The King's Courtesan (14 page)

HER FIRST THOUGHT
was that it was dark, the second that it was cold and unwelcoming, much like its owner, and the third that it was empty inside. A superb wood staircase rose in front of her, massive and elaborately carved with wide landings, leading from the basement to the upper floors. A bil iard room was close by the entrance, the doors to a library were to her left, and what looked to be a drawing room and a long hal way were to her right, but other than heavy, dark-colored drapes, the wal s were bare and the furnishings, many of which were covered by sheets and rugs, were sparse.

It must be easy for the maids to clean, but it felt funereal and much too quiet. A clock ticked in a distant room and she felt a tightening dread.
How can I live in this house?

She was used to music and color, laughter and gaiety, company…friends.

Once Sergeant Oakes had assembled the staff, the captain introduced her as the Countess of Newport, then waited introduced her as the Countess of Newport, then waited with a look of bored impatience as the sergeant told her their names and explained their duties. Clearly her fortune-hunting husband was eager to be shed of her and off about his business.
He is ashamed to call me wife.
She felt a quick stab of hurt and anger. Refusing to acknowledge it, she straightened her spine and raised her chin, doing her best to look gracious and regal.

He seemed curt with his servants. They showed no fear, no sign he was a difficult master, but they were efficient. There was no evidence of the excitement and bustle one might expect when a new mistress came home. They stood in order of precedence. Maggie Overton, the housekeeper, a smal , severe-looking woman with nut-brown hair, watched her with eyes as cold as her master’s. Mrs. Ful erton, the cook, gave her a businesslike nod, as if she had other places to be. The scarred footman was introduced as Corporal Ryan, along with another handsome fel ow cal ed Mr. Yates, who was missing two fingers on his left hand.

Last, two maids named Lucy and Patience bobbed their heads, their eyes sharp with speculation.

It was a smal coterie of servants, particularly given the size of the manor. There was no butler, valet or lady’s maid, though she would correct the last as soon as she could.

She wasn’t sure what to make of them. The sergeant seemed friendly, the footmen correct, but the housekeeper looked her up and down contemptuously, almost bristling with disapproval, and the maids, though not outwardly insubordinate, stared with a curiosity that bordered on rudeness.

I might as well have
whore
stamped on my forehead.

They think they know what I am even if the men don’t
. His introduction would have confirmed their suspicions. Even Sergeant Oakes hadn’t known they were married and respectable unmarried ladies didn’t come to stay with men alone. Wel , she was not about to stand here and try to defend and explain herself to a col ection of surly strangers.

Who were they to judge? If she had faced down dukes and duchesses, she could certainly manage this lot. She held her head proudly and returned the housekeeper’s withering look with a haughty stare.

The captain cleared his throat and stepped forward. “Wel .

There you have it. Now you’ve met the household staff. I’m sure Maggie wil be pleased to show you the house while a room is prepared for you. Oakes and I have business to attend to. I shal see you at dinner.” With that, he abandoned her, leaving her to cope as best she might on her own.

“This way if you please, mistress. Quickly now. I’l show you the drawing room. Your unexpected arrival has left us with much work to do.”

Hope’s eyes narrowed. The housekeeper’s annoyance was obvious and disrespectful. After cleaning and serving in her mother’s establishment, she usual y felt a kinship with servants and staff. She tried to respect their dignity, be sensitive to their needs, and she made every attempt not to be burdensome, but she never tolerated rudeness. She hadn’t asked to be countess, lady, or wife, but she was.

And it had cost her dearly. She had earned respect and she would have it. The housekeeper would have to be put in her place.

Unlike parts of the house she’d glimpsed so far, the drawing room was wel -appointed, luxurious and clearly lived in. Dutch tiles ornamented a fireplace of gigantic proportions and plush settees, chairs and couches sat upon a brightly colored Turkish carpet with a beautiful star-burst design. The broad casement commanded a beautiful view of gently rising hil s, grand old trees and the gleam of water edging the deer park, and a portrait of a handsome if stern-looking man and an elegant woman graced the wal s.

The family resemblance was unmistakable.
He is more
handsome than his father,
she mused.
His face is hard—

not harsh—and I doubt the man before me ever smiled
.

