Overprotective

Chapter XI

It was now Tuesday, April 23rd. The past few days had been uneventful. I hadn't seen Harold since Friday, Mrs. Welch kept to herself, Spencer was just as broken as I am, and Aunt Gwen was just completely at a loss.

It was the afternoon, and I had just been dressed in a dark purple dress. I had been wearing dark colors all week due to mourning. I was just sitting in my room, reading a copy of Macbeth that Aunt Gwen had bought for me.

"Miss Lowe?" I heard a soft voice and a light tap at the door.

I opened it to find Tracy, the maid. "What is it?" I asked.

"Your aunt requests you in the parlor. She wishes to speak with you."

"Thank you." I shut the door. I went over to my mirror and made sure I looked presentable. I did, so I went downstairs and found the parlor.

"Meredith, please sit." Aunt Gwen gestured to the couch across the coffee table from the stuffed chair she was situated in.

I sat down slowly. "Am I in trouble?" I asked, because of the serious tone in her voice.

"No, not at all, dear. I just wanted to speak to you about something important." she snapped her fingers at a maid and the woman shut the doors and left.

"What is this all about, Aunt Gwen?"

"I think I have found a suitable match for you."

I nearly choked on the my own breath. "Excuse me? Already? I haven't even been in the country for a week!"

"Well I think this would be a very beneficial marriage for everybody."

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Trina's son, Spencer."

Once again, I choked on air. "Spencer?! You want me to marry Spencer Welch?!"

"What's so bad about that? He's handsome, wealthy, and you two are very good friends."

"Yes, we're friends. Which is exactly why I cannot marry him!" I cried.

"Meredith, wouldn't you rather be married to a friend than to a stranger?"

I was quiet as I thought about it.

She continued, "And also, think about this. His father died, and the will states that his sons must be married to receive their inheritance. He can only gain that money once he's married. And Adam's money is split between him and Trina, so he inherits even more."

"I don't care about the money, Aunt Gwen. What does Mrs. Welch think about all of this? She doesn't want to lose another son, not even to marriage, does she?"

"Actually this was her idea. She's afraid that if she loses Spencer, she'll never have grandchildren, and she can't have anymore children of her own."

"She wants me to marry her son for procreation purposes?" I asked.

"Not just that." She stood up and came to sit next to me on the couch. "Meredith, dear, think of how wonderful and inspiring this would be. Two Titanic survivors marrying. It would be pretty big news. It'd be such a happy occasion after such an awful tragedy. Plus this would make your parents and I very proud."

I thought for a moment. "Do I have to?"

"You don't have to. But we would all really like you to." she stared at me, expecting an answer now.

She lied. I did have to. Her face and her words said it all. "Fine."

"Oh, Meredith! I'm so proud of you. This is going to be wonderful, you'll see." she hugged me lightly.

Yea… I'd see, alright…

I went back up the stairs, and I saw Spencer leaving his mother's room looking a bit shocked. He smiled, shaking his head happily, until he looked up and saw me. "Oh, Merry…"

"Hello, Spencer." Instead of making eye contact, I looked at his forehead.

He rubbed the back of his neck with his hand nervously. "How are you?"

"I'm alright, I suppose. How about you?"

"Oh, I'm fine. "

"That's good." Then we both fell silent.

"I'm just going to go take a walk. Excuse me." he walked past me and down the stairs. I assumed his mother must have had the same discussion with him that my aunt had with me.

I returned to my room to continue reading.

Once I finished act three, I set the book down on the nightstand with a hair ribbon keeping my page.

I crept down the stairs and out the door. I'd heard that Titanic's crew had been moved over the weekend to a hotel only five blocks away. So down the street I walked. The weather was fairly sunny, and within ten minutes I was standing at the front steps of the hotel. I approached the receptionist, who was an old man.

"Hello, miss. How may I help you?" he asked cheerfully.

"I'm looking for my brother. He was the Titanic's fifth officer."

The man opened up a book. "Name, please?"

"Harold Lowe."

The man checked his book. "He's in room 509. Up on the fifth floor. Take the lift. It's quicker."

