Chapter 8
“Are you alright, Diane?” Brent asked.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because you’ve been shifting about. You also look quite queasy,” Brent peered at her, “I think you’re looking a little green as well.”
Diane didn’t think anyone could notice with her skin color. She managed a tiny smile and looked at the tea cup in her hand.
“I’m just not feeling very well, Brent,” she said, “just be patient.”
That was partially the truth. Diane wasn’t sick, but she wasn’t feeling completely herself. Her stomach was still churning, and it had been all day. It was a wonder that she hadn’t thrown up already.
Given what was going on, Diane wouldn’t be surprised if that happened anytime soon. She had been told by her father that Brent was coming over for tea and they needed to interact. After all, they were to be married at some point during the summer.
Knowing that he was sorting out a marriage without her input or consent made Diane feel angry and upset. Gilbert had looked after her on his own, and she had thought he was a good parent.
Now he was ignoring her wishes, telling her it was what she needed to do, and Diane was beginning to wonder if she had been deceived by him all this time. Right now, her father was sitting in his study, his window open as he worked so he could watch her and Brent on the terrace having tea.
Every time Diane glanced over, Gilbert appeared to be working, but that could mean nothing; he was very good at being observant when he was busy with something else.
She didn’t like being watched like this.
“If you’re sick, we can do this another time,” Brent went on, watching her with a frown, “I don’t want you to push yourself.”
“No, leave it. We should do this now,” Diane put her cup down and stood up, “but a walk around the garden might help me feel better. Will you walk with me?”
“Of course.”
Brent stood up and held out his arm. Diane didn’t need to look to know that her father was watching them. She was sure his eyes were drilling into her back. Given how much he had been watching her lately, it was a wonder that she had managed to sneak away to see Gregory at all.
Two months had passed since she had leapt to be with him, and she was sure Gilbert didn’t know anything. If he did, he would be furious and lock her in the house to stop her from going out.
Unless this was his way of stopping it. Getting her married off to someone in the church. Before, it had been speculation and just talk. Now it seemed to be happening, and Brent was going along with it.
That just made Diane even angrier.
She waited until they were at the end of the garden and out of earshot before Diane turned to Brent.
“Brent, why are you doing this?”
“I beg your pardon?”
“Why are you agreeing to marry me? I mean, do you really want to marry me?”
Brent blinked.
“What are you talking about? Of course, I want to marry you. God desires that we should marry.”
Diane frowned.
“That’s not the answer you should give to a woman. That’s quite disrespectful.”
“How is it disrespectful?”
“Usually, when you ask someone if they want to marry another person, they’re normally saying it’s because they love that person, and they want to spend the rest of their life with them. Add onto that a few qualities that they adore.”
Brent snorted.
“I’m sure that will come in time. Of course, I do admire you, and you’re a beautiful woman, Diane. But doing what God wants us to do is more important than love.”
Diane could feel her heart sinking. She had hoped that she could talk some sense into Brent, and she had tried for the last couple of weeks since she was forced to sit with him with a chaperone.
It felt like she had been transported back two hundred years. What was wrong with a bit of freedom? Diane had experienced it, and while it did make her feel a little guilty going against something she was used to, she found it exhilarating. Her father should be able to trust her to do what she wanted.
Doing this showed he didn’t trust her at all. After many years of saying he wouldn’t do this. Diane felt like she had been lied to for a long time.
“Why are you asking me that, Diane?” Brent asked. “You are aware that you’re getting on in age.”
“What?” Diane started. “What did you say to me?”
“You’re twenty-six now, aren’t you? You’re going to be at a point where you’re too old to have children. And I’m sure you want them soon.”
Diane couldn’t believe what she was hearing. It was so out of left-field. Her mouth dropped open.
“Do you realize that you sound like we’re back in the eighteen-hundreds? When a woman was expected to marry before she hit twenty-five, otherwise she was classed as a spinster. That’s really outdated, and very insulting to me, Brent.”
“It’s the truth, isn’t it?” Brent spread his hands. “You’re still a beautiful woman, so you should consider yourself lucky.”
“And what’s your excuse for not getting married before your age?” Diane shot back. “Is it because your mother was too much of an overbearing bitch that you couldn’t get a woman interested in you?”
Brent’s expression tightened, his eyes darkening.
“You do not talk about my mother like that, Diane. She was a good woman.”
“She wasn’t, and we both know it. You couldn’t find a wife because nobody was good enough for her baby boy. You sound just like her right now, and that’s not a compliment.” Diane held up a hand as Brent started to protest.
“I understand there are things in our faith we need to follow, and I’m not arguing with that. But you and Father seem to have gone backwards, and you’re talking about me like I’m a piece of meat being bartered over. Even if I wanted to marry, I certainly wouldn’t be doing it where my feelings are not being taken into consideration.”
“Your father and I agree about you…”
“Bullshit!”
Brent’s mouth fell open.