To Wed an Heiress by Karen Ranney

Author:Karen Ranney
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2019-03-25T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty

Mercy stood, taking several steps away from the settee, out of reach of Gregory.

Her face felt stiff with the effort of controlling her expression. Nor did she speak. She didn’t want her voice to quaver.

It wouldn’t do to let Gregory see that he’d scared her. He’d take advantage of that information, using it to further manipulate and perhaps even bully her. If she was forced to marry him, her life wouldn’t be a luxurious prison where she was coddled and feted for simply drawing breath. No, Gregory would threaten, criticize, and belittle her and might even take pleasure in doing so.

She had no doubt that he meant what he said. He would follow her anywhere. Not only was his pride at stake, so was his future. He didn’t love her as much as he coveted her father’s wealth. He’d picked her as the easiest way to advance in life.

Her parents had been overjoyed at his attention. She hadn’t agreed to marry Gregory as much as she had simply submitted to her parents’ pressure. Not for the first time she wished she’d spoken up and refused to participate in the plans everyone was making for her life.

What was she going to do?

Without another word she walked out of the Green Parlor, uncaring that she was leaving Gregory alone, a gesture that would be seen by anyone as rude. She retreated to her room and, because there was no lock on the bedroom door, put a chair beneath the latch. She hoped that would stop him should Gregory want to continue their talk. He’d never been that forward, but everything had changed in the past few minutes.

There was only one way to stay in Scotland. Her grandmother and her aunt needed to support her in refusing to return to New York with Gregory.

Her grandmother believed that a woman should never strive to be independent. Instead, a woman was subservient to a man in all ways. In addition, a fiancé was almost as influential as a husband. Mercy doubted that any of the changes brought about by the Civil War would matter to Ailsa.

Still, she had to try.

Mercy changed her dress and rang for Lily to help redo her hair. She bathed her face, wishing that the sun hadn’t tinted her cheeks pink. She spritzed a small amount of perfume behind her ears and added earrings and a gold brooch her mother had given her on her twenty-first birthday.

Finally, she turned slowly for Lily to inspect her. Everything about her appearance had to be perfect, in order to escape Ailsa’s withering criticism.

“Will I do?”

Lily nodded, then gave her a smile.

Mercy left the bedroom, walking down the corridor with a tight feeling in her chest. At her grandmother’s door, she took a moment to calm herself. One deep breath, then another before she raised her fist and knocked. When she heard her grandmother’s voice, she opened the door slowly.

“Seanmhair, may I speak with you for a moment?”

“I’ll not rescind my disapproval of you, Hortense.

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