Page 19 of To Have & To Hold

“You have gotten taller,” he said, returning her hug with an affectionate pat on the head. “And may I assume with that extra height comes even more mischief?”

“You may,” Charlotte said with a flounce of pride as she slipped back into her seat.

Nathaniel felt a twinge of guilt in his heart at the realization that by keeping his distance from Oliver the past few years, he had also deprived Charlotte of one of the fewpeople in her life she considered family. But the sentiment only lasted a moment.

Oliver dropped himself into the chair across from Nathaniel, the look in his eye putting him on guard.

“Well, if it is not the dishonorable groom-to-be,” he chuckled. “You might have given a man some warning, Nat. I had to hear it through the rumor mill.”

Nathaniel sighed, “Good Morning, Oliver. You could have chosen a more decent hour to visit.”

Oliver settled himself further into his seat, plucking a piece of fruit off Charlotte’s plate, inspecting it before putting it in his mouth.

“You could have chosen not to put yourself alone in a secluded garden with an unchaperoned lady, yet here we find ourselves.”

Nathaniel buried his face in his hands, squeezing his eyes shut to try and dull the ache behind them.

“I am going to return to my room,” he mumbled. “When I come back, both of you will be gone.”

“Does that really work?” Oliver asked. “If so, you should have attempted it last evening with Huxley and his lady.”

Nathaniel opened his eyes to glare at Oliver as Charlotte burst into a fit of giggles. “Ollie, please do not torment him too much. He was just about to tell me how he proposed.”

Oliver’s smile deepened. “Yes, what exactly did you say to her?”

Nathaniel felt a momentary panic rise in his throat before he swallowed, pushing it down where he could no longer feel it. “What do you mean?”

“When you asked her to marry you,” Charlotte explained.

Nathaniel tried to recall every detail from the night before. He could see Emilia’s shocked face when they had been discovered. Huxley’s expression when he had declared they were engaged. The quiet resolve in her eyes when she had accepted her fate. In the chaos of the evening, he could not recall actually proposing the question. He had simply told her that he was going to marry her.

“Do you not remember?” Charlotte’s question broke through his haze.

“I did not ask,” he admitted.

Oliver laughed, and Nathaniel resisted the urge to strangle him.

“What do you mean you did not ask?” Charlotte exclaimed. “Are you not truly engaged?”

“He is certainly engaged,” Oliver smirked. Nathaniel pushed himself up from the table, desperate for some space and air.

“It was a formality that I overlooked given the urgency of the situation.” He explained, forcing his tone to stay even.

“In the garden, I understand,” Charlotte pressed on. “But what about when you took her to the library? Surely you would have formally proposed then.”

Oliver, who had been leaning back in his chair, leaned forward with a thud. “You were with her in the library as well?”

Nathaniel ignored his friend and turned back to his sister. “I had other things on my mind.”

“Like what?” Oliver’s teasing grin and suggestive tone hung in the air, and Nathaniel felt his patience running incredibly thin.

“Like ensuring the poor girl did not faint from the shock of it all!”

“She did swoon!” Charlotte practically leaped out of her chair in excitement. “She is half in love with you already.”

“Charlotte, please!” Nathaniel was not usually one to raise his voice, but ever since they had stepped into the Beckleys’ drawing room the night before, he could not escape the feeling that his life was spinning completely out of his control.

“Charlotte, could you please leave us for a moment?” Oliver asked.