Penelope took a deep breath, biting at her lower lip and using that pain to centre herself. Ruby’s hand shifted underneath hers, allowing Penelope to thread their fingers.
“But by drawing away, I’m denying myself happiness, I’m letting her win. And that’s the last thing I want.” Her lips twisted. “I’m too spiteful and petty for that.”
Her words startled a short laugh from Ruby, and the sound was so beautiful that Penelope pulled her other hand free so she could brush her fingers along Ruby’s lips.
“So, I’m sorry,” she said as she cupped Ruby’s jaw. “I’m sorry for pushing you away when you’re suffering and just looking for some happy memories before things turn dark. And I’m sorry for denying myself exactly the same thing.”
Penelope knew that, in a year’s time, she and Ruby would be married to men that they didn’t love, and that they would be expected to be obedient and dutiful wives. And neither of them was in a position to fight it.
This voyage was their chance of happiness. And Penelope hated herself a little for trying to take that away from them.
Her lips spread into a wide smile. “But what I do know is that we have another three days left on this voyage, and, if you’re up for it, we can make them the most wonderful days we’ll ever experience in our lives.”
Ruby was silent as she stared back at Penelope through the mirror. Her lips had tugged into a small hint of a smile, which eased Penelope’s nerves—at least it meant she wasn’t so furious she had decided to hate her rather than forgive her.
As worry started to rise in Penelope’s chest, working its way up from her stomach like bile, Ruby’s lips finally caved and a full smile lit up her entire face.
“I rather like the sound of that,” she declared, voice soft as she stood, hair still unfinished, and turned to face Penelope.
They moved slowly as they inched closer and closer until their lips were pressed together.
Penelope’s hand slid from Ruby’s jaw to cup the back of her neck, fingers winding through the hair she had yet to pin up. She used the touch to bring Ruby’s face closer and to tilt it to just the right angle so that she could part her lips with her tongue.
When they broke apart, both were panting, their cheeks flushed a pretty pink.
“So much for the talk happening after church.” Ruby snorted.
Penelope grinned. “Then why don’t we come back here after and find something else to pass the time?” Her brows rose as her hands inched down over Ruby’s shoulders and chest.
Ruby gnawed on her lower lip as her expression turned bashful. She turned her gaze away and cleared her throat. “I’m afraid I told my sister that I’d help her with Julia and Liam after breakfast.”
Penelope pouted. As much as she loved spending time with the younger members of the Cole family, she would much prefer having Ruby to herself, locked in their room, so that she could show her just how much fun she had planned for the next three days.
Ruby giggled, bopping her finger off Penelope’s nose before pressing a fleeting kiss there. “Still adorable.” She then turned and sat back down, and Penelope distracted herself from her lustful thoughts by finishing Ruby’s hair.
Chapter Fifteen
When Penelope and Ruby stepped into the dining room that night, both of them immediately drew to a halt as they found their respective families.
Sitting together.
The dining room was always bright, whether from the natural light that came in through the portholes during the day or the beautiful lighting fixtures during the evening.
Everything was panelled with oak, and the Second Class dining room had rows of long, rectangular tables with mahogany chairs upholstered in red leather bolted to the floor. It meant that, depending on what time you dined, you would usually be surrounded by strangers.
Thankfully for Penelope, no one had tried talking to her, and she had managed to make it through the four days aboard without many problems. Until now.
Frank and Victoria, dressed in fine clothing, sat on one side of the table, whilst Penelope’s mother and father were seated directly across from them. The children were no doubt already abed, and the lack of responsibility enlivened both Frank and Victoria more than Penelope had ever seen. Their smiles were wide, their gestures jovial. Penelope could almost feel the ease and relaxation rolling off them.
“Why are my parents sitting with your sister and brother-in-law?” Penelope asked.
“I have no idea,” Ruby said, making Penelope groan. “It can’t be that bad, can it?”
“You do not know my parents.”
Penelope heaved a sigh, which quickly turned to a groan as Ruby declared, “Well, after tonight I will.” Ruby took off first, Penelope trailing behind her as she tried to steel her nerves. She hoped her parents wouldn’t say anything that would cause issues with Ruby’s family.
Just as they approached the table, their small group burst into laughter. Penelope and Ruby shared a look.
“This is new,” Ruby said by way of greeting, leaning down to press kisses to Victoria’s and Frank’s cheeks.
Penelope mirrored the greeting with her parents, taking the vacant seat beside her mother as Ruby slid into the one beside her sister. They were diagonally across from each other, still close enough that Penelope could shoot worried looks at Ruby.
“After Miss Cole spoke to us last night about your sick spell, Penelope, I met Mr. Cameron—” Penelope’s father began.
“Call me Frank, please.”
Penelope’s father nodded. “I met Frank in the smoking room after dinner. We struck up a conversation, during which he mentioned a Miss Fletcher and then informed me that he had already met you, Penelope.”
“And when we arrived at the dining room around the same time, we decided that we might as well sit and get to know each other,” Frank finished as he took a sip of his wine.
“We can’t have you two being the only ones who made friends during the voyage,” Victoria added with a twinkle in her eyes as she turned her head slightly to shoot her sister a look.
