His Unexpected Heiress: Entangled Inheritances
Page 5
He rode hard, reluctant to return to the estate. Though no one was there, he felt like an unwanted guest rather than family. Two years previous his sister-in-law had refurnished his old room and relegated him to the guest quarters.
He growled and pushed his horse faster along the lane, leaning low over the animal’s back.
How could his uncle do this to him? And how had that red-headed seamstress bewitched him into leaving Tertium Park to her after just one meeting?
Those large gray eyes came to mind, along with her soft smile.
Pretty or not, she did not belong in that house.
Still, Adam had precious little to call his own. Though born into one of the finest families of the ton, his circumstances would only change if he helped Miss Chapple or assisted his brother in throwing over her claim to the estate. Adam didn’t particularly relish either of his options.
Chapter 5
Elaine woke with an unsettled feeling, as though she had turned in her sleep and woke up at the bottom of her bed rather than the top. That had happened to her a time or two in the past. Except at the moment she was upon a pillow, and a soft one at that.
Slowly, she opened her eyes and stared at a dark room. Though her body protested, stiff and sore from she knew not what, Elaine sat up.
Oh. She was in a bedroom at Tertium Park. After a week of cleaning her little house, packing her belongings, and delivering the last of the dresses she had made to her clients, she was finally in her new home.
She slid from the bed, her bare feet hitting a soft carpet rather than the worn woven rug she had been used to for several years. The unexpected luxury made her smile and dig her toes in a little before she felt her way through the shadows to the curtains.
Pulling them open, Elaine looked out upon a rose-gray sky just beginning to lighten. She covered her mouth and stared out over beech trees and gardens; the morning fog settled in the lower parts of the grounds. Though she could not see it, she knew the North Sea laid in that direction, too.
Sitting on the wide windowsill, she watched until the yellow sun crested the horizon.
The day before had been hectic and confusing, at least until Adam Gillensford came. He helped some with his practical directions. He had even given her the courage to ask that dinner trays be brought to the nursery for the children and her. Children were not supposed to eat in the dining room with adults, she remembered that well enough. But the prospect of eating alone made her cringe.
This morning, they would all go down to the breakfast table. She would have to give some direction as to how the children spent their day. Keeping busy in the nursery was likely the best thing to suggest until she understood her place in the house, too.
Once the sun was up enough to provide light to her room, Elaine went in search of her clothing. Finding something to wear had never been a problem for her before. She had plain, serviceable gowns for her work and something nicer for visiting patronesses and attending church on Sunday.
She opened the closet where her things had been stored by the maid and stared somewhat helplessly. Her work dresses, though modest and well made, were completely inappropriate. She would look like a member of the staff, especially if she were to put on one of the bonnets she had used to wear to hide her hair and youth. That would not do at all. That left her two slightly nicer gowns, and if she wore one today, and the other the next day to services, what was she to wear after?
Making new dresses would be necessary, but how was she to purchase the materials she needed? Did she receive an allowance from the estate, or did she have bills sent to her steward?
There was too much to learn, and too little time to do it if she meant to make a good impression upon the neighborhood.
Elaine selected the less embellished gown, a deep green dress still not fine enough for such a beautiful house and went about getting herself dressed. All the while she kept in mind a list of questions to ask the housekeeper, steward, or Adam Gillensford.
When she finished dressing, she went to the table and mirror in the room and sat to do her hair. She undid the braid she had slept in and brushed the mass of waves without meeting her eyes in the mirror.
After years of boarding school, surrounded by the very sort of girls meant to live in a house as grand as Tertium Park, she knew exactly what she would see if she studied herself too closely; Elaine was a woman who did not at all belong where she was sitting.
Elaine had started to twist her hair up and out of her way when the door to her room opened. She turned, wondering if one of the children had found her. It was the maid designated to wait upon her.
“Good morning, Polly,” she greeted brightly.
The maid came hurrying in, shutting the door behind her and fairly running across the floor. “I am sorry, miss. I didn’t expect you to be awake, or needin’ any help, this early. I only came to light the fire.” She took up her place behind Elaine and grabbed the brush.
“I am accustomed to rising early to begin my day with the sun.” Elaine smiled at the girl in the mirror, hoping to reassure her. Instead she saw Polly press her lips tightly together. “I can ring for you next time, if you like.”
“Yes, miss.” Polly did not look at her as she continued brushing. “I’ll get up earlier to light your fire.”
“Oh, that is not necessary.” Elaine had some idea of how late servants were kept up, doing the work a large house required, and to deprive the young woman of sleep hardly seemed fair to her.
“It is my duty, miss.” She put the brush down and found pins. She started arranging Elaine’s hair. “Would you like me to fetch curling tongs, miss?”
“Not today, thank you. I do not expect to see anyone outside of the house, so something simple will do.” Elaine tried to sound cheerful, especially since she had already made Polly’s day start out on the wrong foot. “And perhaps it is best you come later tomorrow. I do have a full day ahead; I imagine I will need a great deal of rest to recover from it.”
