L.O.T.N

"I just don't understand it! Why must she marry that blasted Henry," Willowmina shouted as she stood near the fireplace in their room. Nicholas paid no attention to his wife and continued getting ready for the day. This only seemed to add more fuel to an already growing flame. "Answer me, damnit!" Nicholas stopped what he was doing and sighed.

"It is the way of the world, Willowmina. The duty of a woman is to marry into a suitable and affluent family and bare her husband's sons." His answer angered her more.

"I know full well the duty of a woman. You seem to forget that I am one," she bit back. "I do not understand why you would marry our daughter into a family with such horrendous rumors surrounding them." Nicholas sighed again and walked over to his overly-worried wife. He then placed his hands on her arms and began to soothingly rub them.

"If it would make you feel better about this, I will arrange a meeting with Lord and Lady Williamson to discuss these rumors and get to the truth." Willowmina shook his hands off of her.

"As if those people would tell the truth," Willowmina scoffed. She then went and sat at her vanity to apply her accessories and makeup. Growing uncomfortable with the silence, Nicholas approached Willowmina from behind and gently put his hands on her shoulders.

"I hate this as much as you do."

"Do you? You're ready to throw her to the wolves as soon as she first bleeds," Willowmina mumbled.

"Lord Williamson approached me with this. You and I both, as well as Lord Williamson, know how we are financially. This is his offer to help. We can't keep borrowing money from the crown anymore." Nicholas placed a kiss on top of his wife's head.

"We shouldn't have to keep asking." Not everyone knew the Carlton's financial situation except for those who made it their business. The Carlton's had a strained marriage, to say the least, until just after their daughter's baptism. They only reconciled with one another after the death of Willowmina's father. However, just as everything was looking up Nicholas' gambling problem that he had before their marriage started up again and he nearly wasted two-thirds of it on horses. He ignored his wife's remark and continued buttoning up his shirt. Mid-buttoning, the married couple heard their bedroom door open and they saw their two children stick their heads in.

"Come in. There's nothing to be scared of," Nicholas told the children. Dominic and Georgiana entered hesitantly. Dominic went an stood by his father, who gave him a side-hug, and Georgiana climbed into her mother's lap and rest her head on Willowmina's chest, still tired from waking up. Willowmina softly stroked Georgiana's dark curls, gently lulling her back to sleep since it was too early for any of her children to be up. It was only six in the morning and the children do not usually wake up until around eight.

"We heard arguing and it woke us up. Is everything alright," Dominic asked as he yawned. Nicholas chuckled and lifted his seven-year-old son into his arms. Dominic instantly wrapped his arms around his father's shoulders and laid his head in the area where his father's neck and should meet.

"Everything is indeed alright. So much so that we believe you and your sister should be getting back to bed," Nicholas said. Willowmina agreed and stood up, still holding a now sleeping Georgiana. The parents took their children to their shared bedroom and put them into their beds. They each kissed their son and daughter on their foreheads before exiting the room and closing the door.

"If you are to meet with the Williamson's then I am going to attend as well," Willowmina whispered before leaving the conversation entirely. She wasn't one to ask if she could go do something and then wait for an answer. She was more of a forward thinking girl. A forward thinking girl who refused to take no as answer, even if it was from the one person who, by law, was now her ruler so-to-speak. Luckily for Nicholas, he learned early on that if he ever told Willowmina to do something then she would do the complete opposite just so that he would do what he wanted her to do. It was evident to everyone who entered their estate, including the servants and the Carlton's children, who wore the pants and who wore the skirt.