Is she really Little Doormat?

It's appearing that I was right in yesterday's speculation: Much as the expected/traditional "happy ending" to Little Dorrit would have Arthur Clennom, who at last recognizes his love for Little Dorrit and who learns that she has been in love w/ him all these years, would have two of them joined in marriage - but Dickens, late in his career, does not go that route. We have near the end a powerful chapter in which LD shows up at the prison at night to visit Arthur, and she declares her love for him - and he responds, in effect, that he has always loved her and always will but now he's too old and broken to marry her. She offers to pay off his debts, which he refuses - I still suspect his business partner, Doyce, will come back from America w/ a load of $ so that Arthur can die in peace and in freedom, but it's more apparent that Dickens recognizes that the "old man" must be cleared out of the way - despite his noble and generous spirit (same kind of ending in Bleak House). The only issue, is: Who's good enough for LD? The only obvious candidate is John, the prison turnkey, but does it seem as if he can stand up against her poise and intelligence? And she has already told him, years back, that she could never love him. To us, he seems like about half her age, and marrying him would wed her to a life in the prison, albeit as a free person and employee. But she'll probably accept his love - Little Doormat, we might call her - and make at least John happy, if not the readers.