An Indelicate Situation (The Weymouth Trilogy) (35 page)

Mr Staveley
soon revealed yet another useful talent as soon as they
reached
the cove.
For whilst Mr Berkeley had spent many a summer holiday by the sea as well as
living his
early years at Weymouth and knew a good deal about the life to be found therein,
Mr Staveley
turned out to be totally at home
with
all things marine including, amongst other
s
, not only the names of all the creatures to be found in the
rock pools
but such fascinating details as to which
ones
ate which, how they caught
each other
and how they spent their leisure time
whilst awaiting the next tide. He was therefore soon to be discovered, together with his host, both minus
their
shoes and stockings,
like the children
,
acting as the fount of all knowledge when Kate and Rob
ert
discovered something new.

‘So, what have we here?’ he demanded, as first one and then the other of the two
older
children came
running gleefully over
to him with their
find
s. ‘Aha. That’s a good
animal to find. Well done, M
...
Master Rob
ert
. He’s a b
...
baby hermit crab. See his shell? It does not b
...
belong to
him at all. He has m
...
moved in to som
...
someone else’s shell. Can you think why?’ and then ‘So, M
...
Miss Kate – you have
f
ound a wonderful little creature there. Can you count his legs? Yes, there are eight of them. Now, what other creatures do you know who also have eight legs?
...
. So, do you think that this creature could b
...
be another exam
...
example? You are right, of course. He is known as a sea
-
sp
...
spider. He is very tiny,
is he not? He is quite a grown
up sp
...
spider
already
, however – he will not grow much m
...
more
than this
.’

Andrew had found
Kathryn
,
Maggie
and Sally
some
relatively flat stones on which to perch themselves,
and had thoughtfully
asked George to
provide them with some extremely comfortable cushions
to go on top
. W
ith
Sally keeping a watchful eye upon
little Andy playing happily
with some
broken
shells
close by
, Kathryn and Maggie were able to direct their attention towards the energetic activities then being undertaken on the rocky beach in
front of them
. They were
bo
th tak
ing great enjoyment from watching the gentlemen’s pleasure
, as well as
that of
the children, and exchanged more than one amused smile as, firstly, Mr Berkeley
and then
one or other of
his children
rushed back
for Mr Staveley’s opinion on the miscellany of animals and sea plants that their
afternoon’s activity had discover
ed.
Indeed,
both
gentlemen
appeared to be having
a
whale of a time.
They seemed to be
as keen as the children were on
identifying
what exciting life forms had chosen to make the rocky cove their home and,
their
own excitement serving to infect everyone else as well, they were all soon busily engaged in dashing from one little pool to the next as someone, somewhere, discovered something new.
Indeed, so anxious were they to share their enthusiasm with everybody else that on several occasions
– and much to Maggie’s delight -
both Mr Berkeley and Mr Staveley
scurried
over to where the ladies were sitting in order
to gain some extra admiration of
their finds.

‘I fear that Mr Staveley’s talents are wasted out at sea, Miss Owens,’ Kathryn remarked as, reluctantly, the little party determined that the fading light
and increasing chill were
signalling the need for an imm
ediate
return home. The ladies decorously turned their backs as the two gentlemen dried their feet and replaced their stockings and shoes. ‘He appears to have a way with children, much as Mr Berkeley does.
It would be such a shame were he never to have a family of his own.’

Maggie blushingly agreed. The same thought had crossed her own mind, together with the rather more daring one that she would very much like to
be the lady to bear him
his
son
.
The thought of it made her feel deliriously happy.
She laughed as Mr Berkeley swung little Andy onto his broad shoulders. She laughed again
as
Mr Staveley and Mr Berkeley took little Kate by the hands and swung her along between them, and readily agreed to do the same for Rob, with
the ever
-
obliging
and cushion-encumbered George
.

The dinner was a good one – not
too grand, but varied, and very tasty
.
Captain and Mrs Wright had walked up to Belvoir from their house on the quay and
had joined the party for
the meal.
Given her sensations at the last formal dinner she had attended – and the
disastrous
results of it – Maggie was quite surprised to find that she was perfectly
contented
and at ease at this one. The gentlemen – all lively and good
-
humoured – sparred with
each other
throughout the meal
. The ladies – all similarly good humoured and pleased that the gentlemen were having so much fun – were more than happy just to listen and feel amused.

