Page 16 of The Quiet Wife (Stately Scandals #2)

Speke Hall - Liverpool

“But we want to see the new London house?” Elinor wailed for the hundredth time. Her older siblings said nothing, yet sent Frances such pleading looks she knew they were not far off petitioning in the same way.

“It will be so lonely here without you all,” Fannie huffed.

“With Freddie at school, it will be just awful,” Elinor continued. Florence wrapped a comforting arm around her littlest sister. “He can’t leave just the three of us here.”

“I will speak to papa, but I can’t promise anything. It is very important that you do nothing to upset him.”

Frances’ heart and head were pounding. She’d already had an argument with Frederick about taking the children with them, and she really didn’t want another.

That was guaranteed if he returned home and saw this scene.

She headed for sanctuary in the library, wracking her brains for a solution as she went.

She closed the door of the small room behind her and rubbed her face with her hands before throwing herself into the cosy armchair by the fire.

A tap on the door made her start.

“Are you quite well, my dear?” Anna Whistler peeped around the door. “You looked all of a flutter.”

“A little. Do come in. I’ll call for tea.”

“I’ve already asked your lovely maid for some to be brought. You looked in such sore need of it.”

Frances sighed at her poor effort to conceal her pains and massaged her temples with two fingers.

“Shall I be mother?” Anna asked when the tea tray complete with scones and jam arrived promptly.

“Please do.”

Frances really appreciated having Anna staying with them. She’d come to rely on her in the shortest time. There was something so solid, so dependable about her, and she was a marvel with the children.

“Now then. Tell me what’s troubling you. Is it the children?”

“In a manner of speaking,” she sipped her tea before placing the cup back in its saucer.

“They are beside themselves because Freddie is going back to Harrow. The rest of us are to go to London with my husband so they will be alone with just Nanny Jenks and the governess who are perfectly lovely, but it’s not quite the same as being with the family. ”

“Is there a reason they won’t be going?” Anna asked her.

Frances hesitated. She didn’t want to paint Frederick in a disagreeable light, but frankly, she was becoming tired of making up tales to cover his unpleasantness. That said, airing one’s dirty linen didn’t come easily to her.

“My husband doesn’t feel that they should go.” She conceded, rather glossing over the truth.

“Oh, my dear. No wonder you look so sad. To be parted from your babies is the hardest thing. Have you tried to persuade him?”

“Persuading doesn’t really work with Frederick. He needs to arrive at the decision himself.”

Anna’s eyes gleamed and she put a hand to her mouth for a moment before speaking. “You know your husband well,” she remarked.

Frances nodded.

Anna leaned forward and took hold of Frances’ hand, a conspiratorial glint in her eye. “I’m sure between us we can persuade him he’s had a splendid idea.”

***

Frances was taking a moment in her room, resting. Dinner that evening was to be a formal affair with some of her husband’s business colleagues, so she was enjoying a little peace when the door opened, and the girls flew in.

“How did you do it, mama? What did you say to him?”

“I beg your pardon?” She had no idea what they were referring to.

Fannie threw herself down beside her chair.

“How did you persuade papa to let us all go to London with you? Anna and Jemie said how delighted they were that we would have the chance to visit with them in London and how we were most welcome at their house in Chelsea. Jemie said he’s thrilled that he can show us the galleries and told papa what a fantastic father he was to think of such an excellent trip for our education.

” She paused in her excitement to draw breath.

Florence clutched her hand and Elinor threw herself on Frances’ lap and hugged her.

Frances rubbed her back. “Well, I have no idea what changed papa’s mind. It wasn’t anything that I said, but I’m glad to hear that he has. We’d best pack for you, as we are leaving in only a few days.”

Elinor jumped down with a squeal and all three sisters squished together in a huge, giggly hug, making Frances laugh at their enthusiasm. Freddie looked on with a smile, then gave her a thoughtful look.

“What is it?”

“Can we speak mama?”

Frances left the girls in transports of delight and followed her son into the corridor.

“I want to leave school. I don’t want to go to university.”

Frances didn’t know what to say. It was so completely out of the blue and he’d just come straight out with it.

“But, darling. Why? I thought you liked school.”

