by Josie Bonham
“It suits you. We’re in luck. The coachman is confident he can get us as far as the church. As long as the service isn’t over long, we should have time to try out the sledges this afternoon.”
They went outside to see three carriages lined up. Max helped her into the first of them and they were joined by Nat and Eliza. The Fordhams climbed in to the second carriage. They moved off at a sedate pace. Everywhere was covered in a glistening white coat which muffled the sound of the horses’ hooves. The lines of trees on either side of the drive seemed to have kept some of the snow off. Their branches groaned under the weight of snow. They reached the big gatehouse and the road outside looked to have been cleared and ashes spread. They turned onto the road without incident.
Georgie smiled at Eliza. “No Peter this morning?”
“No, he’s so excited he wouldn’t be able to sit through the service. I left him in the nursery with Judith. Only the promise of some sledging later pacified him.”
Max laughed. “He hates being left with a baby, doesn’t he? The servants who can be spared and want to attend are in the third coach. Are you happy with that, Georgie? It’s something I should have consulted you on.”
“Of course, I am. Don’t forget I grew up in a vicarage. Everywhere looks beautiful today, like something from a fairy tale. I hope it won’t be too dangerous for the horses.”
“My head coachman is happy. There are no real slopes on the way to the church and he thinks the horses will be better for a run. This is the smallest coach so I expect we will arrive well in front of the others.”
“Oh, that reminds me,” Eliza said, “we usually invite the Armstrongs to our Christmas dinner as well as the Wrights. Do you want to carry on the tradition, Georgie?”
Georgie caught her breath. “I do but I’m worried they will disapprove if they guess I ran away.”
“I hinted at some problems with your cousins.” Eliza blushed. “I also let them believe that there had already been an understanding between Max and you. As soon as your period of mourning was over Max suggested you bring forward your wedding.”
Georgie was appalled. “Cousin Mary will tell everyone the truth.”
“If the Armstrongs are happy to receive you I don’t think anyone will listen to her. They said that your Aunt had a poor opinion of Mrs Hutton and they were surprised when she was named as your guardian.”
“It was a case of there being no one else. I wanted to go and stay with my old governess but Cousin Mary went to court.”
Max squeezed her hand. “Don’t worry I’ll deal with Cousin Mary and her son.” He pushed his jaw out. “They have far more to lose than us. With my ring on your finger no one will dare cut us.”
Georgie was unconvinced but there was no point running away from an obligation. “If it’s normal custom to invite the Armstrongs it would look strange if we didn’t.”
Eliza looked stricken. “I agree with you but I’m sorry if I got carried away and said too much. Try not to worry. I’m sure we will brush through any difficulties.”
“You were only trying to help. I’m determined to enjoy Christmas.”
“That’s the best way to think about it. We’ll have a message sent to them as soon as we are back. They may not be able to make it through the snow, of course.”
Lord Overton looked up. “I’ve had one of my grooms have a scout around this morning. The road to Canterbury is pretty much blocked but this area isn’t as bad.”
Max squeezed Georgie’s hand. “We’ll try and get them to Hargreaves if we can. My head groom can take the message. He’ll know if it’s going to be possible. You’ll feel better once you’ve spoken to them.”
“I think you’re right, but I don’t want them taking any risks. Do we need to inform to the Wrights?”
“Yes. Mrs Wright will probably be in the congregation if you want to mention it to her.”
The coach turned a corner and Georgie was thrown onto Max. The feel of his body pressed against her set her pulse racing. She longed for time alone with him. At least she found him attractive. Being obliged to be intimate with someone like Algernon would have been horrific. The coach arrived at the church and Max jumped out and lifted her down. She accepted his arm and they made their way inside with Eliza and Nat immediately behind.
Mrs Wright greeted them warmly. Georgie saw her opportunity.
“We would appreciate it if you would join us for Christmas Dinner this evening.” She laughed. “I’m afraid I didn’t think of it yesterday.”
