"I'm sorry to disturb you", Edith said when she was showed into Patricia Pelham's writing room. Edith had decided that she had to tell Bertie's mother about Marigold.

"I was just catching up with some letters", Patricia said. Edith half wished that the woman would say that she was too busy to see her, but no such luck.

So Edith took a deep breath and started. "I've come because there's something I feel you ought to be aware of before the announcement of the engagement this evening."

"Does Bertie know you're here?" his mother asked.

"No."

"But he knows what you're about to tell me?"

"Yes. He knows everything."

"Well... You'd better begin."

...

Edith hesitated. Then she decided to start with something entirely different.

"What I'm going to tell you will probably make you stop listening to me..." she started.

"Surely not!" Mrs Pelham said with a rather friendly smile. But Edith knew that the smile would probably soon disappear.

"Well, we'll see!" Edith said. "Anyway, I would like to say some other things first."

"Alright."

Edith hesitated again. This woman - sometimes she seemed so hard, and her own son, who was such a kind man, had described her in a not very flattering way. Truth be told, Edith was a bit afraid of Bertie's mother. But she had decided to do this, and it was too late to back out.

"Well - go on!" Bertie's mother said after a while.

"Well, the first thing I want to talk about is Peter, the late Marquess."

"Oh! What about him?"

"Bertie loved him. He doesn't need to hear your bad opinions about him. He already knows them."

"Yes, I know he loved him. Peter used to play with Bertie when he was a boy, although he was so many years older. I guess Bertie was happy that an older boy took an interest in him. Peter was rather slow to grow up, if he ever did."

"And if you think Peter lived in an unmoral way, it is better not to mention it. People forget about scandals much faster than one believes. As long as they aren't constantly reminded."

They were both quiet while Bertie's mother considered this.

"I think you have got a good point there", she said at last. "I shall think about what I say about Peter in the future. And I'm glad you said this, I think you are both clever and brave. I don't think I would ever have dared to say things like these to my own mother-in-law. She was a rather imposing woman."

"Times have changed, I guess", Edith said. "And I'm not very brave. It's just - I want to make things easier for Bertie. I do love him and he worries so much."

...

They were both quiet again, while Patricia considered how lucky her son was to have found this caring woman.

"Which leads to the next thing", Edith said after a while. "Please don't get me wrong now, but I want to say some things about Bertie. About you and Bertie. And please don't be angry with me, I don't mean to be impertinent!"

"I'm intrigued. But I usually admire honesty. And perhaps you will find I can take a certain amount of criticism."

"I know you love Bertie", Edith started. "And although I don't know you very well, yet I know that you must be a good person, or else you wouldn't have a son like Bertie..." She trailed off.

"Thank you! That's very kind!" Patricia said. "But I guess the hard part is still to come."

"Yes, it is", Edith said. "And I think Bertie would probably hate me for saying this to you... But... I think you should have a little more faith in him. I think you make Bertie nervous. Please stop doing that. He... I've seen what a capable person he can be..."

The two women were both quiet while Patricia considered this.

"But he wasn't born to this kind of life", Patricia said then. "He doesn't know what to do. So I'm happy that he will marry you."

"Perhaps he wasn't born to it, but he has the right kind of heart. My mother is an American, she wasn't born to be a Countess either. Her father had money, but he was a self-made man with very little education. My mother had to learn a lot of new things when she married my father. But she has managed very well, and so will Bertie. He will be a wonderful Marquess. There isn't a better man I think, kind and selfless and compassionate. As well as competent and intelligent."

Patricia smiled.

"Thank you, Edith!" she said. "I'm really happy to hear you praise him like that. For a mother, praise of one's children is even better than praise of oneself. You will understand that when you become a mother yourself."

"Well", Edith said. "That brings us to my main reason to come here..."

AN: Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment!