“You never truly scorned romantic love,” Anna corrected. “You scorned the institution of marriage. ‘It serves the man, not the woman. It is imprisonment. It is the cornerstone of patriarchy, and I will have no part in it,’ is what I think you once said.”
Matilda laughed. “Well remembered.”
“Thank you.”
“Yet, it is peculiar to think that I would not have married Albion at all if it were not for my cousin, and he would not have married me if it had not been for his brother’s tragic passing,” Matilda continued, speaking as she thought. “I might be talking to you with a different perspective if Isaac had lived, or I might have remained exactly the same as I always was if my petition had been approved. Funny, the paths life takes us down, is it not?”
Anna narrowed her eyes. “You are meandering, Matilda. You promised me juicy morsels.”
Matilda nearly spat out her drink as a burst of laughter rose up. “You are right, I did.” She took another sip of lemonade, gathering her nerve. “I… well, the thing is… I have… I am falling in love with him. Please, do not scream.”
Anna pressed her lips together, her big eyes widening until they were the size of dinner plates. Her cheeks reddened, and a vein strained in her temple. If she was not careful, she would explode.
Matilda told her as much.
“I am… swallowing a scream,” Anna rasped, swiping up her fan to cool her red face. “Allow me a moment.”
Matilda waited. “Are you well? Perhaps, we ought to speak of this later.”
Fleetingly, she wondered if she had misjudged the revelation. Was Anna struggling because she was pleased or because she was sad? After all, no one deserved love more than Anna Dennis.
“No!” Anna shook her head urgently. “No, I am… I am just… so happy for you, Matilda. I do not have the words for how glad my heart is. I wish I did, but…”
Matilda took a relieved breath. “I never expected it, and it has not been an easy road, but… yes, I am falling in love with him.” She took a sip of the lemonade to wet her dry throat. “That is how I know that love will find you, too, because you deserve it far more than any of us. Fate is merely playing a little trick on you, too, making you wait for the right one.”
“A cruel trick,” Anna remarked, her smile sadder than before. “But if I am to be honest, and I hope you do not misunderstand me, this has bolstered my faith. I had given up somewhat, but not now. You have renewed my hope, dearest Matilda.”
Tears brimmed in her eyes, her fan wafting vigorously in an attempt to dry them before they could fall. Matilda watched her beloved friend, her heart sore and full, all at once.
“I am not crying,” Anna murmured. “A bit of dust got in my eye.”
Matilda smiled. “There is a breeze today; it makes all sorts of things fly around.”
“Yes, quite.” Anna discreetly dabbed at her eyes with a napkin. “Did it start with the first kiss you would not tell us about?”
“I believe so. It has grown more powerful than I ever anticipated.” Matilda hesitated, picking at a cucumber sandwich as she gathered her nerves. “Indeed, it has grown so powerful that I am considering… discussing the matter of children with him again.”
Anna froze. “Truly?”
“He was not keen when we first wed, but that is to be expected considering how we began,” Matilda replied haltingly. “I imagine that he, like me, has started to change his mind.”
Anna’s face broke into one of her brightest, broadest smiles. “And he has told you he is falling in love with you, too?”
“Not in words,” Matilda admitted.
“What do you mean?”
Shyly, Matilda explained what he had said about the purpose of a kiss. “Of course, I am not foolish enough to proceed without verbal confirmation. I would not embarrass myself like that. However, I do believe that my affections are shared by him.”
“As do I,” Anna agreed, nibbling the crust of an apricot tart. “He does not seem like the sort of gentleman who would kiss a lady without due cause. Oh, Matilda, I cannot wait until dinner! Once I have seen how the two of you are together now, I shall give you my thoughts, but I am convinced they will echo what you have already said.”
A piece of sandwich lodged in Matilda’s throat. “I hope so.”
Telling Anna that she was falling in love with Albion was the first time she had admitted it out loud, and though she felt it keenly in her heart, she began to wonder if she had been a little too quick to believe that the feelings were mutual. He had not, after all, told her that he was falling for her. Then again, she had not told him either.
Nothing is lost or won yet,she told herself,but I must be brave.
That was what the books Anna favored were always saying—that in love, one had to be courageous. And that love, in turn, gave someone the strength to speak the truth of their heart.
