Chapter 8
David stood at the back of the room as Henrietta played. He had heard her playing over the years and marvelled at how easily her fingers moved across the keys. When he was taught, it had been tough to get his hands to do different things and not sound like he was slamming himself into the piano.
Henrietta made it sound like she was caressing the instrument. Sir Geoffrey and Lady Gabrielle sat on a settee nearby, watching her with rapt attention while Gwen sat cross-legged on the floor. Caroline had left a moment before to see to something in the kitchen, so she was missing out.
He wanted her to come back and see how beautifully his sister was playing. David knew it was selfish, but he wanted to show her off to Caroline. Caroline would certainly be impressed.
He had been impressed by her while they were having dinner.
Caroline was looking serene in a pale blue gown, her hair pinned up so delicately that it looked like her curls would fall down if someone touched her hair.
A little strain was behind her eyes as Caroline looked at her parents, but the love was evident.
She kept her composure in front of them, and David had to admire that.
She could easily grace a ballroom or dinner party without any issues, yet nobody was willing to give her a chance.
All because she was penniless. When Caroline said that if she were rich, she would end up getting the wrong kind of attention, David knew she was right.
It was a shame; he thought there would be someone who didn’t care about financial status who would love Caroline for herself.
Evidently, there wasn’t anyone like that in the area.
Henrietta was now playing with her eyes falling closed, almost like she was in a trance. She might have said she couldn’t play from memory, but she absolutely could. If she wanted to become a professional musician, David wouldn’t have stopped her. She was just like a magician when it came to music.
He hoped that once she entered Society in a few years, she would find someone who would love and appreciate her for who she was, not because of what connections she could bring into the marriage.
I should be thinking about marriage for myself rather than a hypothetical marriage for my sister. It’s a bit more pressing.
Decide if you want to marry for love or convenience. You’re not making much for yourself right now.
Sir Geoffrey and Lady Gabrielle were focused on Henrietta, and Gwen watched her older sister with rapt attention. So nobody noticed when David slipped out of the room and went looking for Caroline. He wanted to see her, see that smile that made him feel happy.
They had talked during dinner but hadn’t had a chance to sit down and just talk without anyone interrupting.
David remembered the times when they were little, when they could sit out in the fields and talk for hours about almost anything.
He didn’t realise that he had missed it until he met her again.
He regretted not keeping in touch with her. That was his fault.
Sticking his head into the kitchen, David saw that Caroline wasn’t there. Mrs Marks was, though, stirring something in a big bowl. She looked up and beamed at him.
“Your Grace. Did you want something?”
“Have you seen Lady Caroline?”
“Isn’t she back with her parents? She said she was going there.”
“No, she isn’t with them.”
Mrs Marks sighed.
“Honestly, she really shouldn’t go wandering off. She has guests, after all. If she’s not there, go and look in the drawing room. I’m sure she’s in there.”
David withdrew and headed back to the drawing room. If he knew Caroline, she would be looking over the books and deciding what to read next. She always did that with anyone’s books when trying to find something to do. It always distracted her.
As he went through the house, he passed a door that he remembered went into the library. David slowed. He recalled the family having a huge array of books, more than the ones in the drawing room.
On really cold days or when the weather was terrible and David didn’t feel like going home without getting soaking wet, he and his friends would take some hot chocolate into the library, curl up in front of the fire, and just read.
Sir Geoffrey was a well-learned man who kept everything he had ever read, and he didn’t care what he read as long as he had a book in his hand.
They must have explored every inch of that place.
Looking around to ensure nobody was paying attention to him, David turned the handle and found the door locked. That was odd. Given how much the family loved to read, why would they lock the door to the library?
Making a mental note to ask Caroline about that, David walked away. Now that was curious.
He entered the drawing room and, sure enough, he found Caroline by the bookcases, her back to him. There were some books in her arms, and she looked engrossed in what she was doing.
David smiled. He stepped into the room and closed the door a little too loudly. Caroline gasped and spun around, almost dropping the books in her arms. She grabbed them, the small pile now haphazard against her chest.
