Henry left with her for the garden path, the very same one that she had met Lily on. She wondered if the little girl knew, and if she did, what she thought of it all.
"So," she began, "I am marrying Lord Harrowby."
"I am aware of what has been said," he replied. "The moment I stepped down from the carriage, I was practically swarmed."
"And… well, what do you think?"
"I would very much like to know why you have agreed to it."
"I was not the one to agree, to be fair," she laughed. "I was the one to ask him."
That gave him pause. Henry stood still on the gravel path, eyeing her carefully. She was impulsive, that much was known, but this was something else entirely.
"It is a sensible match," she reasoned.
"That does not explain why you have done it," Henry exhaled, his restraint thinning. "This has been decided in a matter of days."
"It has been decided with sufficient thought."
"By whom?"
"By me."
He studied her closely, as though searching for something that might not yet have been fixed.
"You intend to bind yourself to a man you barely know," he said. "Without explanation, without–"
"I have given you an explanation."
"A poor one. You and Lord Harrowby cannot stand one another."
"It has never been like that! We do not hate one another. It is simply that he is so orderly and I am the opposite."
"Ah, yes. That will bode very well for a marriage."
Eleanor did not look away. She had already considered that herself, but it would be fine. She knew that, as long as she kept her distance, there would be no trouble.
"I will not be returning to London," she said. "I have no wish to resume what I left behind. This offers something different."
"What does it offer?"
"Stability," she said. "Purpose. A place where I am required."
"And that is sufficient for you."
"It is."
A brief silence followed. Henry’s expression did not change, but there was a quiet understanding in it now, one that she was grateful for.
"You have always wanted more than that," he said.
"Are you disappointed that I have settled? Most brothers would be thrilled."
He did not respond.
"This is my decision," she continued, her voice steady. "And I will not reconsider it. You must accept it, whether you agree with it or not."
He watched her for a long moment, as though weighing up the difference between what she said and what he knew of her.