Page 9 of The Road to Cavan Town
Though he’d only been in the Kilchrest’s home a quarter of an hour, Isaac was ready to be on his way. But he hadn’t spent much time with Miss Kilchrest over the months he'd been courting her. He’d meant to further their connection, to make his case, to move closer to his goal of winning her regard.
“I’d be honored if I could walk ya home from church tomorrow,” he said. An outdoor conversation would be far more enjoyable.
“Of course.”Of course I can? Or ‘of course’ I’m honored?
He stood and inched his way toward the door. “I’ll wait for ya outside the church, then.”
She only smiled. He’d simply have to wait and see what happened the next morning.
He was well on his way in a moment’s time. The finer houses gave way to smaller, plainer ones. For the first time all evening, Isaac felt like he could breathe.
His feet carried him, not to his friend’s house where he’d be spending the night, but down the street where Alice’s grandparent’s lived. He wouldn’t actually call on her. Alice had made quite plain that she didn’t wish to see him. But he’d lost his footing at the Kilchrest home. He felt turned around and needed something familiar.
The sounds of laughter and music met him as he walked. He followed it to the side garden of a house two or three doors removed from where Alice spent her weekends. He wandered over to the low stone wall.
Quite a few people had gathered about, talking and playing music. There was chatting and dancing. Isaac smiled to see it. He’d attended many such gatherings as a child growing up in the countryside. His own neighbors gathered on occasion for traditional music and friendly chatter.
Just as he made to find the gate so he might ask to join them, his eyes fell on an achingly familiar face. Alice, her mouth turned up in a grin as broad as any he’d seen her wear, was dancing about the grassy area with the same man Isaac had seen her with several weeks earlier. Billy, she’d said his name was, and a dear friend.
A dear friend.
A dear friend she was laughing with and dancing with. A dear friend she was smiling at. Isaac hadn’t had her laughter nor her smile in weeks. He’d not ever danced with her.
Isaac spun about on the instant. The party held little appeal to him any longer. He’d wondered at Alice’s absence, worried he’d offended her. All that time she’d simply found another whose company she preferred to his.
His steps echoed hard and fast around him as he trudged back to his friend’s home. In all the months he’d watched Miss Kilchrest pay particular attention to any number of her suitors and not to him he hadn’t felt the deep, crushing disappointment he did in that moment.
Chapter Five
Billy Kettle did best when given tasks that were simple. Equally important to his success was a taskmaster who treated him with patience and understanding. Thus, when Alice learned he’d been retained to help serve at the Kilchrest’s annual Christmastime party, she could not help a touch of anxiety. Mrs. Kilchrest didn’t know Billy, didn’t understand his struggles. Rumor had it the woman was a demanding employer.
Alice fretted over the situation throughout the week leading up to the party on Christmas Eve. She thought about it as she saw to her chores, as she laid on her cot in the tiny maid’s room in the farmhouse where she worked. Isaac would have listened to her worries, would have sorted them out with her. But, she reminded herself, they weren’t talking to each other any longer. They hadn't sworn off each other’s company. She simply couldn’t face hearing him speak odes to Miss Kilchrest, so she avoided him. And he hadn’t come by her grandparents’ place, though he knew where they lived.
She’d simply have to find her own solution to the problem. By the time she arrived in Cavan late in the morning on Christmas Eve, she had settled on a course of action. She’d never warrant an invitation and couldn’t keep a protective eye out for Billy that way. But she’d wager the Kilchrests’ could use an extra set of hands.
She spoke quickly with her cousin upon arriving in town, then slipped over to the Kilchrests’ home to offer her expertise. She knew better than to knock at the front door. A harried-looking housekeeper opened the back door, impatience written in every line of her face.
“I’ve no time for bothers just now,” the woman warned.
“I’m not here to bother ya. I know ye’ve a party tonight, and I came to see if ye’re looking to hire more help for the day.”
One of her eyebrows shot up even as her mouth pulled tighter. “Ya know how to work?”
Alice nodded. “I work at a large farm up the road toward Killeshandra during the week. I can cook, wash dishes, serve and clear tables, anything ye’re in need of.”
The housekeeper’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll pay ya a shilling for the day.”
A mere shilling?Alice managed not to roll her eyes. The housekeeper gave new weight to the term “pinch purse.” Still, Alice was taking the position so she could look after Billy, not to make her fortune.
“I’ll take the work.”
Without ceremony, Alice was ushered through the busy kitchen, up a flight of servant’s stairs, and deposited in the formal drawing room.
“All the chairs and tables being brought in need polishing,” the housekeeper said. “I trust I don’t have to explain how that’s done.”
Alice shook her head. She didn’t need the woman to hold her hand whilst she saw to basic household chores. In a moment’s time she’d been provided with rags and polish and left to her work.
She’d not finished polishing a single chair before Billy came inside lugging a chair in each arm. He grinned when their eyes met.
