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‘A little.’ She gave a dismissive shrug. Little was an understatement. She’d never felt so exhausted in her life.
‘Then let’s get you to bed, Mrs Felstone.’
She gave a small start. It wasn’t the first time that she’d been called by her married name, but it sounded different coming from his lips, with a hint of possession that she found strangely exciting. On the other hand, the mention of bed was more than a little alarming. What did he mean, get her to bed? That definitely wasn’t part of their agreement, especially after his earlier behaviour! Or did he think that their kiss had altered the terms somehow?
‘On your own, of course.’ His lips curled sardonically as if he’d just guessed what she was thinking. ‘Love has nothing to do with it, remember?’ He jumped down from the carriage before she could answer. ‘In any case, I still have plenty of work to do today. You can get some rest as soon as I’ve introduced you to the staff.’
‘Staff?’ She followed him out on to the pavement and then stopped short, tilting her head up. And up. And up. ‘This is your house?’
‘Our house, yes.’
Ianthe opened her mouth and then closed it again. The rain had finally stopped and the afternoon sun was glinting off the slate roof, five storeys above. She’d never thought to ask him where he lived, but she’d expected it to be near the shipyard, somewhere down in the harbour itself. Instead he’d brought her up to the Royal Crescent, a sweep of large terrace houses set high above the north cliff, their gleaming white frontages facing straight out to sea.
‘Not what you expected?’
She shook her head, rendered speechless with amazement. Each house looked to be at least four times the size of the one where she’d grown
up, even bigger and grander than her employer’s in Bournemouth had been.
‘Did you believe the gossipmongers, then?’
‘What gossipmongers?’ She glanced at him warily, but he looked amused rather than angry.
‘The ones who say a man like me doesn’t belong in a place like this.’
‘Of course not! It’s just more than I expected, that’s all.’
‘Then welcome home, Ianthe.’
She smiled hesitantly, following him up the steps and through the front door into a vast, tiled hall. There was so much to take in, but at least the hard part of the day was over. Their wedding might not have been a great success, but at least it was over and done with. Now perhaps she could finally lie down, have a long sleep and... She exclaimed in surprise, the sight of a dozen people standing in a reception line almost making her turn around again.
‘This is Mrs Felstone.’ As if sensing her reticence, Robert took hold of her elbow, propelling her forward. ‘I hope you’ll all help her to feel at home here.’
For a moment, Ianthe’s heart misgave her. In her wildest imaginings she’d never pictured anything quite so intimidating. Kitty had said that Robert was rich, but she’d been too wrapped up in her worries to pay much attention to the other woman’s chatter. This was grander than anything she’d ever seen before. Her parents had kept a cook and one housemaid. She’d no experience of running a household this size. Quite the contrary—a few months before she’d been one of the staff herself, standing in line to greet Albert when he’d come home from university. And now here she was, mistress of an even greater house in her own right. Her head was already fuzzy with exhaustion. Now the change in her circumstances made her feel dizzy, too.
‘This is my housekeeper, Mrs Baxter.’ Robert was all business again, ushering her along the line briskly. ‘And my cook, Mrs Lughton.’
‘How do you do, Mrs Baxter?’ She resisted the tug of his arm, refusing to be moved on so quickly. No matter how overwhelmed she felt, she had to think of something to say.
‘Mrs Felstone.’ The housekeeper bobbed a small curtsy.
‘Thank you so much for this lovely reception. It was very thoughtful of you.’
‘Not at all, ma’am.’
‘And, Mrs Lughton, I’m delighted to meet you, too.’
‘Pleased to meet you, ma’am. May I introduce our kitchen maids, Peggy and Hannah?’
‘Peggy. Hannah.’ She shook each of the girls’ hands in turn. ‘Thank you for coming to greet me.’
She moved along the line slowly, trying to memorise names as she talked to every footman and housemaid in turn. At the end she breathed a sigh of relief, turning to find Robert watching her with a look of approval.
‘Thank you, everyone, that will do for now.’ He kept his eyes on her as he spoke, waiting until the others had filed away before gesturing towards the staircase. ‘I’ll show you to your room.’
‘Thank you.’
She crossed the hall eagerly. Her room. She hadn’t had a room that was truly hers since she’d left home after her father’s funeral. To have a place of her own again, a place to feel safe and protected...that was all she wanted now. She could hardly believe that she was so close to finding it again.
