A Simple Lady (21 page)

“But did you not think he looked a little apprehensive?” Elizabeth asked, still frowning.

Mary reached to pat Elizabeth on the arm. “Please stop worrying about Billy, my dear. He’ll be fine. After all, Betsie is with him, and she’s done an excellent job of looking after him this past week. I’m certain she’ll continue doing so today. Besides, he has Apollo to help entertain him.”

“I sincerely hope Apollo will not scratch his scabs.”

“Oh? Does Apollo have scabs too?”

Momentarily confused, Elizabeth glanced into Mary’s twinkling eyes and realized she was being teased. Grinning ruefully, she apologized. “I am sorry, Mary. I know I’m behaving like a widgeon, but I can’t seem to help myself.”

“Of course you cannot, my dear. You are obviously very distraught about this visit to Oak Groves, although I do not understand why.”

“Mary?”

“Yes, dear?”

“Did Jeremy enjoy playing with toy soldiers when he was a boy?”

If the dowager found the abrupt change of subject a bit peculiar, she gave no indication. “Now that you mention it, yes. He and Gerald once spend many hours engaged in endless battles with those battered little soldiers.”

“What became of them?” Elizabeth asked. Only when her nails began cutting into the palms of her hands did she realize how tightly she was clenching her fists while awaiting Mary’s response.

“They disappeared one summer. When I asked Jeremy what had become of them, he said he had taken them with him on a visit to Kenrick House and had forgotten to bring them home with him. That did not surprise me, especially. On the rare occasions when Jeremy’s father demanded he come to London for a visit, my husband would shower Jeremy with gifts. Once I recall that Jeremy’s father gave him a hoop. Jeremy was absolutely thrilled when he returned to Aston Arbor with his new toy. He spent hours playing with it until one of the boys—I cannot recall now whether it was Jeremy or Gerald—accidentally rolled it into the lake. I thought Jeremy would be heartbroken about its loss, but he merely shrugged. He was a strange boy at times.”

“I see,” Elizabeth said, her expression bleak. “Mary, is there a schoolroom at Oak Groves where Billy can be housed that is a bit out of the way? I don’t want him getting underfoot.”

“Of course, dear. As I recall, there is a very pleasant room that is quite removed from the family’s quarters. But are you sure that is what you want for Billy?”

“Yes,” Elizabeth said. “That will be perfect.”

The name “Oak Groves” was so lacking in elegance that Elizabeth had somehow assumed the estate would also be rather unpretentious. She had envisioned a relatively small house, only a bit bigger than Cramdon Cottage, surrounded by towering oaks with picturesque paths wending their way amongst the venerable trees.

A grove of elms surrounded the estate’s gatehouse, Elizabeth noted when their coach turned off the main road late that afternoon. However, the wooded area was soon replaced by well-trimmed shrubbery as the coach followed a smooth drive that curved gently through the magnificent grounds. When the coachman finally pulled to a stop in front of the family residence, Elizabeth gasped with amazement and some apprehension.

A guidebook, she was convinced, would have described the house itself as a castle. A monstrous pile, complete with turrets, sprawled before her, its aged stone facade mellowed by the late-day light. Glancing out the opposite window, she observed a park stretching in manicured splendor down to a sparkling lake where several white swans swam slowly and regally, reminding Elizabeth of pearls floating on a bed of blue satin.

“Good heavens,” Elizabeth said, staring about her, astonishment clear in her widened eyes.

“Yes, it is impressive,” Mary said. “I recall feeling rather intimidated by all of this when I was first brought to Oak Groves as a new bride.”

“But why is it called Oak Groves?” Elizabeth asked. “There is neither an oak nor a grove anywhere in view.”

“The name goes back to Tudor times, I believe, when no doubt there were plenty of both. Ah, there is Drowell, the butler, coming out to welcome us. And that must be Mrs. Sanders right behind him. She has aged well, I must say.”

Within seconds, a footman was handing Elizabeth out of the coach. She paused to look up at the impressive height of the walls towering before her. She could not but reflect that, were her marriage a conventional one, she would be considered mistress of this house. As it was, she felt like an interloper.

“Welcome to Oak Groves.”

