The Governess' Debut Page 3

  “Grandmother, we have been going every day to give bread to the ducks. They have the most darling little babies. Felicia says I mustn’t make too much noise when the mama is there with her babies or she will be too afraid, but it is just so difficult to remain quiet when they are so precious. I think we should have ducks on our pond at Standish, what do you think, Papa?”

  The earl looked surprised to be included in this conversation, but could not help smiling at his happily exuberant daughter. “We shall have to think about it when we go home for the summer, my pet.”

  Turning back to the countess, Penelope continued enthusiastically. “Grandmother, Felicia says I must curtsy to you since you are a countess. Is she correct or was she just teasing me?”

  Glancing momentarily at the child’s governess with an ironically quirked eyebrow, the countess managed to maintain a straight face. “Yes, my darling, Miss Scott is correct, socially speaking, a countess should be curtsied to.”

  Penelope allowed a belligerent look to cross her face, but then she looked at Felicia. Felicia held her gaze seriously for a moment. Penelope then smiled serenely at her grandmother, hiked up her skirts, and executed a rather clumsy curtsy. She grinned happily while her papa and grandmother applauded her new skill.

  “You mentioned you were just coming from the park. I thought it was best that you not spend time out of doors until you return to the country.” Lady Astley could not resist this censor, her son could see. The earl caught the flash of guilt on Felicia’s face and was about to speak in her defense but was saved from the necessity when his daughter again launched into speech.

  “Felicia thought perhaps you were concerned that I not spot up with freckles so she says I have to always wear a hat when we are out in the sun. It is just so much fun to go out for a walk every day or go run around at the park. Felicia says I can learn more if I wear off my fidgets. I think she must be right because I feel smarter already. And it is much easier to eat the nasty porridge that Cook insists is good for me now that I run around more. Felicia says I am growing already, like a plant needs to be in the sun to grow. What do you think, Grandmother? Have I grown since you last seen me?”

  The countess could not keep her starchy demeanor in the face of this non sequitur; a friendly chuckle came from her before she returned gravely, “I do believe you have, my dear. I can see that Miss Scott is a most excellent companion for you.”

  Lady Astley smiled warmly at Felicia before turning to her son. “I am so glad that you took my advice for once.”

  Unable to answer this with anything other than a wry nod of his head, the earl finally turned to the miss under question. “Miss Scott, please sit down and join us for a cup of tea. I am certain the countess would love to hear more of Penelope’s tales of trips to the park.”

  Felicia flushed with pleasure and uncertainty but took a seat as unobtrusively as possible, accepting a dainty cup of tea from the countess. She watched attentively as Penelope bounced on the settee and took mental note of further instruction the young lady would require before the next visit with the countess.

  Penelope chattered away happily for several more minutes while her father and grandmother listened with waning interest. When the earl began to shift about rather restlessly, Felicia deemed it would be a good time to bring the visit to an end.

  Rising gracefully, Felicia addressed Penelope. “We have kept the countess quite long enough and no doubt your father has many important duties to attend to. Let us say our farewells and adjourn to the nursery where I am sure Mary will soon be bringing us something deliciously scrumptious for our dinner.”

  Penelope bounded up from her seat and was about to dash from the room, but catching sight of a gesture from Felicia, she turned back to the countess and dipped down into another shaky curtsy. “Thanks for coming to visit me, Grandmama. Good-bye.”

  Felicia smiled at her young charge as she ran up and grabbed her hand. “Hurry up, Felicia, you promised to play a game of Fox and Geese with me later.”

  Felicia and Penelope left a rather stunned silence in their wake. Lady Astley turned to her son. “That young woman has worked wonders with your child, my dear. I knew she would be a good fit for the position, but I had no idea it would work out quite that well. I never realized she had so very little to say for herself, though, I must say.”

  “How would you know that, Mother? Penelope barely left room for anyone else to get a word in edgewise.” Lord Astley chuckled. “The governess certainly came up with a good ploy when she took to escorting the child out of doors.”

  “She is very pretty. Does that cause you any concern, Victor?” asked his mother with a sharp eye on his face.

  Victor struggled to maintain an impassive face but could not contain the slight heat that crept into his cheeks. “It does not concern me, Mother. As long as she continues to manage my daughter so well, I cannot say I care one way or the other what she looks like.”

  “I suppose you are correct there, my son. Well, I have dithered here long enough. I should return home, I am promised to your sister for the evening. You should show your face around town a bit more than you do, Victor, you are turning into a recluse.”

  Victor managed to restrain himself from rolling his eyes but could not muster up much of a smile for his mother as she took her leave. He stood respectfully until she left the room, then slumped back into his chair while he smiled in reminiscence over some of his daughter’s exclamations. He was very relieved not to have to be so worried about her anymore. Hopefully this good stretch holds and the governess sticks around, he thought to himself rather pessimistically before heaving himself back to his feet and striding down the hall to immerse himself once more in his work.

