Virtue of a Governess (16 page)

“Yes, I thank you too.” Meg stood and crossed the room to gather their shawls.

Warner came to stand next to Nicola and helped her wrap the shawl around her shoulders. “I was hoping we could meet again tomorrow. The four of us could perhaps take a walk in the Domain, or take tea somewhere?”

“Yes, excellent idea, Hilton.” Captain Pollings nodded, smiling at Meg. “Shall we collect you around two o’clock?”

“I…we will look forward to it, Captain, won’t we, Nicola?” Meg’s eyes begged for Nicola to agree.

“Yes. Thank you.” Then she remembered the afternoon tea arrangement with Frances and Nathaniel. Warmth flooded her face as she looked at Warner. “I just remembered, I have guests tomorrow.”

“Then the next day,” Meg urged, eagerly staring from one to the other.

“The next day it is, Miss Robinson.” Captain Pollings kissed her hand.

They lingered outside on the deck, listening to the music drift across from the naval ship and staring up at the stars.

Eventually they headed down to find a transport home. The area was still busy and hired hansoms were in great demand despite the late hour.

“I’ll be counting the minutes until we meet again, Miss Douglas,” Warner whispered, his face shadowed in the street lamplight. “You have no idea what meeting you has done to me.” He raised her hand to his lips and the fluttering in her heart started again.

Before she could reply a couple sauntered past, and Nicola stared coldly at Tristan Lombard and his chattering female companion. Meg, thankfully, failed to notice him as she listened to the captain. Then, with surprise, Nicola stared at the next couple following Lombard.

Nathaniel West strolled with a bejewelled young woman clinging to his arm. The woman giggled up at him, her demeanour adoring. One of her hands travelled up his chest, her painted red nails playing with a button on his waistcoat. Nathaniel’s step faltered as he recognised Nicola. His benign expression became a grimace as he glared at her and Warner’s joined hands. He gave a stern nod in her direction and walked away.

Nicola was grateful the dim lighting hid her heated face. She felt tainted, that the whole evening was ruined, for she was certain Nathaniel would think the worst of her being out so late, that he wouldn’t consider a quiet dinner on a ship would be anything but innocent. He’d think she was no better than him, having a companion. Oh, she wanted to stamp her foot like a child. She wanted to slap his sardonic face. She wanted to… She wanted to go home to bed and forget she had seen him with another woman on his arm.

Well, again she’d been reminded how he gave his attentions freely. Frances had spoken of his liaisons before and this confirmed it. She had escaped from a commitment to which only one of them would have been loyal.

* * * 

The following morning, after a dreadful night’s sleep, where she dreamed of being on a sinking ship and the only rescuer was Nathaniel, but he kept rowing away from her, Nicola was determined that work, and lots of it, would be the only way she could get through the day. As she counted the linen sheets returned from the laundry, she prayed that Nathaniel would cry off today and only Frances would call.

“Nicola!” Meg raced up the stairs as though the hounds of hell chased her.

Scowling at Meg, Nicola turned back to the shelves of linen in the closet. “Whatever is the matter? Can you not wait until you are near me before talking, instead of yelling the house down?”

“Come downstairs.” Meg’s eyes glowed with inner happiness. “Quickly, now.” She snatched the list and pencil from Nicola’s hands and flung them onto a shelf then pulled her from the closet.

“Really, Meg…”

Downstairs, Meg ushered her into the drawing room, which had been transformed to resemble a flower shop. They both stood on the threshold and stared in wide-eyed amazement. Every conceivable surface held stands of flowers. Perfume thickly scented the air and the riotous colour nearly hurt Nicola’s eyes.

“Where? Who?” Nicola crossed the room, gently touching the odd flower. “I’ve never seen so many flowers in one room before.”

“Captain Pollings and Mr Warner. Together. For us.” Meg twirled. “Oh Nicola. How they must esteem us to go to such length, such expense. Have you ever seen such a display of affection?”

“No…”

“Nor I. They must have bought every flower in Sydney!”

“How do you know the flowers are from those two gentleman?”

From a small occasional table, Meg fished out a square cream card from between two stands. “To two of the most glorious beauties on Australian soil. Although these flowers are nothing compared to your individual loveliness, we hope they can brighten your day as you both have brightened our world. Sincerely and forever yours, Mr Hilton Warner and Captain James Pollings.” Meg looked up and sighed with dreamy rapture. “I know they did it together as a thank you and so it is all very proper, but the effort it must have taken them this morning… That alone deserves our devotion.”

