More Than a Governess Read online

  ‘Ooh, yes, please!’

  Juliana nodded.

  ‘What a kind young man he is,’ she said, as the young people left the room. ‘Thomas is very impressed with your horses, Major, and will welcome the chance to see more of them.’

  He refilled her glass from the decanter on the table. ‘I will ask Dawlish to let him sit up on the box for a spell tomorrow.’

  ‘Tomorrow? Surely you will not travel on a Sunday, sir.’

  ‘We are already behind on our journey, Miss Wrenn.’ She did not reply, and after a brooding glance at her face he set down his glass with a snap. ‘Hell and damnation, we will never get to Lancashire if we do not press on.’

  ‘It is only one more day, Major.’

  He scowled, but she was not to be intimidated.

  ‘Naturally if you were travelling alone the case might be different, but you would not wish to subject your children to censorious gossip.’

  ‘And who the devil is there to see them?’ he demanded.

  Juliana did not reply, and feigned deafness as he cursed quietly beneath his breath.

  ‘Oh, very well,’ he said at last. ‘We will remain here for another night. I shall send a man ahead to Blackthorpe to advise Brasher that we will be delayed.’ He bent a frowning look at her. ‘I hope you don’t object to a servant riding on a Sunday?’

  ‘I believe that will be unavoidable, Major.’

  The scowl disappeared and he laughed suddenly.

  ‘By God, you are a cool one.’

  ‘You employed me to do a job, sir, and I take my responsibilities very seriously.’

  ‘I’m glad to hear it. So what do you plan to do with yourself tomorrow?’

  ‘Perhaps you would like the children to go to church. Then, if it is dry, I shall take them for a walk.’

  He glanced out of the window. ‘The sky is certainly clearing, but even if it does not rain again tonight, the road will be muddy.’

  ‘The girls all have pattens to put over their shoes. I am a great believer in exercise.’

  The rain held off that night, and the following morning, after a visit to the local church, Juliana took the girls out for the promised walk. Thomas had made good use of his introduction to the stables and there was more than a touch of pride in his voice when he told his sisters that he would not be able to walk with them because he was going to help Fewell in the stables. The walk was a pleasant one, keeping to the main streets of the town. Amy and Wilhelmina skipped ahead and Juliana used the time to talk to Gwendoline, asking questions and gradually drawing the girl out. They returned to the inn to find a fashionable cabriolet stopped at the front door. The driver of this handsome black equipage was leaning down to converse with the landlord, who was scratching his head. Seeing Miss Wrenn approach with the children, the landlord nodded towards her.

  ‘Perhaps you should address yourself to the lady, sir. She is with Major Collingham’s party.’

  The gentleman looked up and seemed a little discomposed.

  ‘Oh—oh, yes. Well, my good man, if you will have one of your boys drive this rig to the stables, you can take my bag up to my room.’

  ‘Well, if you’d said in the first place that you was wishing to stay…’ the landlord grumbled as he took the gentleman’s bag; calling to one of his lads to take the gentleman’s carriage round to the back, he disappeared inside.

  Juliana was at the door by this time. The gentleman jumped down and swept off his curly-brimmed beaver hat as he made her an elegant bow. He was a pleasant looking young man, with sandy hair brushed back from a pale brow and light brown eyes that held a hint of diffidence as he smiled at her.

  ‘Your pardon, madam, you must be wondering who I am.’ His smile encompassed them all, and the three girls looked up at him with undisguised curiosity. ‘My name is Leeson, Charles Leeson. I believe Major Collingham is putting up here?’

  Juliana nodded. ‘I am merely governess to the children, sir. If you have business with the Major—’

  He disclaimed quickly, ‘No, no, I am travelling north to visit relatives and have to break my journey, and if this is good enough for Collingham…’

  ‘But is it just gone noon, you could travel for hours yet,’ observed Gwendoline.

  Mr Leeson looked a little taken aback, but after a slight hesitation he laughed. ‘I could, indeed, Miss Collingham, but my horse has been on the go since dawn and I need to keep him fresh for the long haul tomorrow.’

