by Dilly Court
A week had gone by and still Davy had not given Freddie an answer. It was early evening and Dolly had been tucked up in bed by Ada. Daisy had not yet returned from Bird Street, where she went daily to supervise the work of redecorating the house. At least, that was her excuse. Eliza suspected that she was meeting Brandon on the sly, but she kept her thoughts to herself. Millie had put Tommy to bed, and she said that he had been so tired that he had fallen asleep while she was reading him a bedtime story. Now everyone, except Daisy, had gathered for supper in the kitchen, as they did on these winter nights when the dining room was too cold to bear, and the chimney smoked, filling the air with smuts that floated down like black snowflakes.
Ada served them soup from a large iron saucepan on the range and hot bread from the oven. Freddie took his seat at the head of the table and Eliza sat at the opposite end, trying hard not to look at him for fear of giving away their secret. She felt that her face was set in a permanent smile and she was bursting to tell Millie, but Davy had taken a seat beside her and he looked anything but happy. Millie kept glancing at him with a worried frown puckering her brow, but she said nothing. Only Ada seemed impervious to the atmosphere in the room and she ladled soup into bowls, keeping up a constant flow of conversation and seemingly not bothered by the lack of response.
Eliza took a mouthful of vegetable broth, but she could hardly swallow. She nibbled a piece of bread and it almost choked her. Glancing at Freddie, she met his gaze and her heart did a somersault inside her chest. The look in his eyes sent thrills down her spine and she felt her cheeks burning as she stared down at her plate.
‘What are you grinning at, Liza?’ Davy demanded crossly. ‘I don’t know why you look so pleased with yourself.’
Millie laid her hand on his arm. ‘Leave her be, Davy.’
‘I – I wasn’t grinning,’ Eliza said, breaking her bread into tiny crumbs. ‘I mean …’ She sent a mute plea for help to Freddie.
He cleared his throat with a loud harrumph. ‘Davy. Have you – er – thought about my proposition?’
‘What’s this then?’ Ada had been about to take the saucepan into her room to feed the boys and Mary, who had stayed for supper, but she stopped, casting an enquiring look at Davy. ‘What’s going on, son?’
Davy shrugged his shoulders, chewing on a mouthful of bread, and frowning.
‘What is going on?’ Millie asked, looking from Freddie to Eliza. ‘And where is Daisy? Tommy was really upset that she wasn’t there to tuck him in.’
‘Well …’ Eliza began, but Freddie banged his spoon on the table.
‘I can see that it’s time to set things straight. If you’ll sit down for a moment, please, Ada. This concerns you as much as anyone else.’ Freddie rose to his feet. ‘Davy told me some days ago that he did not want to go back to sea, and I offered him a business partnership. I want to turn the top floor of this house into a sail loft and some of the ground floor rooms into a chandlery.’
‘Gawd’s strewth!’ Ada said, slopping soup from the pan and setting it back down on the range. ‘Whatever next?’
‘Oh, Davy. That’s wonderful,’ Millie cried, halfway between tears and laughter.
Davy held up his hand, frowning. ‘Hold on. I ain’t said I agree to it.’
‘But, son, you can’t turn down an opportunity like that.’ Ada clasped her hands together and her eyes sparkled. ‘It would be the answer to all our prayers. Me and the nippers could stay on here, and maybe Pete would give up his job at the brewery to come and help you make sails. It won’t matter so much then that your dad has taken up preaching and don’t earn a penny for it.’
‘And you need never go back to sea,’ Millie added. ‘We’d be a proper family: all of us together. You can’t turn down an offer like that.’
Davy turned to Eliza. ‘And what have you got to say about it, Liza? Say the word and I’ll stay and gladly accept Freddie’s offer.’
She knew that this was the time for complete honesty. Her feelings for Freddie were bubbling so close to the surface that Eliza felt she was about to explode. She rose to her feet and went to stand beside him, clutching his hand. ‘I would be more than happy if you said yes, Davy. You see, I’ve just said the same to Freddie. We’re going to be married.’