“Indeed not. It would have been wonderful if you had. We would be delighted to accept.”
“We’ll send a carriage for you,” Max said. He turned towards Georgie. “What time my love?”
Georgie dredged her memory. “I think we said seven o’clock.” She looked to Eliza for confirmation.
“Yes, we did. We’ll send the carriage to pick you up a little before that.”
Mrs Wright nodded. “That would be perfect. Thank you.”
A group of people arrived behind them and they left Mrs Wright to greet them. Max and Eliza introduced her to several families, mostly tenants of the estate, before showing her to their pew. It would be hard memorising all the people Max was connected to but she had managed with her uncle’s parishioners. All the same the high sides of the pew gave her a welcome reprieve.
Georgie enjoyed the service and steeled herself for more introductions on the way out. Max kept these to a minimum, promising to throw a party in the summer to introduce his bride to the neighbourhood. Hargreaves Hall provided a lot of work and the villagers seemed happy with that. They left Eliza and Nat talking to a couple near to the church. Max handed her into the coach and climbed in beside her.
He put an arm around her. “This is cosy. When we’re travelling alone think of all the fun we can have.”
Georgie laughed. “Don’t make me blush. The others will be here soon.”
Max kissed her on the cheek and released her. “You’re going to find me an unfashionably attentive husband, sweetheart.”
The others arrived and Georgie sat back against the squabs. What did he mean by that? A bubble of happiness welled up inside her. She tamped it down. It wouldn’t do to hope for too much.
“I hope no one minded us rushing off,” Max said. “The best slopes for sledging are a good walk and we haven’t a great deal of time to spare before the light starts fading.”
Eliza burst out laughing. “They’re used to you, Max. The summer party was an inspired idea. It would be lovely to revive the tradition now you have a hostess.”
Max looked down at the floor before meeting Georgie’s eyes. “Yet again that is something I should have consulted you on. I blame the lack of time to prepare. I’ll take on a second secretary and they can help you with this sort of thing.”
“That might be helpful but they won’t know any more of your people than me.”
“True but I could always lend you my secretary, Charles.”
They arrived back at the Hall and Barton announced that a second breakfast awaited them. Max rubbed his hands together. “Excellent. Cold weather always makes me hungry. I suggest the sledging party meets by the stables in one hour.”
They caught up with Eliza, Nat and Peter on the way to the stables. Peter ran around amongst them until his mother called him to order.
“Peter, where are your manners. Say hello to Aunt Georgie if you please.”
Peter stood still long enough to address Georgie. “Can I come on your sledge Aunt Georgie? Uncle Max always goes the fastest.”
Max laughed and swung him up onto his shoulders as Georgie had seen him do from the window. He loved the little boy. Her stomach muscles tightened for a moment. She mustn’t think about the possibility of not bearing him a son. She concentrated on the general merriment and her discomfort quickly passed. They heard the Fordham boys talking to the grooms holding the ropes of the sledges.
Rollo’s clear tones rang out. “I want this one.”
Ma
x broke into a trot, which had Peter laughing so much Georgie was afraid he would fall off. She saw Max tighten his grip on the youngster’s legs. He would never let him fall.
“Oh no you don’t, young sir,” Max said. “If you turn that sledge over you will see it has my name on the bottom.”
Rollo gave up the sledge with a forced looking smile. She exchanged a glance with Max who grinned. He walked back towards her and bent close so only she could hear.
“I’m afraid young Rollo takes after his mother. Wakeley will have some fun with him before too long.”
They claimed their sledges and the group set off along a path to the hills beyond the home farm. Max led the way pulling the sledge seemingly effortlessly with one hand. He gripped one of Peter’s legs with his other arm. Georgie smiled. He was so strong he had managed to carry her more than a mile in loose snow so the light frame of Peter was no problem. She looked around at the fairytale landscape in awe. The white blanket covering everything glistened brightly every time the sun popped out from behind the clouds. The snow scrunched under their feet as they walked along.