Polly murmured a quiet “Yes, miss.” The whole of her concentration seemed taken up with Elaine’s hair. She worked it into an attractive style, with smaller braids twining in and out of where she had gathered most of it at the back. Then she reached out and carefully tugged a few strands loose near Elaine’s ears to soften the look.
“If you’d like, I can do your hair in papers tonight so there’s curls aplenty tomorrow.”
Although she had never been overly fond of curls for herself, Elaine gave what she knew to be the right answer. “That would be lovely. Thank you.”
“Breakfast won’t be ready for a couple of hours yet,” Polly said as she finished and stood back to scrutinize her work. “Would you like me to help you with anything else, miss?”
Hours? The children would be hungry before then. Perhaps if they spent time together they could wait with more patience. “You might point me in the direction of the nursery. The house is quite large, and I may get lost without help.”
Polly agreed to escort Elaine all the way to the nursery, which was on the floor above, and once she had knocked on the nursery door for Elaine, the maid took herself off to her other duties.
The door opened slowly, and it was Nancy’s little face that looked up at her. “Elaine,” she whispered. “The nursery maid is still asleep.”
Oh. The poor girl would likely be as upset as Polly had been about the early-risers. “Is William awake and dressed?”
“Yes. He’s reading by the window.” Nancy opened the door a little wider and pointed across the spacious, airy room to William’s place. The boy looked up and Elaine gestured for him to come to her. William snapped his book shut and came, almost reluctantly.
“Since we are all awake, perhaps we ought to go for a walk. I think I can remember how to get to the gardens.” Elaine smiled at them both. “Get your coats.” She stayed in the doorway, watching as the children quietly went to two open doorways. William likely detested the lack of privacy. He really was too old for the nursery, wasn’t
he?
They came back with coats in hand and once they were in the hall, she helped Nancy get hers on and buttoned. Then they descended the stairs as quietly as possible, Elaine hoping they were not disturbing the servants, all the way to the ground floor. They had to try a few doors before they found one which had a door leading outside.
Once in the garden, Elaine saw both children start to relax. They had to feel as strange as she about their new accommodations. Did they recognize what a blessing their new lives would be? Not yet, most likely. With everything new and uncertain, Elaine almost wished she was back in Ipswich in her little shop. She knew what to expect there, and no one minded if she dressed herself or did her own hair.
“It’s too big,” William said, as though seeing into her thoughts. “The house is enormous, and I will never learn where everything is.”
“Think of playing hide and seek, though,” Nancy said brightly, ever the optimistic child. “And dinner last night was so pretty and tasty. I wonder what breakfast will be like?”
“When can we have breakfast?” William asked, his eyebrows shooting up at the mention of food. Hopefully the cook would keep up with his appetite better than Elaine had.
“I was told in another two hours or so we could expect it.”
“Two hours?” William said. “But it is nearly six. No food until eight?”
Given that Adam Gillensford had asked if ten o’clock in the morning was too early to visit, she suspected Polly was likely going to hurry the kitchen staff’s preparations as it was. “Something close to that, dear.”
His scowl returned. “They mean to starve us.”
Elaine could not help the laugh that burst from her lips. “Oh, not at all, William. They are not used to us, to our habits. Just as we are not accustomed to living in such a large house.”
“Tabby is not used to the house either, but he will be soon,” Nancy stated. She pushed her long hair back over her shoulder and skipped a little ahead of them. The stable master, Mr. Blythe, had told the children it would take the cat time to accept his new home, and the best thing to do was to keep him confined and well fed.
The nursery maid had not greeted the news of a cat in the nursery particularly well.
Elaine kept them focused on their walk, sometimes in silence, most often with Nancy pointing out the lovelier aspects of the garden. Again, and again, the child asked for Elaine to identify the flowers by name, but Elaine had to admit she did not know many of them.
After more than half an hour, Elaine took the children back inside. Breakfast was still a long way off, so she kept them company in the nursery until a maid came to find them.
After the children had eaten, Elaine bid them good morning and sent them again to the nursery.
“Just like Tabby,” William muttered when he left the table. “Fed and confined.” Nancy nodded sagely, taking his hand as they walked out the door.
Half past eight. Why did the morning hours go by so slowly? At home in Ipswich, she would have helped the children with their lessons while sewing, nearly ready to open the shop and set them to their reading or on errands to the baker. What did people in grand houses do all day?
She considered finding Mrs. Mayworth and asking for a tour but given the size of the home and the woman’s attention to detail, an hour and a half might not be enough. With no clear idea of what she ought to do, Elaine found her way back to her room.
Among her things, Elaine had packed a notebook and pencil. She searched out the little book, looking in every corner of her new room. As a seamstress, she had used it to make notations when meeting with one of her patronesses. Now it might be useful to make a list of her questions regarding the running of the house.
