The House of Mirth: Too bad, So Sad

I have a haunch that Gus Trenor and Simon Rosedale have been cohorts against Lily from the time she first asked Trenor for help and invested her money in the stock market.  It just seems curious that Trenor would give Lily a large sum of money pretending it was her own success in the stock, then reveal that he has actually been simply giving her his own funds and that she is in his debt just in time for Rosedale to swoop in and offer her a speedy resolution to her financial woes if she marries him.  Despite the fact that Trenor also shares feeling, or maybe just lusts, for Lily, the fact that this situation was planned is very possible.  Marriage to a beautiful, wealthy, and sociable woman like Miss Lily Bart would greatly aid Rosedale becoming part of the top social community as well, another facet to the possible plan.  Lily's need for Rosedale's money is made evident by her aunt's decision not to help her pay off her debts.  I agree with her aunt's decision here.  Lily created this problem on her own and then made it even worse by hiding it and attempting to fix it throws Gus Trenor, in the process of which rumors and misunderstandings have flourished.  Her aunt is disgusted with Lily's gambling as well, which is the cause of the debt in the first place. Lily very much deserved to be punished for not only her foolishness, but her poor judgment and hesitance to truly fix the root of the problem.  

Lily's aunt's not paying for her debts for some reason reminded me of when kids are put in timeout as their punishment.  This is what i found when I tried to search for a picture of "timeout"... Hopefully Lily's reaction to her aunt's decision is a little more constructive to her situation.

She now realizes how much she really needs Selden's help and fixes to meet him at 4:00 as they had planned. The time passes, at which point the irksome Rosedale arrives (I really don'y like him).  Lily informs Rosedale that she needs to contemplate his offer before she makes a diesicion.  I would bet Rosedale is fairly confident at this point in the story, especially because, as Lily later finds out, Selden has left for the West Indies. The consistent theme of Lily's unfortunate life is becoming almost predictable.  Not in a bad way, but in a way that I am constantly wondering what awful thing will happen next.  In a slight turn of events, Lily receives a letter from Mrs. Dorset asking if she would like to accompany her and her husband on a cruise to the Mediterranean.  This is very curious and is sure to bring on an entirely new share of drama. Edith Wharton has not allowed me to get bored throughout the entire The House of Mirth, so I hope she doesn't let me down.