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After drinks in the parlor, Camille and her hosts enjoyed a leisurely dinner in the dining room. It was served by a bustling woman whom Rayburn introduced as Dearly Beloved Mitchell. She and Simon had served as housekeeper and butler-valet for Bridal Wreath ever since Rayburn had first brought his bride there.
At Camille’s startled reaction to her name, Rayburn explained that Dearly’s mother had liked the sound of the two opening words of the wedding ceremony so much that she gave them to her first child. “I’m just glad I was a girl child!” the smiling woman joked. She was as plump as Simon was slender but shared his pleasant, sunny personality. Camille liked them both immediately.
“Miss Jameson, you’re as pretty as Mr. Prescott told me you were,” Dearly continued. “The way he carried on about you, I was beginning to wonder if his intentions at having you stay here and work on the house were entirely honorable.” She laughed happily at Rayburn’s flushed face. The housekeeper, who apparently felt secure enough in her position in the household to tease her employers, added, “Now, if he had said he was bringing you here for Zack’s appraisal, I would have understood perfectly.” She laughed heartily again and disappeared through a door that Camille assumed led into the kitchen. She risked looking toward Zack, who was scowling darkly into his highball glass.
“Camille, please excuse Dearly and her sassy tongue. Over the years we have become accustomed to her outspoken opinions.” Rayburn smiled at her and she assured him that she had taken no offense.
Dearly returned with several trays laden with covered dishes and set them on the table. When Camille had heaped her plate, she forked a piece of delicious-looking roast beef.
“Perhaps I should warn you, Camille, that in deference to my diet, Dearly doesn’t season the food before it’s cooked. You may need to salt your food and feel free to do so. Dearly will understand.” Rayburn didn’t start eating until Zack had passed the salt and pepper shakers to Camille and she had sprinkled the seasonings onto her food. She took a tentative bite, looked across at the anxious older man, and smiled.
“It’s delicious, Mr. Prescott. You needn’t worry about me losing any weight while I’m here.” She laughed. “Indeed, if all the meals are this bountiful, I’ll probably gain some.”
“You could use some,” Zack muttered under his breath for the benefit of her ears alone. She glared at him, but he seemed impervious to her.
Ever the gentleman, Rayburn drew her into amiable conversation, asking her questions about her life in Atlanta, her family, and her interests. Zack was surly and uncommunicative and spoke only when asked a direct question by his father. If Rayburn noticed his son’s sullenness, he didn’t remark on it.
“Do you ski?” The question was asked so unexpectedly and out of context that Rayburn and Camille turned to Zack in bewilderment. Obviously the question had been directed toward her, and, to cover her alarm, Camille answered brightly, “Yes. A friend of mine has a boat and we go out whenever we can.”
“Now, I meant snow ski,” Zack persisted. Why was he talking about that sensitive subject when she was powerless to counteract him without revealing their antagonistic relationship to Rayburn?
“I went skiing a couple of years ago,” she replied noncommittally.
“Surely you’ve skied since then. I would imagine that you ski quite often.” Camille glowered at him, seething inside. He had put such an inflection on the word “ski” that she knew he wasn’t referring to the snow sport at all.
“No. I skied once. I didn’t like it. And I wasn’t… I wasn’t very good at it.” She had ground out the first two sentences through clenche
d teeth, then stammered the last two as she dropped her head and looked at her empty plate, refusing to meet the mockery in his eyes.
“Oh, I don’t know,” he drawled. “You have the… build… for it. I’d bet with practice you could become quite adept.”
She shuddered in humiliation and rose abruptly from the table. “If… if you’ll excuse me, Mr. Prescott. I… I’ll be back shortly for our tour of the house.” She practically ran from the room and as she left she heard Rayburn ask, “Did I miss something, Zachary? Why did she become so upset?”
Camille didn’t wait to hear Zack’s reply, but went through the house and across the terrace to the dowager house.
She bathed her face with cold water, muttering epithets pertaining to Zack’s personality. Was he going to constantly torment her for the next several months that she would be here? Was there to be no escaping his sharp barbs about what had happened between them almost two years ago? How could she bear these continual reminders of a shameful mistake and an episode of her life she wished to be forever forgotten? She hated Zack Prescott!
And with that hate came a resolve not to submit to his cruelty. Just as her mother had always told her in her youth to ignore obnoxious boys who pestered her at school, she would ignore Zack’s attempts to humiliate and embarrass her. When he realized that he couldn’t reduce her to tears of shame, his sport would be spoiled and he would stop trying.
She felt restored as she went back into the house. Rayburn was alone in the parlor. She didn’t ask, but he informed her that Zack had gone out for the rest of the evening. She breathed a prayer of thanksgiving, but was faintly disappointed that he wasn’t here to see her exhibition of courage and resolution.
Rayburn began his tour of the mansion in the double parlor. The two rooms were divided by heavy wooden sliding doors. One room was used as a living room while the other’s main piece of furniture was a grand piano. Rayburn explained that Alice had played very well and was delighted to learn that Camille could play. He wanted the piano to stay.
Camille took notes as they strolled through the house, jotting down the pieces of furniture that she felt needed to be refinished, reupholstered, or removed completely. She wrote down the number of windows in each room, visualized how to achieve the greatest amount of floor space by moving a particular piece of furniture, and considered colors for each room that would blend harmoniously. She would peruse her sample books later tonight for more ideas. She noted that all the heavy sample and swatch books had been carried into the hallway. At least Zack wasn’t totally lacking in manners.
They crossed the foyer, and Rayburn led her into the dining room where they had eaten dinner and which she had already appraised with a clinical eye. He showed her a smaller breakfast room and, finally, the kitchen, which she was happy to see was already equipped with modern plumbing and appliances. The changes in here would only be cosmetic and not structural. Dearly was still cleaning up after dinner and was thrilled when Camille asked her opinion on different color schemes. They discussed several, and Camille could tell by the housekeeper’s enthusiasm that she had made a friend.
Rayburn and Camille walked up the broad staircase that graced one side of the wide hallway and curved its way up to the second floor. The oak banister was lovely, but needed to be rubbed to its original satin finish. That was going to require some elbow work, Camille noted.
Upstairs, Rayburn showed her through the rooms opening off the central hall. Camille planned to decorate it with the same detail as a room. There were four bedrooms, Rayburn explained. Two of them were connected by a bathroom, forming the master suite. Zack made one of these his bedroom.
“For the time being, we’ll let Zack worry about his own decor,” he said absently, and Camille sighed in relief.
Rayburn had moved out of the master suite after Alice’s death and taken over a spacious bedroom across the hall. It boasted a rosewood tester bed, armoire, and dresser. Camille clapped her hands in delight over the beautiful antique furniture. Rayburn grinned like a young boy at her excitement.
“I had hoped the other bedroom would be a nursery,” he sighed. “We’ll leave that room as it is for the time being, although I wouldn’t be opposed to your changing the wallpaper or anything else you saw fit to do in there. In the attic we’ve stored several area rugs, furniture, and bric-a-brac. You’re free to browse through it and use anything you find.”
