He leaned forward with a twinkle in his eye. “You’ve been canoodling with Lady Gabriella.”
Well… I had.
Although I did have a slight aversion to the word canoodling.
But how the hell did he know that?
“Who told you that?”
“Edith saw you in the coffee shop on Sunday. Are you courting her?”
“It’s complicated,” I said slowly. “She is my employer’s daughter.”
“And a societal class or ten above us.”
“That, too.”
“Doubt she cares about that, though.”
“Your guess would be correct.”
“She never has.”
I frowned. “You know her?”
He chuckled. “Boy, I’ve lived here my entire life. Of course I know her. I remember when she was knee high to a grasshopper and collecting fifty pence pieces for a sponsored silence.”
“Did she ever complete it?”
“Not once.” He laughed. “Although I don’t suppose that surprises you.”
“Not really.”
“She was a good child. Always involved in everything that was going on. If there was a bake sale, she was the first to put her name on the sign-up sheet. If a craft fair was on, she was there with her little embroidered purse full of coins she’d earnt, dragging either her nanny or one of her family members around the church so she could buy things she’d ultimately never use but would donate to children who couldn’t afford it.”
I looked down at my hands, a vision of a tiny Gabriella dragging her aunt around the church.
“When she was a teenager, the local council proposed closing the play area in the park and building on it. She was the first to stand up and argue with them, even though she was only… oh, fourteen? Fifteen, maybe?” He tapped his chin. “She went to church and lobbied the reverend, handed out flyers to the congregation, even got the Women’s Institute group to petition the mayor.”
“Did she win?”
“It’s still there, isn’t it?” Grandpa’s eyes twinkled. “Her grandmother was a fierce but wonderful woman. We were very good friends, and there’s a lot of her in Gabriella. Not to mention her mother was one of the kindest women I’ve ever met. I daresay young Gabi has all the best qualities of both sides of her family.”
“Were either of them doggedly determined to always get their own way?”
“The girl stopped an entire council building a housing estate by single-handedly organising a revolution in the village. What do you think?”
The laugh bubbled inside me until I could no longer control it. “That’s a yes, then.”
“It’s to be admired, really. In a class where many women are expected to sit down and look pretty and have babies, she revolted against it from a very young age.”
“No wonder her father wishes she could take over the estate.”
“Well, yes. Her brother is definitely more concerned with jaunting off to various exclusive resorts around the world, but who can blame him? If I were his age and a young, eligible bachelor, I’d do the same.” Grandpa snorted as Mars jumped onto the sofa and onto his lap. “Does Gabriella know how you feel about her?”
“She does. But like I said, it’s complicated.”
“Does she feel the same way you do?”
“Yes, but—”
“Then it’s not that complicated at all, is it?” He ran his hand over Mars’ back, and she rolled into him, purring.
“It’s not that simple either, is it?” I responded and finished the last of my tea.
“Of course it is. If she wants to be with you and you want to be with her, everything else is just noise.”
I set the mug down on the coaster and looked away from him. “Not if her father has anything to say about it.”
“Boy, if she wanted to marry any one of Lord Bath’s suitors, don’t you think she would have by now?” He raised his bushy eyebrows. “And I bet she’s told you that, too.”
I didn’t respond.
“That’s what I thought. This village is her home, and it’ll take more than a big country estate she doesn’t care about to make her leave. You mark my words.”
“She told me that, but—”
“There you are, then.”
I sighed.
“What are you afraid of?” Grandpa tilted his head to the side. “There’s something stopping you.”
“That’s what she asked me.” I leaned forward and rubbed the back of my neck. “I’ll tell you what I told her. That one day she’ll realise she wants her old life back.”
“Poppycock.”
“It’s the truth.”
“You want to know what your problem is, boy?” Grandpa shifted, and Mars jumped off his lap in protest. “You’re not afraid that she’ll want the life she’s used to. You’re afraid that she’s too good for you.”
I looked at him, nostrils flaring.
“Your father filled your head with far too many classist notions, and now you’re falling in love with someone you believe you have no business falling in love with. But I’ll let you into a little secret.” His eyes twinkled. “Your heart doesn’t give a damn if she’s a duke’s daughter or a chimney sweep, so you shouldn’t, either.”
“She’s too good for me. I know she is,” I replied quietly, reaching my hand out to Mars when she approached me. She sniffed my fingers before accepting my head scratch.
“Oh, she’s too good for you,” Grandpa continued.
“Thanks, Grandpa. That makes me feel better.”
“But not because she’s a duke’s daughter. She’s just a far nicer person than you are.”
“You’re not wrong there.” I tried not to laugh. “I was a bit of an arse to her, and she kept talking to me and being nice.”
“That’s because that’s who she is.” He leaned over and picked up his mug. “Now, the way I see it is that you have two options.”
“That I assume you’re about to share with me.”
“Damn right.” He nodded and met my eyes. “You can give it up. Tell her you don’t think the two of you will work out and put an end to it.”
I swallowed.
I didn’t want to do that. Not really. There was… something… something I’d been running from with her… something that might just be special.
“Or you can run with it. See where it goes. It might work out, it might not. If it goes wrong, oh well. You tried. But if it goes right, mm?” Grandpa’s lips tugged into a smile. “It goes right.”
I sat back in the armchair and blew out a deep breath I felt in my bones.
“But you can’t sit here, hiding in my house, waiting for someone else to make that decision for you. You can’t hope she’ll suddenly give up and change her mind and let you off the hook.” His eyes were so full of knowledge and wisdom as he scooted to the edge of the sofa cushion and gripped his walking stick. “You deserve to be happy, Miles. So does she. If you aren’t willing to take the risk and make her happy, then the least you can do is stop lollygagging and let her go so she’s free to find someone who will.”