‘You’re what?’ Daisy’s voice cut through the stunned silence like a cheese wire slicing through cheddar. She had entered the kitchen unnoticed in the hubbub. ‘Say that again.’
Freddie slipped his arm around Eliza’s waist. ‘We weren’t going to tell you so soon, but seeing as how the truth has come out, yes, I’ve asked Eliza to marry me and she’s made me the happiest man in London. No, the happiest man in the whole world.’
‘The truth is,’ Eliza said, smiling, ‘I asked him.’
‘You cunning little bitch,’ Daisy hissed through clenched teeth. ‘You got me out of the way so that you could make up to my man. Well, I’m telling you, sister-in-law, that I’m not having it. You can’t push me out of me own home and you can’t take Freddie away from me.’
‘That’s not fair, Daisy. You was making eyes at Brandon and suggestions that would make a doxy blush, and you’ve got the house in Bird Street. What more do you want?’’
‘You planned it that way. You was set on getting Freddie right from the start.’ Daisy moved so quickly across the floor that she seemed to be on wheels. She clawed her fingers at Eliza’s face and would have torn her flesh if Freddie had not seen it coming and caught her by the wrist.
‘That’s enough of that, Daisy. I never made you any promises.’
‘Oh dear,’ Millie said, covering her mouth with her hands.
Davy helped her to her feet. ‘Come on, love. Let’s leave them to it. I got a bad taste in me mouth.’
‘Son, don’t go,’ Ada cried, catching him by the sleeve. ‘Give Freddie his answer, I’m begging you. For all our sakes.’
Millie sent him a beseeching look. ‘Please say you’ll stay. I – I need you.’
He frowned. ‘I’m glad someone does.’
‘What’s going on?’ Daisy demanded, stamping her foot. ‘Bleeding hell, I’ve only been out of the house for a couple of hours and everything’s changed.’
‘The business proposition stands,’ Freddie said, holding out his hand. ‘Shall we shake on it?’
‘Please, Davy,’ Eliza said. ‘Please do. We all need you, and we care about you. We all want you to stay.’
‘Well, I don’t bloody care,’ Daisy said, tugging at the strings of her bonnet and wrenching it off her head. She flung it at Freddie. ‘Will you tell me or do I have to scream?’
‘Don’t scream, for Gawd’s sake,’ Davy pleaded with a glimmer of humour lighting his eyes. He took Freddie’s hand and shook it. ‘I accept.’
Daisy opened her mouth and uttered a loud screech.
‘All right,’ Freddie said hastily. ‘With my backing, Davy is going to set up business here, in this house.’
‘Oh!’ Daisy frowned. ‘Well that don’t concern me. In fact, none of this concerns me one little bit. She can have you for all I care, Freddie Prince. I never really wanted you anyway, and I’ll be taking up residence in my own house in Bird Street as soon as possible. I’ll be taking all me furniture, of course.’
‘Naturally,’ Freddie said agreeably.
‘And I’ll be taking Sukey with me too.’ Daisy glared at each of them in turn, as if daring them to disagree.
Eliza tried not to look too pleased. She would be more than happy to see the back of lazy, sullen Sukey. ‘Of course,’ she said, nodding in agreement.
Daisy eyed her suspiciously. ‘And you’ll manage the chandlery until Tommy is old enough to take over? Like Aaron said?’
‘I’ll help you choose the stock. But you’ll have to find someone else to run the shop. I’m going to be busy here.’
‘What? But that will cost money.’ Daisy frowned, and then she smiled and tossed her head. ‘Well, see if I care. Brandon will give me all the help I need.’ She glanced at
the clock on the wall and her smile faded. ‘Oh, lawks! He’ll be here any minute and I got to get myself dolled up for a night on the town. He’s taking me to a place called the Ship and Turtle. He says their turtle soup is famous and even rich people go there to sample it.’ She flounced across the room, pausing in the doorway. ‘And don’t wait up for me.’
