A Cotillion Country Christmas

by Carolynn Carey

  Clara continued to stare at the items with fascination. “I have never seen anything quite so lovely.” She turned to the governess. “Are these bedclothes? They are certainly not anything that could be worn out in society.”

  “Yes, my lady, they are very fine silk nightgowns. I have heard other ladies say that they sleep much better in the soft material as compared with cotton nightwear.” Nellie had moved a few paces away to study something in another window. Mrs. Copley leaned closer to Clara and whispered, “The ladies also say that their husbands express their pleasure when they see their wives in these beautiful gowns.”

  Clara turned to the governess and her eyes widened in sudden understanding as she registered Mrs. Copley’s meaning. “I have not purchased a gift for Julian as yet. I believe I have found the perfect gift.”

  Mrs. Copley smiled as she heard Clara’s reply. “I am certain he will be very grateful, my lady.”

  Clara laughed softly in reply as she grasped the other lady’s double meaning in her answer. But just as swiftly, Clara began to frown with concern. “Julian is here, Mrs. Copley. He is just now obtaining a gift in the same shop where I had stopped to make my purchase.”

  Mrs. Copley glanced behind her to locate Nellie several paces away. “Do not be concerned, my lady. I will rejoin Nellie and we will stroll further down the street. When I see Lord Bentley emerged from the shop, I will have Nellie call to him. She will keep him occupied until you have completed your purchases.”

  Clara gave Mrs. Copley a grateful smile. “That would be wonderful, Mrs. Copley. Thank you very much.” With that, she turned and entered the shop.

  * * * * *

  The four shoppers returned to Bentley House in time for afternoon tea. On the whole, they were very satisfied with their purchases. However, Clara had begun to have a few misgivings about her gift to Julian.

  Clara’s overall experience in the shop had been very pleasant. The shop’s owner had also been the seamstress. She had shown Clara various styles of nightwear and explained the advantages of each. Clara had eventually chosen a dark green silk nightgown with a very low neckline. The material certainly had a mesmerizing quality to it, Clara admitted to herself. The silk had flowed over her body and had caressed and accentuated all her curves.

  But now Clara was questioning the wisdom of her purchase. She and Julian were sleeping in separate rooms. He wanted to take things slowly. When would there ever be an opportunity to show him the gown? And even if she did have a chance to show him her gift, would he think her too bold?

  Clara moved restlessly on her chair in the sitting room as she attempted to decide on her next step in her relationship with her husband. The door to the room suddenly swung open and Warner entered carrying the tea tray. He carefully placed the tray on the table directly to her right. Clara thanked Warner as he bowed and turned to exit the room. At that moment, Julian crossed the threshold. “Ah, the tea tray has arrived. I find I am somewhat parched after our shopping excursion today. Thank you very much, Warner.”

  The door closed behind the butler and Clara shifted her position in her chair in preparation to distribute the lemon cakes which Mrs. Dixon had quickly provided after returning from seeing her father. Clara had begun to reach for an empty plate when the faint sound of knocking could be heard upon the door.

  “Come in,” Julian called as he moved away from the tea tray to stand next to the hearth on the other side of the room.

  The door slowly opened and a small head emerged into the space. It was Nellie with a mischievous grin upon her face. She entered the room with Mrs. Copley following immediately behind. Clara noted that Nellie had a small parcel tucked under one arm. “We are sorry to interrupt your tea, Lord and Lady Bentley but Nellie is most anxious to give you both a present she purchased today,” explained Mrs. Copley.

  “It is a very special gift, Uncle Julian and Aunt Clara. I cannot wait until Christmas day for you to see it,” said Nellie in a pleading manner.

  Julian grinned across the room at his wife. “Do we grant Nellie her wish, my dear?”

  Clara gave Julian an answering smile. “Of course we must, my lord. Nellie has certainly captured my interest. I fear I could not wait another hour to see this special gift.”

  Upon hearing Clara’s reply, Nellie exclaimed in delight and then rushed across the room to stand next to her aunt’s chair. Julian moved from his spot by the hearth to stand on the other side of his wife. Mrs. Copley smiled indulgently at the group from her spot by the door.

