Follow the Heart (39 page)
Authors: Kaye Dacus
Tags: #Fiction, #Christian, #Historical, #Romance, #Christian Romance
Kate glared at Andrew. “You knew?”
“Christopher told me when I tried to leave after seeing you with Mrs. Headington. Telling me that I would not bring about the financial destruction of your family by completing your ruination was the only way he could get me to come after you.” He made a face reminiscent of the little boy he had once been. “Can you forgive me for keeping it from you?”
Kate wanted to torment him, to make him wonder if she were truly angry with him, but his comical, childlike expression wouldn’t allow her to keep her laughter inside. “Of course I forgive you.”
“There’s more, Kate.” Christopher exchanged an unreadable glance with Nora. “I told Andrew of this weeks ago. The railway company wants to hire a landscape architect to design gardens at several of their train stations for passengers to walk in when the trains stop for water and fuel. I have recommended Andrew, and he is to go to Dorset tomorrow to meet with Baron Wolverton. If the baron likes him, Andrew will be employed by the London and North Western Railway and share an office with me in Manchester. What do you think of that?”
Laughter bubbled up in Kate until she could not contain it. Though it generated a stir, she kissed Andrew right there in the refreshment court in the middle of the Crystal Palace at the Great Exhibition.
“There is something we need to do before anything else. We must go see my uncle.” Kate ran her fingertips down Andrew’s cheek, feeling the twitch of the muscles as he ground his back teeth together.
“Must we do that today?” Andrew captured her hand, kissed her palm, then lowered it to tuck under his elbow.
“Would you rather he hear it from someone else while you are off in Dorset?” Kate rested her free hand on Andrew’s arm, ready to pull him with her if need be. She owed her uncle—and Stephen—the absolute truth.
“No. You are right. I merely hoped we could take a walk in the gardens before we go.”
“Well . . . we can probably get a hackney cab on that side of the park more easily than here near the building.”
“We shall find you later—if not at Sir Anthony’s house today, at the train station tomorrow,” Nora called, pulling Christopher away, toward the Egyptian exhibit.
The continued drizzle meant that Kate and Andrew had the secondary paths through the gardens almost entirely to themselves. Neither minded their damp clothes—in fact, Kate appreciated how it cooled her skin after one particular pause beside a patch of purple pansies.
“We should go, before I am thoroughly compromised,” Kate murmured against Andrew’s lips, her arms encircling his neck, fingers twined in the curls that lay over his high collar.
In the cab on the way to her uncle’s townhouse in the West End, Kate told Andrew of Mrs. Headington—meeting her on the boat, then having Sir Anthony suggest her home for Wayward Women as the place for Kate to stay until Stephen returned from Argentina.
“I am sorry you had to go through that because of me.”
Kate wrapped her arm through his and rested her cheek against the damp wool of his overcoat. “Don’t be sorry. If I had not gone, I wouldn’t have learned how to listen to God instead of just telling Him what I want and what I think I need.”
“You will have to tell me of this lesson you learned.” The carriage jolted to a stop outside the Buchanan house. “Some other time.”
Kate’s heart raced, and her knees wobbled when Andrew helped her down from the coach.
The butler’s usually impassive face broke into shock when he saw Kate at the door—and horror when he recognized Andrew behind her. He said nothing, only led them into the empty front parlor and disappeared.
Moments later Sir Anthony entered, his expression stormy. “What is the meaning of this?”
Kate stepped forward. “Uncle Anthony, what happened when my mother announced to the family that she planned to marry my father?” She’d read her mother’s diary often enough to have her version of events memorized.
“She . . . your mother refused a proposal from the second son of Baron Poppelwell. When our father tried to cajole Louisa into accepting, she announced that she was in love with Graham Dearing, the American who had taken the London season by storm, that he had proposed, and that she planned to marry him. My father refused. Louisa left the house, eloped with Dearing, and they sailed for America the next week.” His fiery eyes softened. “My father never heard from her again. It broke his heart.”
“My mother taught me that I should always follow my heart, especially when it came to choosing the man with whom to spend the rest of my life.” She reached out and touched his sleeve. “So I must follow in my mother’s footsteps and marry for love, not for duty. Will you—can you understand that, Uncle?”
Sir Anthony covered Kate’s hand with his. “Yes, child. I do understand. And, to be honest, when your brother shared the contents of your father’s letter with me yesterday, and told me of the employment opportunity for Mr. Lawton, I suspected I would be receiving this visit from the two of you today. And”—he sighed—“as I did for your mother, so I will do for you. I will support you in whatever decision you make. Granted, it would have been quite the social boon for you to marry a viscount rather than the landscape gardener.” His kind smile at Andrew softened the rebuke. “But you are my family. My sister’s daughter.”
He pulled a letter out of his pocket and handed it to Andrew. “Christopher asked me to write this—a letter of introduction for you to take to Baron Wolverton tomorrow. If he does not approve your hiring, come back, and I will give you your letter of reference and help you find another position.”
Andrew turned the sealed letter over and over in his hands, staring at it a long moment before he looked up. “Why would you do this?”
“Family is more important than social connection, more important than wealth. And though I have not known Katharine long, she is my family. And the longer I thought about her unhappiness in marrying for duty rather than love, the more I regretted what happened that night I helped force her into an untenable situation.” He squeezed Kate’s hand. “Can you forgive me for not seeing my way clear to help you break your engagement to Lord Thynne that night?”
“Only if you can forgive me for bringing humiliation on you and your household.”
