Free Tuesday's Child (Heroines Born on Each Day of the Week Book 3) by Rosemary Morris

child.”
    Dominic stood, annoyed by his lordship’s impertinence.
    “No, no, Mister Markham, please remain seated,” the earl requested. “My parents arranged for my marriage to a lady I met twice before we wed. My daughters’ husbands asked me for permission to propose marriage to them. Today, it is not unusual for ladies to welcome a marriage proposal without their father’s sanction, nevertheless introductions to suitable husbands or wives are acceptable, are they not?”
    Dominic nodded, puzzled because he could not imagine why Pennington spoke of marriage, whether it was arranged or not.
    The earl rubbed his hands together. “I am glad you agree. Perhaps, you would not take it ill, if I suggest you consider a union with a lady you have already met.”
    Startled, although Dominic guessed the earl referred to Lady Castleton, he did not know what to say.
    “It seems I have taken you by surprise.”
    “Yes, you have, my lord, but to use your own words, I don’t ‘take it ill’. However, I do not need you or any other gentleman to play the part of a matchmaker.”
    “You have met a lady to whom you will propose marriage?” the earl asked, his tone of voice tranquil.
    “No,” he admitted, in spite of the temptation either to lie in order to thwart the earl’s obvious plan, or to tell his lordship he would not appreciate unwelcome interference in his affairs.
    “More wine, Mister Markham?” Without waiting for a reply Pennington served Dominic and refilled his own glass. “Excellent vintage from Bordeaux,” he remarked. A gleam in his eyes increased. “I have a suggestion.”
    The earl sipped some wine, and looked speculatively at him over the rim of the glass. “Mister Markham, I imagine it is difficult for any young widow to accept her situation, so I sympathise with my daughter-in-law. Should Lady Castleton marry you, I will give her a generous dowry, including an estate in the country and a house in the best part of London.”
    Dominic clenched the stem of his wine glass. “My lord, let us understand each other. I don’t need inducements. My income is more than sufficient for me to support a wife and a child.”
    The earl’s hand waved him to silence. “If you and Lady Castleton embark on matrimony my grandson will reside with me. Of course, my daughter-in-law would be welcome to see her son whenever she chooses. Pennington gesticulated to indicate the luxury which surrounded him. library, “I think you will agree that my heir should grow up with every imaginable advantage here, at my principal estate. It would be selfish of his mother to deny him his birth right.”
    Dominic looked around. One day, God willing, Arthur would be fortunate to inherit Clarencieux, his grandfather’s other properties and his fortune. He frowned. Could life with a man of the earl’s nature compensate the boy for separation from his mother? No! Affectionate mothers such as his own and Lady Castleton were a gift from God.
    “My lord, I appreciate both your commendable concern for Lady Castleton’s future and the honour you do me, nonetheless I could not be party to depriving a mother of her child. If you will excuse me, my sister and I must return to the rectory.”
    Confound it, he had needed an opportunity to ask her ladyship to write a reference for Bessie. “However, my lord, I shall return to make sure Lord Castleton has recovered.”
    In response to Pennington’s smug expression Dominic suppressed an unholy desire to use violence to remove it. His second response was to wonder if the earl was, as the saying went, queer in the attic.
    * * *
    Pennington gripped his hands together. How dare a mere clergyman refuse a reward for saving Arthur’s life, and reject the offer of a comfortable living. His nostrils flared. He found Mr Markham’s disinterest in the proposition for him to marry Lady Castleton almost beyond belief. Yet, he could swear that despite the jumped up clergyman’s verbal refusal to marry