‘Wait,’ Millie called out anxiously. ‘I promised Tommy you would go to the nursery and kiss him goodnight.’
‘He’ll be asleep by now. I’ll see him in the morning. Tell him Mama loves him.’ Daisy left the room with a careless wave of her hand.
‘Let’s hope the kid believes you,’ Davy said grimly.
Daisy popped her head round the door. ‘I heard that, Davy Little.’ She pointed her finger at Ada. ‘You. Send Sukey to me right away.’
‘Yes’m.’ Glowering, Ada picked up the saucepan and stomped out of the kitchen in the direction of the old servants’ hall.
‘Oh, I nearly forgot,’ Daisy said, baring her teeth in a smile. ‘Congratulations, Eliza. He says he’ll marry you, but I’d keep me legs crossed until I got the ring on me finger, if I was you.’
She closed the door just as Millie pitched a hunk of bread at her, missing her by a fraction of an inch. ‘Bitch. Take no notice of her, Liza. She’s just a jealous cow.’
‘I need some air,’ Davy said, making a move towards the door.
‘I’ll come with you.’ Millie slipped her hand through the crook of his arm. ‘We’ll leave the lovebirds to themselves.’
Davy stared at her for a moment and then he nodded. ‘All right, but I was thinking of going to the pub.’
‘No matter. I’ll go with you.’
‘We might get preached at by my dad.’
‘I’m a big girl now, Davy. In case you hadn’t noticed.’
Eliza held her breath, willing Davy to see Millie for what she was: a loving, sweet-natured girl on the brink of womanhood, who would stand by him no matter what difficulties life had in store for them.
There was a stillness about Davy as he looked into Millie’s upturned face and his stern expression melted into a smile. ‘You’ll need to wrap up warm then, girl. It’s bitter outside. Perhaps we’ll go for a walk along the river first. I’ve a fancy to say goodbye to the old ship, seeing as how I won’t be sailing on her ever again.’
‘I’d like that, Davy.’
As they left the room, Millie glanced over her shoulder, meeting Eliza’s gaze with a wink and a smile.
The door closed on them and Freddie jerked Eliza into his arms, claiming her mouth with a kiss. She wrapped her arms around his neck, luxuriating in the sweet sensations that flowed to the core of her being. She had waited so long for Freddie and now it was official, he had told everyone that they were going to be married. She hardly dared to open her eyes in case she discovered that it was all a dream. If it was, then she did not want to wake up.
‘I love you, Liza,’ Freddie said, kissing her eyelids, the tips of her nose and brushing her lips with a teasing caress. ‘Will you do me the honour of becoming my wife?’
Eliza opened her eyes wide. ‘You said you wouldn’t propose until you’d got me a ring.’
He slipped his hand into his waistcoat pocket and drew out a small box covered in shagreen. ‘And I have, my darling. I had to guess at the size, but we can always change it if it doesn’t fit or if you don’t like diamonds.’
She opened the box and let out a gasp of delight. ‘It’s beautiful, Freddie.’
He took it from its velvet bed. ‘Will you marry me, Eliza?’
‘Oh, yes. But I don’t want to wait another six years for you.’
‘There’s no question of that, my darling.’ Freddie slipped the ring on her finger and scooped her up in his arms. ‘I’ll get a special licence tomorrow.’ He opened the door with the toe of his boot and strode through the narrow corridors to the entrance hall.
‘Freddie,’ Eliza said, giggling, as he mounted the stairs. ‘What are you thinking of?’
‘Of making love to you, Eliza, my dearest. All night long.’
She nuzzled his neck, closing her eyes; dizzy with the scent of him. ‘And I thought you were going to be a gentleman.’
‘Not tonight, my love. Tonight, and for always, you’re mine.’
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Copyright © Dilly Court 2007
Dilly Court has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this work
This novel is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental
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