Ruby bowed her head as some colour started to flood her cheeks. Penelope looked at the sisters, her head cocked to the side in curiosity.
Does she know? she wanted to ask, even though she knew she couldn’t. Not now, anyway. She would have to file that away for later.
“Shall we order?” her father asked, pulling her from her thoughts. She offered him a smile and nodded as she accepted the menu for a quick glance-over.
“So, where in Ireland are you from?” her father asked. Penelope closed her eyes and let out a long sigh. Politics was always a tricky subject, and she knew that things were tense between Ireland and Britain. To some it could be seen as an innocent question, and perhaps it was, but Penelope didn’t want Frank to think that her father was trying to see where he stood on Home Rule in Ireland.
“Londonderry,” Frank replied easily. “Victoria and her family hail from Belfast, though.”
As her father opened his mouth to reply, Penelope cut in, “Mr. Cole is valet to a duke. I believe he joins his family later, after getting His Grace settled.”
Her eyes met Ruby’s across the table, imploring her to help steer the conversation away from the dangerous territory it had sailed into. Penelope didn’t want a single whiff of politics getting near their table.
“Yes. He shouldn’t be long.” Ruby turned her smile on Penelope’s father. “I daresay you shall get along swimmingly, Mr. Fletcher.”
Penelope held her breath, worrying that her father would make some comment about not having anything in common with someone in service. She was pleasantly surprised when he merely laughed and said, “Knowing that he has raised such fine daughters as you and your sister and chosen such a stable husband for Victoria, I daresay we will.”
Penelope’s breath gushed out in a long, steady stream. She r
eached for her recently filled glass of wine and took a sip. Perhaps this won’t be as painful as I originally thought.
“Not only that, but my father was born in Glasgow and moved to Belfast when he was three,” Ruby said.
“You don’t say! Such a small world, isn’t it? Have you ever been to Scotland?”
“Sadly not. The family we had there are gone, and Daddy’s job makes it difficult to find time to go. I do hope to go one day.” Ruby’s eyes darted briefly to Penelope before they danced away.
“Are the children asleep?” Penelope asked Victoria.
“Yes. They had their dinner earlier and were out cold before we left.” Victoria’s hand moved to her stomach, which was much more obvious now that she was sitting down. “If only this little one would do the same.”
Penelope was aware of Frank and her father continuing to talk, but at the mention of the “little one,” her mother’s head spun around to face Victoria. “When are you due?”
“Not for another two months yet. He doesn’t stop kicking, and I had forgotten what the back pain was like.” Victoria snorted as Penelope hid her grimace by taking a drink of her wine. As much as she loved children, pregnancy seemed to be a whole can of worms she didn’t want to deal with.
Her mother leaned a little over the table, dropping her voice to a whisper as she said, “Have you had Frank lift your bump? Samuel did that for me all the time when I was pregnant with Penelope. Just taking that weight off you is a huge help.”
Victoria’s eyes brightened at the suggestion, her gaze flickering to her husband, who was still talking to Penelope’s father—and now to Ruby as well, it seemed. She nodded. “I’ll give it a try. Thank you, Mrs. Fletcher.”
Penelope’s mother waved her hand. “Oh, please, call me Rosina.”
Penelope’s eyes widened. She had never once witnessed her mother give someone around her own age permission to be so familiar. She was thankfully saved from anyone noticing her look when another gentleman came over to them.
He wore a black suit, fitting for a valet, and his hair was grey, parted to one side and starting to thin at the crown. He had a cheerful smile and a sparkle in his eyes as he leaned down to kiss both Victoria’s and Ruby’s cheeks, and Penelope could only assume that this was their father.
“Ah, we have company for a change! This is what I like to see,” he said as he took the seat beside Frank which had obviously been left empty for him. His eyes flickered over the Fletcher family before settling on Penelope’s father. “Mr. Lewis Cole, at your service. Please, call me Lewis.”
“Mr. Samuel Fletcher, this is my wife, Rosina and my daughter, Penelope, who is sharing a room with your daughter.”
As her father spoke, Penelope watched as Mr. Cole’s face lit up, a slow, steady smile appearing on his face. “By God, how I’ve missed that sound. Reminds me of my father.”
Then two waiters arrived, carrying several bowls for their starters. Someone must have ordered for Mr. Cole as well, since he, too, had a bowl placed in front of him.
The conversation seemed to dim just a little, with everyone too focused on their food to do more than chat idly. Yet Penelope continued to watch in amazement as her father joked and laughed with Mr. Cole as the night went on and their glasses were refilled.
Mr. Cole’s work as a valet to a duke inevitably arose, and they learned that while the title was English, the duke himself was Irish. He was a distance relative of the previous duke who had left no issue when he died. Mr. Cole was certain it was his Irishness that landed him the job.
“Working in the house of a duke must be…incredible. Does he have any particular interests?” Penelope’s father asked.
