Anything but a Gentleman by Amanda Grange

without a dowry. Devilish pretty girl. Can’t tell her it’s not a good thing for you, either. Not much of a catch, but still, husband to take care of you. Make life easier. Use the carriage. No more horse and cart. Good thing all round. Or so m’mother will say. Likes the idea, don’t you know?’
    Marianne sighed. It seemed there was nothing for it. She would have to go to Lord Ravensford’s gathering and convince the Cosgroves that Jem had done the thing properly, but that she had still refused to marry him.
    ‘You’ll come?’ asked Jem hopefully.
    Marianne nodded. ‘Yes.’
    ‘Good show. Should be interesting,’ he said, by way of consolation. ‘Don’t have to spend the whole afternoon with m’mother. Just enough to convince her I did it right. Down on one knee, don’t you know?’
    Marianne smiled. ‘You did it very well. And I’m grateful to you, Jem. Truly I am. You will make some young lady an admirable husband.’
    Jem went pink. ‘Pish,’ he said, but nonetheless looked pleased. ‘Well, must be off,’ he said, obviously deciding that as his task had been done he should not trouble Marianne further. ‘Tell Ravensford you’ll come, shall I?’
    ‘Yes, thank you.’
    ‘Good. No, don’t trouble,’ he said, as Marianne accompanied him to the door of the drawing-room. ‘See m’self out.’
    ‘And what was all that about?’ asked Trudie, coming in a minute later, having just seen Jem leave the house.
    ‘He came to propose to me,’ said Marianne with a sigh.
    Trudie nodded sagely.
    ‘Trudie, you can’t say you were expecting it?’
    ‘And why not? Jem’s of an age to be married, and you should have been married long ago, Miss Marianne. If you’re not careful you’ll end up on the shelf.’
    ‘I don’t intend to get married just so that I won’t end up a spinster,’ Marianne returned with spirit.
    ‘No. It’s love or nothing for you, Miss Marianne,’ said Trudie, looking worried. ‘You turned down three offers in London at you come-out, and all of them from rich and handsome gentlemen, and now you’re turning down Jem. But you can’t go on turning down gentlemen for ever, or it will be nothing, Miss Marianne.’
    Marianne sighed. She went over to the window and looked out at the gardens, which twinkled prettily under their coating of frost and ice. Love or nothing. Yes, it had always been that way with her. She had received a number of offers from unexceptionable gentlemen during her London Seasons - paid for by the kindness of her London aunt - but had turned them down. Why? she wondered. Perhaps it was because they were all unexceptionable gentlemen. They would never have wanted her to lend a hand in running her family estate, and they would have been horrified at the idea of her rescuing a man from a mantrap. And as for her bandaging his leg . . . ! No, it would never have done. She could not have accepted any of them. Because, as they were unexceptionable gentlemen, they would have expected her to be an unexceptionable lady. And whilst she was most assuredly a lady, she could never be a milk-and-water miss who would sit sketching and sewing all day long. She simply had too much spirit.
    And now she had turned down Jem. Dear, sweet, bumbling Jem. But she had had no choice. She could never have accepted Jem, not even if he had proposed to her before she had met Lord Ravensford. And now . . . Her thoughts went to the dark man who was never far from her thoughts. Now it was impossible.
    * * * *
    The carriage bowled along the drive, making for Billingsdale Manor. When last she had come this way, Marianne had been travelling in a horse-drawn cart, but this time she was arriving in style. The carriage, scrubbed and polished, was pulled by a team of horses, their manes and tails plaited, their gleaming bodies beautifully groomed. The fact that the horses were usually used for pulling ploughs was one which Marianne hoped no one would remark.
    The carriage pulled up before the door.