“Devotion? A little too strong, don’t you think?” Nicola swallowed the emotional lump in her throat. No man had ever bought her such a display of flowers. In fact, the only time she’d received flowers was the sprig of Wattle blossom Nathaniel gave her at Fran’s birthday picnic. Her gaze swept the room again. All this was such a romantic gesture. She wasn’t used to men giving her attention. What was she to do now? How did other women cope? Was there a ritual she needed to learn? Why didn’t she know these things? No books had taught her about this. Panic gripped her.

Perhaps, instead of helping her father to teach boys, she should have been asking her mother for advice on matters of the heart, but at the time her frail mother had never seemed to be the one who would happily divulge private knowledge, and if Nicola was honest, the thought of courting and courtship itself had seldom presented itself in the forefront of her daily occupations.

She stared at Meg, who skipped around the room, bending to sniff each of the bouquets. “What do we do about all this?”

Meg laughed and clapped her hands. “Do? Why, we do nothing, except write a thank you note. Oh, and hope they have more surprises for us.”

Nicola stepped back towards the door. “No, I don’t want more surprises.”

“Why ever not? They are so handsome and-”

“We hardly know them, Meg.”

“This is how we get more acquainted, silly. Lord, Nicola, there is much you know about things that don’t matter so much, but there’s even more you don’t know about the important issues, such as love and romance.”

Nicola left the room with Meg’s words ringing in her ears. How true they were. She could teach a child to spell their name or find England on a map, but when it came to men, romance and matters of the heart, she knew very little. Still, it only confirmed her belief that she was meant to be a governess, to be a spinster, all her life.

She retreated into her study, where she could lose herself in accounts and household issues until Frances arrived, but as she sat at her desk, she felt such a heaviness in her chest, a weight pressing down making it hard to breathe.

A knock sounded at the door and she turned when it opened. Mr Belfroy stood there, wearing an apologetic smile. “Forgive my intrusion, Miss Douglas.”

Standing, the worry over men eased a little as she concentrated on the dear man who came forward and kissed her hand.

“I’m sorry to interrupt.”

“You can never interrupt me, Mr Belfroy, I am always at your service.”

“Indeed, you are good.” He leaned heavily on his cane, the other hand held his hat.

“Shall I take those for you?” Nicola gestured to his belongings, wondering why Hannah, the maid, hadn’t done her job properly when answering the door.

“No, thank you, I cannot stay. I have only called for a moment, to discuss with you an idea my nephew mentioned to me this morning.”

“Mr Warner?”

“Yes. He thinks we should hold a ball, a charity ball, in honour of this house and the fine women in it.”

“A ball?”

“To raise funds for you all and the upkeep of the house.”

“But I thought you had sufficient…Forgive me, I don’t want to appear to be rude-”

“Oh no, you must not worry yourself. Indeed I have the money, but it is the future Hilton is thinking of, a future when I will not be here, or you…”

She blinked, not comprehending. “I don’t understand, sir.”

Mr Belfroy perched his buttocks on a wooden chair by the unlit fire, his knees creaking as they bent. “Miss Douglas, for this house to continue long after I am dead, money needs to be raised. A charity must be created and maintained by a board of trustees. Hilton believes so and has convinced me of the same.”

“I see.”

“A ball will only be the beginning, but it will be a way to announce the efforts of this house, to make people aware. If we have patrons and donations, the longevity of this house will be assured.”

Nicola slowly sat, her mind whirling. “I confess I am surprised at this turn of thinking. I never imagined we would need outside help. Perhaps that was short-sighted of me.”

“No, my dear, it wasn’t. I was the same as you. But we have talked before of your future plans to include a teaching school for young ladies, and perhaps an orphanage here, and all those other wonderful ideas.” He held his hands out wide. “I am not going to be here for many more years, my dear. Naturally all my fortune is left in trust for the Home, but it will not last forever. You must see the sense in having extra income and help for the long term health of this enterprise?”

“Yes, of course…” But she didn’t. She didn’t like the thought of strangers being involved, of them having their say in the way she ran the house.

