Cinderella Sister (28 page)

An image of Aggie’s indignant face flashed into Lily’s mind, forcing a reluctant smile. ‘Don’t ever let her hear you say that, Molly. She’d box your ears for less. Aggie is one of the family and you know it.’

Molly dismissed this with a careless shrug of her shoulders. She turned a sulky face to Armand. ‘Are you going to put us out of our misery and tell us your grand plan, or do I have to sit here and take insults from my sister?’

‘I’m sorry, Armand,’ Lily said, handing him a brimming cup of coffee. ‘Here we are bickering like schoolgirls and you have something important to tell us.’

‘As I said, I feel partly to blame for everything that has happened to your family recently. If it weren’t for you I might have died on the foreshore during that terrible fire.’

‘It was nothing,’ Lily murmured, sensing Molly’s annoyance that she had had no part in the events of that fateful day.

‘No, you are wrong, Lily,’ Armand declared passionately. ‘You took me into your home and you and your sister nursed me back to good health.’

‘I was there too,’ Molly said crossly. ‘Don’t I get any credit for your speedy recovery?’

‘Of course,
ma chérie
. You were all ministering angels and for that I will be eternally grateful. But for your prompt actions and excellent nursing I might have died of pneumonia, so the doctor informed me.’

‘Well, he’s an old toper at the best of times,’ Molly muttered, selecting a large slice of cake from the plate proffered by her sister. ‘Go on, Armand, don’t keep us in suspense.’

‘I know that my papa was partly to blame for your family being evicted from the dockmaster’s house. Your leaving there was inevitable in the circumstances, but he made it happen more quickly and that was unforgivable. I think he also had something to do with the fact that your brother had to pay a considerable amount to the dock company for alleged neglect of the property.’

‘What?’ Lily and Molly demanded in unison.

Armand put his cup and saucer down on a rosewood sofa table. ‘You did not know this?’

‘Nobody tells us anything,’ Molly said bitterly.

‘That explains why we are so hard up.’ Lily frowned as she remembered Nell poring over her housekeeping accounts. ‘Nell never said a word about it.’

‘She wouldn’t,’ Armand agreed. ‘Nell is a saint if ever there was one. She did not want to worry you with her problems, but did you never wonder why you were living in such straitened circumstances?’

Lily shook her head. ‘It all happened so quickly.’

‘Nell treats us like babies,’ Molly said, pouting. ‘I thought she was just being mean.’

‘I only found out recently.’ Armand shook his head as Lily offered him a slice of cake. ‘No, thank you.’

‘So how did it come about?’ Molly demanded. ‘Come on, Armand. You can’t tell us half a story and leave it there.’ She put her cup and saucer down, eyeing the Madeira cake and licking her lips. ‘I’ll have another slice, Lily.’

Lily cut the cake and slipped it onto Molly’s plate, but her attention was fixed on Armand. ‘Please go on.’

‘My papa has put me in charge of the London office.’

‘Does that mean you’ll be living in London permanently?’ Molly asked eagerly.

‘I will divide my time between London and Paris.’

‘Nell will be so happy.’ The words had tumbled inadvertently from Lily’s lips but the look on Molly’s face made her wish them unsaid.

‘It will please us all.’

Molly’s clipped tones made Lily flinch but Armand seemed happily oblivious to the heightened tension in the room. He sipped his coffee. ‘This is excellent. It is so hard to get good coffee in London.’

‘Never mind that,’ Molly said through a mouthful of cake. ‘Tell us your blooming plan and how you found out about the money that we had to pay the dock company.’

‘As I said, my papa has put me in charge of the London office as he wants to devote more time to business at home. It was there I came across a letter from the manager of the dock company to my papa, confirming that he had taken action against your family and the rate at which the monies were to be repaid. It was not an insignificant amount and I realised that it would bring you close to bankruptcy.’

‘I wish Nell and Matt had told us,’ Lily said with feeling. ‘I feel even worse now.’

‘There is no need. I made it my business to settle matters with the dock company. There is now no debt and your family will be able to live as they once did, although sadly not in your old home. But,’ he added, holding up his hand as Molly opened her mouth to interrupt, ‘I have a property which I think is eminently suitable.’

‘Oh, Armand, how wonderful.’ Lily clasped her hands to her bosom, restraining the urge to give him a hearty hug.

‘Where? Is it somewhere fashionable, Armand?’ Molly’s eyes shone and her unconcealed delight brought a smile to Armand’s lips.

