Sweet Surrender

by Wendy May Andrews

  If they were that conscientious of the cleaning, she anticipated that the cooking would be spectacular as well. This thought brought an embarrassing growl to her stomach. Odelia struggled to suppress her giggles.

  The expanse of the house made both girls feel an urge to whisper, as though they were on hallowed grounds. “Do you think we’ll ever be able to figure out our way around?” Odelia whispered to her aunt.

  Overhearing, the footman answered. “You need not fear getting lost, my lady. Despite the size of the place, it is fairly well organized. And there are plenty of footmen about who will be happy to direct you, should you need a little assistance.”

  Odelia flushed in embarrassment that he had overheard and she had to struggle against another gurgling giggle wanting to escape her lips. Julianna frowned at her momentarily before returning to gazing about in admiration of the grandeur of Yorkleigh.

  The trio arrived at the end of the hall, and the footman stopped in front of their door, holding it open for them. After he put down the things he had been carrying, he stepped out of the room and took up a position down the hall, waiting for them to be ready to be escorted back.

  It was obvious why their rooms had been called the Rose Suite. The walls had been papered with roses in varying shades of pink and burgundy. Thankfully it was muted so it was not overwhelming. The rooms were large and elegant, in keeping with the rest of the house. As the girls looked around, it was obvious they would be comfortable here.

  “We should probably try to hurry. We can decide later who will take which room. I don’t really care which one, so you can pick if you would like. Right at the moment, I wish I could crawl into that bed, though; it looks so inviting and I feel a little worn from the drive.” Julianna suited her words to action and quickly took off her outerwear.

  “I know what you mean, but I am far too anxious to see more of this place. Besides, I am starving. Do you know which bag has our combs? My hair looks like birds tried to make a nest.”

  Julianna laughed at Odelia’s description but reassured her. “It does not look nearly that bad.” She quickly rustled around and found what they were looking for.

  The two ladies soon had their hair, faces, and clothing set to rights and hastened to re-join the footman in the hallway.

  “We didn’t catch your name,” Julianna said with kindness to the waiting servant as they left their room.

  The young man blushed at this attention. “I am John, milady.”

  “Well, thank you, John, for showing us the way and waiting for us. ”

  “It is my pleasure to show you around and ensure you have a comfortable visit while you are here at Yorkleigh. Normally Lady Yorkleigh would show guests around herself, but since so many have arrived, it is impossible for her to be everywhere at once, although she does give it her best effort most of the time.” John grinned, obvious pride and affection for his mistress shining through in his voice. He continued with a serious tone. “She has given me a great honour to share her duties with me. I will do my best to live up to her trust.”

  Admiring the devotion the countess had inspired in her servants, the Montgomery ladies had little to add.

  “This is the guest wing of the house. There are several guest rooms on this floor and more on the floor above this.”

  As they continued walking, John pointed out other aspects of the house. “Down that hallway is the family wing. The earl and countess have had the nursery moved down here so they are closer to the baby. It shall be particularly convenient when there are more children to care for.”

  He made no mention of the rumoured kidnapping. Odelia was itching to ask him but seeing Julianna’s eye on her she restrained herself.

  As they descended the stairs, John continued his instructions. “I am taking you now to a receiving room where the guests are gathering before the countess leads you into the dining room. You were quick enough that you will be able to join the group there. In the morning, you can either request a tray be brought to your room or you can come down and help yourself to breakfast, which shall be set out in the dining room. Guests will no doubt be gathering in various rooms throughout the morning. There are several receiving rooms here at the front of the house that will be available for guests to use. You are to make yourselves comfortable and have free use of whatever you find. Please give instructions to your maid as to your breakfast preferences.”

  By this time they had arrived near an open door. John stopped, and the ladies could hear the burble of conversations. Both ladies felt the flutter of nerves in their stomachs but hid it well.

  “Thank you, John, for the escort and the information. We should be able to find our way around a little bit now. You were most helpful.” Julianna smiled at the footman as he stood at attention.

  “Enjoy your evening, ladies,” he answered as he bowed respectfully then hurried away to fulfill his other duties.

  Chapter 23

  Each taking a deep breath, the Montgomery ladies stepped into the room, momentarily causing a lull in the conversations taking place amongst the waiting guests.

  Smiling pleasantly, Julianna looked around the room to see if there were any familiar faces. “Hello,” she said to the room at large.

  A handsome man, several years her senior, stepped forward to greet them.

  “Welcome, ladies. I apologize that I was not there to greet you at the door. I am Philip, the earl of this pile of stones. It is a pleasure to have you join our little party.” He spoke so kindly and with such self-deprecating humour that both girls were quickly put at their ease.

  Coming up from a deep, respectful curtsy, Julianna replied, “Thank you so much for your kind invitation. We are looking forward to being here for a few days. What we have seen so far shows you have a lovely home.”

  The earl quirked an eyebrow. “The footman who escorted you must have chosen his path very carefully.” With an amused smile he continued, “You two must be the Earl of Somerton’s sister and daughter. I knew Hartford when we were boys but have never had the pleasure of meeting either of you.”

  Julianna and Odelia dipped into curtsies once again at this introduction but he quickly interrupted.

