Page 32 of A Governess' Unbridled Passion
“Well … I didn’t exactly promise a ball …” Phillip tried.
“Oh, but we did, Phillip,” Lady Davina was quick to pick up on his remark. “We cannot be seen to be disappointing the gentry. It will put you high up in their opinion if you host a ball for them.”
“What if I do not feel the need to be put high up in their opinion?” Phillip questioned, wishing Lady Davina would be quiet and allow him to think.
“Why … Phillip … I have worked hard to ensure this happens.” Lady Davina laughed him off as if he was only jesting.
Lady Davina turned to chat with Mr Eli, allowing Phillip’s mind to wander onto other things.
He didn’t wish to disrespect her, well … in truth, he wouldn’t mind telling her to stop making false promises, but he said nothing. She would only take her temper out on the servants if she were upset. What he needed was a strong reason to force her to leave. Not that he wouldforceher, as such, but he hoped she would take the hint that she was no longer needed and leave of her own accord.
He must learn patience and meanwhile put up with her nuances. She’d proved useful, and for that, he was grateful. On his own, he wouldn’t have had a clue how to mingle with the right people for the sake of the estate’s future. Eli was here to help him with the accounts and business agreements, but he could never have assisted him with the socialising expected of him.
If he had his way, he’d return to the West Indies, where life wasn’t so complicated. But now he had two children to care for, so he should take all the help he could get. They were important to him, and he’d promised himself that they would come first in every decision he made, which led him to think about taking a wife. Now there lay his biggest problem of all, and he pushed the subject out of his mind.
Lady Davina’s laughter jangled in his ears as she overreacted to something Mr Eli had said to her. Good old Eli, ever the one to make a lady laugh. He was a popular man with the ladies back home.
Back home?The words resonated in his head.But England is my home now, and I must get used to the idea.
“And may I ask how the children have been today, Miss Alice?” he asked the governess, who had been quiet thus far.
“Lord Jacob has been sprightly all day long, Lord Phillip,” Miss Alice replied on cue. “But Lady Beatrice hasn’t been quite herself today. She lacks concentration in her lessons, so I suggested Nanny put her to bed earlier.”
“I will visit the nursery tomorrow, if I may?” he asked.
“You do not need permission to visit the children, Phillip,” Lady Davina said, pushing herself into the conversation.
“As far as I am concerned, Miss Alice keeps the children busy, and so it is better that I let her know when I am visiting,” he said. The only reason he bothered to explain was for Miss Alice’s sake; otherwise, he might have ignored the remark.
“That way, she ensures the children are not on one of their outdoor ventures. Thanks to their governess, there is never a dull moment in their lives.”
Lady Davina did not reply, and Phillip could finish his conversation with Miss Alice without any further interruptions. He was only too sad when dinner was over because he meant that he lost the company of Miss Alice, as she left to go and read to the children. If he had his way, he would enjoy her company in his bed all night long, but alas, that was only in his dreams.
Chapter 17
Alice had spent the night asleep on an easy chair in the children’s bedchamber. She’d first noticed that Lady Beatrice was acting odd, in the late afternoon that day. After speaking with Betsy, they agreed the child should go to her bed after dinner.
When Alice returned to the children’s room to read their bedtime story, she’d found them both asleep. Betsy popped in to inform her that Lady Beatrice hadn’t eaten anything at dinner, and both worried for the girl.
Alice decided to stay in the room and watch over the girl for an hour or so, but she ended up falling asleep. Nor had she awoken at her usual hour, and it wasn’t until Betsy came into the room that morning that Alice stirred.
At first, she felt confused at the strange aches in her body, but then realised that she’d been sleeping upright in an armchair the whole night through.
It was Betsy’s voice that woke her up. “Miss Alice, I can’t seem to wake Lady Beatrice this morning. I’m thinking there might be something wrong with the child.”
At those words, Alice shot from the chair and dashed over to Lady Beatrice’s bedside to check on her. As she spoke softly to the child, all she could get from her was a soft moan.
“The child has a fever,” Alice said, noticing beads of sweat on Lady Beatrice’s brow. “I want you to dab her with a cold cloth while I go and find Lord Phillip. We require the physician, and he will send for him.”
As Betsy agreed, she went off for a bowl of cold water and a cloth to dab the child’s body. Alice dashed down the stairway, heading for the dining room. There, she hoped to find everyone at breakfast. But when she ran through the open doorway, the only person in there was Lady Davina.
“I need to know where Lord Phillip is, Lady Davina,” she panted, with worry in her heart. “It is a matter of urgency.”
“It should beHis Grace, to you, governess, and not Lord Phillip. It is only through his kind oversight that servants are permitted to be so forward,” Lady Davina snapped back at her. “What is more, it is none of your business where your employer is. He is not accountable to you.”
“Lady Beatrice is taken ill, Lady Davina,” Alice said with urgency, ignoring the French woman’s harsh tone. “Please, I must find him and ask permission to get the local physician for Lady Beatrice.”
“I doubt that we need to behave with the panic you are showing, Miss Evans,” Lady Davina hissed, not affected by Alice’s urgency. “Go and sit with the child, and we will see how she develops during the course of the day.”