“David! Would you not scare me like that?”
“You were really engrossed with what you were doing.”
“And that means you could scare me?” Caroline half-walked, half-staggered to the settee. “Honestly, you were always a heavy-handed person. You still don’t know how to shut doors properly.”
David laughed.
“You’re just saying that because I caught you doing something you shouldn’t. Aren’t you supposed to be with your parents and my sisters?”
“I’m actually doing something for your sisters.”
“Like what?”
Caroline sat on the settee and placed the books on the cushions.
“Gwen was telling me that she loved reading, but the books in your library are somewhat limited.”
“What? What do you mean by that? Our library is very extensive.”
“But is there anything of interest for a ten-year-old girl? I’m sure there isn’t.
” Caroline gave him a sly smile. “I know your father was a serious man, which extended to his reading material. Whereas my family’s books are more …
eclectic. I thought I might be able to find something that she would like to read instead. ”
David wanted to protest – he could easily go to a bookstore in town to find something for Gwen if she asked – but this was making Caroline’s eyes light up, and she looked keen to help. He wasn’t about to dampen that now.
“That’s…very kind of you. I’m sure Gwen would be delighted.”
“Just as long as you promise that she’s going to take care of them,” Caroline warned, placing the last book on the pile, and putting them on the floor. “Father won’t mind if they’re borrowed, but he would like them back and in good condition. They are precious to us, after all.”
“If they’re precious, then why would you give them to someone else?”
Caroline didn’t reply. She was making sure that the books were stacked perfectly and not out of place. It was like she was avoiding the question. David crossed the room.
“I wanted to look in the library, but the door was locked. Why is that?”
“It’s because it’s empty.”
“What?”
Caroline sighed and gestured towards the bookcases behind her.
“Those books are the only ones we have left. The others we had to sell because we needed the money. Mother couldn’t bear to go into that room anymore because seeing what had happened to our favourite room made her miserable, so Father locked the door.
Nobody’s been in there for the last … three years, I think? ”
David couldn’t believe what he was hearing. They had sold their books? Caroline had said before that they would never get rid of them. Things had to have been pretty bad if the family had been doing this.
“Then you shouldn’t be giving us your books, then.”
“Don’t be silly. I trust you that they will come back.” Caroline gave him a small smile. “You are more trustworthy than some people I know.”
“We haven’t seen each other in ten years.”
“I still trust you.”
David didn’t know what to say to that. It was rather humbling to know she still trusted him, even after he left and didn’t keep in contact with her. He swallowed.
“Then I’ll make sure you get your books back. Gwen will look after them.”
He would make sure of it. Gwen was normally very good at taking care of things, but she was still very young. He didn’t want Caroline’s family to get upset because their trust in a ten-year-old was misplaced.
#
Caroline had been enjoying the evening, but she was rather exhausted over it.
Because her parents couldn’t do what they wanted to help deal with everything, it had fallen on Caroline’s shoulders to ensure the evening passed by pleasantly.
Madeleine and Baxter had helped, and Mrs Marks was working hard in the kitchen; it had been a while since they had had any guests over for dinner.
But it had been worth it. The girls were happy, and David looked more relaxed. It had been good to spend time with him again, although Caroline wished they didn’t have such proprieties around a man and a woman being alone; that made it hard to relax when she was aware of someone watching them.
Maybe it was a good thing, though. Caroline was still struggling with her heart missing a few beats when David was around. And then when he smiled at her … Caroline didn’t think she had been so light-headed around a man before.
What was so different about David, someone she had known as a child, that made her behave in such a manner?
He’s not David the boy, though. He’s David, the man, and he is a very good-looking man. That’s what is different.
Even so, I shouldn’t be reacting like this to someone I know. That doesn’t feel right.
“Are you still serious about becoming a governess?” David asked.
Caroline blinked.
“Excuse me?”
“You told me you were thinking of becoming a governess and withdrawing from Society completely.” David peered at her. “Are you still serious about doing that?”