“We must have had a hard frost after the snow settled,” Max said. “We should have great conditions for sledging.”
He smiled at her and looked almost as excited as Peter, who was waving his arm behind Max’s back.
She smiled back and nodded at Peter. “He’s wielding an imaginary whip.”
Max turned to look at him. “It’s no good whipping me, young man. I can’t go any faster on this snow. We’re in front of your parents as it is.”
“Aww, Uncle Max. I can’t wait to fly down that hill. We’ll beat Rollo won’t we?”
“I think we can manage that.”
Georgie threw her head up to feel the wind on her cheeks better and laughed.
“I haven’t been on a sledge since I was a little girl, with my father. It must have been shortly before he died.”
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
“Don’t worry. It’s so long ago I can hardly remember him. I do remember the fun we had that day though.”
Max speeded up. “Are you alright at this pace? I don’t have a free hand to help you.”
“I’ll have you know I’m used to walking miles in all weathers.”
She had forgotten how much fitness she had lost with her cousins and was soon breathing heavily. She pressed on, determined to keep pace with Max. They were the first to reach the top but Nat and Eliza were right behind them.
“We claimed the privilege of age and insisted on passing the others,” Nat said.
Georgie gasped at the vista below them. White fields punctuated by humps where hedges and trees must be. “This is a breath-taking place.”
Max rested the sledge against a bush and squeezed her hand. “It will be even more breath-taking when we go down again.”
Nat came up to them and lifted Peter down. “Come on, young man, let’s leave your uncle in peace.”
“I want to go with Uncle Max so we can beat Rollo.”
“Come with us and we’ll go first so you’ll be bound to beat Rollo.” He led a still protesting Peter off to join his mother on their sledge.
Max put an arm around Georgie’s shoulders. “We’ll give them a few minutes start. I don’t think the Fordham boys are far behind. We’ll hold Rollo off to make sure Peter is down before him.”
“I love this part of Kent with the hills all around. It looks even prettier with its snow blanket.”
“Yes, it is lovely. I have several other properties, even one near the sea, but I always prefer Hargreaves. Right, Nat has got them going well. Come on.”
Max settled her on the sledge and climbed on in front of her. “Tie your scarf around your mouth before we set off. Now the trick is to stay balanced. Hold on to my waist and follow every movement I make.”
Georgie did as she was bid and copied the way Max fixed his scarf. She wrapped her arms tightly around his waist.
“Ready?”
“Yes, ready.”
Her voice sounded muffled even to her own ears but Max must have heard. He moved them into position and she gave herself up to the warm sensations sweeping through her at the feel of his body wedged up against hers. The sledge gathered speed and even with the scarf she realised what he meant by breath-taking. She ducked so her face was sheltered by him.
Max seemed to anticipate every contour. He must know these hills well. She rolled with him when he veered from one side to another. She peeped out from behind him and could see they were gaining on Nat and Eliza. With Peter sandwiched between them they were less able to sway into the contours. She seemed to have gained a second wind and tried to look around but they were moving so fast everything was a blur of white and silver with the occasional splash of green, where a bush rose above the snowy wasteland. It was nearly as exciting as last night.
Thank goodness Max couldn’t read her thoughts, or heaven knew what he would have made of that. He seemed to take his prowess as a lover very seriously. A chuckle escaped her. Being married was rather liberating in some ways. She loved the way he had told her to enjoy it and forget all the strictures about how a young lady should behave. Perhaps he was right and it was all a hum to hide how wonderful being with a man could be.
Max glanced over his shoulder and she smiled at him. His answering smile froze.
“What the devil. Hold tight.” He swung the sledge sharply right.
Georgie could see Rollo careering towards them. He seemed to have taken a short cut down a steeper face of the hill. His sledge missed them by little more than a foot or two. She shouted a warning at Nat and Eliza as loudly as she could. She hung on to Max and copied his every move. They had avoided a collision but couldn’t keep on an even keel. Max slowed them down by continuing to steer across the slope and used his legs to try and slow them further. They came to a shuddering halt and toppled off the sledge into a snowdrift. She had somehow rolled a few feet away from Max.