When Adam Gillensford came, he might answer most of them. There were so many things she did not know. At school she had been taught deportment, literature, music, French, drawing, and penmanship. Why had no one taught a class on running a household? Was every gentlewoman born with the knowledge or expected to learn it in their own homes?
As she made her list, adding each new thing increased the pressure upon her chest. She did not know the first thing about household budgets, how to pay proper visits to her neighbors, or the correct seating arrangements should she have guests for dinner. What shopping did she do for herself, and what did she send a servant for? The list grew until it took up three of the palm-sized pages.
Elaine stopped writing at last and stared down at the book, her uncertainties and ignorance staring up at her from the pages.
There was so much to learn; the matter seemed hopeless. Her eyes clouded with tears and she lifted her head, determined to push them back before they might fall. She had not been born with a needle and thread in her hand, yet she was a fine seamstress. All she needed was time.
A knock at the door startled her. “Miss Chapple? Mr. Gillensford has come to call upon you.”
“Thank you. I will be there directly,” Elaine called back, then bit her lip. She needed time and a teacher. Hopefully, Adam Gillensford would not think her too dull a student.
First checking her reflection in the mirror, and finding no evidence of her previous distress, Elaine took her book and pencil and left her room. The maid had waited in the hallway.
“He is in the Blue Parlor, miss. Do you remember the way?”
“Oh, how kind of you to ask. I think I know where it is, but I would appreciate a guide.” Elaine folded her arm over her midsection, the book grasped in her hand.
“I’ve only been here a few months myself, miss. I was always gettin’ turned around.” The maid smiled with compassion, then turned and started down the east wing’s hall. “You’ll get better at it, miss.”
“I am certain you are right.” Elaine followed, her spirits somewhat lifted by the simple kindness. Perhaps things would not be so terrible. Not if the servants were patient with her.
They stopped before a familiar door. “Would you like me to bring refreshment back, miss?” the girl asked, just before she put her hand to the handle.
“Yes, I think so. If it does not trouble anyone in the kitchens.” Elaine bit her lip, uncertain. Did she need to worry about what went on in the kitchens? Did they need greater warning in order to have the required items prepared for guests? She nearly opened her book to add the questions, but the maid had opened the door and stepped aside.
Elaine gave her one last grateful smile before entering the parlor, finding the room a little darker than the day before when the sun had streamed through the windows. But the curtains were all open, a fire had been lit, and Adam Gillensford bowed to her.
“Miss Chapple, good morning.” He rose from his bow, his piercing blue eyes taking her in. “I hope you are finding everything comfortable at Tertium Park.”
“Yes, very comfortable.” She came in and went to one end of the silvery-upholstered couch. “Though I must confess that I still feel quite terribly out of place.”
His good-humored chuckle set her somewhat at ease. “I expect it is normal, under these circumstances. Is there anything I might do to assist you?”
“There is. I have made a list of questions.” Elaine opened her book to the first page of her notes, and her cheeks immediately grew warm. “I am afraid you will think me terribly ignorant. I have so little understanding of this house.”
“May I look?” he asked, holding out his ungloved hand. That meant something, did it not? That he had removed his gloves while visiting? If only she remembered. There must be something that could assist her in all the unspoken rules of her new status.
She nodded and started to stand, but he fairly jumped from his seat first. “It is my duty to come to you, Miss Chapple.” The gentleman crossed the space between them in two strides and accepted the book from her hand, his fingertips brushing hers. He did not go back to his chair but looked down at the page while still standing before her.
Elaine watched him carefully, waiting to see the look upon his face at the evidence of her unsuitability.
Elaine dropped her chin and raised one hand to a burning cheek, the overwhelming sensation of weight upon her chest again. She took in a deep breath, trying to find that hopeful feeling the maid’s kindness had given her.
The gentleman’s knee bent in her field of vision, and he lowered himself before her. Elaine blinked and looked up, finding him kneeling before her. One side of his mouth had turned up in an uncertain smile, and his blue eyes took her in most seriously.
“Miss Chapple,” he said quietly. “It is not as bad as you think. It is like any new endeavor. You only need to practice, and soon you will be proficient.” His words, spoken with sincerity and warmth, gave her little relief. She did not dare speak.
He held the open book out before him, reading her list again. “We should start with something practical. Something you must know at once. Your ability to make purchases.” He lowered the book enough for her to see his eyes. “I think any ladies of my acquaintance would find it a tragedy if they were unable to go shopping.”
“Oh, I just need to know about cloth and sundries,” she said quickly. “Nothing wasteful. I am certain I do not need very much.”
Something about that statement amused him, she clearly saw, but he held the book out to her. She took it and he stood.
“Anything you purchase, you send the bill back to the house. Your steward will see to your payments. We will meet with him today, if you wish, and he can explain the household funds and your personal funds. All of your questions regarding expenditures should be put to him. Perhaps your next list, Miss Chapple, should be one of things you wish to buy, or people you wish to employ.”