The two naval gentlemen were busily engaged in enthusing over the speed
, fire power
and seaworthiness of their very own ship. It seemed – from what they were saying at any rate – that not only was ‘Leveret’ one of the newest
and
handsomest
sloops in the whole of His Majesty’s extensive fleet but she was also the quickest of all of her kind, and perfectly well capable of holding her own in a fight.

‘So tell us exactly how you came by your lucky break in the
first place
, Captain Wright
,’
invited Kathryn. ‘Jane told us what you had said in your letter but we have heard none of the detail. Who was this Admiral whom you happened to know? I have not heard you mention him before.’

‘Oh no,’ replied her brother
-
in
-
law. ‘It was not at all down to me, you know. He was Staveley’s acquaintance. We simply bumped into him in the street.’

‘Quite literally, I’m afraid,’ confirmed Mr Staveley, looking a little bashful. ‘I regret that I was walking along
Holborn
with the Captain here when m
...
m
y attention was taken by the
m
odel of a Frigate in
‘
Noah’s Ark
’
. The rigging was all to p
...
pieces. I was so ab
...
absorbed in
trying to sort it all out
in my m...mind
that I b
...
bumped into the Admiral as
he was coming down the steps. I
t
was lucky that I did not knock him
quite
to the ground. I
fear I
have
previously
m
...
managed
t
o do so
on more than one occasion
.’

‘And I understand that you had provided some service to this Admiral at one time, Mr Staveley?’

‘Well, it was nothing to sp
...
speak of really,’ said Freddy, modestly. ‘He had m
...
managed to get himself caught up in a little skirmish in Sta
...
Stabro
ek one evening. It was nothing
much – just a few locals taking exception to so
...
something that he said. I b
...
believe a lady to have
been involved and he was trying to defend her good
na
me
, or so
...
something of the sort
. Anyway, as luck would have it I just hap
...
happened to be in the vicinity at the time. Though I’m not a great fighter I daresay I
do
look the p
...
part,’
smiling. ‘Anyway, I roared quite loudly and threw m
...
my arms about
a bit
and somehow m
...
managed to clout one of them on the head
. It see
...
seemed to do the trick. They were all so bosky – begging your p
...
pardons, ladies
–
I daresay the
y thought me a tremendous milling cove
. They
found themselves
quite unable to p
...
put up any resistance whatsoever
.’

Maggie secretly wondered whether Mr Staveley was being a little too modest about his
role in the affair. She somehow doubted that a bunch of ruffians would entirely throw in the towel after so trivial an intervention as the one to which he had just
that moment
admitted.

‘Well, your bravery – or bravado, appears to have stood you in good stead,
Mr
Staveley
,’ Mr
B
erkeley was saying, as the ladies stood up to leave
.
‘
It has got both you and John your ship – and well deserved too, if you don’t mind m
y
saying
so
– very well deserved
indeed
.’

It was w
hilst they were finishing their port
that
Mr Staveley raised the subject
of his mother’s finances
with Mr Berkeley
once again
.

‘For I
f
ind m
...
myself in a little dilemma,
Mr B
...
Berkeley,’ he said, smacking his lips
appreciatively
as he drained the glass
for
at least
the seventh time
. ‘For though I am m
...
more than glad that m
...
my cousin no longe
r has access to m
...
my
mother’s
balsam
I
must admit that she will find it singularly difficult to m
...
manage
it
on her own. Even without the confusion that be
sets her at
times, she is a lady after all and m
...
my father used to do all that sort of thing on her be
...
behalf. She is not much
used to having to m
...
manage it all on her own.’

Mr Berkeley nodded.

‘Yes, and with you away it will be impossible for you to manage
it for her
. I daresay you could ask Mr Brewer to
do it
.
I have known him well these se
v
e
r
al years now. He is quite a hard business man
and will sometimes take a few risks, but a
s long as you are quite specific in your requirements – what you are happy for him to do and what you are not
-
I
am confident that
he would follow your instructions
as you wish
.’

Mr Staveley reddened a little at the mention of Mr Brewer’s name.

‘Yes, I sup
...
suppose he would
’, he agreed
.
‘I
expect he w
ould
do his b
...
best for her.’