  Chapter Four

  Felicia had to struggle to keep her attention on Penelope’s lessons. Her mind kept replaying the scene in the morning room with the countess and earl from the previous afternoon. She was delighted by her young charge’s progress and was relieved to have received the countess’ approval despite countermanding her decree about not taking Penelope outside, but it was the smile on the earl’s face that kept intruding into her thoughts. Prior to yesterday, Felicia had thought the earl to be a terribly stern and arrogant man and really had not thought him very handsome at all, but when he had listened to Penelope with such a soft smile on his face, it was impossible to ignore his appeal.

  With a vigorous shake of her head she forced her thoughts once more to return to the matter at hand. It was foolhardy for her to dwell on her employer’s handsome face or the thrill that had shot through her when their eyes had met. Nothing could come of any warm feelings she might develop, so it was best to put it all from her mind.

  “That is quite excellent, Penelope. You are making remarkable progress with your letters. I must say I am impressed. You seem to have changed your mind about learning to read.”

  “Yes, Felicia, I think I would like to be smart like my Papa. I still don’t see that it will be of much use for me to be smart, but it should be amusing, don’t you think?”

  Felicia could not prevent her bark of laughter over this statement. “I am delighted that you think it will be amusing, but I am also quite sure you will find it to be very useful. Being knowledgeable will always be an asset. For young ladies it is almost as important as being pleasant.”

  Penelope turned puzzled eyes to her governess’ face. “Why would it be important to be pleasant? I am an earl’s daughter. People will have to like me whether I am pleasant or not, won’t they?”

  Felicia pondered how best to answer this. Despite the improvements she had seen in the youngster, she was still a spoiled little girl with an inordinate amount of pride in her supposed position in society.

  “It is true that most will feel obliged to be nice to your face, but if you are unpleasant to be around, you can be certain that you will be a target for catty remarks behind your back. This will be particularly so when you go to finishing school.”

  “Well then, perhap
s I shan’t go away to school. I could just tell my Papa I do not wish to go,” the youngster reasoned.

  “But the time spent at school can be an amazing experience. You can make friends there who will be your companions for years to come. I would highly recommend the experience. Why are you so resistant to the idea of trying to be pleasant?”

  Penelope lifted her little shoulders in a lopsided shrug. “It’s usually difficult.”

  “Well, you catch more flies with sugar than vinegar.”

  “What does that mean?” the youngster asked with curiosity.

  “People are much more drawn to sweetness than to someone who is sour like vinegar.”

  “But like you said, people will be drawn to me because of who my Papa is,” Penelope stubbornly stuck to her original view.

  Felicia sighed with the beginnings of frustration. “Penelope, did you ever think that perhaps your Papa might remarry?”

  Now she had Penelope’s full attention. “Why would he do that? Isn’t he too old?”

  “Not at all. Your father is a perfect age to remarry. And while he loves you very much, most earls really require a son to carry on their name and inherit the estate. Right now, should something terrible happen to your father, no doubt some cousin would inherit everything and you would find yourself to be in a bit of a pickle.”

  Penelope wrinkled her nose while she concentrated on what her governess was trying to tell her. Felicia continued in a kind voice, sitting beside the youngster and putting her arm around her while she explained.

  “If he brought home a new countess who took you in dislike, your life could become rather awkward. So just in case, you should learn to curb your persnickety ways and try to be pleasant to everyone. You could try practicing with Mary. She is a very sweet person and would be happy if you were nice to her.”

  “But she’s my maid, Felicia,” Penelope countered with confusion. “She can’t really be my friend.”

  “Perhaps not, but if you can learn to be nice to her, you could probably be nice to anyone. And she is actually really easy to be nice to.”

  “I will think about it, Felicia. How do you know about this?” Penelope snuggled a bit more comfortably into Felicia’s arm while awaiting further explanation.

  ***

  Victor hovered just outside the door, waiting with baited breath for the rest of Felicia’s explanation. He was astonished at her ability to reason with his rebellious daughter. He held himself as still as possible, not wanting to alert either occupant of the room to his presence.

  ***

  “Well, for one thing I have been to the very school your father thinks would be good for you to attend, so I know how things work there. I also have had the disconcerting experience of having a major change in my circumstances. Being smart and nice were both very valuable qualities when I found myself to be homeless.”

  “You were homeless? What happened?” Penelope gazed at Felicia with eyes widened with shock.

  “My parents died in a terrible accident sixteen months ago. We were not a terribly wealthy family but we had a comfortable life together on my father’s small estate. My brother inherited nearly everything upon my parents’ death, and he was also named as the trustee for whatever I was to inherit until I married or turned twenty-five.” Felicia paused in her tale. Victor could see clearly by the look of indecision on her face that she was wondering if it was wise to share this story with the child. She must have decided it would be a good lesson to the youngster because she continued.

  “My foolish brother developed a taste for gambling and he lost it all quite quickly leaving us both penniless.”

  Proving she was kind in her core, Penelope hugged her governess tightly. “That’s terrible, Felicia, what happened then?”

  Squeezing her back, Felicia finished her story. “My brother ran away to the Americas but refused to take me with him. I think he was ashamed of what he had done and did not want me along as a reminder. He promised me he would make his fortune in the colonies and send for me, but that did me no good in the meantime. Luckily for me, my parents had provided very well for my old governess, and she was happy to take me in while I figured out what was best to be done. Then I met your grandmother and she told me about you. Now here I am, all right and tight.”

