I don't think she didn't give him an answer because she didn't love him enough. For one thing, as silverduck2day has pointed out, there's her big Pamuk secret which has been weighing on her from the moment he proposed, even if it wasn't very clear in ep. 7 because it took a backseat to her mother's pregnancy and her confrontation with Edith. But even setting that aside, I don't blame her for having doubts about whether she'd be happy stripped of a lifestyle she’d been raised to expect for herself. I’d rather she have doubts and question herself than blindly walk into the marriage only to grow unhappy with the cold dose of reality. I don't believe having such doubts means she loves him any less. And I don't think it rules out the possibility she could have overcome those doubts eventually and made a choice she could accept and live with. I don't think it was wrong of her to want some time and space to think about a life different from what she'd been groomed to expect from the day she was born. That doesn't mean I blame Matthew either for his inability to give her what she wanted, to trust her to make the right choice eventually, because I realize he was struggling with his own insecurities, his fear that she might not love him as much as he did, because he was the one who fell in love first and he had to wait for her to reciprocate his feelings.

As for Mary's hesistation. I've spent a lot of time thinking about this and I think she actually was still going to accept Matthew when she came back from London. I think her Aunt's words just threw her into confusion and made her hesitate more.

I think her confusion was partly based on Matthew not inheriting and her possibly having a very different life to the one she's used too, but mainly because she's afraid to tell him about Pamuk. The fact that she already waited to accept him for a bit (after she told her mother she loved him) was because of Pamuk (and also Mary's stubborness to not do what people want of her and her own confusion about marriage) and then Cora's pregnancy and her aunt's words just made it all so much more confusing to her.

EDIT: found it! She did the same jaw dropping though

I watched the promo!! I am so excited for next series. The new episode needs to come already. I am ready for the angst (even though I hope they have some happy moments as well!)

I love these two, could I be added?

So funny story. I was looking at this thread at random and thought I recognized the guy who plays Matthew. I racked my brain trying to figure out how I knew him only to realize he was Edward Ferrars in the 2008 Sense & Sensibility. And all of a sudden, I'm interested. Only problem is I don't know of any place to watch this. Suggestions? Now, I can't promise I'll like it, but I'd like to give it a shot, if not because Silver likes it, but I do love period pieces, as well.

So funny story. I was looking at this thread at random and thought I recognized the guy who plays Matthew. I racked my brain trying to figure out how I knew him only to realize he was Edward Ferrars in the 2008 Sense & Sensibility. And all of a sudden, I'm interested. Only problem is I don't know of any place to watch this. Suggestions? Now, I can't promise I'll like it, but I'd like to give it a shot, if not because Silver likes it, but I do love period pieces, as well.