The housekeeper cleared her throat impatiently. They al seemed impatient around here, though from what little she’d seen of this cavernous house there could not be that much to do. She studied the painting a few moments longer before turning to respond. “Yes, Maggie?” she inquired mildly.

“It’s Mrs. Overton to you, miss,” the housekeeper snapped.

“I’ve work to do. You can settle yourself here until one of the lads has got your luggage and the girls have fixed your room.”

“I should like someone to show me around,
Maggie.
That is the housekeeper’s duty, is it not?”

“That’s the housekeeper’s prerogative, when she has spare time for amusing guests…
miss.
” She almost hissed it.

“Not when her mistress requires it, Mrs. Overton. And it’s Lady Newport, or my lady, or ma’am to you. I am married to your master, and the lady of this house now, and like it or not, I am your new mistress. You wil show me the appropriate respect if you wish to remain employed here.”

“You be mistress al right,
ma’am
. And we al know whose.

Notts is not so far from London as you might think. They talk of the king’s country miss there, with her enchantress eyes and witch-black hair. None else has eyes that color, nor would come to the country dressed so fine. I’ve seen you with the king at Newcastle when I visited me granny. Lord knows what you’ve done to the master. He’s never brought a woman here before, but he’s been through enough and deserves better than the likes of you. We be hard-working folk here,
ma’am
. There’s no palace ful of servants at your beck and cal . If you want to pretend to be his wife, go ahead. But don’t expect the rest of us to pretend it with you!”

Shaken by the housekeeper’s vituperative attack, Hope’s heart raced and a red haze of anger threatened to engulf her. She had suffered worse at court, but this was completely unexpected and one thing too many after three days of betrayal, upheaval and uncertainty. Not five years past she would have taken a fist and knocked her flat!

“Mrs. Overton—” she managed to keep her voice even “—I advise you never to take that tone with me again. If you know who I am, then I’m sure you’ve heard stories. The one about Orange Mol is true. I have been polite with you, and given you no reason to be so rude with me. You leave me no choice but to talk to your master.”

“Go ahead then, my lady.” Her tone was stil pugnacious but she took a good step back. “I’ve been with him seventeen years, and you…? What? A week? A few days?”

“Get out of my sight, Mrs. Overton. Now!”

“Aye, with pleasure, ma’am. Enjoy yourself finding your way around.”

Stil seething, Hope stalked down the oak-paneled hal , opening door after door as she went. This was
his
fault.

The servants would treat her with the same courtesy and respect that he did.

The hal way was furnished with several green carpets, a long trestle table covered in leather and a cupboard and several chairs. One of the carpets slid out from beneath her and she fel to the floor, smacking her elbow on the table on the way down. She struggled to her feet cursing, no easy feat in her cumbersome skirts. Sitting on a chair she cradled her elbow, fighting back tears of pain.

He hates me. The staff hate me. Now the house hates me,
too!
“Wel , I hate you!” Speaking it out loud made it seem rather sil y, which made her feel better, until she saw a tiny open-mouthed redheaded girl with a bucket in hand and her cap askew, staring at her with round startled eyes.

Petite herself, it was seldom someone made her feel tal . It wasn’t Lucy or Patience. Doubtless a lowly house or scul ery maid, not meant to be seen above stairs.

“Can I… Are you… Do you need some help?” The girl’s voice was barely a whisper. But it was the first offer of help she’d received al day.

“You needn’t look so frightened. I’m not mad. Just angry, and I’m no intruder or ghost.”

“Oh, thank goodness, my lady. For a moment I thought you was her.” She bobbed two quick curtsies, as if making up for one she’d forgot.

“Her?”

“The ghost girl. The one some in the servants’ quarters say walks the hal s both day and night.”

“Ah, I see. No. I am Captain Nichols’s new wife, and at the moment I’m a little lost. What’s your name, my dear?”

“My name is Rose, my lady. It’s most kind of you to ask. I best get back below stairs now, though. If Mrs. Overton sees me she’l have my hide.” The girl was clearly nervous, looking up and down the hal and anxiously wringing her apron in her hands. “I was supposed to scrub the front hal for Lettice, who’s taking on Patience’s duties, who’s cleaning the parlor for—”

“That’s quite al right, Rose. There’s no need to explain.” An idea was forming. “Do you know your way around Cressly, Rose?”

