Chapter Six: Harley Street
The next morning, at 10:00 am promptly, John arrived at the house on Harley Street. He was impressed by its elegance. A servant showed him to the drawing room, and his eyes drank in the sight of Margaret. She was dressed in a lovely blue silk gown he had not seen before. She was sitting on the sofa next to her Aunt Shaw, and she looked incredibly lovely. His Margaret, his fiancé.
When the servant announced him, she smiled when she saw his face. She stood up and took his arm to lead him to Aunt Shaw.
"Aunt Shaw, you remember Mr. Thornton?"
Aunt Shaw nodded her head in greeting, "Yes, Margaret, we met in Milton."
"Margaret, I asked that you leave your family to discuss your engagement with Mr. Thornton."
Margaret stood her ground and led Mr. Thornton to the settee across from Aunt Shaw. She took a seat next to him.
"Aunt Shaw, I will not leave. John is going to be my husband, and I will stand by his side now and for the rest of our lives together."
John was surprised, but he agreed that it was best for them to face her aunt together.
"Mr. Thornton, I will not mince words with you. Margaret says people of the North speak their minds plainly, so maybe you can appreciate that I will do so now. I consider Margaret much like a second daughter. She is of age to make her own decisions, but I think she is making an unwise one.'
"Your dirty and smoky air in Milton hastened my sister's death, and it is an unfit place to raise healthy children. You have been to Helstone and can see how Margaret lived there in the open country, and you can see how she lives in this house. How can you expect any of us to be happy about her living in that mausoleum you call a home next to the mill?"
Margaret was aghast! "Aunt Shaw! It is true that Milton is not beautiful, but there are other things to recommend it. I quite liked living there. As far as the mill house, I agree it is not an ideal place to raise a family, but anywhere John is, I will be happy to call home."
Aunt Shaw sighed, "I feel like I am speaking to your mother right now, Margaret. Maria's head was in the clouds when she became engaged to your father. She refused to listen to anyone who tried to make her see sense. You are doing the very same thing as she did. I want only the best for you, my dear."
Margaret gripped John's hand tighter, then replied, "My parents loved each other until death, Aunt. It hurts me terribly for you to speak unkindly about Mama."
John had heard enough. Not only had Mrs. Shaw insulted his home, but she was treating Margaret like a child.
"Mrs. Shaw, I can assure you that I will provide the best home I can for Margaret and any children we may have. She will be well-taken care of."
John continued, "I am no longer master of Marlborough Mills, and when I return from America, I plan to seek employment away from Milton proper, perhaps in the suburbs where the air is cleaner and there will be room for yard for any children we may have to play."
Aunt Shaw continued her onslaught. "Will Margaret be mistress of said home? Or will your mother live with you and insist that she remain mistress of your home?"
John felt his temper rise, but held his composure, "My wife will be mistress of my home. It is true that my mother may live with us, but as the matriarch of the family. My mother is a stern woman, hardened by life to be sure, but she is a good woman, Mrs. Shaw. I am sure that with time, she will accept Margaret as my wife. My happiness is important to her."
Margaret was near tears and barely holding on to her composure. She loved her aunt dearly, but she was angered by how Aunt Shaw was treating John.
"Aunt Shaw, being John's wife has been something I have dreamed of for months. He has made me very happy by asking me to marry him. Please be happy for us. I am sure John is right about his mother. She and I will come to understand one another."
John squeezed her hand this time. She had dreamed of marrying him for months? How much time they had wasted apart!
When Mrs. Shaw seemed unmoved, Margaret added, "If I must choose between my family and John, I will choose him."
John looked at Margaret in wonder. He knew she loved him, but her devotion to him was a revelation.
"Mrs. Shaw, Margaret should not have to make such a choice, and it would cause her great sadness to be forced to do so. Let it not come to that, for her sake. If my mother is as set against the two of us marrying as you are, then I will have to make the same choice as Margaret has just stated. There is nobody on this earth that I hold dearer in my heart than her, including my mother. Margaret is everything in the world to me, Mrs. Shaw. Everything. I have loved her since the moment I met her, and that love has only grown with time."
Everyone sat in silence after John's declaration.
Maxwell thought there was little to be gained by further conversation, so he stood up and extended his hand to John, "Welcome to the family, Thornton."
Aunt Shaw gasped at her son-in-law's impertinence. She had not yet given her permission, but apparently, she had little influence over her niece anymore.
Margaret went over to her aunt and took her hand. "I love you, Aunt Shaw. I love you for your kindness to me all my life, for your generosity, and for being stern with me when I needed it. I know you only want my happiness, but no other man could ever be my husband other John Thornton. I love him with my whole heart."
Aunt Shaw said, "Very well, Margaret. I am not ready to give you my blessings yet, but I will not try to dissuade you anymore on the matter."
Mrs. Shaw ignored John, but he did not care. He was thinking of how his own mother was going to react, and he did not expect her to behave any better than Mrs. Shaw had.
He could afford to be gracious though, and he thanked her for hearing him out. Tea was ordered and the next half hour was spent pleasantly enough.
Aunt Shaw was quiet, watching how John and Margaret interacted. It was clear to hear that the couple loved each other, but a good marriage required much more than love. She had her doubts about the wisdom of Margaret's decision. Besides, once Mr. Thornton left for America, she had the whole year to persuade Margaret that she was making a mistake. Mrs. Shaw almost always got her way with Edith and Margaret, and she had faith in Henry to win Margaret over if he were to try hard enough.
In the meanwhile, she would not alienate Margaret with her words.
Something in Mrs. Shaw's manner alerted John. He knew she strongly disapproved of their engagement, but yet, Mrs. Shaw had not fought their decision to become engaged as hard as he had expected.
John asked Margaret to take a walk with him. He waited for her in the foyer while she went to fetch a shawl.
He had been a magistrate too long not to read the signs that Mrs. Shaw had not given up the plan to change Margaret's mind about marrying him. She said what was expected of her, but her words did not have the ring of sincerity. She would have an entire year to influence Margaret while he was away.
He was worried about leaving Margaret in London for a few days to return to Milton, much less leaving her for a year to go to America. He did not doubt her feelings, but he knew the moment he left her today, the war against their marriage would begin. Oh, it would be subtle at first, but he had no doubt that Edith and Aunt Shaw were dead set against the marriage and would use everything they could think of against him, including Margaret's friendship with Henry.
He could not, he would not risk losing her.
