Love With the Proper Husband Read Online Free PDF Page B

months of the year when it could not be avoided. He had long considered the purchase of a town house of his own, although, in truth, even when they were both in residence, their paths rarely crossed. Marcus thought, and he suspected his mother agreed, that was for the best.
    “If you had not squandered your life thus far you would be married by now and, with any luck, already have an heir.” Lady Pennington glared as if Marcus’s failure to wed and reproduce was part of a grand scheme to deny her life meaning and fulfillment. “Now you have no choice.”
    “Apparently not,” Marcus said.
    “You do not seem overset at the prospect.” His mother studied him suspiciously. “Why on earth not?”
    Marcus shrugged as if the idea of marrying a woman he had never so much as seen was of no consequence whatsoever and not one of the most infuriating prospects he had ever encountered. One from which he could see no means of escape.
    “Your distress is sufficient for both of us.” He sipped casually at his drink.
    “My distress is entirely appropriate given the dreadful nature of the situation.” Her eyes widened in dismay. “You do realize the consequences if you do not marry the Townsend girl, do you not? You will lose your entire fortune, every bit of it.”
    “Yes, but I shall retain my title and the estate as well as this house.”
    “Neither a title nor an estate is of any significance if you cannot keep them up,” she snapped. “And what of me, Marcus? Didn’t Mr. Whiting explain that I too will lose everything? All that your father left me? Funding, I should point out, that has allowed me to live without impinging on your resources. It has allowed me to live independently for the most part.” She paced to and fro across the width of the library.
    “I have not had to depend on your finances for every little thing. I have been able to make my own decisions, and you have been able to make yours. In truth, when I look at my friends who are completely dependent on their families for survival, I am eternally grateful for your father’s foresight.”
    “As am I,” Marcus murmured.
    Reggie edged toward the door. “Perhaps I should take my leave—”
    “Stay right where you are, my lord. Reginald . Even though I daresay you are no better than he is. I know your own mother has quite despaired of you ever doing your duty and finding a suitable wife. Still, I do need someone to help him see that he has very little choice in this matter.” She forced a pleasant smile. “And you are apparently the best I can do.”
    “Glad to help.” Reggie smiled weakly and glanced longingly at the brandy decanter on the desk. Lady Pennington’s gaze followed his. “Oh, do fill your glass, my boy, and one for me as well. The situation fairly screams for spirits of some sort although something stronger than brandy is probably appropriate. I have been most distressed since I heard of all this and have had to face the most dire of fates.”
    Marcus bit back a grin.
    His mother’s gaze caught his. “You think I’m being overly dramatic, don’t you?”
    “Perhaps a bit.”
    “Only a bit?” She sank down on the sofa with a sigh and accepted a glass from Reggie. “Perhaps I am not being dramatic enough. It has come as quite a shock.”
    “You didn’t know about this plot of Father’s, then?” Marcus studied his mother carefully. She stared at him. “Of course not.”
    Marcus wasn’t sure whether to believe her. His parents had always struck him as being extraordinarily close, more so than most husbands and wives. Theirs was obviously a love match. It was exceedingly odd that his father would not have shared something this significant with his wife. “He never mentioned this arrangement he had entered into?”
    “Not a word,” she said blithely.
    “Oh?” He raised a brow.
    “Do not look at me like that, Marcus. I tell you I had no idea.” Her tone was firm. “First of all, I would never have approved of such a