Page 80 of Without Pride and Prejudice
“What are you thinking?” I asked, admittedly anxious. I kept waiting for Monroe to change her mind about all of this. My interview had the unintended consequence of placing us in the limelight. It was a lot for anyone to take in, especially someone like Monroe, who never did things for show and had not grownup in the public eye. And the public eye had definitely been on her. Then there was the matter of her coming face-to-face with my mother today. It was a lot to ask.
Monroe continued to look outside the window at the woods and stream on her side of the vehicle. It was my favorite part of the property. As a boy, I would walk barefoot up and down the stream each summer, searching for smooth pebbles and trying to catch a fish with my bare hands.
“It’s just hitting me now that being with you means this could be my home.”
And that is why I love her. She never calculated or schemed, never concerned herself with my wealth. I placed my hand on her thigh. “It would honor me if you considered this your home.”
She turned and smiled, but it twisted into a grimace. “I know that, and I love that, but Fitz,” she whined, “all those pictures online this morning ... Now everyone thinks I’m in some rivalry with Winnifred, and then Tony was arrested for stealing some of the antiques from the park. I don’t think Agatha will ever invite us back.”
That was fine by me. “I’m having a hard time seeing the downside here.” As far as I was concerned, Monroe drawing attention to what a berk Tony is was a good thing. It made Agatha search his room, just in case. The man deserved to be in jail.
“Oh, ha ha. I created another disaster, all the while trying to save Winnifred, who obviously didn’t want my help. Surely your mum has read the articles and seen the pictures that made it look like we were having a catfight. Seeing her again today is going to be like that time you gave me archery lessons and I accidentally shot an arrow through your mother’s window. Remember how I ran up there to clean up the mess but made it worse when I cut myself and bled on her rug that was a gift from the Queen? And to top it off, I knocked over the urn with herfavorite dog’s ashes in it, and, not realizing what it was, I tried to sweep it up with the glass.”
I chuckled, remembering how livid Mother had been. She’d tried to get me to swear I would never bring Monroe home with me again. Of course, I made no such promise.
“Love.” I squeezed her thigh. “My mother’s opinion means little to me. She loves her dogs more than she loves me or Anna. Honestly, I’d move her to the cottage on the property if I hadn’t promised my father right before he died that I’d watch over her and let her remain in her suite. It stunned me so much to know he had any affection for anyone but himself that I readily agreed without thinking about it.”
Monroe took my hand in hers and cradled it. “I know how cold and difficult your childhood was. I wish I could make that better.”
“You have. Your warmth and love have made all the difference in my life. I hope you will bring that to this place I love, that our children will know what it is like to be loved and cherished.”
She brought our clasped hands up and kissed mine. “Do you really want to have children with me?” her voice cracked. “You’ve never talked about having children.”
I glanced over at her. “That’s because you are the only woman I’ve ever imagined having children with.”
“You know I want lots of babies,” she warned.
“I am aware and ready.”
She leaned over and kissed my cheek. “Okay, fine, I’ll have babies with you and live on your gorgeous estate with your evil mother.” She laughed. “Of course, I’m going to try to win her over.”
If anyone could win Mother over, it would be Monroe, but that might require a greater miracle than Monroe’s medical miracle. “Darling, please promise me you won’t let her get youdown. She’s a bitter woman, for reasons I don’t know. She’s lived as charmed a life as anyone I know, yet she’s still unhappy. I would hate for her to make you unhappy. You are my priority.”
Monroe settled back into her seat and thought for a moment. “You know what? We are going to make her so happy, she won’t know what to do with herself. Or I’ll accidentally burn the estate down trying to make her happy—it’s a toss-up. Well, with my track record, you’d probably better make sure your homeowner’s policy, or whatever it’s called here in the UK, is up to date.”
“I do love you, Monroe.” Those were the only words adequate enough to express how much it meant to me that she even wanted to try. Even more, that she was willing to move here and start our life together. As a side note, I probably should have Kingston check to make sure our policies were all up to date.
“I love you too. So much.” She gazed out the window as I drove around the circle drive in front of the house—a house, I hoped, that would soon be a home. The estate’s stone facade had been updated over the years to include larger windows, and I’d recently renovated the pitch roof to accommodate green technology. But it still maintained its nineteenth-century character and charm.
“This feels significant,” Monroe said.
I felt it too. It was different than bringing her here in years past, years when I could only hope for a moment like this. Or more accurately, when I was too proud to think differently. I would always regret that choice. “Are you ready?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Anna and Kingston came walking out to greet us before we even exited the car.
“You know, that’s another thing I’m going to have to work on.” Monroe nodded toward Anna and Kingston, who stood close to each other, each clasping their hands as if they feared they might touch if they released them. I’d come tothe conclusion that Monroe was right about the two of them. How had I missed it? Probably because I hadn’t wished to see it. That relationship would be another complicated one. But I was coming to see that complications were sometimes more a matter of perception than reality. And most of them required letting go of pride and unreasonable expectations. The Fitzroys, unfortunately, were full of both.
“Be careful,” I cautioned. “I don’t think they are ready yet.”
Monroe gave me a thoughtful look. “All right. I’ll wait for the right time. In the meantime, I need to rock your mum’s world.”
Was her world ever about to be rocked.
Kingston helped Monroe out of the car.
Anna raised her eyebrows at me. No doubt Mother had seen the online trash this morning. Monroe would be baptized by fire, as they say. It was maddening too, seeing as no one was supposed to have brought their mobile phones into the ball. Really, it had been Winnifred who made a big production out of it. I think she was so embarrassed that someone had caught her kissing a plumber and felon that she overreacted. And I don’t think she liked that Monroe, of all people, knew about it and wanted to help her. Like I said, pride complicates everything.
