Page 9 of A Governess' Unbridled Passion
Alice felt satisfied that she hadn’t put fear into Lady Beatrice’s head and strolled over to the window as an arriving carriage caught her attention. Looking outside, Alice called over to Nanny as she peered through the glass.
“It seems we have visitors, Betsy,” she said as the nursemaid came to stand beside her to look outside too.
Alice glanced over at Lord Jacob, who was busy playing with the wooden bricks on the floor, oblivious to everything around him.
“I suppose we’ll be expecting lots of strangers now we has us a new master,” Betsy muttered, watching as the carriage pulled up.
As the carriage came to a stop, its door burst open. Alice guessed it must be a man because a lady would wait for the driver to open it. To her surprise, a man with skin as dark as the coffee drink she’d once tried stepped out. His hair was black and curly, tight to his head, and his teeth as white as the pearls on a lady’s necklace.
Greeting him was the duke, and they hugged and laughed as if very pleased to see one another.
“I reckon he be from that plantation that the master speaks so fondly of,” Betsy suggested as she returned to young Lord Jacob.
“You could be right on that one, Betsy,” Alice agreed as she watched the exotic stranger.
He was as tall as the duke, if not taller. Attired in the finest of clothing, she assumed he must be a gentleman of the elite. From her stance, Alice could see his shoulders were solid and large.
Although she had a strange liking for the duke, she thought the foreigner by his side was equally as handsome. His dark ebony skin added very much to his mystique. The two men laughed as they began to speak to one another, and their deep voices resonated up to the window.
Opening the window, she felt a gush of cool air hit her face. At least now she could catch their words as they greeted each other like long-lost friends.
“By the gods, man, it is so good to see you again, Eli,” the duke said as he placed his arm over the man’s shoulder. Together, they turned to walk towards the main door.
“Well, well, well, Phillip!” a female voice rang out. “You never told me you were expecting such a delightful visitor.”
Alice looked over and could see Lady Davina walking from the door towards the men.
“Davina, I am delighted to introduce you to one of my finest friends,” the duke called back to her.
“This is Mr Eli Samuel, come to aid me, at my bequest, from the plantation. I implored him to travel with me, but alas, he was forced to follow close behind. He is my right-hand man, and it pleases me greatly that he has agreed to join me in England. Eli, this Lady Davina, my stepsister.”
“And how are you finding the English hospitality, Eli?” Lady Davina asked him, and Alice could see that she, too, was enamoured by the visitor’s unusual handsome features.
“I find it is very cold, Lady Davina,” Mr Eli answered with a deep voice and confident tone. “I have received many strange looks, but once they see my papers, they allow me on my way. And here I am, come to help Phillip in his new adventure.”
“You and I both, Eli,” Lady Davina replied in her usual husky voice. “Already we have something in common, both of us eager to help the duke settle into his new role.”
“Eli is an expert with numbers,” the duke explained. “He’s a natural at it, and I relied on him over the years to complete my books on the plantation.”
“I see, so you brought him here to oversee your finances, did you?” Lady Davina asked as they stood around chatting.
“Indeed,” the duke nodded as he answered. “He is here as my friend too. We are each of us alien to the English ways of life, so I will no longer feel so alone, not now that he is by my side.”
“How was your crossing over the Atlantic?” Lady Davina asked the man, and Alice thought the woman appeared determined to be included in the men’s blissful reunion.
“Bad, bad, bad.” Mr Eli frowned. “I was sick to the stomach and the captain had me working on the deck to keep my mind from the sickness.”
“That is a little unconventional.” Lady Davina glowered at his words.
“Not for Eli.” The duke chuckled. “He likes to be kept busy, and no doubt volunteered his services to make time pass quicker.”
“You know me well, Phillip.” Mr Eli smiled, showing those lovely teeth behind his full lips.“Idle hands are the Devil’s playthings.”
“Ha! You quote Benjamin Franklin,” Lady Davina said, laughing out, which Alice thought sounded fake. “You are a scholar then, are you not?”
“No, Lady Davina, I am only an inquisitive man who likes to read every book I get my hands on,” Mr Eli replied, still smiling. “Which are not many where I come from.”
Alice closed the window, so annoyed was she with the French woman who seemed to force her way into everything.
