Page 13 of The Affairs of Ashmore Castle

‘Is it necessary to live near the factory?’

‘I don’t know. I suppose so, since he does. Although he has factories in Leicester as well, and he doesn’t seem to need to live there.’

‘Well, it’s all beyond me – I know nothing about manufacturing. But surely you could ask him. Then, if it’s not necessary, you can move somewhere else. After all, I’m sure he wants you to be happy. And if it is necessary to live there, at least you’ll know, and then you’ll just have to make the best of it.’

It was so simple and obvious, Nina didn’t know why she hadn’t thought of it. ‘You do give very wise advice,’ she said, impressed.

He looked alarmed. ‘Please don’t say that – you’ll ruin my reputation for frivolity. I’m famous for never having said a rational word since I was weaned.’

‘As I remember, we’ve had many a sensible conversation in the past,’ Nina said. ‘Now it’s your turn. Tell me why your day was unsatisfactory. Perhaps I can advise you.’

He hesitated. He had visited Mrs Sands that morning, and she had obviously been glad to see him, but at the same time had not wanted him to stay. She had been nervous about his presence, metaphorically looking over her shoulder the whole time in case they were observed. There was no thrill for him in the atmosphere of subterfuge. He wanted to be her acknowledged love. He wanted – dear God, it was true! – to marry her. But even if she would have accepted him, he couldn’t ask: he had no money, no establishment to invite her to. She lived in lodgings paid for by the estate. And he lived on the estate, and was paid a small salary to act as apprentice land agent. Her lodgings were not even private enough for him to conduct an affair with her – not that she would have done such a thing, even if, as he suspected with more hope than conviction, she was beginning to care for him.

The big, the insuperable barrier between them was that she had been his father’s mistress. In her eyes, that made intimacy between them tantamount to incest. He didn’t see it that way. She had slept with his father. He accepted the fact with a shrug. It was long ago, and his father was dead. But he supposed women saw things differently. He had kissed her once, and felt the passion just below the surface. But she was determined he should never kiss her again.

He couldn’t tell Nina any of that. In the end, all he could say was, ‘I am in love with the wrong person.’

‘Oh,’ said Nina, and felt a rush of sympathy. She almost said, I know what that feels like, then realised what a betrayal it would be. She blushed. ‘I’m afraid I haven’t any wise advice for that situation.’

He had observed the blush, and wondered, but did not probe. ‘I expect it’s a fairly common condition,’ was all he said.

She changed the subject hastily. ‘How is everyone at Ashmore Castle? How is Kitty?’

‘Flourishing,’ he said. ‘Especially now my mama has gone away and left her in peace.’ He explained about Darmstadt. ‘And we’ve had a telegram to say they’re moving with my aunt and uncle to the summer palace, and won’t be back before Easter, so presumably things are going well. Christmas was perfectly grisly, you know. Well, it always is, but I’m used to it, and Kitty’s not. I did my best to liven things up but it’s a thankless task. And Giles doesn’t help. Frightfully serious fellow, Giles, not the life and soul of the party.’ He saw her blush deepen, saw her fix her eyes on her teacup, and made some intriguing deductions.

‘How – how is Giles?’ She managed to sound fairly neutral about the question.

‘Busy trying to find out everything that’s wrong with the estate so that he can fix it. He’s out all day long, week in and week out. Perhaps you could come and pay us a visit, cheer us all up. I’m sure Kitty would love to see you. Poor Pusscat leads a very confined life, now she can’t ride.’

He calls her Pusscat? Nina thought. It was a very affectionate pet-name. Could it be, she wondered guiltily, that the ‘wrong person’ he was in love with was Kitty? That would be dreadful. She knew just how dreadful.

‘I’d love to visit,’ she said, ‘but my time is not my own. I’m a married woman, you know.’

‘I do know. But if, say, Lord and Lady Stainton were to invite Mr and Mrs Cowling for a Saturday-to-Monday, would they really refuse?’

Mr Cowling would be delighted, Nina thought, and would certainly accept. But would she want to go? To see Kitty again would be lovely – but painful. And to be under the same roof as Giles? She didn’t think she was ready for that.

She smiled lightly and said, ‘I can’t answer hypothetical questions. No such invitation has been issued. May I pour you some more tea?’

Nina was to meet Mr Cowling at the railway station for the journey home. Richard insisted on accompanying her there in a cab. She felt much better and more positive about life after a long and amusing chat with Richard, who seemed to know exactly how to combine serious matters with fun in the perfect proportions.

Mr Cowling’s eyebrows went up when he saw them approaching, and he hurried to meet them with a hearty handshake for Richard. ‘Well, well, this is a nice surprise! How did you happen upon my lady wife, Mr Tallant? I call it very civil of you to bring her safe back to me.’

‘The pleasure has been entirely mine,’ Richard said. ‘We bumped into each other on Piccadilly, and Mrs Cowling did me the honour of taking tea with me at Rampling’s.’

‘Oh, Rampling’s – very respectable! Well, my love, have you had an agreeable day?’ He surveyed her for parcels. ‘You don’t seem to have bought very much.’

‘Very agreeable, thank you. But there wasn’t anything I wanted to buy. And Trump got awfully tired. I think the pavements were too hard for his feet.’

‘Aye, small dogs and London don’t mix. Well, we had better be finding our carriage. Mr Tallant, thank you from my heart for taking care of my precious jewel.’

Nina winced inwardly at the language, but Richard took it in his stride. ‘The pleasure was mine, as I said. And I hope we shall see you soon at Ashmore Castle. I was telling Mrs Cowling that I understand an invitation is in contemplation, and she assured me that it would not be disagreeable to you?’

Mr Cowling’s face reddened. ‘Disagreeable? Oh, my goodness, no, quite the contrary! We should be most obliged, quite delighted. Mrs Cowling misses her friend, I do know. And I’ve visited many fine country seats in my time, but never happened to be at Ashmore Castle. Pray tell your brother and sister-in-law nothing could be more welcome than an invitation.’

The train gave a warning foop! at that moment and Nina tugged her husband’s arm and said, ‘We must hurry. Mr Tallant, goodbye, and thank you so much.’

Richard touched his hat in response – and did he, as he was turning away, drop her the ghost of a wink? She wondered about that quite a lot of the way home.