  “Please, ladies, we are being casual this evening. Now let me introduce you to whoever you may not know.”

  Julianna and Odelia again looked around the room, more carefully this time, before smiling sweetly at an older couple standing together off to their left. Seeing where they were looking, the earl stepped forward to perform the necessary introductions. Ignoring official protocol, out of deference for the couple’s advanced age, he introduced them first.

  “Lady Sheasby, Lord Sheasby, might I have the privilege of introducing Ladies Julianna and Odelia Montgomery? You might have known Lady Julianna’s parents. Lord Montgomery was the fourth Earl of Somerton. Odelia’s father is the fifth earl.” Philip smiled kindly at his four guests while Lady Sheasby blinked for a moment before stepping forward and grasping Julianna’s hands.

  “It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Julianna. I knew your mother fairly well for most of her life. She was good friends with our oldest daughter. I was so sorry to hear about your loss. I know it has been several years, but you no doubt continue to feel it sharply. Losing your mother so young is always a tragedy.”

  Julianna blinked away sudden tears. “Thank you, my lady. I do, of course, feel the loss always. They were much too young to die. It is a pleasure to meet you. Where do you and Lord Sheasby call home?”

  Continuing to smile warmly, Lady Sheasby’s eyes began to twinkle at the question. “You got your mother’s gift for conversation, my dear. You must know that the seat of my lord’s viscountcy is in Yorkshire, but it was an excellent question. While we visit the estate there a couple of times a year we much prefer a small estate closer to London called Hamptonshire. It has always appealed to us, and it is where we raised our children. So we have let our oldest son take over the Yorkshire estate since he came of age.”

  Turning to Odel
ia the older woman asked, “How are you enjoying your first Season, my dear? You must be terribly popular.”

  Odelia laughed with delight at this gentle flattery. “I am having a grand time in London, my lady, thank you for asking. Everyone has been exceedingly kind thus far and I am having so much fun.”

  Turning to her husband, Lady Sheasby grinned. “Oh to be so young again.”

  With a matching twinkle in his eye, Lord Sheasby answered. “Nay, my lady. If you were allowed to be so young again, you would probably choose to marry that upstart Earl of Trent and then where would our children and I be?”

  Laughing, Lady Sheasby took a playful swat at her husband. “Get on with you, my lord. I would not change a thing, and well you know it. Now let us find a chair to sit upon while we wait for dinner to be announced.”

  “It was a pleasure to meet you. We look forward to getting to know you better during our stay,” Julianna, ever gracious, took Lady Sheasby’s arm and assisted her to a chair.

  A couple of moments later the countess entered the room and the butler announced that dinner would be served. Since most of the guests had travelled that day, they were all quite hungry and conversation was somewhat subdued for a time. The countess had planned the menu to be fairly light for this first day since most had had very little activity. A couple of the younger gentlemen had ridden and were thus hungrier than the rest, but their generous hostess had planned sufficiently to satisfy all. Despite the multiple courses, the meal passed quite quickly and uneventfully and soon the guests adjourned to the one of the salons to play a few games before retiring early.

  Lord and Lady Sheasby excused themselves right after the meal ended. “Thank you, Lady Yorkleigh, for a lovely dinner. We must retire and recover our strength in order to be equal to whichever activities you have planned for the morrow.”

  Emily escorted her most elderly guests to their room before returning and directing the rest in some fun entertainment for the evening.

  A table was set up for the enjoyment of the more serious gamers who would feel lost without their cards, while those looking for some light fun played a game of Shades. The assembled guests were amused by her antics as Odelia was chosen to start first. The earl was seated with a candle in front of him while Odelia had to trace his shadowed profile.

  Blushing rosily at all the laughter, Odelia could not help herself from joining in.

  “My art instructor would probably have an apoplexy if he were to see my skills being used in such a manner. I must say, my lord, I am not flattering you at this moment.” She giggled as she tried to finish the drawing as quickly as possible.

  “It would take a great deal of skill to flatter this face, my dear. Do not let it bother you. I am looking forward to seeing what is causing all the laughter, I must say.” Lord Yorkleigh was kind to his young guest as he sat patiently, enduring the heat the close candle cast.

  “It is the angle of the candle light, my lord,” Odelia excused. “It is the least flattering shadow possible.” Continuing to giggle, she finished tracing his shadow with a little flourish that drew a smattering of applause from the group watching.

  “Well done, Odelia. I can see the resemblance,” complimented Lady Yorkleigh with a laugh as she approached her husband while he surveyed his “portrait.”

  “I believe turnabout is fair play, Lady Odelia. I think it is my turn to draw you,” the Earl declared much to the amusement of the other guests.

  The look Odelia cast at her aunt was one of light beseeching, but she was a good enough sport to take the earl’s place on the chair despite the unflattering shadow she had described. She was a sufficiently confident young woman to endure the laughter now being directed at her.

  Julianna watched with approval as the younger girl displayed her best behaviour, glad that her niece was having fun.