“I do, but listening to papa, being around people… I think it’s time I started understanding the shipping industry. If papa buys Bibby, and I think he will, he may need me.”

She couldn’t envision Frederick agreeing for a second, but the resolute look in her son’s eye told her he had inherited more of his father than she realised, and it made her want to weep at the potential for heartbreak she saw in Freddie’s plan.

“Don’t you think you should go to university first and then go into the business?”

Freddie let out an exasperated sigh. “What does university teach anyone about business? It’s all about Greek nonsense. It’s for the wealthy landed people who will never need to work and who will do nothing other than look down on me. It’s bad enough at school.”

“It is?” Were the other pupils horrible to him? Frances worried. It hurt to realise they probably were, given it was largely the sons of the aristocracy who attended.

“Papa never went to university and look at him,” he argued.

Frances had no idea at all what men learned at university. She tried to reason with him. “Maybe papa would like you to have the advantages he didn’t have? I know he cares deeply about you and wants you to have the very best of everything. I know it’s important to him.”

“I’m going to ask anyway.”

Her heart pounded uncomfortably. She clasped both his hands. “Let us think about the right way to approach it then.”

Freddie shook his head and drew away from her touch. “I’m going to do it now.”

“Now? Oh, love…” She felt quite faint at the idea. “He’s awfully busy and very tense with our guests arriving shortly. I’m not sure that would be a good idea.”

“When then?” Freddie asked.

“Perhaps tomorrow. We are dining with company tonight and I think he is pre-occupied with that. Don’t spoil your chances of getting his agreement by asking at the wrong moment.”

He frowned but nodded, seeming to accept her advice.

“When you do speak to him, make sure you do not get into an argument. He will never agree to it if you do.”

Freddie stalked off, leaving Frances feeling sick with worry. She could not imagine Frederick ever agreeing to it. She wished her husband might let him down gently and encourage him to continue his education, but she knew Frederick too well.

***

There was an air of shimmering expectancy about the house as Frances and the staff added final touches to the dining room in preparation.

Everything sparkled, fresh flowers in abundance, and the whole house was redolent with polish and perfume, but her earlier conversation with Freddie weighed heavily on her.

She headed to her chamber to get ready, just as her maid arrived to help.

After she had bathed and brushed out her hair, she stood still as Grace began the ritual of dressing, helping her into her chemise and lacing her corset so tight, she could hardly breathe.

Then she tied on the frame that would hold up her skirt.

She raised her arms as Grace draped the fabulous creation in silver and grey and fastened her into it.

She eyed herself in the glass as she dressed.

She didn’t want a repeat of the argument over the green dress so was pleased to see she looked elegant but most importantly, demure.

Once her hair was complete, and jewels added, she appeared the part of the wife of a wealthy powerful man. The problem was that her husband wanted her to look like the wife of an aristocratic man. She had enough sense to see that the two were not the same and no amount of money could buy that.

The door opened and Frederick walked in just as Grace finished her hair. She glanced over at him and waited.

“Let me see,” he gestured for her to stand.

She stood up and twirled around, heart thumping hard.

“Hmm. You’ll do.”

“You are most kind,” she said, barely able to mask her frustration. He really was the master of damming with faint praise. Frederick scowled and looked puzzled. As though he knew vaguely that he might have been chastised but had no idea why.

“I’m going to show the children my dress before I go down. Why don’t you come with me?”

“Why would they want to see us?” He looked genuinely puzzled.

“They asked to see me in my gown. I’m sure they’d love to see you, too.” They were disappointed at being excluded from dinner yet again. They knew that their father simply didn’t trust them to behave in company. She felt he barely trusted her to behave.

He grunted and gestured for her to precede him out of the door.

They walked in silence to the children’s rooms, and Frances entered Fannie’s room, as that was where they usually congregated, and found them all there.

Her heart stuttered when she realised Freddie was with them.

She could only pray he had enough sense to heed her earlier warning and not to say anything about his plans just as her husband was heading to dinner.

“Mama!” Fannie jumped up. “You look so pretty!” The others followed suit in ever more glowing terms about her appearance.

“That’s a very smart suit, sir,” Freddie got to his feet.

“Should be for what it cost,” Frederick muttered before turning a stern eye on them all, clearly seeing an opportunity.