  ‘Papa would not let us travel on a Sunday,’ remarked Wilhelmina.

  Mr Leeson nodded. ‘Yes, well, there you have it. I should not carry on today, should I? But you will not want to be standing out here with me, you will have a private sitting room, I suppose? Allow me to escort you to it.’

  Juliana was surprised at this excess of gallantry, but gathered the girls together and ushered them into the wide passage. They had just finished removing their muddy pattens when the door of their parlour opened and Major Collingham came out, only to pull up short in the doorway when he saw them.

  ‘Ah, Collingham, well met!’ Mr Leeson stepped forward, nodding genially. ‘Taking the family to Blackthorpe, I suppose?’

  ‘Yes.’

  Juliana was stooping to help Wilhelmina remove her gloves, but she looked up at the Major, surprised how discouraging he made the one word sound. However, Mr Leeson pressed on.

  ‘Strange that we should both choose this inn to stop. Of course, the landlord was telling me that you have the only parlour, but I have a very pleasant room, he assures me, so I shall manage.’

  Juliana wondered if he was expecting the Major to invite him to join them but if so, he was to be disappointed. Major Collingham merely looked at him until the gentleman gave another bow and moved off into the taproom in search of refreshment.

  ‘What a strange man,’ said Gwendoline, leading the way into the parlour. ‘Is he a friend of yours, Papa?’

  ‘An acquaintance, merely,’ said the Major, shutting the door behind them.

  ‘I think he wanted to share our parlour,’ observed Wilhelmina.

  The Major grunted. ‘Enough that I must have the whole family plus their attendants in here!’

  Juliana looked up. ‘You have had the room to yourself all morning, sir, have you not?’

  ‘Well, yes. Nurse has kept to her chamber and Giles and your brother have not yet come in from the stables.’

  Juliana removed her bonnet. ‘Then you will not object to a little company this afternoon,’ she told him serenely. ‘The children will be making a start on our journal, and then we shall be reading Gulliver’s Travels. You are very welcome to join us.’

  ‘Thank you, but I have letters to write.’

  The entrance of Giles and Thomas at that moment caused a diversion, and as the talk turned towards horses, Juliana took the girls upstairs to change out of their muddy dresses.

  The day passed quietly enough and when they sat down to a family dinner, Juliana was relieved to find that the Major was in a particularly mellow mood. He was persuaded to tell them a little of his life as a soldier. His stories were told with humour, and tailored to his young audience, but Juliana guessed from the tightening of his jaw when he spoke of the heavy casualties suffered in the Peninsula, and then at Waterloo, that he had suffered deeply from the loss of his comrades. She was pleased to think he was not one to glory in the violence of war.

  She did not linger after the meal, but took the four younger ones upstairs to their rooms, leaving the Major to discuss with Giles the revised plans for their journey north. The rain had kept off all day, and the Major had ordered an early start the following morning, so Juliana and Nurse were agreed that they should all go to bed at a reasonable hour. Juliana had never travelled so far before and she found the long hours in the coach exhausting, even though the Major’s travelling carriage was very luxurious. She was glad to climb into her own bed as soon as she had settled her charges. She bade Gwendoline goodnight, snuffed out the candle and was soon fast asleep.
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  Chapter Ten

  The Queen’s Head was a busy posting inn with coaches arriving and departing throughout the night. The rooms allocated to Major Collingham’s party stretched across the front of the inn and although there was some inevitable traffic driving past their windows, the noisy business of changing horses was carried out at the back. Thus when Juliana was awoken in the early hours of the morning she lay for a moment, wondering what had disturbed her. Then she heard it: the scraping of the door handle being turned. She lay in her bed, her heart thumping wildly. The door was bolted, and she thought that if the person outside should attempt to force an entry her screams would soon bring help. She opened her eyes, wondering what time it could be; it was very dark, a low cloud blotting out any light from the moon and stars. The handle turned again and Juliana sat up, fumbling for the tinder box. It was the work of a moment to light her candle and scramble out of bed. At the door she paused, straining her ears, but she could hear nothing. Finally she unbolted the door and stepped out in to the passage, holding her candle aloft.