  After a few people had taken turns being the shadow caster or the artist, the countess proposed a rhyming game to be played. More laughter ensued as each player tried to out-do the previous one with more and more obscure rhymes. Of course, as the evening progressed the young gentlemen participating brought in some ribald words, causing the ladies to blush, and Lady Yorkleigh called a halt.

  The butler and footmen had served port and sherry as well as a selection of cheese, fruit, and pastries throughout the evening so all the guests were well fed and relaxed as they all bade a good night to each other and returned to their rooms. Keeping country hours, it was a much earlier bedtime than most were used to in Town, but it had been a long day of travelling and most did not object.

  The earl stayed up with some of the younger gentlemen who wished to continue with some card games and their port, while the countess saw to getting everyone else settled for the night.

  Early the next morning, Julianna heard soft rustling and opened her eyes. Her drapes had already been thrown open and through them she could see that the sun looked to be doing its best to shine through and warm up the day. Smiling at the maid who was making an effort to be quiet, Julianna sat up and put her legs over the edge of the high bed.

  “Good morning, Maizy. How are you on this fine day?”

  Surprised, the young maid whirled to face her mistress. “Oh milady, did I wake you? I am so sorry! I was trying ever so hard to be quiet.”

  “Do not distress yourself. I am ready to be up. I would love to have something to eat soon, so I think it was my stomach that woke me up, not you.” Julianna suited her words to action and hopped down from the bed, not bothering to take advantage of the little stairs provided to make access to the tall bed easier.

  “Is this not one of the loveliest rooms you have ever seen, Maizy?” Julianna asked with a touch of awe as she gazed about, admiring the pretty room in the morning light.

  “Nothing can be lovelier than Somerton, milady,” the maid answered with full loyalty. “But I will admit that it is quite pretty,” she continued grudgingly.

  Julianna couldn’t help laughing at the display of pride. “Thank you for your loyalty to our family’s home, but it is perfectly fine to admire other places.” Changing the subject she asked, “Do you know if Odelia is awake yet? I would love to run down to breakfast, but I wouldn’t want to leave her to come down by herself on the first day.”

  “I’ll go check, milady. In the meantime, hot water was just delivered for your washing up. Mind you be careful, it’s quite hot still,” the maid cautioned as she hurried through the dressing room to check on Odelia.

  Maizy came back into the room a few minutes later. “Milady, Lady Dee says she’s far too tired to go downstairs. She wants me to get her a tray from the kitchen a little later. You might as well go down and break your fast now since you’re almost ready. You can come back later and check on her. There’s no need for you to wait around here since she’s likely to go back to sleep. I’ll be around so Lady Odelia won’t be alone.”

  “Thank you, Maizy. You are right. She’ll be fine, and I really am rather ravenous. Who knows how long Dee will be? She has never been a morning person.” Julianna smiled fondly, thinking about her niece. She then hurried to get dressed and allowed the maid to tie her hair up into a becoming style.

  “You look so pretty, milady,” the maid complimented, looking at her charge in the mirror.

  “You are a flatterer, Maizy, but thank you. I need a confidence boost to go down by myself. Everyone was lovely and kind last night, but it is still a bit strange to be eating breakfast with people I barely know.”

  “You will be just fine. Don’t worry,” the maid soothed. At that moment Julianna’s stomach rumbled causing Maizy and Julianna both to erupt in giggles. “You had better hurry, milady.”

  “See you later.” Julianna left the room, still smiling. She hurried along the hall and down the stairs, turning toward the dining room. She was just about to step through the door when a low, rumbling voice caused her to check her forward momentum.

  “It’s good to see you, Philip. Thank you for allowing me to come.”

&n
bsp; What is Lord Ackerley doing here? Julianna worried, gnawing on her lip with indecision, wishing she could retreat to her room. The countess had mentioned last night that not all the guests had yet arrived, but she had not said the names of who was still expected. What were the chances of us all being invited to the same house party? she wondered. It will be impossible to avoid him in such close confines amongst such a small group of people!

  While Julianna dithered in the hallway, more people were coming, forcing her to decide quickly. Setting her chin at a determined angle, Julianna forced her reluctant feet forward. Taking a deep, fortifying breath, she stepped into the room.

  Seeing a few gentlemen already present and making as though to rise, Julianna quickly excused them. “Please do not rise on my account. Enjoy your breakfast. Good morning, everyone.” She airily greeted the room at large while making her way to the sideboard.

  Her nerves had caused her appetite to flee, but she randomly filled her plate with food anyway. While she was serving herself, other guests arrived and there was a new buzz of conversation.

  Turning back to the table, Julianna avoided making eye contact with the viscount who had entered the room while she was filling her plate. She was happy to see several empty places and allowed a footman to hold a chair for her next to the Dowager Countess of Yorkleigh. Julianna had enjoyed meeting the earl’s mother the previous evening.

  “Good morning, my lady, did you sleep well?”

  “Oh yes, my dear, thank you. I always sleep well when I come home to Yorkleigh.”

  “Do you miss living here?” Julianna asked politely.

  “Rarely. I love my home at Rosemount. It is much more to my taste as an old lady. I would not want to have to deal with the upkeep for this place. But I do love coming to stay with my son and his lovely wife, especially now that the next generation is coming around. Grandchildren are such a delight.”