Joan Wolf (4 page)

He was still in front of the window and the sun was in Laura’s eyes, blurring her vision. The first thing she noticed was what a deep and beautiful voice he had. “We did not know you were back in England, my lord,” she said.

He came around the desk and gestured her to a chair by the fire. “I landed in Deptford ten days ago and have since been paying courtesy calls on the Lords of the Admiralty. I suppose I should have sent you notice that I was coming.” He shrugged slightly. “I didn’t think of it. I’m sorry.”

As he moved out of the glare of the sun and she was able to see him clearly, she was conscious of sharp surprise. He was different from what she had expected. He was very tall, all lean bone and muscle. His skin was deeply tanned from the sun, but she thought, from the color of his hair, that he was naturally fair-skinned. There was little resemblance between his totally masculine good looks and the little-boy beauty of Robin.

“There is no need to apologize,” she said, and essayed a smile. ‘This is your house.”

He did not smile back. “I understand from my aunt, Lady Maria Cheney, that you have been looking after my son these last three years. I am most grateful.” There was a flicker of expression in his brown eyes. “I must admit I had not expected you to be so young, Mrs. Templeton.”

“I am twenty-two, my lord,” she said shortly. He looked very elegant in his well-cut coat of blue superfine and his pale yellow pantaloons. She was conscious suddenly that the skirt of her riding habit was flecked with mud. He had wanted to see her right away, she thought defiantly. He could scarcely complain if she looked young and untidy.

 “I am quite old enough to be Robin’s mother and I assure you I have looked after him as if he were my own.” Her face softened. “He is a delightful child, my lord. So bright. So loving.” She leaned forward in her chair a little. “I told him you would come up to the nursery to see him. Will you?”

“Yes.” He looked utterly remote as he waited for her to rise and precede him out of the room. Please let him be kind to Robin, she prayed silently as they went up the two flights of stairs to the nursery.

Robin had taken her advice and scrubbed his face until it shone. As she came into his sunny blue-and-white room with the tall silent figure of his father at her back, he looked instinctively at her for reassurance. She smiled a little and said, “Here is your father, darling. Won’t you come and say hello?”

Slowly Robin crossed the room until he was standing before them. “Hello... Papa,” he said in an uncertain little voice.

“Hello, Robin,” the Earl of Dartmouth said gravely. He looked for a long silent minute into the child’s face. The big, candid blue eyes looked back, unafraid. Then the man smiled. “You’ve grown into quite a lad. The last time I saw you, you were still wearing nappies. But you’re not a baby anymore, are you?”

“No, sir,” said Robin, beaming proudly. “I have my own pony even.”

“Do you?” said his father with interest. “You must show him to me.”

Robin looked lit from within. “I will!”

The Earl stayed in the nursery for perhaps fifteen more minutes, looking at Robin’s toys, examining his schoolwork. Then he turned to Laura. “You must not let me disturb your routine, Mrs. Templeton. I know you and Robin must have things to do. Perhaps you will join me for dinner this evening?”

Laura was feeling immensely grateful to him for his handling of Robin. She had heard of his earlier indifference to his son. She had sensed a reluctance on his part to come upstairs with her. She had been terribly afraid that Robin was going to be hurt. So now she gave him her extraordinarily sweet smile and said, “Thank you, my lord. I should like that.”

* * * *

She dressed for dinner with special care, choosing an evening dress of deep blue silk that brought out the blue in her eyes. Her hair she wore a la Madonna, parted in the center of her head and coiled at the nape of her long slender neck.

She had no idea what they could possibly find to talk about and was relieved and pleased to find that the conversation did not lag. He had heard some of the details of the infamous trial of Queen Caroline for adultery that had been monopolizing the whole public and social life of the country since August, and they discussed that debacle during the first few courses. “Thank God I was out of the country while that show was going on, he said over the soup.

“It was dreadful. The entire country simply ground to a halt. All the lords had to attend unless they were ill, recently bereaved, too young or too old, Roman Catholic, or, as in your case, out of the country. The House of Lords was too small to accommodate everybody, so Sir John Soane had to build a couple of temporary galleries. And in the end they threw the case out. The idiotic trial might just as well not have taken place.” She shook her head. “It was so degrading.”

