*
“How old are you?”
“Cousin Elizabeth, my question was posed in order to discover whether you had any questions about the conjugation of the verbêtrein the past, not questions about me.”
“I don’t. So, how old are you?”
“I must admit, I was wondering the same thing,” Lady Burnham added mischievously.
“Lady Burnham,” Andrew said in mock reproach, “I didn’t expect this from you.”
“We’ve been working on French for the last forty minutes, please let us just converse for a little while,” Elizabeth begged.
“Very well. I am five and twenty.”
“What will you do after Oxford?”
“I shall marry.”
“Do you already have an intended?”
“I do, her name isMiss Amelia, and we were promised as children. She is my cousin on my mother’s side.”
“Is it strange, being but a boy and knowing who you were going to marry one day?” Lizzie asked, genuinely curious.
“Not really. I’ve always been told that my marriage would be a strategic one. But which marriage isn’t?” he grinned jovially. “I am the third son of a second son, and my marriage shall enable me to inherit from my wife’s father - I do not have the luxury of romantic love, which seems to be so modern nowadays.”
Elizabeth saw no flaw in his reasoning, and she saw that Lady Burnham was nodding in agreement as well.
“What can you tell me about my late uncle?” she asked.
“Unfortunately, probably as much as I can tell you about mine. My father passed away when I was eight, and I’ve met your father only three times.”
Elizabeth wondered what kind of man so rarely visited his dead brother’s children.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Which profession do you plan on choosing?” Lady Burnham asked.
“Clergy,” Andrew replied.
“I think you shall be a wonderful vicar,” the older woman said.
Andrew seemed taken aback by the genuine praise in her voice.
“Thank you,” he replied with an uncharacteristically shy air.
“I can see it,” she reassured him, “you are so patient and kind to everyone, you possess the right temperament for the calling.”
Elizabeth thought back to how kind and friendly Andrew had been to her mother when he met her, and how he intentionally made her feel welcome in his presence whenever they crossed paths.
“I agree,” she said.
“Well, I thank you both from the bottom of my heart,” Andrew said, before patting his knee and standing up. “As lovely as this conversation was, I’m afraid that now I must take my leave. I wish you both a fruitful and successful lesson,” he bowed, and Elizabeth walked him out.
“Why do you look so downcast?” Lady Burnham asked her when she returned.
“I’ve been thinking about what Andrew said about matrimony,” Lizzie admitted as she sat in her favourite armchair. “He views it as a strategic alliance that would improve his life.”