Uncle Anthony pulled her into a tight embrace. “I am glad you will be staying in England. You are so like Louisa, it is as if I have my sister back.” He stepped away from Kate and extended his hand to Andrew. “May I be the first to welcome you to the family and wish you joy?”
Andrew still wore a confused, stunned frown, but he shook the baronet’s hand. “Thank you, Sir Anthony. I shall endeavor to deserve your forgiveness and your well wishes.”
“Katharine, I shall send to Mrs. Headington’s for your things. You will stay here until you marry and move to Manchester.” Sir Anthony headed toward the door, apparently ready to set everything in motion immediately.
“Actually, Uncle, may I ask a favor?” Kate shifted her weight to lean into Andrew’s side when he put his arm around her.
Her uncle turned, brows raised in question.
“I would prefer to go back to Wakesdown to wait. After all, I am more a wayward woman now than I was before, and I would not want to bring any hint of scandal to Dorcas . . . or Edith . . . by my presence here during their season.” Besides, she wanted to get away from this city, get back to the place where it all began. The place where she fell in love.
“Of course. I shall wire the housekeeper to expect you on the noon train tomorrow. That way, you and Andrew can take your leave at the train station near the same time. Does that suffice?”
Kate pulled away from Andrew and flew to her uncle to kiss his cheek. “Thank you for being so understanding and accommodating. I do not deserve it.”
“You are my niece. Of course you deserve it.” With a nod, he disappeared up the hall.
Kate returned to Andrew and stepped into his embrace. For months she’d begged, pleaded, railed at God, and accused Him of not listening. But now she could see His hand at work in everything from the moment she overheard Father’s conversation with Devlin Montgomery. She’d only had to stop talking at Him long enough to be able to listen to Him.
Andrew bent to kiss her, and Kate returned the sweet, soft gesture. She still needed to write to her father and to Stephen, but for the moment that could wait.
She thanked God for bringing Andrew into her life. And she thanked Him for showing her how to truly follow her heart.
R
EADER
L
ETTER
Dear Reader,
Throughout the process of developing this story and writing it, I’ve often been asked, “Why the Great Exhibition? What drew you to that particular historical event?” Well, it all started with a couple of movies. A couple of TV mini-series, to be precise.
In 2001, I watched
Victoria & Albert
on A&E and fell in love with the love story of these two monarchs of England. But that wasn’t the only thing I took away from it. I was also fascinated by the scenes which portrayed the planning and opening of Prince Albert’s Great Exhibition in 1851. Then, a few years later, I watched another mini-series:
North & South
. No, not the one about the American Civil War, the one based on the classic, but little-known novel by Elizabeth Gaskell. It also has a scene that takes place at the Great Exhibition. Once I saw that, I was hooked—on the era and on the event.
The historical significance of the Great Exhibition cannot be overlooked, but is rarely remembered. In the late 1840s, the world was on the cusp of a great leap forward. Being a man of science and industry, Prince Albert wanted to see this potential fulfilled, and so planned what was the first true world’s fair. It’s a time period that readers of historical fiction will find at once familiar and unique. There are all of the trappings we come to expect in nineteenth-century romances, yet there is also the excitement of the era’s move into the Industrial Age, including train travel, steam engines, and new inventions like the telegraph and the daguerreotype arriving on the scene.
In
Follow the Heart
, I take a closer look into one aspect of what this new growth and technology meant to individuals and families. For while many were making their fortunes, others were gambling theirs away on speculations and failed inventions. For Kate Dearing, the result of her father’s desire to be part of the growth and spread of the railroad industry becomes an unreasonable and nearly unbearable burden of obligation. For Christopher Dearing, it may be just the push he needs to make his own way in life instead of following in his father’s footsteps.
As I wrote it, it became a lesson on using prayer as a time to
listen
to God instead of just telling Him what I want. It also made me stop and evaluate my own life—to see if I am simply fulfilling obligations or if I am following my heart in the choices I make.
I hope as you read this, you will also spend time listening to God and determining if you are following your heart.
D
ISCUSSION
Q
UESTIONS
1. What expectations did you have when you began reading the book? Were your expectations met? Were you disappointed with anything in the story?
2. What did you learn about the time period that you didn’t know before reading this book? What did you learn about how people lived/what life might have been like? Was there anything you didn’t understand (terms, social customs)? Was there anything you expected to see but didn’t?
3. In this story, there is a lot of talk about duty and obligation versus following the heart. In what ways did you see this happening and with which characters?
4. Kate and Christopher must hide the truth of their family’s financial situation in order to try to make good marriages. Is reputation—what is known or assumed about someone’s background—as important today as it was then?
5. When Lord Thynne proposes to Kate, she makes the decision to marry him because it will save her family, even though it’s not what she wants. Would you be willing to do that?
6. In this era, it was unseemly for a woman to discuss politics or religion or anything other than fashion, the weather, or the latest gossip in the presence of men. Why do you think this was the case? Has this changed in 150+ years?
7. Much of what Kate and Andrew argue about in the beginning is the philosophy of how a garden should be tended—with Kate for letting it grow wild and Andrew for pruning and trimming everything neatly into order. Which kind of garden/landscape do you prefer? Do you agree with Andrew’s statement that people are much like gardens, wild and chaotic if not properly tended?
8. Was Christopher right in not telling Kate the contents of their father’s letter before she reconciled with Andrew?
9. What did you think about the way in which Jane explained prayer to Kate—saying it was more about listening and less about talking? Has there ever been a time in your life when, like Kate, you felt like God was ignoring you or had abandoned you? What happened to show you that He still loves you and answers your prayers?
10. Read Matthew 6:25–34. How is this passage exemplified in this story?
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