Ultimate Prizes Part III

Neville arranges the funeral, and has his brother and sister to stay, and tries very hard to stay in control of his emotions. His siblings, Emily and Willy, have not become brilliant successes as he has. Emily is clever but plain and has married a middle class man and lives in London. Willy teaches at a small public school, near London and is not ambitious. Neville tells them he does not want to talk about their parents, who are both dead. He feels desperate and believes that only Dido can understand his feelings so he writes to her. He is now determined to marry her, but she takes fright, because she enjoyed the game of flirting iwh a married clergyman but she does not want to marry a widowed man with a moderate income and several children. Neville tells her he loves her and is determined to get her to marry him. He devotes himslef to his work but tries to persuade Dido to agree to a marriage. Her father, a bullying Scottish millionaire, tells him that Dido wont be a suitable wife, and that he wont give her a large dowry. Neville retorts that he is marrying for love. He continues to pursue her, but his brother and sister disapprove and he has a big row with Alex Jardine, who tells him bluntly that he should not marry her. They become alienated. Neville remains determined to marry Dido, and she meets his younger children but they dont take to her. However at the end of the War she finally gives in and they become engaged. Her father who has been waiting for ages for his youngest daughter to get married, gives them a flashy wedding but Neville is uneasily aware that he will have money problems keeping an expensive wife and more children. As soon as the wedding is over, disillusionment sets in. They go to Scotland for a honeymoon and Dido immediately reveals her neuroses which includes a fear of sex and she's unable to consummate the marriage. After a couple of days, she leaves him to go and stay with her sister Muriel, and tells him that she feels the marriage is hopeless and cannot be saved. Neville is horrified, as a clergyman a divorce would wreck his career and an annulment would not be much better. He goes back to Starbridge, and tries to get in contact with Dido.. but then gets a call from Alex Jardine to say that he, Alex, is dying.....