Mr Belfroy creaked to his feet, his cane tapped the floorboards at the effort. “Now, I’ll leave you to think it over. You may have ideas that need further discussion and my nephew tells me that he is to meet with you tomorrow, so you’ll have plenty to discuss then. We can speak again later in the week, yes?”

“Absolutely.” She rose and walked with him to the front door.

He turned and patted her hand. “I understand your hesitation, my dear.” He gazed around the hall fondly. “It is hard to allow others into your private world, I know that only too well. However, we must think of those who are in need of our help. The more people assisting us, the more women and children we can aid.” He smiled. “Take care, my dear. Until next time.”

“Good day, Mr Belfroy.” She watched him walk, leaning heavily on his cane, towards his carriage.

“Miss Douglas?” Miss Barker came to stand in the doorway beside her, a letter in her hand.

“Yes?”

“I have received correspondence from a fellow governess I met last year. A Miss Regina Clarke.” Miss Barker held up the letter as proof. “Her current situation will end in November and she’ll be needing accommodation then. Is she welcome here? I can vouch for her honesty and manners.”

“She is welcome, Miss Barker. We never turn anyone away.”

“Thank you, Miss Douglas. I shall write to her immediately stating the terms of the Home. She will be able to pay her way to start with.”

“Very good, Miss Barker. Assure her we charge very little.” Nicola watched the carriage trundle down the drive and at the same time, noticed another waiting to turn in. Her heart sank. It was Nathaniel West’s carriage. She crossed her fingers behind her back, hoping Frances had borrowed her brother’s carriage and he remained at home.

“We have another visitor?”

Nodding, Nicola straightened her shoulders and lifted her chin. “Yes, a friend of mine. Will you ask Mrs Nesbit to send a tea tray into the parlour please, Miss Barker?” With a determined step, Nicola went to meet the carriage. She pasted a smile on her face as Nathaniel climbed from the carriage and helped his sister down.

“Nicola.” Frances, wearing a brown skirt and pale gold blouse, hugged her warmly. “What an excellent position the house is on.”

“Yes, we are fortunate to have this rise. It affords us views to the harbour in the distance.” She inclined her head to Nathaniel, who looked resplendent in a dark grey suit, the jacket of which was knee length. “Good day, Mr West.”

“Miss Douglas.” He bowed towards her, his eyes again assessing.

“Won’t you come in?” She smiled, but couldn’t look him in the eyes. She led them into the parlour, away from the drawing room and all its flowers. That was something she didn’t want to explain.

For the next fifteen minutes, Nicola and Frances chatted about the soup kitchen and gossiped on the latest society happenings. The whole time, Nicola was aware of Nathaniel standing by the window, sipping his tea, watching her.

“You may be surprised to know, Frances, that future plans here will now include a small orphanage.”

“Really?” Frances grasped Nicola’s hand. “That is excellent news. I am so happy you changed your mind, Nicola.”

“Well, it makes sense doesn’t it? We’ll have all these teachers, why not put them to work?” She laughed softly.

Frances chuckled. “A perfect solution indeed.”

“I hope you will be able to help us, Fran, when the time comes.” Nicola glanced over at Nathaniel and caught him staring at her. Blushing, she looked back at his sister. “There, I do listen to you on some things.”

Frances sipped her tea. “I’d be delighted to help.”

“We hope to include a school for young ladies as well.” Nicola leaned forward eagerly, excited to share her plans. “The school will instruct young ladies in all manner of household duties, as well as some refinement. But I want to stress the importance of making these girls adaptable to all situations...” She paused as Nathaniel left the window.

“Mr Belfroy’s wealth must be beyond anyone’s imagining for him to fund such ventures.”

Nicola lifted her chin. “No, you are quite wrong, Mr West. We are hoping to become a charity. With donations and patrons, we shall be in the position to help more people than just governesses.”

“What changed your mind, Nicola?” Frances placed her teacup on the tray. “Once you would have rejected such a notion.”

“I was never against helping those less fortunate, Frances, but governesses also need to be cared for. We cannot forget them. However, with Mr Belfroy’s generosity in providing the house and having extra land to build on, we can do more. An orphanage will be beneficial to both causes, the children can be taught by the governesses awaiting situations.”

Nathaniel took a sip from his teacup. “Tell me, Miss Douglas, are the governesses under your care allowed to…shall we say…dally with the opposite sex?”