“No. Why do you ask?”
He stood with his hand out to hand Grace inside, but she hesitated and instead whispered, “You and Mr. Wallings seemed to be having a serious conversation.”
“My dear Grace, it could be nothing less than a serious conversation when a man asks to court my lovely sister-in-law,” he whispered back.
Grace gasped. “Mr. Walling… asked to court me?”
“He did. Does that please you?”
“It does indeed. Excuse me a moment, please.”
Fletcher chuckled as Grace ran back to catch the vicar before he headed back inside the church. “Mr. Wallings.”
Peter turned and smiled when he saw who’d hailed him. “Miss Parker, may I help you?”
Now that she was standing in front of the man she loved, she didn’t know what to say. “Um… I wanted to say that I’m so very pleased you asked Fletcher’s permission to court me.”
“You are?”
“Yes, very much so.”
“That makes me happy. May I call on you this week?”
Grace nodded. “That would be lovely. Good day, Mr. Wallings.”
“Good day, Miss Parker.”
As Grace headed back to the carriage, she could hardly wait to tell Kathryn her good news. Now that Jacob had given his permission, she hoped to see a lot more of Mr. Wallings, and not just at Sunday services and an occasional ride around the estate.
Jacob was still standing outside the carriage, waiting to hand her up. “Are you happy, Grace?”
“Yes. Thank you for granting your permission. Mr. Wallings is a good and honorable man.”
“Indeed he is,” Fletcher said, helping her inside before taking a seat beside Audrey.
Grace took a seat next to Kathryn, who looked puzzled. She leaned toward her and whispered in her ear, “Mr. Wallings asked Jacob’s permission to court me.”
Kathryn smiled and squeezed her hand.
Grace couldn’t help but smile all the way home. When they reached Dandridge Manor and she stepped out of the carriage, she asked, “Kathryn, may I show you something in the garden?”
“Of course,” Kathryn said, and they walked into the manor and out the drawing room French doors.
Grace could hardly stop herself from jumping with joy. When they reached their favorite bench, she could contain herself no longer. “Oh, Kathryn, I’m overjoyed that Mr. Wallings wants to court me. He’s such a fine gentleman.”
“He is indeed. Have you thought further about what exactly that means?”
Grace frowned. “I’m not sure I understand what you’re implying.”
“You said you’re happy because the vicar wants to court you, but courting someone usually leads to a marriage proposal. As a newly appointed vicar, Mr. Wallings’ place is at St. Mary’s.”
“Yes. I realize that.”
“Are you willing to live in Reading if he does propose?”
“It’s a lovely town.”
“And what about love? You’ve not said whether this is a love match or not.”