“Oh, a great many! His Grace can be a little eccentric at times. You’d never believe the things I’ve had to organise for him. Sometimes I swear the butler thinks I’m making it up until something arrives. I think he’s just learnt to accept whatever I say as truth now! Once, His Grace ordered a painting. All he told me was that it was a big one, so to let the butler know. I did that, and we made arrangements for its arrival… We were expecting something perhaps this size—” Mr. Cole held his arm up until it hovered above his head. “Then the blasted thing arrived, and it was so big, it wouldn’t even fit through the door! In the end, His Grace built an outbuilding specifically for the piece.” He snorted as he took a small sip from his wine. “He was the first in the area to get his house fitted with electricity, and the first to buy an automobile, even though he rarely uses it. His favourite thing, however, is animals.”
“Animals? Like dogs and cats?” Penelope enquired, finding herself just that little bit confused that, having so much money and ability, the duke’s greatest interest lay in pets. Not that she could blame him—she had rather loved having Poppy around and missed the dog every day—she had just expected something more extravagant.
“I wish that were the case,” Ruby replied with a discreet roll of her eyes.
“No, no, nothing like that. His Grace prefers exotic animals. He has his own little menagerie on his estate, something he takes great pride in.” Mr. Cole’s brows furrowed. “What is there, again?”
“Daddy never goes there; the animals scare him,” Ruby offered in explanation as she sent her father a teasing grin.
“Well, can you blame me? I’ve heard too many stories of maulings. I’m not running the risk of that happening to me.”
“His Grace’s animals have never mauled anyone,” Ruby clarified, seeing the shock on the Fletcher family’s faces. “From what I remember, he has a cheetah, two parrots, an eagle…”
“Don’t forget the wallabies, the three small monkeys, and the venomous snake that he boasts about,” Victoria added.
“And that zebra he insists he will race in the Derby one day,” Frank concluded with a snort as he drained his whiskey.
Silence washed over them as Penelope blinked at the Coles, almost hoping they’d declare it a joke. “Why?” was all she was able to say, and Ruby shrugged a shoulder with a wry grin on her lips.
Her father cleared his throat once before he dissolved into a fit of giggles, raising his fist to his mouth in a futile attempt to smother them. It didn’t work, however, and instead his mirth seemed to infect the lot of them until they were all laughing away, no doubt imagining the duke surrounded by his bizarre “pets”.
“The next thing he wants,” Mr. Cole stated in between his giggles, “is a giraffe!”
Hearing that just renewed their humour, and Penelope felt her ribs begin to ache, growing sore from the non-stop laughter. She dabbed the tears of mirth with her fingers, and her eyes met Ruby’s across the table, feeling her heart leap. Their families were not only being civil to each other, they were laughing loudly and freely together.
Penelope was almost a little saddened when the men then made their excuses and retreated to the smoking room, followed quickly by both Victoria and Penelope’s mother, who retreated to their cabins for they were both feeling tired.
It took Penelope several moments to replay the events in her mind, and when she had, she couldn’t seem to help herself. She started to laugh once again. Slowly at first, the odd giggle broke free until she was choking down air and people were staring at her.
But all that mattered was that Ruby was laughing with her, until a steward came up to make sure they were all right, and they quickly vacated the dining room.
“I can’t believe that went well,” Ruby said between giggles as they made their way towards the stairs.
“I can’t believe the duke is a havering fool!” Penelope retorted, just as Ruby headed for the staircase to E Deck. She reached for her hand, drawing her to a halt. “Where are you going?”
Ruby raised an eyebrow. “Our room?”
“What about our party?” Penelope’s eyes flickered to the staircase that led upwards, where the Third Class General Room was located, and wher
e the party was no doubt already in full swing.
Ruby bit her lower lip, no doubt in an attempt to smother her desire to grin. She reached for Penelope’s hand, squeezing it tightly. “Are you certain?” Her eyes, despite brimming with excitement, bored into Penelope’s with determination. “Don’t do this just to make me happy. If you’re not comfortable with it—”
“I mean it.” Penelope squeezed her hands in return. “I… I won’t pretend I’m not still a little terrified at being caught, but I also know that it was great fun, and I want to experience that with you again. Not only did I promise you happy memories, I promised myself.”
She tugged at Ruby’s hand, drawing her closer to the stairs to the upper level. “Now, come on!”
Ruby needed no further encouragement, and the two hastily scrambled up the steps, hands still firmly joined.
As they walked, Penelope remembered an earlier thought. “So… Does Victoria know…?” Even though there was no one else in the corridor, she didn’t want to say anything incriminating aloud just in case.
“Yes,” Ruby replied with no hesitation. “She’s my best friend, even though we fight like enemies sometimes. But whenever I need to talk things over, she’s who I turn to, and that was no different. I told her about my feelings—mostly to see if she felt something similar. She admitted she had, but she also felt the same way for men, whereas I didn’t have that. Never once did she try and talk me out of it or act like it was some great sin. She just accepted me and always listens whenever I start to fancy someone new.”
Penelope’s eyes narrowed a little. “Did you talk to her about me? Before you asked about Caroline?”
A pretty flush spread across Ruby’s cheeks. “I did. I went to her with all my evidence, and she told me to stop being a coward and just ask you, since my instincts are pretty good.”
The Breath Between Waves Page 10