  “You can stay with me forever, Felicia,” Penelope vowed earnestly. “Even if Papa gets a nasty new wife, we can stick together.”

  Felicia laughed with delight over the youngster’s declaration of loyalty. “Thank you, my darling. Now enough sad tales, what say you to a trip to the park? Do you think we have learned enough for today?”

  ***

  Victor realized it was time for him to take his leave if he did not wish for his presence to become known. He suspected that the governess would be embarrassed to find him listening to her story and he couldn’t think of a ready excuse for being there. He turned on his heel and left.

  As he walked briskly away from the nursery, the earl found his admiration for his daughter’s governess to be rising steadily. The pretty young woman had overcome monumental obstacles and maintained a happy spirit. Perhaps it is the optimism of youth on her side, he thought rather cynically as he struggled to push his feelings of attraction toward her far to the back of his mind. He reached his library, shut the door firmly, and ignored the happy sounds as Penelope and Felicia bade farewell to the butler on their way out the door.

  Moments later, despite his best efforts, the earl could not resist asking Alfred where the girls had said they would be going.

  “My lord, my apologies. I did not foresee the need to ask Miss Felicia where she and my lady Penelope were headed. I see now that it would be advisable to be conscious of their whereabouts. I do know they had bread for the ducklings, and I believe they have previously mentioned that the ducks are living in Hyde Park.”

  “Do not trouble yourself, Alfred. Miss Scott seems to be highly proficient. I am sure no ill will befall them. But in the future, as you say, it would be advisable for the household to be aware of their plans lest we need to find them for some reason or another.”

  The earl returned to his library. He felt rather melancholy for a number of moments as he stared off into the distance. Jumping to his feet, he threw caution to the wind and summoned a footman to send round to the stables for his horse to be readied. He hurried up to his bedchamber and changed into more appropriate attire.

  “It is a dashed fine day for a ride, would you not say?” he remarked to his startled valet. That well-trained servant did not point out that his lordship so rarely went riding, especially not in the middle of the day, merely helping the earl to ease into his form-fitting coat.

  As the earl descended once more to the foyer, the butler too had the good sense not to comment on the unprecedented nature of the earl’s excursion, merely wishing him a good ride. “Should I know where you are heading, my lord?” Alfred thought to ask.

  “I am not a female of the house, Alfred. I do not need to apprise anyone of my whereabouts,” the earl haughtily answered, despite the twinkle shining in his eyes. He left the house feeling as though there were a bounce in his step, and he fought with a desire to whistle a jaunty tune, knowing that his faithful servants were already regarding him as though he had turned into a stranger. He decided he didn’t much care what they thought and bounded toward the stables.

  ***

  Meanwhile, Felicia and Penelope were blissfully unaware of the earl’s failed struggle against his urge to see them. They were happily tossing chunks of bread to the greedy ducks and swans on the slow moving serpentine in the middle of Hyde Park. When they had emptied their bag of every last crumb, Felicia finally convinced Penelope to step away from the riverbank. Despite how much they both enjoyed the antics of the ducklings, Felicia could not be completely at ease while her charge was so close to the edge. She suspected the earl would not look at their excursions in such a positive light were he to know how close his daughter had been to tumbling into the murky water on
a number of occasions.

  As though her thoughts had conjured him, Felicia glanced around and saw a rider heading in their direction who bore a striking resemblance to Lord Astley.

  “Penelope, is that your father by any chance?”

  Distracted, Penelope barely glanced up at the question. “My father never goes to the park, Felicia, so I wouldn’t think so.”

  “I am serious, Penelope. Look over there, I am quite certain that is the earl.”

  Penelope looked in the direction indicated, and her eyes widened in surprise. She then began hopping up and down, waving her arms and yelling, “Papa, Papa, we’re over here!” thus bringing a fiery blush to her governess’ cheeks at the unwanted attention being drawn to them by the aristocratic crowd.

  “Penelope Astley, that is no way for a lady to behave,” Felicia hissed.

  “But he will never find us if I don’t yell,” Penelope answered with all reasonableness.

  “Perhaps he is not looking for us and merely wishes to have a quiet ride in the park on this beautiful day.” Felicia was so mortified that she could not look in the earl’s direction, so she was unaware that he had heard his daughter’s summons and was now heading straight toward them.

  Penelope did not hesitate to point it out. “He is coming right this way, so I do think he was looking for me. So you see, it is good that I yelled.”

  “Penelope, you little hoyden, I could have heard you all the way at our house,” the earl announced as soon as he reached them. “I thought you were working on your manners.”

  Felicia took this as a reprimand toward her and stammered out an apology. “I am so sorry, my lord. It is my fault. I pointed you out to her and she was so excited to see you. She thought perhaps you were looking for us and she wanted to ensure you did not miss her.”

  The earl could not resist laughing at her disjointed apology. “My daughter’s behavior has improved drastically since your arrival, Miss Scott, have no fear. I do not lay the blame for this particular outburst at your feet. It should just be apparent to you that you still have a great deal of work before you.”