"Thank you." I went to the lift, and an middle aged gentleman in a suit asked me what floor I wanted. I answered the fifth, and up we went.

I found room 509, and knocked three times.

A familiar young man answered. "Oh, Miss Lowe. What brings you here?"

"Hello, Mr. Boxhall. I'm here to see my brother. Is he here?"

"Yes. He's using the loo. He'll be out any moment."

And with that, Harold appeared from the other room. "Joe, who's here?"

Mr. Boxhall stepped aside to reveal me.

"Oh, Meredith. Come in."

I walked into the room.

"I'll leave you two alone for a while. I need to go see what Lightoller is up to anyway." and Mr. Boxhall left, shutting the door behind him.

Harold sat down on one of the two beds in the room, and gestured for me to sit down next to him, so I did. "What's going on, Mer?"

I blurted it out. "Aunt Gwen has decided she would like me to marry Spencer."

"She would suggest this so soon? Is she insane? This is definitely the wrong time to rush you into marriage."

"I know! I've only been in this country since Thursday night, and I lost very close friends of mine a week ago. I'm not ready for this."

"Why does she want this?"

"Spencer will receive his inheritance when he gets married. So then I'll have money to support myself. His mother wants grandchildren soon, so she suggested I be used for procreation. And Aunt Gwen thinks we'd be a good match, plus she things it'd be a nice gimmick. Two Titanic survivors marrying…"

"She does have a point, but it is a bit ridiculous. What did Aunt Gwen say when you told her no?"

"I didn't say no. I said it'd be fine. I was nervous."

"Well then, Mer, it looks like you're engaged."

I stood up. "I didn't think I could say no. The way Aunt Gwen was staring at me, I knew it was either I do this or have her hate me forever."

"Maybe you should tell her about James. She may understand."

"Understand?" I laughed, "She'd kill me! I'd be out on my ass in a heartbeat!"

"Possibly."

I grabbed his hands. "Please, help me. I don't know what to do. I don't even know what's going on anymore."

"Meredith, there is nothing I can do." he answered calmly.

"I need to calm down, don't I?"

"Yes. Having an anxiety attack won't do any good. Just relax, then go home, and rest. Sleep on it."

"Probably the best idea. Yes, I'll go do that."

"Good." he smiled and led me to the door. "If you need me, come find me here. Except for tomorrow. It's my day to testify at the Waldorf Astoria." he rolled his eyes.

"I'll be there." I said and then proceeded to walk down the hall.

"Wait, what? Why?" he called after me.

"For support, Harry." I smiled, and entered the elevator. "Lobby, please." I told the middle aged gentleman, and he kindly obliged.

Once I made it back to Aunt Gwen's, instead of the door opening to reveal a maid, I came face to face with my aunt. "Where have you been?!" she grabbed my arm harshly and dragged me inside, slamming the heavy wooden door behind me.

"I went to go visit Harold. Is seeing my brother such a crime?"

"No, but you did not tell me where you were going. I was about to have the police out searching for you."

"Aunt Gwen, I was only gone an hour."

"I do not care. Now go up to your room. I'll send Tracy up for you when dinner is ready."

"Yes, ma'am." I ascended the stairs and went to my room. I fell asleep until it was time for dinner.

Tracy knocked on my door, and after I failed to get up and answer, she opened the door and just walked right in. "Miss Meredith, it is time for dinner."

"Thank you, Tracy." I answered, my face buried in my pillow. Once she left, shutting the door behind her, I sat up and fixed my hair. Then I proceeded down to the dining room.

Everybody was already seated, and I could see that Mrs. Welch had decided to come down and try to eat something.

"Meredith, you finally decided to join us." Aunt Gwen said in a rude tone.

"Yes, ma'am. I did." I said as politely as possible and sat in the chair beside Mrs. Welch. She looked like she was about to puke even though she was only nibbling quietly on a dinner roll.

A maid placed a plate of chicken in front of me, and I ate silently. Everyone was quiet. Once we all finished our supper, the maids brought out coffee and tea.

