Page 34 of A Winter’s Romance

M iles was shocked at her words. Her insult to him had stung, but he had listened and seen the emotions cross her face as if she were back on the streets, and he felt shame at having forced her into such an outburst. “Louisa, I...”

Miles’s words were interrupted by Lord Hindley, who neither had noticed entering the room. “I think you have said enough, Miles,” came the quiet but firm voice.

Both spun around to face him, clearly shocked that he was there.

“Your lordship, I-I am sorry I did not tell you,” Louisa faltered.

“There is no need to apologise, my dear. I was frustrated that I could not help you more, but you would have told me in your own time, I was sure of it. Would you leave us now please, Louisa? I have a few words I wish to say to my son.”

Lord Hindley did not say anything until Louisa had left the room and closed the door. He turned to his son, and with sadness more than anger, he asked, “What gave you the right to treat a guest in my house in such a way? ”

Miles immediately became defensive. If his father had shouted at him, he would have taken his punishment and apologised, but the look of sadness on his father’s face upset him more than anything else, and he reacted in anger. “One of us had to find out if there was some sort of fraudster in our midst.”

“Do you not use your eyes, Miles, and see what is before you and your ears to listen to what is being said or hinted at? How on earth could you think she was such a devious person? Did our last conversation mean nothing to you?”

“She does not look as if she has spent the last months on the streets!” he spat, ignoring the fact that he believed Louisa’s every word. His thoughts and feelings were in utter turmoil, and he wanted to follow her and beg her forgiveness, to tell her that he would be the one to keep her safe and provide her with somewhere she could find peace.

“Were you here when they arrived? Did you see the days of bathing it took to get them clean? Did you see the state of their clothing, their pallor or the haunted looks in their eyes, never mind that they were all skin and bone. Did you see any of that? No, you did not. It has been four weeks of hard work by everyone in this household to keep them warm, get them clean, replace the little they had, feed them regularly, and not frighten them into returning to the life they left behind. If they leave us, they will not survive. They will be condemned to a life of prostitution or, in Billy’s case, crime, and it would be only hours before he was caught and hanged,” Lord Hindley said angrily.

Miles’s stomach knotted at the thought of Louisa being forced into prostitution. “I did not realise they had been so,” he said quietly .

“No, and you decided to intimidate that poor child.”

“I am sorry.”

“It is not me you need to apologise to. You have ground to make up, and as a decent human being, I expect you to treat her with the respect she deserves. After you have begged her forgiveness, of course.”

Miles was not seen for more than a week. Lady Florence explained to Louisa that he always ran away from them when he had upset his father. He could not cope with his disapproval. Louisa felt some shame for her part in his scolding. He was ultimately protecting his family, and she could not condemn him for that.

Preparations for the dinner party went ahead as planned. Lord Hindley had gone through the guest list thoroughly with Louisa, and she was reassured that no one with connections to her previous life was invited and there would be no last minute changes. She felt guilty when he explained that they only socialised with a very few people since Melissa had left.

Rosie would be allowed to join the party after dinner for tea and entertainments in the drawing room. She was excited and almost bounced around Louisa’s bedchamber while Louisa’s hair was dressed.

“’Ow many guests are there?” she asked.

“Fourteen and then Lord and Lady Hindley, Miles, if he arrives, and myself. If he does not, it will upset Lady Florence as she’s taken so much trouble over this evening, and it is in his honour,” Louisa replied. She hoped that Miles would return but dreaded it at the same time. She was not sure how to react to him or if he would acknowledge her. That he filled her thoughts with longing both annoyed her and made her despair about herself. She was nothing to him; he had proved that time and again.

“Fourteen strangers. Do you think there will be any eligible men?” Rosie asked, fluttering her eyes.

“No! Lady Florence has invited her friends, so we will be the youngest by a long way.”

“Oh.” Rosie slumped.

“You are still in the school room. You are not allowed to flirt with men yet,” Louisa reminded her.

“Pah! I was flirting before you were out of leading strings,” Rosie scoffed.

Louisa acknowledged the truth of the statement but gently reminded her friend, “We are ladies tonight, Rosie. Everything we do will reflect on Lord and Lady Hindley.”

“Oh, I know. I just want to dance and flirt and set my cap at someone, even if it is for one evening,” she sighed.

“What on earth are you talking about?” Louisa laughed.

“It’s what it says in the novels my tutor tells me about. She says the lending libraries have them, and when I am good enough, Lord Hindley will pay for my subscription,” Rosie confessed.

“Ooh, I wonder if he would allow me to have a subscription now, and I could read them to you,” Louisa responded.

“Ask him!” Rosie urged.