  ‘Where the devil do you think you are going?’

  Juliana jumped and almost dropped her candlestick. She looked round to see Major Collingham standing outside his room. From the dim glow of her light she could see he was dressed only in his shirt and breeches.

  ‘Someone tried the door of my room,’ she said in a low voice. ‘Was it you?’

  He came towards her, his bare feet making no noise on the boards.

  ‘At this ungodly hour? Of course not. Someone tried my door, too.’

  A sudden shriek interrupted them. The Major pushed past her and dashed to the next room along, where Nurse was screaming and shouting while another, deeper voice struggled to make itself heard.

  ‘Madam, my apologies—ouch! Madam, please—aah!’

  As the Major reached the door a man appeared, followed closely by Nurse, who was setting about him with her stick. The Major grabbed his arm.

  ‘Got you! Bring that candle closer, Miss Wrenn. Now then, let’s have a look at you. Leeson! What in hell’s name—?’

  ‘Thief!’ cried Nurse, still brandishing her stick. ‘Breaking in, creeping about the room…’

  ‘No, no, you mistake me!’ cried Mr Leeson, cowering away from her. ‘Damme, Collingham, tell her I ain’t a thief! Merely mistook the room, that’s all.’ He was slurring his words, and even in the gleam of the single candle Juliana could see he was looking sheepish.

  Major Collingham nodded to Nurse. ‘The children are stirring, go and reassure them, if you please.’

  ‘All a misunderstandin’,’ muttered Leeson as Nurse went back into the room. ‘B-been imbibing a little too freely with our host, so I went out for a walk to clear my head—damned bad brandy he serves here, Collingham. Be advised by me, don’t touch it.’

  ‘The landlord shut up some hours ago,’ said the Major, still holding his arm.

  Mr Leeson swayed slightly.

  ‘I know, but there was that p-pretty little chambermaid out in the yard, just waiting to—ah—entertain me.’ He dug the Major in the ribs. ‘You understand me, eh, Collingham? I know your reputation, devil in battle, devil in—’

  ‘Yes, yes, enough.’ Major Collingham pushed him away, his mouth twisting. Leeson did not appear to notice his disgust.

  ‘Anyway,’ he slurred on, ‘came back in, couldn’t remember my room. Simple mistake.’

  ‘Then why did you not withdraw immediately, when you saw the room was occupied?’ demanded Nurse, coming back out of her room.

  ‘Too dark to see anything at first. I had just turned to leave again when the lady woke up.’ He gave a shaky bow. ‘My profound apologies for frightening you, madam.’

  They heard footsteps on the stairs, and the landlord appeared, carrying a lantern in his hand, his nightcap askew on his head.

  ‘What is it? What’s amiss?’ he hissed.

  ‘Ah, our host.’ Mr Leeson staggered towards him and clasped his shoulder. ‘Can’t for the life o’ me remember where I’m sleepin’. Can you help, my good fellow?’

  The landlord raised his brows as he looked at the little group.

  ‘He went into one of our rooms,’ explained the Major. ‘Disturbed us all.’

  ‘Then I am very sorry for it, sir.’ The landlord took Leeson’s arm. ‘Your chamber is this way, sir, on the next floor. Come along, I’ll show you the way.’

  ‘Well, what a to-do!’ exclaimed Nurse as the landlord led his guest to the stairs.

  ‘I will check on Giles and Thomas,’ muttered the Major, disappearing into the darkness. Finding that Gwendoline had not stirred, Juliana slipped next door and went over to where Amy and Wilhelmina were tucked up in their beds.

  ‘They are not harmed, miss,’ Nurse whispered, standing beside her. ‘They went back to sleep as soon as I told them all was well. In fact, I doubt if they will remember any of this in the morning. But it fair shook me up, it did, to wake up and find a man in the room, standing over the children’s cots, he was! I feared for their lives, I did, so I set up such a scream and he turned and would have run out the door, but I got to him, and laid about him with my stick.’

  ‘Well, no harm done,’ said Juliana. ‘Go back to bed, now, and let us hope the rest of the night passes more peacefully for you. There is a bolt on your door, Nurse—be sure you use it.’