Elizabeth started visibly. She had not been aware that Jeremy had already dismounted and moved to her side.

“You will be tired from the journey,” he continued. “I will see to Billy. Mrs. Sanders has had a room prepared for him in the servants’ quarters, and Betsie will be housed nearby should he have need of her.”

“But I had thought that the s-s-schoolroom—” Elizabeth began, faltering to a stop when her husband frowned at her.

“You may not be aware that the schoolroom is very distant from the wings that are in use by the family,” he said. “Surely you would not want Billy so isolated from other people. I cannot feel he would be happy under those circumstances.”

“I suppose not,” Elizabeth agreed reluctantly. “But I do not want him to be underfoot.”

“You need not worry about that. This pile is so huge, one little boy could not possibly get underfoot. Now, if you will excuse me, I will fetch the child. You will be anxious to see how he endured the journey.” Turning on his heel, Kenrick hurried to open the door of the second coach.

Elizabeth watched anxiously, dreading the expression of disdain that would surely follow her husband’s first sight of Billy since the lad had broken out so badly with the chicken pox. Never handsome, Billy’s freckled face was now rendered even less appealing by the addition of unsightly scabs and red splotches. Elizabeth clasped her hands together, silently praying that Billy would not note the revulsion she felt certain must be reflected in her husband’s eyes.

If Kenrick experienced the emotions Elizabeth had been expecting from him, he hid them well. He strode briskly to the coach, reached inside to pick Billy up, and, smiling, carried him to Elizabeth’s side before gently placing him on his feet.

“There now, young man,” Kenrick said jovially. “You are in the country. What do you think of it?”

Wide-eyed and gaping, Billy spent the next several seconds staring at the massive park around him. When he at last looked up at the marquess, a broad and happy grin was brightening his unsightly little face.

Kenrick threw back his head and laughed heartily. “A man after my own heart,” he said, reaching down to tousle Billy’s hair. “I expect you will want to explore the grounds tomorrow, and Mrs. Sanders tells me she has a grandson just your age who will be happy to serve as your guide. In the meanwhile, you had best rest for a bit. If you and Betsie will follow Arthur, he will show you to your quarters.”

After a quick glance toward Elizabeth, who smiled and nodded her head, Billy happily grasped Betsie’s hand and followed as the second footman led them into the house.

Mary, who had been waiting patiently to claim Elizabeth’s attention, placed a hand on her arm and quickly introduced her to Mrs. Sanders, a plumb, gray-haired lady whose cheery expression reinforced her words of welcome. Then it was time to move into the massive entrance hall where Drowell awaited any orders the ladies might have. Since both expressed their desire to freshen up before tea, Mrs. Sanders was soon escorting them down seemingly endless corridors to their respective bedchambers.

Elizabeth hoped she had said and done all that was proper. She assumed she must have done so, for neither Mary nor Mrs. Sanders appeared upset or displeased with her when they left her alone in her bedchamber to rest a few minutes. Neither seemed aware that Elizabeth had not been attending either to them or to her surroundings. She was too stunned by Kenrick’s behavior toward Billy. That her husband had been both accepting of and kind to Billy was irrefutable. How had he carried off such a pretense? Obviously Kenrick was a much better actor than she had previously realized.

Unless— Was it possible that Gerald had been mistaken? Or that Kenrick had changed over the years? Perhaps maturity had proven to him that even flawed objects—and people—had value.

Feeling suddenly more optimistic than she had at any moment since Gerald’s disclosures about her husband’s character, Elizabeth smiled to herself. Over the next few weeks she would surely have an opportunity to get to know her husband, and then she could decide for herself whether or not he still abhorred imperfection.

Chapter Seventeen

Elizabeth began falling in love with Oak Groves almost as soon as she first set foot on the property. Although the layout of the house was a bit confusing, she soon found her way around and began to revel in the sense of security she experienced within the walls of her husband’s principal seat.

She was equally enthralled with the grounds, which were immaculately groomed, with neat graveled pathways leading through formal gardens and around the sparkling lake that lay a short distance from the stables.

And while she hadn’t expected a busy social life in the country, she was astounded and pleased when soon after she and Mary arrived, numerous carriages began wending their way down the long driveway so their occupants could leave cards at Oak Groves.