  Nellie proudly thrust the small package into Clara’s outstretched hands. Clara slowly moved her fingers over the item, thereby prolonging Nellie’s excitement. “Please open it, Aunt Clara,” she pleaded.

  Clara immediately halted her attempt at creating suspense. She quickly removed the wrapping paper. What she saw when the gift was revealed caused her to gasp in surprise. It was a small glass ball. Inside were three figures. A man and woman were holding hands and a small child sat atop the shoulders of the man. All three appeared to be laughing merrily.

  “It is you, Aunt Clara, me and Uncle Julian. Do you see us?” Nellie asked the question in a breathless manner.

  “It…it is quite beautiful, Nellie,” Clara answered when she could speak. “Of course I can see the three of us in the glass.”

  “We will pick a very special place to display your gift, Nellie. We want to put it in a spot where all three of us can look at it throughout the day. The scene will always remind us of our happy family on this day. Thank you very much, Nellie.” Julian moved to stand beside her and bent down to kiss the child’s cheek.

  Clara put her arms around Nellie when Julian released her. She gave the child a hug and then held the glass ball up to the light with one hand. Everyone studied the scene once again. “This is a very special present, Nellie. We will treasure it always. Thank you very much.”

  Nellie wiggled her body around so that she was facing Clara. She lifted her head and placed a kiss on her aunt’s cheek. “See why I could not wait to give you both my gift, Aunt Clara?” Nellie paused and looked over at Mrs. Copley who was still waiting patiently beside the door. “I must go back to the nursery now.”

  Julian and Clara each gave Nellie another hug and then she turned away and happily skipped across the room to Mrs. Copley’s side. The governess smiled once more at her employers and then bowed slightly to them as she and her charge exited the room.

  As the door shut behind their visitors, Clara carefully placed the glass ball on a nearby table and moved to distribute the lemon cakes once again.

  “Wait a moment, my dear. I find Nellie’s enthusiasm for gift-giving to be contagious. I wish to give you something I purchased today. Hold out your hand, please.” With that said Julian reached into a pocket on his waistcoat and pulled out a small, festively wrapped package.

  Clara paused in her movements and looked up at Julian in a perplexed manner. But she kept silent and followed his instructions.

  Julian bent over and placed a kiss onto her outstretched hand. Clara gasped in surprise but managed to keep a hold on the small package when it was subsequently dropped onto her hand. She hesitated to make eye contact with Julian once more so instead she concentrated on opening her gift. When the wrapping was finally peeled away, a pair of fine turquoise earrings lay inside. “Oh, Julian, they are so beautiful,” Clara exclaimed in surprise. She quickly removed the earrings from the package on placed them on her ears.

  Julian admired the earrings and then knelt down onto his knees beside Clara’s chair and smiled at her in a shy manner. “I wanted something to match the necklace I gave you before we were married, my dear. It gives me great pleasure to see you wearing that necklace. In fact, I have recently discovered that I love you and it gives me great pleasure to spend my days in your company,” he whispered to her earnestly.

  Clara’s heart felt as if it had suddenly expanded in her chest as she heard Julian’s encouraging words. She smiled with happiness and she bent over to speak
into her husband’s ear. “Julian, please do not think me foolish but I need to tell you something. I fell in love with you the first time I saw you in London. We both attended a debutante ball several years before we were married.”

  Julian’s eyes widened as he heard her words and she boldly continued her confession. “When I was told at the ball that you had a broken heart, I resolved to be the lady to mend it and to make you fall in love with me.” Now it was Clara’s turn to smile shyly. “I was young and naïve I must admit. You paid no attention to me except to stop and stare at me through your quizzing glass for a brief moment. You probably thought my behavior was quite childish.”

  Julian took her hand and placed a warm kiss upon her palm. “I am amazed by your story, my dear. I must confess I do not recall seeing you at that particular ball.” Julian lowered her hand to rest upon his leg where he proceeded to caress her fingers.

