He put an arm about my shoulders, and I drew back in dismay. Again he gave that brief laugh.

“All right,” he said.

“I’ll make it easy for you. We’ll marry and it’ll be, as they say, a Marriage In Name Only. That’s until both parties want it otherwise. What about that?”

I was silent, and he went on: “I sense your relief.”

I said: “Ben may not agree to those terms.”

“They would be a matter for us to decide, surely. ” I’m not sure. It’s grandchildren he wants. “

“He can’t have it all his own way. Listen to me. We’ll marry and go our own ways. You will escape from the Dower House, and I shall have the full command of the Company. Now you must admit that does seem a way out.”

I stood up suddenly. He did the same, towering above me. There was an amused twitch to his lips as he laid his hands on my shoulders.

“Negotiations seem to be progressing favourably,” he said.

“Shall we go and tell Ben ?”

“ Not yet. I’m undecided. “

“All right. But don’t delay too long. At least it’s just a matter of indecision and not a blank refusal.”

I turned and left him, going back over the stream to the Dower House.

I went to see Ben. I was glad that he was alone. He looked a little better and I commented on this.

“Yes, I’m determined to live until I see you two married. Tell me, Jess, have you thought any more about it?”

“I have thought a great deal.”

“Of course you have. You’re going to wake up and live now. You’ll have to keep your eyes on Joss. He’s a favourite with the women.”

“It’s too much to ask, Ben. Now then, are you going back to the Dower House life? I’d rather go to the penitentiary, that I would. That grandmother of yours … she’s like vinegar now. What’ll she be like in ten years’ time … gall, bitter aloes … She’s not like a wine that’ll improve with age.

You’ll love the excitement of it. The Company . Fancy Town . It’s in your blood. You’ll come back here to Oakland now and then . It’ll be a wonderful life. “

I was silent, and he went on: “Look, Jess, you’ve got to grow up … if you’re going out there. Lite’s lived in the raw there. But it’s life. That’s the great thing. I can see you at Peacocks. Has Joss talked to you of Peacocks?” I shook my head.

“He will. He loves the place. This will be yours, too. Just think of that. When you come to England you’ll be the lady of the manor. I wonder what the old lady of the Dower House is going to say to that! I’d like to see her face .. that I would. Just think of your little ‘uns … playing on these lawns, in the copse, just as you would have done if you’d had your right There’s one thing I have to tell you, Ben. If I did marry him, I couldn’t … I couldn’t live with him as his wife, and that means that your idea of the little ones on the lawn would simply not be possible.

I’m sure that in these circumstances the whole thing falls through.”

I had expected dismay, but there was nothing of the sort. Ben laughed so much that I feared he would exhaust himself.

“You know, Jessie,” he said when be had recovered from his laughter, ‘you’re enlivening my last days, you are. You never fail to please me.

So you’ve made up your mind to marry him, have you? “

“I didn’t say that. I’ve just told you why it’s impossible.”

“Listen. I want you two married. I knew Joss would agree. There was too much to lose. I could only rely on the pride of my Peacock. As to the other little matter, well, I’m ready to leave that to Joss.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Ah, danger signals! I’ll leave it like this. I’ll see you married, and I’ll die hoping that one day you two are going to see what’s staring you in the face and that is that you were meant for each other. It’s the looker-on that sees the best of the game, and I’m a very observant looker-on. I’ve lived every minute of the days God gave me. I’m like a cat that’s had nine lives. I’m coming to the end of my ninth now, but I’ve picked up a lot in those lives and I know what I am talking about. So it’s settled, is it? I accept your terms and you’ll accept mine. I want a nice wedding in the church … so that everyone knows.”

That will take a little time.  “I reckon I’ve got that little time left to me. I just won’t go until I’ve seen you and my boy Joss joined together in holy matrimony.”

“Ben,” I said, ‘if you love us, how can you ask so much of us? “

“It’s just because I do love you both that I’m making this bargain.

Years ahead when you and the family are visiting England and you’re sitting on those lawns, the like of which you don’t see outside this green land, there’ll be the shade of old Ben looking on with contentment because it’s all come about as he meant it to. I’ll be here . and I’ll be at Peacocks . a happy ghost who saw what should be and did his little bit to make it come about. “

“You’re tired, Ben,” I said.

