“I am very surprised at Lord Harveston,” Miss Mayton said, shaking her head.
“I am even more surprised by my own behavior,” Cordelia said. “Why should I run off and cry, simply because some gentleman recently met does not approve of me?”
“It was the shock of not being approved of,” Juliet said. “You have always been approved of, you must have felt staggered when all of the sudden somebody did not.”
Shehadfelt rather staggered. And, she was becoming aware that she had been particularly staggered because the disapproval had come from Lord Harveston.
“You see, Cordy,” Juliet went on, “not every family is like ours. Just think of the Grant sisters—they are always ready to tear each other’s hair out. We’re different, we all approve of one another and so you have got used to it.”
What Juliet said was true. She could not ever remember any of her sisters fighting with one another. She did not see why they ever would—it was far too much fun to be in one another’s confidence.
“Just think,” Juliet said, “when I first began writing my odes I was not very good at it. Could I ever have got to where I am now without the cheering on of my sisters? I am not sure that I could have. And what about Rosalind on the pianoforte or Viola’s painting?”
“You girls are all so talented,” Miss Mayton said.
Lynette suppressed a snort.
“Do not tease us, Lynette,” Cordelia said. “Juliet is right, I have just been too used to being enveloped in the loving arms of my family. Not everyone can be like us.”
“That is the truth,” Lynette said with a giggle.
Cordelia ignored Lynette, as the maid did like to tease for her own amusement. Everything Juliet had pointed out made so much sense. Though, why should she be so struck by Lord Harveston’s stance, even though it was rude? She had not just been surprised and offended, she had actually cried. Why should his opinion matter to her?
She really had no idea.
“I wonder if we should apprise Lady Rawley of this shameful incident?” Miss Mayton said, tapping her chin with her forefinger.
“Oh, no, let us not, Aunt,” Cordelia said hurriedly. “I’d much rather as few people know of it as possible.”
“Well, yes, I can certainly understand that, my dear.”
“But that will also mean that you both must keep attending his stupid literature society,” Juliet pointed out.
That was true, and though she was rather delighted to hear Juliet name it a stupid society, she could not be enthusiastic about continuing to go. Not when she now clearly understood Lord Harveston’s opinion regarding her attendance.
On the other hand, were they to be driven out? Was she to wave the white flag of defeat?
And then she had an idea. “Aunt, we were at a severe disadvantage at the last meeting because we did not know what the subject matter would be. Now we have the printed schedule.”
Cordelia hopped up, wresting herself away from a sighing Lynette, and found the paper on her writing desk. “Here it is. We are to discuss St. Thomas Aquinas’ idea that no man can be a judge of himself and how it relates to Aristotle’s opinion that most people are bad judges of their own case.”
“Ugh,” Juliet said. “Two ancient fellows who could not write a decent ode between them.”
“I am afraid I do not know the first thing about it,” Miss Mayton said. “Did any of your tutors ever say anything about either of those two gentlemen?”
Cordelia sat back down at Lynette’s urging and let her carry one with her work. She was certain that they had been told of these two fellows, but whenever one of their tutors droned on about some uninteresting person or event, it slipped out of her mind as fast as it had slipped in. Mr. Cramden used to liken her mind to a sieve.
“Jules?” she said.
Juliet shook her head. “Mr. Cramden probably waxed on about them. He was very good at finding the most boring people in history and talking about them for an hour.”
Miss Mayton nodded sadly. “I did not care for Mr. Cramden, myself, but the earl was doing a favor for the vicar in employing him. I did point out, several times, that he always smelled like fried bacon.”
“He used to keep it in his pockets, wrapped in paper,” Juliet said. “I caught him eating it a few times.”
“He used to get if from Cook,” Lynette said. “He always said he felt faint if he did not have bacon and Cook did not want to find out if it was true.”
“Interesting,” Juliet said. “Perhaps he had a medical condition we did not know about?”