  Clara’s heart was beating so fast that she could feel the vibrations in her throat. She suddenly knew that this was the opportunity she had been hoping for. She twisted around in her chair to face her husband. Then she reached up with her free hand and placed it across the back of his neck. “I am not a child anymore, Julian. I am a grown woman and your wife. I want your attentions today as I wanted them on our wedding night. But I was so foolish and nervous on that night! Please show me now how to please you as a wife should please her husband.”

  “Clara, oh my dear wife, Clara!” He spoke her name over and over before taking her hands in his own and pulling her to her feet. Then Julian wrapped his hands around her waist, captured her lips with his own and sealed them with a long and satisfying kiss.

  Eventually Julian stopped the kiss but he kept his arms clasped tightly around his wife’s waist. “I must ask you something, my dear. The person who told you of the unfortunate condition of my heart, was she a small young lady with flaming red hair and spectacles which made her eyes look as big as saucers?” he asked with a grin.

  Clara was surprised by his question but his description of the lady brought back a sudden memory of the long ago evening. She looked at Julian with an expression of wonderment. “Why, yes. I remember thinking that her eyes looked twice as big as her face. I also remember that her white ball gown contrasted frightfully with her red hair!”

  Julian put his head back and laughed with glee. When he could catch his breath he said, “That, my dear, was Miss Jane Fenton, sister to Lady Camilla who had jilted me about a fortnight before the ball. I assure you that Lady Camilla’s defection from our proposed union did not break my heart. On the contrary, it brought me only a great sense of relief. I had proposed to her in a weak moment when I was dazzled by her beauty. I discovered later that she was a termagant of the worst kind and would have turned me into a most miserable man if we had married.” He stopped to chuckle once again. “Her little sister fancied herself in love with me and I suppose that she talked herself into believing that I was heartbroken by her sister’s actions.”

  Clara joined in his amusement and smiled back at him. “I confess I am relieved we solved that mystery, Julian.”

  Julian pulled Clara close once more and asked, “May I kiss you again, my dear?”

  Clara’s answer was to reach up and place her arms around his neck. She gave herself up to the wondrous feeling of being thoroughly kissed by her husband, the man she loved.

  A knock sounded against the door at that moment. Julian looked at Clara and grinned. He glanced over to the chamber door. “It appears we have more visitors, my dear.”

  The door opened to reveal Warner with an uncharacteristic look of confusion on his face. “Excuse me, my lord and my lady,” he stopped and bowed to each of them in turn. “We have just finished decorating the dining room with the greenery.” He looked momentarily at his mistress. “You requested me to let you know when we had completed the decorating, my lady,” he reminded her.

  “Yes, I did, Warner. Thank you for coming to tell me so promptly.” Clara stole a glance at Julian and saw that he was grinning back at her. He was probably thinking the same thoughts as she was at that moment. It was too bad Warner had followed through with his instructions so efficiently. Oh, well, thought Clara, as a smile appeared on her face, there will be plenty of chances to make up for lost time.

  “We will both come to admire your handiwork in a moment, Warner,” Julian answered for her. “May I ask what you are holding in your hand, Warner?”

  “My lord, Mrs. Copley and the child are also helping with the decorating. Mrs. Copley asked that I give this to Lady Bentley. Mrs. Copley said that the mistress would know what it was for.” He held out his hand to reveal a sprig of mistletoe.

  “I most certainly do, Warner,” Clara answered with a laugh. “I will be certain to thank our new governess myself when I encounter her.”

  Warner then placed the mistletoe in Clara’s outstretched hand and after bowing his head to each of his employers, he swiftly left the room and shut the door firmly behind him.

  Julian spoke as soon as the door was closed. “I can guess the meaning of the mistletoe but before we put it to use, may I ask you one more question, my dear?”

  “Of course you may, Julian.”

  “Why did you act so coldly to me on our wedding night if you already loved me?”