"Meredith, I bought you a dress to wear tomorrow night." Aunt Gwen said to me.

"A dress? For what?" I asked, feeling confused.

She took another sip of her tea. "I told you a few days ago. We're attending a gala being held by friends of mine, Mr. and Mrs. Parks in honor of Mr. Parks' birthday."

"Oh. It must have slipped my mind." I replied.

"Spencer is going too. I've gotten him a tuxedo." she stated, and turned to him, "You saw it, right? It's hanging up in your closet."

"Yes, Mrs. Quinley. Thank you." he answered, not looking up from his tea cup where he was stirring a lemon around the bottom slowly.

"Aunt Gwen?" I asked, and she looked to me, "I was wondering if I may attend the Titanic inquiry tomorrow at the Waldorf Astoria. Harold is going to be speaking and I wanted to go to support him."

"I suppose that would be fine. As long as you take Spencer with you. It wouldn't be proper for you to go out alone. Also you must be back home before five o'clock."

"I will, Aunt Gwen."

After dinner, I went up the stairs and was about to open my bedroom door when I heard Spencer call my name from behind me. "Mer? Can I talk to you?"

I stopped and turned to him. "Sure. Go ahead."

"I'm going to take a guess here and assume your aunt had the same discussion with you that my mother had with me."

"What makes you think that?"

"The fact that you know what conversation I'm talking about. Also you've been acting strange all day."

"So have you."

"Well it's an odd situation."

"What would be so odd about it, Spence? This is exactly what I came to America for. To be married off to somebody."

"So you're alright with this?"

I stayed silent, and he stared at me suspiciously, looking for a response.

"Meredith?" he asked impatiently.

"Of course." I replied as sincerely as I could muster.

He looked at me, not believing my answer, but he took it anyway. "Fine then. I guess we're engaged."

"Yes. I suppose we are. This is definitely how I dreamed of being proposed to." I stated sarcastically.

He chuckled, and then jokingly got on one knee. I laughed, pulling him back up to his feet.

Once the laughter changed into nervous giggling just to fill in the gap in the conversation, we both finally fell silent, staring at one another.

"Well… I'm off to bed. We'll have to wake up early to make it to the inquiry. I'm sure it will be packed if we don't get their early."

I nodded. "Goodnight, Spencer. See you in the morning."

"Goodnight." he leaned in and kissed my cheek, then walked down the hall to his room. This action stunned me. Not in a good way. I hurried into my room, shut the door, and fell onto my bed.

I missed James. I'd prefer to have him kissing my cheek. Not Spencer…. But James was gone, and Spencer was all I had. I still felt insanely guilty for accepting this engagement. But what could I do? Tell my aunt about James and my feelings? She'd kill me. Besides, this is what I was meant to do. I've known this since I left home. I should have been more prepared. If only my heart wasn't still aching, and on top of that it is thoroughly confused.

The next morning, I woke up, went downstairs, and silently drank a cup of tea placed in front of me. Aunt Gwen was sitting at the head of the table as usual. "Meredith, I've received a letter from your mother, and it's addressed to you." she handed me a folded paper.

I unfolded it and held it down on the table.

Dear, Meredith, Once your father and I heard about the sinking, we were terrified. We read the newspapers everyday, hoping for some news. The moment we saw your name and Gwen's name on the survivor list we were both able to breathe a sigh of relief. I'm so grateful for your safety, as well as your Aunt Gwen's, and your brother Harold's, who we hear was also on board. If you see him, pass on our love to him. We love you, and miss you very much. Hoping all is well. Much love, your Mother.

I refolded it, and placed it under my teacup.

Spencer came downstairs soon after. "Good morning, everyone."

"Good morning, Spencer. Your mother isn't feeling up to any breakfast?" my aunt asked.

"No. She's feeling a bit under the weather again. She may come down later." Spencer answered, and then looked at the clock on the wall. "Mer, we should probably get going soon if we want to find any place to sit in the inquiry room."

"Yes, of course. Let's go. I'll be home by four, Aunt Gwen." I stood up.

"Alright. Be careful." she called as we left the room.

