‘Good evening, ladies,’ he replied with a courtly bow. Now thoroughly out of sorts, as she worried about the reasons Moss had left his last post, Nell had to whisper a sharp aside to Caro and Georgie before they remembered their manners and returned his greeting.
‘You look very fine, sir,’ Nell said as her eyes met his and he seemed to mock her conclusions some besotted lady had paid for her lover to appear every inch the gentleman in her company. She wished she had someone ready to whisper good conduct in her ears and tried hard to ignore a sharp pang that couldn’t be jealousy. Why didn’t she have the wit to invent a headache and excuse them all this supposedly quiet dinner with his lordship’s new land agent?
‘My godmama pays my tailor’s bill once a year, so I can present a better appearance than a younger son is usually able to do,’ he replied smoothly.
Nell looked for mockery in his acute blue eyes and met bland innocence, but did she believe him? No, yet she could hardly challenge him in front of the girls. She gave him a polite, insincere smile and waved the girls to sit on a sofa the other side of the fire from their unexpected guest. She didn’t approve of him looking so at home by his employer’s fireside, but the Earl didn’t want it, so she had no real reason to object. If he took advantage she would deal with him in private, but she suspected he was far too subtle a man to do anything so obvious.
‘Were you waiting for your new clothes to arrive before you came?’ Penny asked innocently. Nell was ready to rebuke her, but Mr Moss shook his head and smiled at her youngest pupil.
‘A land steward needs gaiters and homespun more than a fine coat and expensive boots, Miss Penelope, but the Earl had another use for me so I did as I was bid. I hope my workaday clothes turn up on the carrier’s cart soon, because I certainly can’t ride about the countryside in my town finery if I wish to be taken seriously as Lord Barberry’s steward,’ he said.
Nell hoped the girls didn’t notice his mocking look in her direction, as if he’d read every doubt in her mind about that tall tale. He could have as many lovers as he needed to keep him in style, so long as he didn’t impart his dubious morals to her pupils, she concluded, with a militant frown he ignored with annoying ease.
‘That would be sensible, considering the dire spring we have endured so far,’ she agreed as if she almost believed in his doting godmother instead of a foolish lover.
‘I promise to be ill dressed and muddy next time we meet, ma’am. You Misses Selford have a very conscientious governess. I doubt you get away with putting a foot wrong without her knowing about it almost before you do.’
‘Miss Court is kind and looks after us very well,’ Penny said loyally.
Even Caroline nodded and Georgiana looked as if she was disappointed in him and Nell would have hugged them all if he wasn’t looking.
‘I’m sure she does all a good governess should,’ he approved with a sly smile Nell didn’t trust one bit.
‘Thank you, Mr Moss,’ she said calmly, although it sounded more of a challenge than a compliment. ‘I do my best.’
‘And who can ask for more?’ he asked and she wasn’t sure she could endure much more of being laughed at by an estate manager who looked more like a society rake without telling him exactly what she thought of him.
She couldn’t do anything of the sort, but his questionable standards of behaviour felt like a betrayal and what was between them for him to betray? Nothing; she was Miss Hancourt and he the son of a country squire with a living to earn and never mind any side benefits he had fitted in along the way.
‘I feel quite famished tonight,’ Caro said quietly.
Nell was concerned enough about her least garrulous pupil to look for signs of girlish infatuation in her eyes. No, from the spark of anger when she eyed the man warily, Caro was trying to stop this exotic newcomer mocking her governess. It warmed Nell’s heart to think shy Caro wanted to defend her from this puzzling stranger.
‘I expect dinner will be served as soon as Mrs Winch is able to join us,’ she said with a fond smile at Caro to say she was excused the minor faux pas of admitting to hunger in public.
‘Lavinia will be very sharp set by morning,’ Penny said cheerfully.
‘I asked Cook to make something cold for her to eat if she wakes up hungry,’ Nell said with a slight frown at her youngest pupil to warn her not to gloat about Lavinia’s exhausting bout of tears.
‘Good, because she really can’t help it,’ Georgiana said earnestly.
‘I know, Georgiana, and I’m sure Penelope will forget what her eldest cousin said in the heat of temper, especially if she wishes to take dinner with us tonight,’ Nell said firmly.
‘She said...’
‘There are faults on all sides,’ Nell pointed out. ‘Your cousins were rude to each other and the slate is clean now, unless you would like to do penance for your own hot words and uncaring sentiments?’
‘No,’ Penny said with a sidelong look at her cousins to confirm she would be an idiot to work out a grudge against Lavinia when the alternative was dinner and far more exciting company than usual.
‘Miss Court the peacemaker, who would have thought it?’ the company said as if he had every right to pass judgement on her.
‘And Mr Moss, the peace breaker, what of him?’ she replied so quietly the girls couldn’t hear when she crossed the room to find Parkins and get him to tell Mrs Winch dinner was overdue. The lady’s services as chaperon to her and her pupils felt more important than whatever was delaying her and the sooner this meal was over the better.
‘Oh, him. He’s a rascal,’ Moss murmured when she was on her way back to the stiff-backed chair as far away from him as she could get and still feel warmth from the fire. She had taken it because she disliked him, she reassured herself, and gave a little nod of confirmation she hoped he’d take so badly he wouldn’t tease her again.
The girls needed practice at polite dining and proper topics of conversation when gentlemen were present and she would usually admit she needed more adult company. As a single lady who might end up alone and at her last prayers, the whole neighbourhood would assume Miss Court was doing her best to marry any spare bachelor who came along. No doubt everyone in the area would assume she was intent on catching the wretch now he’d turned out to be vigorous and well looking. The thought of speculative eyes watching them at church every Sunday made her shudder. The last thing she intended to do was break her heart over Moss and she doubted he had one to break if she was so inclined. She would stick to the schoolroom or wait for the paragon who might inspire even half the love and passion in her as her brother Colm and his new wife Eve had for one another.
In public the newlyweds acted like a very proper young couple. There was no sitting gazing into each other’s eyes and sighing for a bed and just a bit more privacy for them. Yet they showed how much they loved each other by small glances and little touches. One always knew where the other was without having to watch every little movement and, whereas most people grew heavy eyed and weary the later it got in the day, those two glowed with delicious anticipation of being alone again at last. Nell had never seen two people so silently and discreetly delighted at the idea of being wrapped up in the night when nobody else would expect them to be polite for a few precious hours.
Something