‘Not exactly, but I think your esteemed
grand-père
will be more than happy with my choice. The house is close to Pelican Stairs and it overlooks the waterfront. It was once our counting house but the premises became too small and we moved to our warehouse on Bell Wharf. Since then the property has been empty and it will need some renovation, but I think it will make a comfortable home.’

Lily sighed. ‘I wish I could see it.’

‘It will be your home too,’ Armand said with conviction.

Molly selected another slice of cake. ‘I wouldn’t be so sure about that. Matt is furious with Lily. He’s not going to forgive her easily for what she did.’

Lily bowed her head. She knew that Molly only spoke the truth, but it was not what she wanted to hear. ‘Perhaps if you put in a good word for me, Armand?’

‘Of course I will do anything I can, but for now I think Molly is right. You are better off here with your mama. Matt will come round in time, I think.’

‘I’d swap places with you.’ Molly licked her fingers, eyeing the remains of the cake as if she would like to gobble it up, but she put her plate down and rose to her feet. She strolled around the room examining its contents as if she were assessing the value of each porcelain figurine and cut glass vase. ‘Old what’s-his-name must be worth a fortune,’ she murmured appreciatively. ‘He must have sold a few paintings to pay for all this.’ She paused as the sound of the doorbell was followed by the patter of feet on the marble
tiles. ‘Visitors,’ she said eagerly. ‘I wonder if it’s anyone famous.’

Lily listened to the sound of an interchange in the hall and she recognised Gabriel’s voice. ‘I’m afraid you’re going to be disappointed, Molly. It’s only Gabriel.’

‘Oh him.’ Molly’s tone was disdainful. ‘He admitted that it was his father who Ma ran off with. It was a bad day when you met Gabriel Faulkner.’

‘That’s not fair. It wasn’t his fault any more than it was mine, or yours for that matter.’

‘No, the real culprit is Ma, and that’s why Matt won’t forgive you for siding with her.’ Molly snatched up her cloak and bonnet that she had discarded carelessly on a chair by the door. ‘I think we’d better leave, Armand. I don’t want anything to do with the Faulkners. Like father like son.’ She clapped her hand over her mouth. ‘I didn’t mean to include you in that, of course.’

Armand rose to his feet. ‘Perhaps it would be best if we leave now, Lily. I have nothing against the young man, but I have to respect Molly’s delicate feelings.’

‘Yes,’ Molly said, swinging her cloak so that it swirled dramatically around her shoulders. ‘I have delicate feelings. D’you hear that, Lily? Not that my family ever acknowledged the fact, but I’m highly sensitive. It’s my artistic nature, although I’m nothing like Ma. You’re her child through and through, Lily, and you’ll have to suffer that for the rest of your life.’ Molly made a move towards the door as it opened to admit Prissy.

‘Mr Gabriel for you, Miss Lily,’ she said loudly. ‘Come this way, mister.’

‘We meet again, Miss Molly,’ Gabriel said, inclining his head in a semblance of a courtly bow. He held his hand out to Armand. ‘I’m glad to see that you decided to come and see Lily. I’m sure it means a lot to her.’

‘We were just leaving,’ Molly said with a haughty tilt of her head. ‘You haven’t done her any favours, Gabriel Faulkner. I hope you realise that no decent man is going to look at my sister now.’

‘Come,
ma chérie
, I think it is time we departed,’ Armand said, ushering her gently from the room. ‘My coachman will waiting for us and we don’t want the poor fellow to freeze to death in the snow.’

‘Goodbye, Lily,’ Molly called over her shoulder. ‘I’ll tell Nell that you’re doing very well without us.’

‘Wait for me,’ Prissy cried, scurrying after them. ‘I got to open the front door. It’s the law here in London.’

The room seemed suddenly quiet and Lily felt as if her last tie with home had been cruelly severed.

Gabriel put his arm around her shoulders. ‘I don’t think she understands at all.’

‘No, how could she?’ Lily said with a reluctant smile. ‘No one has ever refused Molly anything, but she can’t help the way she is; none of us can.’

‘Wise words indeed.’ Gabriel released her as Prissy returned carrying a velvet mantle and a matching bonnet in a fetching shade of blue. ‘Good girl, Prissy,’ he said approvingly. ‘And I think Miss Lily will need some gloves or a fur muff. Perhaps you could find something suitable.’

‘Certainly, Mr Gabriel.’ Prissy grinned and winked
at Lily. ‘He’s a good ’un, miss. He’ll look after you all right.’

She was gone again before Lily had gathered her wits enough to demand an explanation. Gabriel held out the mantle with an encouraging smile. ‘Let’s see if this fits, Miss Larkin. You and I have an important appointment this morning.’