The driver was already waiting for us by the car, and he helped me up into the seat. Once we were in, he drove us to the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel, where the hearings were taking place.

There were already people there. A few reporters setting up their cameras, and some curious bystanders. Spencer led me over to some seats in the middle of the audience section. Before long, the chairs around us had filled up and the senators entered the room to take their places up front. I saw Harold sitting with a few other men at a table in the corner. He was wearing a dark blue suit and had combed his hair back. I thought about waving, but figured it may be a bad idea.

A man gestured for the doors to the room to be closed, and then he cleared his throat. "I'd like to welcome you all to another day of the investigation into the Titanic disaster. I'm Senator William Alden Smith. Today's first witness is Harold Godfrey Lowe, fifth officer."

My brother walked up to the front of the room and sat in the seat beside the panel of senators. He looked nervous sitting up there, as they asked him questions about the way the ship was run, the sea trials, the lifeboats, etc.

"Mr. Lowe, I've heard a rumor that I wanted to take a moment to confront. Some witnesses say they saw you strike a first class woman during the loading of lifeboat number five. Is this true?" I froze in my seat. I knew it was me. Harold took a deep breath. "Yes, it is true."

"Why did you hit a passenger?"

"She was my sister, Meredith Lowe. She wouldn't get into a lifeboat like I begged her to."

"Is she here to confirm this?" Senator Smith asked.

Harold looked around and his eyes connected with mine. He hesitated, but answered truthfully, "Yes, she is in this room. She came to support me."

"Will Miss Meredith Lowe stand up, please." Senator Smith called out loudly.

I stood up. "Yes, Senator?"

"Is Harold Lowe your brother?"

"Yes, sir."

"Did he strike you on the Titanic?"

"Yes, sir. He did. But I hold no ill feelings towards him. I love my brother. I made him frustrated on the ship when I refused to leave, so I believe his actions to be forgivable and excusable."

"Thank you, Miss Lowe. You may sit now." I sat down, and saw Harold smile at me.

They questioned him a bit more, and then finally moved on to another person.

It was now about three o'clock. I tapped Spencer on the shoulder and then pointed to the clock. We both stood up and made our way past the other seated people, and tried not to make too much of a disturbance.

We walked out into the hallway, and saw Harold walk out after us. "Hello, Merry, Spencer."

"Harold!" I nearly squealed, and pulled my brother into an embrace, causing him to chuckle. "I missed you."

He hugged me back. "I missed you too, Merry."

"They were asking you pretty hard questions." Spencer commented.

"They are being extremely thorough about this. Sadly, they're moving us all to Washington D.C. in a few days to continue testifying there. So I'll be leaving. Then after that I'll be on a ship back to England."

"Harry! I don't want you to go." I felt like a child again.

"Don't worry. I'll visit right before I leave, and I'll visit every time I'm back in New York."

"And you'll write me, won't you?"

"Of course I will. I have Aunt Gwen's address, so I can definitely write to you and update you on my many adventures." he showed off a wide smile.

"Good."

"Meredith, we ought to get going. Your aunt wanted us home by four." Spencer grabbed my arm gently.

"Oh, yes. I'll see you soon, Harry."

"Goodbye, Merry."

Then we left, hopping back into the car, and going back to Aunt Gwen's large stone house.

As we walked through the front door, Aunt Gwen was leaving the parlor and saw us. "Oh, good. You're right on time. Be ready to leave in an hour and a half. I'll send Tracy up for you, Meredith. And Spencer, I'll have my butler, Gene, sent up to assist you."

"Thank you, Mrs. Quinley." he said, and we both went upstairs to our rooms.

I walked into my room and shut the door behind me. Hanging on my wardrobe door was a beautiful dress. It was made of shiny gold material, covered by black lace with embroidered black flowers. The sleeves were very short, and the neckline was a square shape.

Tracy came in, and helped me into a corset. She tied it tight enough for me to look very thin, but left me just enough room to breathe. Then she fit the dress on me over my head, and hooked it in the back. She then lightly applied make up to my face, making me look natural. I stared into the mirror, and I couldn't believe my eyes. It was stunning. I was stunning. Once my hair was pinned up, and she looked me over, she told me I was ready.

