the interruption. Questions about her
lack of marital plans always made her feel slightly cornered. After one doomed
betrothal, she was loath to enter too hastily into another. Suitors were
tolerated but never encouraged. She had come round to the view that, if she'
were to marry, her husband would live well away from the county of
Northamptonshire.
        'How
long will you be in London?' she asked.
        'Four
or five days,' he said. 'A week at most.'
        'It will
be very lonely without you.'
        'Then
why not make the rounds of your many admirers?' he teased.
        'I
think I would prefer to come with you, Father.'
        He
was surprised. 'To London? Whatever