Of course, his mother would like to see them married, wouldn't she? She'd always been so fond of Tatiana—and at time so obvious about it that he'd felt jealous—that the thought of sending her away to some second-best probably seemed absurd. At least with him she would have easy access to them both; it would be as if nothing had changed, except Tatiana would bear the Macnair name.
But perhaps that was what he feared the most: that nothing really would change, and that Tatiana would come to realize that most men visited their bedchambers more than to simply reproduce. Of course, that could be passed off as them being raised as cousins...
But, instead, he offered another explanation. "Would it not look bad to try and steal her away from Mr. Macmillan? Do you think she would think I was... overstepping?" Or would she be pleased to think that he desired her? Women had funny ways of thinking, so he couldn't be sure.
But perhaps that was what he feared the most: that nothing really would change, and that Tatiana would come to realize that most men visited their bedchambers more than to simply reproduce. Of course, that could be passed off as them being raised as cousins...
But, instead, he offered another explanation. "Would it not look bad to try and steal her away from Mr. Macmillan? Do you think she would think I was... overstepping?" Or would she be pleased to think that he desired her? Women had funny ways of thinking, so he couldn't be sure.