"Thank you, Tracy. You did a wonderful job." she then left, and I looked at the mirror again, striking poses and spinning around like a young girl would.

"Meredith." Spencer opened my door without knocking, and I turned around to face him, blushing with embarrassment. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just going to tell you we need to go soon."

"Thank you. I'll meet you downstairs in a moment." he shut my door, and I took one last look in the mirror, smiling at my reflection, and then I went down the stairs to the hallway and then into the parlor when my aunt was sitting on the couch, and Spencer was sitting with his legs crossed in the chair.

"Ah, Meredith, finally. Now we can go." Aunt Gwen said, and the three of use went outside to the cars. Aunt Gwen entered one, and Spencer and I entered the other.

"You look amazing, Mer." he said while staring at me.

"Thank you." I avoided his eyes, and stared down. "You look nice too."

We were silent for the remainder of the ride, which took about twenty minutes. I'm not sure, since I spent most of the time staring out the window, taking in the sights of New York.

Finally, we arrived at a large brick house, with many other elegantly dressed people entering through the large opened wooden doors. The driver opened the door for me and gave me his hand to assist me getting out. Then he drove off, and Spencer, Aunt Gwen, and I entered the house. The hall was lined with portrait after portrait of men and women from decades ago. Then we entered a large ballroom, with high ceilings, and breathtaking chandeliers. There were many people at every corner of the room, laughing and drinking out of crystal champagne glasses. There was a cleared space in the center of the room for a dance floor, which had only a few couples twirling around on it to the music played by the string players in the corner.

"Meredith, come with me." Aunt Gwen said as she walked through the crowd of people. She introduced me to nearly everyone in the room, and I was finally able to escape an hour later, and I grabbed a glass of champagne from one of the butlers' trays.

"Would you like to dance?" Spencer asked from beside me.

"Sure." he took my hand and led me to the floor, placing one hand on my waist, and leading me around the room to the rhythm of the music.

"How was the meeting and greeting?" he asked with a smirk.

"Boring. This sort of thing isn't my idea of a good time. But I suppose I'll have to get used to it."

"It isn't so bad once you get used to it. You just have to learn to put on a fake smile, treat everyone like they are the queen, and don't do anything that seems fun because it most likely won't be proper." he laughed.

"Well that doesn't seem very fun at all."

"You learn to live like this." he then took me by surprise by dipping me, "And have fun on your own time, out of society's judgmental eye." then he brought me back up.

"You're insane, you know that? You nearly dropped me."

"But I didn't." he smirked again. Oh how I hated that look. The song ended, but he didn't remove his hand from my waste, nor did he let my hand go. "May I speak with you?"

"You are."

"I mean in private."

I nodded, and he led me to the other side of the room, and opened two doors that led to a dimly lit hall that was empty. The sounds of the party were muffled through the walls.

"What did you need to say, Spence?" I asked, crossing my arms.

"First off, I'd like to say that you really do look breath taking. I've barely been able to take my eyes off of you all night." he was right. I had noticed his eyes on me all evening. "Secondly, I just wanted to talk about what's going on, with everything…" I knew what he was attempting to infer.

"I'm fine with this, Spencer." I answered in a slightly tense tone.

"You sure?"

"I'm going back to the party." I turned away from him and took one step toward the door. He caught my arm, and turn me around, meeting my lips with his. He gently placed his hand on the back of my neck, and moved his lips slowly but passionately against mine in an intense kiss.

After a few seconds, I pulled away quickly. I couldn't do this. Not now. It was way too soon, and sadly Spencer just didn't get that.

"What? Did I do something wrong?" he asked worriedly.

"No!" I yelled irritably. I was mad at myself, and I had my fists tight at my sides. I finally released them and allowed the color to return to my knuckles. "Spencer, I can marry you, but I cannot love you." I hissed, and then opened the door again to leave, taking one last look at him.

Thank you all for reading chapter 11. I'll have chapter 12 posted as soon as I can. Please review. Love, Kell.