  “Believe it or not, the answer lies with Mrs. Copley and the sprig of mistletoe.” Nervously, Clara reached down to smooth out some creases in her skirt. “Mrs. Copley accompanied me when I joined the others to gather some greenery for the house. She talked to me of her husband’s death two years ago. She said she still missed him and found it especially hard to be without his company during the holidays. As you mentioned, Mrs. Copley is a caring woman and I soon found myself confiding in her about our disastrous wedding night.” Clara finally raised her eyes to look into Julian’s. “You see, Mrs. Mitchell, the vicar’s wife, had advised me to lie still and show no feeling in bed once I was married. Mrs. Copley pointed out to me that this was wrong advice given by a woman who did not have an especially happy married life.

  “Wisely or not, I had no chance to act on this advice. If you recall, you placed your hand under my head and gave me a kiss that night after you entered my room. When you removed your hand, a strand of my hair became caught in your signet ring and I grimaced. I am certain you believed at that moment that I had a disgust of you. Mrs. Copley encouraged me to show you affection when you returned home. She assured me that by showing you I cared for you, you would eventually return my gestures of love.”

  Clara lowered her eyes again to look at the mistletoe. “I imagine she was giving me this as a way to demonstrate to you that my feelings are definitely engaged when it comes to you, Julian.”

  Julian lifted the hand which held the mistletoe up to his cheek. “We must certainly remember to thank Mrs. Copley for much more than the mistletoe, my dear,” he whispered softly as he pulled her face down to his level to capture her lips with his own in yet another dizzying kiss.

  Clara’s lips were as rosy as the holly berries she had picked earlier in the week when Julian finally released her some minutes later.

  The clock on the mantle abruptly struck the hour. Clara was suddenly brought back to the present. “My goodness, Julian, we must have our tea! Oh, I have so much to do! We are having a dinner party tomorrow for a few of our close neighbors. I must check with Cook and make certain everything is in place for tomorrow’s meal. I want to spend some time with Nellie. And I must finish wrapping Christmas gifts!”

  Julian chuckled softly as he reached up to her neck and wrapped his fingers around the turquoise pendant. He continued to rub the stone as he gazed up into her eyes. “Be as busy as you wish, my love but remember to save some time for me.”

  Clara returned Julian’s gaze with a look of love radiating from her eyes. “I plan to make up for lost time this evening in my bedchamber, my dear.”

  Julian raised his eyebrows and his gray eyes reflected similar warmth. He carefully placed the penda
nt back to rest against her bodice. “May I inquire what exactly you have planned, Clara?”

  She pulled his head down and placed a kiss upon Julian’s furrowed brow. She then reached down to grasp the turquoise pendant. She placed it in front of her mouth and gave the stone a swift kiss before tucking it inside the bodice of her dress. She winked at her husband in a saucy manner. “That, Julian, my love, is your Christmas surprise!”

  A Tradition of Love

  Carolynn Carey

  Dedication

  For Donna, Juli, Katie, Kerri, and Sharon. Thanks, guys!

  Chapter One

  London, December 4, 1816

  “Ahem.”

  Dunworthy, longtime butler to Robert, sixth Earl of Maulton, paused in the doorway of his master’s library and cleared his throat.

  He received no response.

  Again he cleared his throat. “Ahem.”

  And a third time, more loudly. “Ahem!”

  Then, even though the earl was pointedly ignoring him, Dunworthy continued. “I’m sorry to disturb you, my lord but the countess would like a moment of your time.”

  Robert at last looked up from the letter he was writing and a frown pulled at his brow. “I thought I’d made it clear that I am not at home to guests today, Dunworthy. I have a great deal of business to conduct.” Then, as an afterthought, he asked, “To which countess are you referring, anyway?”

  The butler’s chin shot up and his tone turned almost stern. “Your wife, my lord.”

  “My… Oh yes. Hmmm.” Robert glanced at the quill in his hand, then sighed. “Where is Miss Presnell…eh, I mean of course, the…eh, my lady wife?”

  Dunworthy’s eyes narrowed. Robert sighed again, aware that he was falling rapidly in his butler’s esteem, which meant he’d have to forgo finishing his letter while he dealt with his wife. Blast it all! What was her given name anyway? Good thing he wouldn’t be required to know it today.