Louisa reached the bottom of the stairs and hesitated. The guests had not started to arrive, but she felt nervous walking into the drawing room alone. She felt more like a lady than she had ever done before in her life. The maid had artfully piled her hair up and left little wisps of curls framing her face. It made her look and feel delicate. She had been persuaded to add a touch of pink lipstick, just enough to bring out their natural colour. Her dress was cream, pale enough to fit in with convention for a girl not presented at court, but Lady Florence had insisted on a shimmering silk rather than plain muslin.

She took a deep breath and opened the door. Lady Florence came across to her, smiling and holding out her hands. “My darling girl, you look beautiful. It is a crime we cannot present you at court. You would be the hit of the season!”

Louisa smiled and blushed. “Thank you. You are very kind.”

Each guest arrived, and although there was a second of panic each time a new name was announced, Louisa gradually relaxed. She flushed when Miles entered the room, but his greeting was cool rather than unfriendly, and he soon moved to speak to his parents’ old friends.

At dinner, she was seated far from Miles, and although nervous at making small talk in case questions were asked about how she had met the Hindleys, she soon was able to laugh and enjoy the teasing from the gentlemen at either side of her. When the group rejoined in the drawing room, Lady Florence asked her to help distribute the tea and then join her on the sofa.

Louisa took a cup of tea to her hostess and sat next to her, smiling. “It has been a lovely evening.”

“Good. I’m glad you have enjoyed it. I hope there is still more pleasure to be had. Would you mind playing for us?” Lady Florence asked.

Louisa paled. “I have never played to an audience before. I am not good enough. ”

“Nonsense! I have heard you practising. Your playing will give the group a lot of pleasure. It will also show Rosie what will be expected of her in the future,” Lady Florence said in her usual no-nonsense way.

Louisa looked across at Rosie. She had entered with the tea, and once the gentlemen had returned, Miles had introduced her to everyone. They were currently talking to Lord Hindley and two of his friends. Rosie was giggling, flushed with pleasure. Louisa thought Rosie would fit into any situation she was faced with. She was fearless. Louisa wished she could be so, and tried not to acknowledge that the thought of being escorted around the room by Miles was the most appealing part of the situation.

Louisa could not refuse a request from Lady Florence, so she sat down at the pianoforte to play. If she pretended there was no one else in the room, she would relax. Hopefully.

After she had been persuaded to sing and continue playing, she finally managed to escape. She moved away to stand alone but was soon joined by Rosie. “I didn’t know you could play like that,” Rosie said in admiration.

“I made lots of mistakes, but it is a beautiful instrument.”

“I ’ope they never expect me to play. I would probably cause injury to everyone’s ears.”

As Louisa had heard Rosie practising, she could only laugh at the comment. It was surprisingly accurate.

“’Opefully there’ll be more entertainments while we’re here. I am enjoying tonight,” Rosie said. “I intend to make full use of meeting other people.”

Louisa was filled with a sense of foreboding at her friend’s words. “What do you mean? ”

“Lady Florence has spoken to me about becoming a companion or a governess. If she thinks I will be someone’s drudge, she’s got it all wrong,” Rosie whispered.

“We will both need to find positions at some point,” Louisa responded. Lady Florence might be hoping to find her a suitable husband, but Louisa was more than happy with the thought of employment.

“Not me. I know some of these nobs used to visit the backstreets looking for girls like me. If they took a real fancy to you, they might set you up in a ’ome of your own. I’m going to be on the lookout for a man like that. I want to be kept in luxury. I deserve it,” Rosie said.

“Rosie, no!” Louisa said, horrified. “You cannot wish for that to be your future.”

Anger radiated off Rosie. “You can ’ave all your airs and graces and pretend that everything is right and tight, but be realistic. Who is going to be interested in us two? We’ve been on the streets. We are gutter rats, nothing more. Take what you can. I am going to take full advantage and make sure that no matter what ’appens, I won’t be returning to what I’ve left behind.”

Louisa was left alone. Rosie had turned her back on her friend as soon as she had said her piece. Blinking rapidly, Louisa realised that once more, Rosie had shown that she was the more astute of them both. She saw the reality of their situation, and although Louisa could never agree to her plan, she understood it.

For the first time since Louisa had joined the Hindleys, her future looked as bleak as it had before. There would be no happy ending for her type. She came from the streets. That is all people would ever see. She glanced at Miles, who looked elegant and relaxed in his perfectly fitted evening wear that enhanced the broad width of his shoulders. Here was a man who was secure in his place in the world, knew exactly where he fitted and never felt out of his element. He would continue the family name, just as his ancestors had, making a good match with a lady born to be at his side.

She was deeply saddened that he would, quite rightly, never think of her as anything more than a gutter rat.