His face wore what she had already come to think of as its shuttered look. “Unimaginable, that. Airing all one’s dirty linen in public. It doesn’t bear thinking of.”

“No,” said Laura fervently. “It certainly doesn’t.”

A pause fell in the conversation as they continued to eat their meal. Laura put down her fork, picked up her wineglass, and regarded him reflectively over its rim. The chandelier shining on his hair struck sparks of gold where the sun had bleached it. “Did you enjoy your Turkish expedition?” she asked. “Godmama said you had become quite an antiquarian.”

He smiled. “I certainly caught the fever, but I lack the necessary classical background. I copied every inscription I could find, but my lack of Greek and Latin made the task very frustrating. I just about managed to puzzle out the names of emperors and the city in whose ruins I was wandering. I want to put the whole journey down in book form after I get the charts done for the Hydrographic Office. There has been almost no report of what is to be found on the south coast of Turkey since before Byzantine times. What I have to say may not be brilliant, but it will be better than nothing.”

“What you need is a classics scholar, like my brother Edmund, to help you.”

He looked interested. “You have a brother who is a classics scholar?”

“Yes. And I know he’d love to work on a project like this.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “I may try to conscript him. But first I must attend to the charts.”

* * * *

He did not start work on his charts immediately, however. The next few days he spent with Mr. Farnsworth
,
the estate agent. And he scrupulously put aside a part of each day for his son. On Friday, to Robin’s infinite delight, his father took him along on a tour of the estate farms. Robin rode his pony and was full of small-boy importance when they returned. From what he said to Laura, she gathered that the Earl had used the occasion of the ride to renew acquaintance with a number of his tenants.

 He could not have picked a better companion, she thought as she listened to Robin rattle on. The little boy knew just about every living creature on the entire estate—animal as well as human.

His father made a similar comment to her at dinner that evening. “I felt as if I were escorting Devon’s most well-known face this morning. Even the dogs seemed to know him. Is he famous or notorious?”

Laura chuckled. “A little of both, I suppose. He has such a friendly nature. And I must admit I’ve encouraged his playing with the tenants’ children. It’s important for a child to have companionship.”

“Yes.” He looked at her soberly for a moment. “You have done a good job with him, Mrs. Templeton.” Faint color stained her cheeks, and he went on, “He also appeared to be a head taller than most of the other children his age. Is that true?”

“Yes. Robin is very tall for five.” She smiled at him. “In that respect he must resemble his father.”

His golden-brown eyes never wavered from her face, but she could sense his withdrawal. It happened, she thought, every time she smiled at him.

Chapter Six

On Saturday Lady Maria arrived at Castle Dartmouth. Mark had gone out with Mr. Farnsworth, so it was left to Laura to greet her.

“My dear, I was so surprised to receive Mark’s note yesterday. Whatever was he thinking of, to come down here when he must have known you were alone with Robin? It is not at all proper for you to be in the house with him without a chaperon.”

“A chaperon!” said Laura in a startled voice. “Surely I am past the age of needing a chaperon, Godmama.”

“Of course you are not past the age of needing a chaperon. You are twenty-two. And Mark is twenty-six. Really, I am very annoyed at him for his thoughtlessness.”

Laura was conscious of deep surprise as Mark’s age was mentioned. That composed and unrevealing face looked older than twenty-six. It was a face that guarded its thoughts and feelings well. She had spent rather a good deal of time with him these last few days, but she knew him no better than she had after their first dinner together. He was always courteous and coolly charming, but he kept himself to himself.

“I think you are being silly, Godmama,” said Laura now. “I am Robin’s governess. Lord Dartmouth is his father. There is nothing at all odd or improper in our living in the same house.”

“You may think I am being silly, my dear, but I assure you the world will think as I do. And you are not Robin’s governess. You are my goddaughter. I was not aware that we paid you a salary for taking care of him.”

“Of course you don’t pay me to take care of Robin! I do it because I want to, because I love him.”

“Precisely. In short, you are not a governess at all, but an attractive young woman of birth and fortune.”

“I’m a widow!”