Mary was ecstatic. As she explained to Elizabeth, many of the neighbors had befriended her when she was a bride, before her marriage had deteriorated to the point that she had taken Jeremy and retreated to Aston Arbor to escape the humiliations being heaped upon her by her husband.

While Elizabeth was delighted to see Mary so enthused about renewing ties with their neighbors, she was soon pleased for her own sake as well. For the first time since her marriage, she was being exposed to people who had never heard the rumors about her supposed simplemindedness, people who knew nothing of Kenrick’s reasons for marrying her. Being greeted with respect rather than with wariness was a heady experience for Elizabeth, and she soon learned that her position had certain advantages. The neighbors around Oak Groves accepted her without reservations, and they appeared quite content with the new marchioness.

Elizabeth couldn’t help but notice that her husband was especially popular among the people who lived near Oak Groves. Everyone appeared delighted to see Kenrick whenever he accompanied his mother and wife to one of the neighbors’ hurriedly planned picnics or parties.

She soon began to suspect that her acceptance by everyone in the neighborhood could be tied to Kenrick’s constant good manners whenever she was nearby. He always treated her with respect and with a show of affection that she was beginning to find both exhilarating and discouraging. Elizabeth was discovering that, like her neighbors, she delighted in Kenrick’s company. Unfortunately, she rarely saw him except when they had guests.

Of course, as Elizabeth frequently reminded herself, it was obvious her husband was busy. He spent much of every morning assisting Mr. Smithfield with estate business. During the afternoons, whenever his presence was not required at a social function, he closeted himself in the library to go over the books or read up on new farming methods.

This facet of her husband’s personality was one that Elizabeth admired immensely, especially when she compared Kenrick’s care for his property and his dependents to her parents’ neglect of Ravingate Hall. She had done what she could to provide for the security of the servants at her former home by having half of her quarterly allowance sent to Squire Wilson, along with a request that he hire a dependable man to oversee repairs to the house and the property. He’d seemed happy to comply and sent occasional reports detailing improvements to the property and modernizations designed for the comfort of the servants.

While Elizabeth would have liked to view the changes at Ravingate Hall herself, that wasn’t possible, so she decided to devote herself to learning about her new home and hopefully finding something useful to do herself at Oak Groves. Every morning she rose at eight o’clock and went for an exploratory ride with one of the grooms as her guide. Within a week, she had discovered the tenants.

On the morning Elizabeth first rode out of the forest and into the compound of tenant cottages, she was met by the women there with a bit of awe and a healthy portion of suspicion. None expected the marquess’s new bride to have anything in common with them.

But Elizabeth had not spent hundreds of hours tutoring Farmer Wythecombe’s children without learning a few things about farm life. She could easily commiserate with Mrs. Donaldson, whose cow had gone dry, and with Mrs. Faulkner, whose hens had stopped laying. But the tenants discovered that Elizabeth always did more than commiserate with them. Whenever any of them expressed a need, they could soon expect to see a servant arriving from Oak Groves bearing milk or eggs or, in some cases, liniments or potions for whatever ailments happened to be prevalent at the moment.

Elizabeth enjoyed her visits with the tenants, but she enjoyed even more the routine that inevitably followed her return to the stables, for she always found Apollo and Billy waiting for her, anxious for her to play a game with them or to take them for a walk. Both the cat and the boy were thriving at Oak Groves. Billy, it appeared, had increased two inches in height and gained at least a stone, while Apollo was growing longer and leaner. Both were as prone as ever to land in trouble, and Elizabeth sometimes ended up there with them.

On one particularly warm morning, Elizabeth, Billy, and Apollo had sought respite from the heat in a small grove of trees on the west side of the grounds. When Billy persisted in peeping at her from behind a tree, Elizabeth knew he was requesting a game of hide and seek. After removing the plumed hat that matched her riding habit and placing it on the ground out of harm’s way, Elizabeth covered her eyes, the signal for Billy to hide.

Ten minutes later, she was still searching for him, dashing from tree to tree and from shrub to shrub. Later she concluded that Apollo must have been watching her from a strategic position on a tree limb several feet above. When she darted beneath his tree, Apollo sprang.