“Happy tired. A good sort of tired to be. And don’t forget, in years to come, remember me.”

“I’m never going to forget you.”

“And you’ll be grateful to old Ben, I promise you.”

I kissed him gently and slipped away.

I knew as I went out of Oakland Hall that I was about to bum my boats.

“I had accepted this incongruous situation. I was going to many Joss Madden.

I don’t know what Joss said to my grandmother. He was in the drawing-room with her, my grandfather, and Xavier for an hour. From my bedroom window I saw him stride across the lawn to the bridge. He walked as though the place already belonged to him.

Maddy was knocking at my door. They wanted to see me in the drawing-room, she said.

As I entered I was aware of the change in their attitude towards me. I had become important, but my grandmother was not going to show me her gratification too readily.

“So,” she began, ‘you have clandestinely been meeting this man from the wilds. “

“If you mean Mr. Josslyn Madden, it is true I have been meeting him.”

“And become engaged to him! He did not ask our consent before asking you, which would have been the proper thing to do. But I suppose we cannot expect good manners from people brought up as he must have been.”

“He has been educated in England.”

She grudgingly admitted that she realized this saving grace.

“Of course, after all we have done for you we might have expected a little gratitude. When our terrible tragedy was brought upon us-‘ She sent a venomous look towards my grandfather, who nodded in a rather jaunty way, I fancied’ we had to prepare ourselves for our great sacrifice. Our daughter disgraced us and now Miriam has committed herself to a life of penury ” I always thought she endured that here.”

“Compared with what she was accustomed to before our fortune was wantonly thrown away, Miriam once lived in grace and dignity with her family.” She laughed. ” Now this cottage. I believe she scrubs the floors.” She shivered.

“No matter. Don’t let us distress ourselves by even mentioning Miriam’s folly. The fact is that you should have kept me informed. After all we did for you, giving you a home …”

“And selling the silver salver and the George IV punch bowl.”

She smiled-very rare with her and this was an indication of her true feelings.

“At least you have spared us the humiliation of seeing you scrub floors and living in abject poverty. I only hope this offer is genuine. You will not, I hope, in convenience us as your mother did.

If it is genuine, all may not turn out too badly. But I must let you know that I am displeased that you should associate with people who have been no friends to your grandfather. However, I can see the hand of fate in this. We have suffered great misfortune. We lost Oakland and if this man is telling the truth, he will inherit it and you will live there. “

I thought she was like an eagle about to pounce on its prey. Oakland Hall coming back to the family . and through me!

I couldn’t help being thrilled that I was doing this. I knew then that if a way out was offered me, if Ben said he had been joking after all, I wouldn’t want to take it. The extraordinary fact was borne home that I wanted the excitement of marrying Joss Madden-providing of course that we kept to that all important clause which he had laughingly acknowledged he would respect and which Ben had thrust aside as though he did not believe it was important.

Xavier spoke then.

“Mr. Madden has told us that he has asked you to marry him and that you have accepted. We understand he is Mr. Henniker’s heir and that Oakland as well as property in Australia will pass to him. They ask for no dowry for you, but Mr. Henniker will make a settlement on you of Blueberry Farm, which as you know went to him with the Oakland estate. The management of this will be left to me, so it is in a measure as though that land has been returned to us. It seems to be a very satisfactory arrangement.”

My grandfather’s eyes looked watery.

“It’s almost like Oakland coming back to us through you, Jessica,” he said.

My grandmother would not be left out of the conversation.

“In spite of your deception, this seems to have turned out better than we could have expected,” she said.

“I hope your children will be born here. Perhaps we could get Mr. Madden to change his name to Clavering.

That has been done before in the family. “

“I know that would be quite impossible.”

My grandmother waved the matter aside as though that was something she would deal with later.

“We must be practical,” she went on.

“It must be a wedding worthy of the old days before we were reduced to this. I think we should sell the silver candlesticks so that we can do everything as it should be done. As you know the candlesticks were given by William IV to Jeremy Clavering in 1832, and they are worth a great deal.”