Obediently, Lily slipped her arms into the luxurious garment. It was soft to the touch, light and yet deliciously warm. She could not resist stroking the velvet as if it were a living thing. ‘It’s beautiful,’ she breathed. ‘But it must belong to Ma. Won’t she mind?’

‘Of course not, little sister. Cara has more clothes than most ladies own in a lifetime. Fashion is her weakness – well, if I tell the truth just one of many – but meanness is not her besetting sin. Even if this were her one and only garment she would not begrudge her daughter wearing it on a cold and frosty day like today.’ He perched the bonnet on Lily’s loose hair. ‘Don’t ever put your hair up, my dear. You should always wear it framing your face, which is a perfect oval. Has no one ever told you that you are beautiful, Miss Lily Larkin?’

‘No, I’m the plain one in the family,’ Lily said earnestly. ‘Nell is the beauty and Molly is the pretty one.’

‘They both have their merits, but I see you with the eyes of an artist.’

The warm look in his eyes sent a shiver down Lily’s spine and she felt the blood rush to her cheeks. Taking the ribbons from him, she turned away to fasten them in a bow beneath her chin, checking her appearance
in one of the many gilt-framed mirrors that adorned the walls. ‘Where are we going, Gabriel? Are you taking me home?’

‘This is your home for now, Lily. I’m taking you to my lodgings and I am going to give you your very first lesson in art.’

She spun round to face him, hardly able to believe her ears. ‘You’re going to teach me to draw and paint?’

‘Exactly so. We have the ideal opportunity, and I’m not going to let you miss it.’

‘But Ma will wonder where I’ve gone.’

‘We’ll leave a message with Prissy. You must stop worrying, Lily. I’m looking after you now.’ He ushered her out of the parlour as Prissy came running downstairs carrying a large fur muff.

‘Is this what you wanted, Mr Gabriel?’

‘Thank you, Prissy.’ He took it from her with an appreciative smile. ‘We must look after those little hands, Lily. They will make your fortune one day, of that I have no doubt at all.’

Mrs Lovelace showed her disapproval of a young woman being entertained in a gentleman’s room with a sniff and a twitch of her thin shoulders.

‘It is an art lesson, Mrs Lovelace dear,’ Gabriel said, flashing a smile in her direction. ‘Miss Larkin is my pupil.’

‘I’ve heard it called a lot of things,’ Mrs Lovelace said stonily, ‘but art lessons are a new one on me.’

‘No, really,’ Lily protested. ‘Gabriel is my stepbrother, missis. It’s all perfectly above board. He is going to teach me.’

‘I don’t doubt it, but leave the door open. I don’t allow usually allow young ladies in my gents’ rooms, but if you’re related by marriage then I suppose it’s quite respectable.’

Truthful to the last, Lily opened her mouth to put her right on that point but Gabriel seemed to know what she was going to say and he took her by the arm, propelling her gently towards the staircase. ‘The door will be left ajar, Mrs Lovelace. You may enter at any time you please.’

‘I’ll be checking on you,’ Mrs Lovelace called after them as they ascended the steep stairs. ‘Don’t think I won’t.’

Gabriel led the way to his room on the third floor, situated at the back of the house. A single iron bedstead was pushed against the wall on one side of the room and the covers were in considerable disarray, as if he had only just got out of bed. He moved swiftly to pull the coverlet over the tumbled bedding. ‘I’m not a particularly tidy man,’ he said apologetically.

Lily glanced round at the clothes scattered haphazardly on a wingback chair by the fireplace and odd shoes lurking beneath a table where the remnants of last night’s meal were congealing on a dinner plate. ‘I can see that,’ she said. ‘I’ve three brothers so it’s nothing new to me, but doesn’t your landlady clean the room?’

Gabriel moved to the table and began piling empty cups and plates, a wine glass and bottle on a tray. ‘Mrs Lovelace doesn’t soil her hands with cleaning. She has a maid for that and my room is done twice weekly. For the rest of the time I manage on my own.’ He lifted
the tray and set it down outside the door. ‘Now then, take a seat by the window in front of my easel. I want you to sketch the view of the rooftops and chimneypots. How do you feel about that, Lily?’

Her fingers trembled as she took off her bonnet and mantle. ‘Nervous, Gabriel. I’ve only ever drawn and painted for my own pleasure.’

‘Then let’s see what you can do.’ He flicked through a pile of canvases, some already painted and others white as the virgin snow on the rooftops. He placed a small one on the easel and handed Lily a piece of charcoal. ‘Take your time, little sister. We have all day.’