“A very young and lovely and rich widow,” replied Lady Maria dryly. “That’s even worse.” Then, as Laura looked distressed, she continued soothingly, “Well, I am here now, so you needn’t worry for the present.”

The butler came into the room with the tea tray, bringing what was for Laura a welcome interruption. She had found Lady Maria’s words very upsetting.

When the tea had been poured. Lady Maria sat back in her chair and regarded her goddaughter appraisingly. Laura was wearing a matching bodice and skirt of wine-colored merino. It was simple and smart, and Lady Maria regarded it with approval. She approved also of the swept-back brown hair, smooth and dark as polished wood. She saw with satisfaction the worry in the dark, smoky blue eyes. She smiled gently and said, “How do you like Mark?”

“He seems very nice,” replied Laura evasively. “Robin is thrilled with him.”

“Ah,” said Lady Maria. “They have become friends?”

“Yes,” said Laura, and saw the flicker of relief that crossed her godmother’s face. So it was true. Mark had not previously been interested in his son.

“I am glad to hear it,” Lady Maria said smoothly. “They have not seen each other for such a long time.”

“Four years,” said Laura.

“Yes. Too long.”

There was a step in the hall and then a tall presence filled the doorway. “Aunt Maria,” said Mark’s quiet voice.

Laura had never seen her godmother look so beautiful. She held out her hands to her nephew. “So, my dear, you have returned at last. How did you leave the Turks?”

He came across the room and gathered her for a moment into his arms. Then he stepped back and smiled down at her. “Unhappy,” he answered. “The local aga at my last port of call offered me two hundred piasters for a young midshipman who had taken his fancy. He wasn’t at all pleased when I refused.”

She laughed as she was meant to. “You are a dreadful boy.” Then, as she took in the whipcord toughness of him, the stripped austerity of bone and muscle, her eyes narrowed. “No,” she said slowly. “Not a boy any longer.”

“No, Aunt.” His teeth were very white in his bronzed face. “Not a boy. A ship’s captain, if you please.”

“Was the survey a success?”

“It was a success. The Admiralty Lords appeared to think so at any rate.” He sat down and accepted a cup of tea from Laura. “I’ve been out with Farnsworth
.
We went over to Dartmouth Castle. The estate appears to be in good trim.”

“Yes, Mr. Farnsworth is very able. But there are
some
things, Mark, that require your attention.”

He sighed. “I know, Aunt Maria. An absentee landlord is highly undesirable. You will be happy to hear that I intend to remain at home for quite some while.”

Laura heard his words with a sinking heart. She had not realized how deeply she was hoping that Robin’s father would go away on another lengthy voyage. But he was going to stay here at Castle Dartmouth. Her throat was dry as she sipped her tea. Where was that going to leave her?

Lady Maria evidently had the same idea. “It was very thoughtless of you, Mark, to come down to Devon before I was here. We have Laura’s reputation to think of. After all, we owe her a great debt of gratitude for all that she has done for Robin.”

Laura began to protest, and Mark looked distinctly startled. “Her reputation? What do you mean, Aunt Maria?”

“I mean that she is young and unmarried and ought not to be living unchaperoned in a house with an unattached man. You don’t want to compromise her, do you, Mark?”

“Godmama, you are being ridiculous!” said Laura hotly, but Mark, after a minute’s reflection, disagreed.

“No, she is simply being realistic.” He looked charmingly rueful. “The thing is, Aunt Maria, I had no idea that Mrs. Templeton was so young. It never crossed my mind that I might be putting her in an awkward position.”

“Well, let us hope that no permanent damage has been done. I am here now and we will all three attend church together tomorrow. Who is to know when I arrived?”

“The whole neighborhood,” said Mark a trifle bleakly. “When was anyone ever able to keep a secret in this house?”

* * * *

It seemed he was right, for no one appeared at all surprised to see him at church the following morning. After the service he stood in the cold November sunlight, flanked by Lady Maria and Laura, and the gentry of Dartmouth flocked to greet him. There was curiosity in many eyes, and reservation on many faces, but they all came and they all spoke cordial words of welcome. There were Mr. and Mrs. Charles, Sir Ralph and Lady Monksleigh, Lord and Lady Countisbury, the Daltons, and Sir Giles Gregory, to name the most notable.