  ‘Yes, and so I will, miss. Goodness knows why I didn’t do it first thing, then we would not have had all this commotion.’

  ‘No, well, goodnight now.’ Juliana left the room and was surprised to find the Major waiting for her outside. She said, ‘The little ones are both asleep, and no sign of the room being disturbed. Gwendoline slept through the whole.’

  ‘So did the boys.’ Major Collingham nodded.

  ‘They will be sorry to have missed so much excitement.’ He did not smile, and she continued, ‘It would appear the gentleman really did lose his way. He certainly smelled strongly of spirits.’

  ‘Yes.’ He frowned at her. ‘But what were you thinking of, to come out here dressed like that?’

  For the first time Juliana realised that she was wearing only her nightgown. She flushed.

  ‘I might ask you the same question!’ she retorted.

  ‘I was prepared to apprehend a villain—what did you plan to do, swoon at his feet?’

  ‘I never faint. Of course I was not going to accost him, but—’

  ‘Well, thank God for that!’ he interrupted her. ‘He would have ravished you as soon as he saw you.’

  Juliana gasped. She glanced down at herself: the ribbons at the neck of her nightgown had come loose and one white shoulder was exposed. The Major reached out and gently pulled the thin muslin back up over her arm. Juliana froze. She found she was unable to move as he calmly re-tied the ribbons at her neck. She noted how his white shirt seemed to glow in the candlelight. His fingers brushed her skin, setting up a tingle that raced through her veins and down into her very core.

  ‘Th-thank you.’

  Embarrassment seared through her; what a silly thing to say. She wished she could think of something witty, but her mind was as stodgy as the porridge slowly cooking in the kitchens for their breakfast. Suddenly he laughed.

  ‘Jenny.’

  ‘My name is Juliana, sir.’

  ‘Jenny Wrenn,’ he said firmly. ‘You look up at me like a fragile little bird, entrusted to my care.’

  She swallowed hard. It was very tempting to think that there was someone to care for her. She dare not raise her eyes, and found herself staring instead at the opening of his shirt, where a few crisp dark hairs were visible on his chest. Juliana felt a strong desire to step forward into his arms, to feel them close around her, protecting her from the world. Her heart began to race, as if she had suddenly become aware of some danger. Her hand holding the candlestick trembled so much that the hot wax dripped on to her fingers, recalling her to her senses. She moved back, putting more space between herself and the powerful figure who threatened
her peace.

  ‘I am a governess, Major Collingham.’

  She could see the flame of the solitary candle reflected in his eyes as he looked at her. In the sudden silence the shadows danced eerily around them.

  ‘Then you had best go to bed, Miss Wrenn, lest we forget that.’ He turned and strode back to his own room, saying over his shoulder, ‘And bolt your door!’

  Despite the excitement of the night, Nurse brought the children to the breakfast table in good time the next morning. There was no sign of Mr Leeson, and upon enquiry the landlord shrugged and said the gentleman had not yet left his room. None of the girls had any recollection of the night’s events, and after a warning glance from Juliana, Nurse merely said that a gentleman had been a little the worse for drink and caused a disturbance. As they settled down for another long day’s journey, Juliana was left with an uneasy conviction that the greatest disturbance of the previous night had been to her own composure.

  Chapter Eleven

  Monday had dawned cloudy but dry, and the party set out in high spirits, to arrive in good time at Derby, where they stopped to take luncheon. The inn was large and commodious and when Juliana remarked upon it, Major Collingham informed her that he had originally planned to stop there overnight.

  He was escorting her back to the carriage to resume their journey and she glanced around her. The inn was built up on three sides, with several floors of rooms reached by open galleries that overlooked the bustling courtyard.

  ‘It is an excellent hostelry, I am sure, Major, but I have no doubt that the children’s rest would have been disturbed by the constant noise of the coaches coming and going through the night.’

  ‘If I know my man, Brasher would have booked rooms for us on the quiet side of the inn, with the two parlours as I ordered.’

  Juliana paused at the coach steps. ‘Then the children would not have had the pleasure of your company at dinner for the past two nights, sir.’