“Enough. I’ll do it.” Daniel rubbed the back of his neck, but it did little to calm the slight panic clawing at him.
“You’ll do what?”
“I’ll marry her.” Why did he feel as if he were doing the right thing for the wrong reasons? He gave himself a mental shake at his convoluted thoughts.
Richard didn’t bother to hide his satisfied smile, leaving Daniel to wonder if that had been Richard’s plan all along. “Excellent notion. When will you ask her?”
“Soon.” Suddenly he couldn’t catch his breath as a new concern flooded his thoughts. What if she said no?
THREE DAYS LATER, BEATRICE watched Mary with dismay as she packed the few things Caroline had provided for her.
“Are you certain you feel well enough to leave?” Beatrice asked.
“Yes.” Mary nodded with enthusiasm as she smiled at Beatrice. “I’m excited about my new position. In all honesty, I’m ready to put everything that happened behind me and think of my future.”
Mary had indeed been forced into relations with several men, something she could barely bring herself to talk about. Listening with empathy was the only thing Beatrice could offer. Caroline gently inquired as to whether Mary might be expecting, but the woman matter-of-factly shared how the men were required to wear an “English riding coat” made of sheep gut. She’d been told to wash afterward as well.
Beatrice hoped for Mary’s sake those precautions had been successful as she would lose her job if she were pregnant. No unmarried women would be welcome in any position if they were expecting a child.
Mary had expressed an interest in fashion when Margaret had called on them two days prior. The lady had asked what she knew about sewing. After a long conversation and a few demonstrations, Margaret had declared her particularly talented with a needle and thread. Mary even knew the proper way to sew French seams and had done so quickly with small, tight stitches that Margaret declared perfect.
Margaret had been so impressed she’d recommended Mary for a position with the dressmaker she and Caroline used. Mary was to have a room above the shop and would start on the morrow.
Her animated expression as she prepared to leave didn’t ease Beatrice’s worry one bit. She felt much like a mother hen, watching her chick leave the safety of the coop.
“Work as a seamstress isn’t easy.” Beatrice couldn’t help but mention the fact. Working long hours often in dim candlelight could cause poor eyesight along with various aches and pains from being hunched over one’s work.
“Miss Gold has shared what the shop is like. It will be hard work, but I’m used to that. The gowns they make are amazing. I’ve never seen fabric like they use. It will be a pleasure to work there and learn more of those fancy techniques Miss Gold mentioned. I’ve been practicing a few already.”
Over the course of the past few days, they’d learned more about Mary and the family she’d left behind in a small village. Her father was a stonemason and her mother weaved baskets. Mary had three younger siblings whom she wanted to help support.
After what Mary had been through, the woman wanted nothing more than to do her best to forget it and make a new start. Finding a position that kept her away from men was an added bonus as far as she was concerned.
Beatrice was happy for Mary, but the woman’s determination to move forward only made Beatrice feel inept that she hadn’t done the same.
“The best part,” Mary continued, “is that I might have the chance to see you, Miss Gold, and Lady Aberland. My acquaintance with the three of you will surely please Madame Beaufort.”
Mary paused from folding the simple gown Caroline had given her and turned to look at Beatrice. “That is if you don’t mind me saying I know you.”
“I’d be honored, Mary. I consider you a friend.” Perhaps she should seek a position at the dressmaker’s as well. While not as talented as Mary in sewing, her embroidery skills were good. Many of the pieces the dressmaker made surely required embroidery or other needlework. Especially undergarments or even handkerchiefs.
Yet the idea of sitting in a room sewing all day long held little appeal. She enjoyed embroidery but only as a hobby. What did she want to do? She’d been so desperate for employment when she’d arrived in London that she had set her mind to taking any position she could find. Now that she had the help of Caroline and Aberland, it seemed wiser to seek work that would provide a livelihood and be bearable at the very least.
She knew how to garden as they’d had a large one at home, but what would she do in the winter months? She could draw and paint passably well, but that limited talent wouldn’t provide a living. Perhaps serving as a nanny or governess might be best. Though she worried about being in a household where the lord might take a liking to her. After her near miss escaping the brothel, the idea made her uneasy.
Then there was the issue of her being ruined. While Caroline and her sisters were willing to ignore that truth and wanted her to keep the information a secret, Beatrice would prefer to be honest with a future employer.
Or husband.
Where could she hope to meet a man who would overlook that in his soon-to-be wife?
Yet her determination to leave Aberland House as quickly as possible hadn’t faded. It was just that she hadn’t expected Mary to go so quickly. Beatrice thought she’d have more time to mull over her options while the young woman recovered.
That day had already come, and Beatrice had resolved nothing.
Caroline noticed her worry and asked several times if all was well. Beatrice didn’t want to offend her so had decided against telling her the reason. What purpose would be served in talking