She ignored the snow trickling down the back of her neck and struggled to pull herself to her knees. “Are they alright?”
Max was already staggering up. “Yes. Thank the Lord. Nat somehow pulled them aside out of the way like us, even though he had less notice. It was fortunate I looked around when I did. I hope Peter didn’t get squashed.”
She managed to stand and grabbed his hand.
“They don’t seem to be getting up. Come on.”
Chapter Thirteen
Max needed no second bidding and they scrambled and skidded downwards. Peter’s head poked out from a snowdrift. He reached him first and quickly loosened the rest of the snow around him and lifted him up. The little boy was crying loudly. Eliza and Nat were lying nearby. All the breath seemed to be forced out of Max’s lungs. He handed Peter to Georgie and bent down to them. Nat groaned and turned onto his back.
Nat tried to sit up. “Is Eliza breathing, Max?”
Max threw himself to the ground next to his sister. Her face was partially buried by snow. He let out a deep breath when he saw her hand move and quickly scraped the snow from her face.
“Eliza, speak to me.”
He was rewarded by a groan and Nat scrambled up to them.
“I’m still with you.” Eliza’s breath was coming in painful gasps. “Just winded.”
“Thank God for that.” Max left Nat to look after her and turned to Georgie who was trying to console Peter. “Peter, there’s no need to cry. Your Mama and Papa are safe.”
Georgie caught his eye and surprised him by grinning. “He’s not worried about them.”
Peter wriggled in Georgie’s arms and Max lifted him from her.
“It’s n-n-not fair, Uncle Max.” Peter ran his sleeve across his tearstained face. “Rollo cheated, we should have won.”
Max daren’t look at Georgie, whose shoulders were heaving. “Rollo will be disqualified. Now don’t you think you ought to go and look after your parents?”
They joined Nat and a still panting Eliza.
“We
managed to throw Peter free but didn’t have time to land properly,” Nat said. He was white-faced and a muscle twitched in one cheek. “When I get my hands on Rollo he won’t sit down for a week.”
Max put a hand on his shoulder. “It’s worse than a boyish prank, Nat. Rollo is seventeen and he should have more sense. He’s too wilful by half. I’ll have it out with Wakeley. This sort of behaviour needs to be taken in hand.” He ground his teeth. “If he doesn’t place serious sanctions on Rollo I’ll want to know the reason why. He could have killed all of us.”
Max looked down at his hands and saw they were shaking. His heart was beating a furious tattoo in his chest. “Come on. Let’s get back to the house.” He stepped towards Georgie and pulled her close. It was good to see she was calm in a crisis. His heartbeat slowed down as he held her. “Are you alright?”
“Yes. I didn’t have time to be worried for us but it was scary watching that sledge gaining on the others. I’m sorry I found Peter funny but at least he’s not upset by it.”
Max laughed. “The little scamp. I hope he doesn’t turn out as reckless as his cousin.”
“I don’t suppose he realised how close they were to disaster.”
He found Peter and hoisted him on to his shoulders. “We’ll take Peter, Nat.”
Eliza nodded her thanks and Nat put an arm around her shoulders.
“Thanks, Max. If you help me get Eliza onto the sledge I’ll take her straight back to the house.”
Max glanced up the hill. The younger two Fordham boys had stopped and were walking their sledge down the slope with great care. They had more sense than Rollo. He called out to the boys.
“Tim, your Aunt Eliza is badly winded and Nat is taking her straight back. Once they are down on the flatter ground can you follow and give him a hand.”
“Leave it to us, Uncle Max,” Tim called back.
Max waved in acknowledgement and turned to Georgie who had retrieved their sledge. “We’ll walk until the boys are down.”
He led the way down the slope, cutting across to reduce the angle of descent. He held on to Peter, who was singing to himself, with one arm and helped Georgie with the sledge with the other.
