Page 1 of The Boys of Summer
Prologue
Margate, 1813
The streets ofMargate were bustling. It was a resort town, after all—a seaside haven for all of England. But it wasn’t the crowded streets that drew Clarissa’s gaze. As the carriage rumbled along the cobbled street, it wasn’t the people or even the traffic that consumed her interest. It was the sea. Between the buildings and terraces, she could catch glimpses of the marvel of it. The vast and endless stretch of blue water and blue sky fusing together in the distance was unlike anything she’d ever seen.
“Stop gaping, Clarissa,” her father scolded. “You look like an imbecile with your mouth hanging open.”
Promptly, Clarissa closed her mouth, but she still could not look away from that awe-inspiring view. Every sliver of it that was visible, she committed to memory. She longed to feel that cool water on her toes, to take off her stockings and sturdy boots and wade into it. Her father did not know that she could swim, that one of the stable boys had taught her when they were much younger. He would have been livid. She’d have to guard that secret closely until he returned to their estate in Bedfordshire. That he’d granted her a summer to spend with her great-aunt at the sea was a miracle in and of itself. Of course, she understood why. He wished to travel and did not wish to be bothered with her. And since her governess had fled in the night to elope with a captain in the army, there’d been little choice for him.
A frisson of fear settled over her, making her stomach clench and her lungs feel tight. She didn’t know her great-aunt, after all. It was quite possible that Lady Helmsley might be cut from the same cloth as her father. She might be cold, disapproving, quick-tempered and quicker still to strike. But a lady would not be able to hit nearly as hard as her father could, so that was something.
When at last the carriage stopped in front of a rather stately terrace, Clarissa had to remind herself once more not to gape. It was nothing like their estate, after all, where half the walls were crumbling and entire wings were closed off because her father had removed the windows and roof to avoid taxes.
Disembarking with the aid of a footman, Clarissa straightened her skirts that had been let down more times than she could count and walked dutifully behind her father toward the door. It was opened before he even knocked by a butler with a kindly face.
“Welcome, Mr. Milson. Lady Helmsley is expecting you and Miss Milson in the drawing room shortly. I shall take you to your chambers first so that you might refresh yourselves.”
“No need,” her father replied quickly. “Not staying long enough for that. If I leave within the hour, I can make good inroads on my return to Bedfordshire. Old Aggie is in the drawing room, you say?”
The butler’s kindly face become cool and impassive then. “Agatha, Lady Helmsley, is awaiting you, sir, and you as well, Miss. This way, if you please.”
They followed the butler down the corridor to a lavishly decorated room. The rich fabrics in shades of blue and cream made it look like a cloud—like a wonderful, gilded cloud out of a fairytale. Or perhaps heaven, Clarissa thought. Everything was so lovely and so meticulously clean.
“Edward.” The greeting was uttered coolly by the woman who occupied a tufted settee. With her dark hair going to gray piled atop her head in an elaborate coiffure and her dress of silk brocade, she was older than expected but still incredibly beautiful.
“Aunt Aggie,” her father said, but there was a sneer in his voice. It was quite clear that he and his aunt did not actually like one another.
“You needn’t linger. You wished me to keep the girl for the summer and I shall. I will only hope that she is better for my influence. You may go once we have discussed the particulars,” the woman said dismissively. “As for you, Child, if you wish, you may go out through the terrace there. A set of steps will lead you down to the beach. Do not get in the water like some sort of heathen, but you may certainly enjoy the view.”
Clarissa waited for her father to protest, but he said nothing. So she bobbed a quick curtsy and then did as her great-aunt had suggested. As she reached the steps that led down to the shore, she could hear the crashing waves. In that moment, she prayed harder than she ever had for anything else that her father would not change his mind—that she would be permitted to stay.
As her feet sank into the sand at the bottom of those steps, she heard a sniff. Turning to her left, she saw a boy about her own age. He was sitting on the steps for the neighboring house and he appeared terribly sad.
“Hello,” she murmured softly. “I didn’t mean to disturb you.”
“Who are you? Lady Helmsley doesn’t have children,” he said suspiciously before wiping a hand over his face. There was challenge in his gaze, almost daring her to mention what could only have been tears.
“I’m her great-niece. I’ve come to stay with her for the summer. My name is Clarissa,” she replied softly. Because she understood what it was to be embarrassed by one’s emotions, to fear the censure of others for crying, she ignored it entirely.
“I’m Gus. I’m here with my mother. She’s ill,” he said. “The physician said the sea air would be good for her.”
“Is it?” she asked.
He looked at her oddly, cocked his head to one side and then looked out at the sea. Bluntly, he stated, “No. Nothing is good for her. She’s dying. So it doesn’t matter whether it happens here or Leicester.”
“Oh.” Impulsively, Clarissa walked toward him then. Without saying anything, she reached out and took his hand. “My mother is dead. She died when I was born. I don’t remember her at all. I think that might be easier though. It’s hard to miss what you do not know.”
He shook his head. “I don’t think so. I should think it would be awful to have never known my mother.”
“Gus, will you be my friend? I don’t have any friends here.”
“Boys and girls can’t be friends,” he scoffed.
“Why not?”
“They just can’t. That’s all. It isn’t proper.”
Clarissa ducked her head. “What does that matter? No one is here to judge us. I don’t know anyone here. I don’t have any friends.”