“Yes, my lady, I do. Every nook and cranny, though I lay the hearths and such when most are stil asleep.”

“Do you think you could help me take off this dress?” The girl’s scandalized look was so comical that Hope smiled for the first time that day. “Like a lady’s maid must do. She helps the mistress with her clothing when she’s needed and such.”

“Oh, yes! I’m certain I could do that, ma’am. Mrs. Overton’s needed my help before, and I’m often cal ed on to assist Patience and Lucy. I can stitch and sew, too,” she added proudly. “I used to make al the clothes for my family back home. I can also help with hair.”

“Why, that’s excel ent, Rose! My marriage was very sudden and I am much in need of a lady’s maid.” Which was nothing less than the truth. She might have relied on the help of Patience or Lucy, at least until she could find a girl from the vil age, but their attitude had not endeared them to her. Taking on Rose would shake the household up. They’d be sul en and angry at first, something she knew from her own service days. But they’d understand quickly that advancement and position relied upon pleasing her. “How is it such a talented girl works in the scul ery?”

“There’s been no lady here so long as I can recol ect, ma’am, though I am expected to help the other maids with whatever they need. And then, of course, I’m Irish. You won’t see an Irish lass rise beyond the scul ery, ma’am. Not in an English home.”

“Is that the captain’s wil ?”

“Why, no, ma’am. I shouldn’t think so. The master doesn’t concern himself with such things. It’s just the way things are.

I do believe it’s much the same in other homes.”

“Wel , not in this one. A lady chooses her own maid and I choose you.”

The girl squealed in delight, clapped her hands and accidently knocked over the bucket. “Oh, ma’am! I’m so sorry. I’m so clumsy! I’l clean it up straight away!”

“Oh, dear! I fear we’re much alike. I just tripped and fel on my head. We can’t be constantly apologizing for it, though.

We shal traipse this place together, and take pride in leaving mayhem in our wake. And don’t clean that up, Rose. You are a lady’s maid now. Such duties are beneath you. You take your orders only from me.” Rose’s grin was contagious and Hope felt optimistic for the first time that day. An al y gained. One whose loyalty would be only to her. Sergeant Oakes was at least friendly, and she would win the rest of them one at a time. Rather than fight Mrs. Overton for control of her home, she might simply walk around her.

After Rose pointed her to the door of her husband’s study, Hope sent her to find her room. “Come back when you know where it is. If anyone questions you, direct them to me.”

The girl was practical y skipping. “I wil , my lady. Right away.

When I got up this morning I had no idea, ma’am. You coming here has been the best thing to happen in my life!”
Well, at least someone is glad to see me.

She looked down the hal to the captain’s study with some She looked down the hal to the captain’s study with some degree of trepidation. Though she fought when she needed to, she real y didn’t like it. She avoided unpleasantness whenever she could. Yet except for a few brief hours in Nottingham, every conversation with this man ended in strife. He didn’t like her, he saw her as a burden, he would resent the intrusion and it would end in a fight.

Nevertheless, if she wished to take charge she must beard the lion in his den. She did her best to armor herself with calm indifference, took a fortifying breath, knocked on the door and, without waiting for an answer, she opened it and slipped inside.

IT WAS A DARK, SPARTAN ROOM, with a fireplace, desk, two chairs and and a col ection of shields and in struments of war mounted on the wal . The sword he wore in London hung above the mantel, lethal in its beauty, but beyond carved wood and weaponry, the room boasted no color, no decoration, no warmth at al .

If a man’s private study reflected his interior life, her husband was dark and dangerous, and his life was war.

“WHAT IS IT, H OPE?
Do people not knock at the palace? Surely you can see that we are busy here.”

“But I did knock!” She blinked in surprise when Sergeant Oakes gave her a wink and a commiserating smile. “I need to talk to you about the servants. It should be settled now, before things get out of hand. It real y can’t wait.” The sergeant rose and bowed, gal antly offering her his seat. “I pray you excuse me, my lady. And you, Captain. I should pass the happy news to the staff without delay.” He stopped at the doorway. “You bring us good fortune, Lady Newport. I pray in return much happiness comes your way.” Hope looked back at Robert, somewhat bewildered. Of what concern were forest lands to his staff?