Free Price of Desire by Lavinia Kent

remember the differences among them ? She flipped the paper over to avoid betraying her list to Marguerite.
    “You’ve already admitted the purpose for the party . Why not be candid and admit they are suitors? ” Marguerite settled herself on the settee and plucked at her embroidery.
    “If you want me to be candid,” Rose quipped, “I should call them commodities . At this point , for all practical purposes, I am inspecting their wares , not searching for romance . ‘ Suitor ’ implies romance . That is not what I am seeking.”
    Marguerite turned, flustered . “ That makes you sound so cold . Every woman wants romance . Next you will be telling m e that you do not even care about your husband ’ s appearance . Surely you would prefer a tall, handsome man like Lord Sommerton to someone un attractive. ”
    “I am practical. ” Rose chose her words carefully . “I would prefer to cho o se a man of adequate countena nce . ”
    Marguerite pursed her lips . “I am not sure that sounds very appetizing.”
    Rose flashed a grin at her sister . “I am not planning to eat the man, just manage him.”
    Marguerite’s gaze dropped . She fidgeted with her hoop , pulling the muslin even tighter .
    “Still, you will have relations with him . Surely, you want somebody you find attractive . How could you kiss him otherwise?”
    Rose swallowed a further laugh . Marguerite was so young and innocent; she just didn’t understand the practicalities of marriage . What happened in the bedroom was of little consequence in making a satisfactory marriage . Yet f or a moment she saw Wulf’s emerald eyes melting with desire , and felt phantom hands whisper over her body . S he mentally swatted them away .
    No, passion was not important . She would not let it be . Wulf ’s presence could be ignored . Her marriage to John had been just as hap py after they stopped . . . n o, she sought only contentment . But the desire to laugh at Marguerite’s innocence vanished . Rose had once prized such dreams, too.
    “I seek to replace the companionship of marriage, not the passion. ” It was time for them both to be realistic .
    “Rose, you know that is why I am here . Why I finally persuaded Mama that I needed to come.”
    “Yes, I do know . And I do appreciate the effort you’ve made . But it’s not quite the same . Life with a husband is so much easier in so many ways . I’ve already mentioned Anna, she’s well over four now, and I am not sure she even remembers John . She never speaks of him . If I don’t remarry, she’ll never experience what it is to have a father . If I remarry soon, she’ll probably never remember a time before her new papa .
    “ It’s n ot that I want her to forget John . I’ll always make sure Anna knows what a wonderful man he was, but it would be so much easier for her to accept somebody new into her life now than it will be in a couple of years.”
    “I suppose that does make sense . Practical, again.”
    “Practical ? Yes, that’s right . Having a husband is practical . Do you know I’ve manage d the estates for well over five years now ? For the first four years it was simple . Everybody just assumed that I was carrying out John’s plans . I never had a question about what I wanted to do . Now, since John’s death, that’s all changed . Even when the steward doesn’t actually question me, he shoots me a look that makes me question myself . I can give exactly the same order now that I did two years ago, but now – only now – it’s very questionable and risky . Nobody likes having a woman in charge.”
    “Well, clearly not . It is well known that the female mind is not suited to such tasks . We are made for daintier things than managing estates and worrying about numbers. ” Marguerite spoke without lifting her eyes from her needlework.
    Rose swallowed back her reply . Even so, she found herself stuttering, “But . . . but . . . how can you say such a thing ? I’ve run this house and