tutor. Edwin, this is Miss Caroline Bristol, the governess for my younger wards. Let me also present your new charge, Master Thomas Parker. I assure you, they do not make a habit of tracking mud and rainwater through my front door.”
Mr. Berry did not say a word in greeting, just stared rather rudely.
Caroline dipped her head to her employer. “Certainly not. The storm came up suddenly, and there was an incident with a reckless driver that frightened the children. Good day to you, Sir Merrick, Mr. Berry. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go see to my charges as well as to my own repairs.” At Sir Merrick’s nod, she marched toward the stairs, but was unable to resist lingering to watch for just a moment.
“Good afternoon, sir.” Tommy held out his hand, which the tutor conspicuously ignored.
Instead, he gave Tommy a glare. “Please clean yourself up as best as possible, then meet me in the library in fifteen minutes. I warn you, young man, tardiness shall not be tolerated.” With a brief bow to Merrick, he turned on his heel and stalked away.
“He’ll get better with time, lad,” Merrick muttered to Tommy, clapping the boy on the shoulder. “For now, best to do as he says.” Then he too, disappeared, back into his study, leaving a somber Tommy to follow Caroline up to their rooms.
Just like that, the semblance of ease Caroline had achieved with the children was gone.
Edwin Berry was, to put it bluntly, an ass.
Caroline wanted little more than to see the snooty bastard’s balding head on a shining silver platter. How dare he criticize her management of the children? According to the toplofty Mr. Berry, nothing Caroline was doing with her charges was up to snuff. They were too loud, too unruly, and she was obviously made of the same inferior stuff. In just two days, the dreadful man had terrorized Jamie, Piers and Nell, made Wink withdraw into her machines, and turned Tommy into a somber ghost who had apparently been told to stay as far from the others as possible.
The one and only good thing that had come from his highness’s occupation was that even the disapproving Mrs. Granger had thawed slightly toward Caroline and the children. Mr. Berry had criticized her menus one too many times it seemed, so now the housekeeper, who still crossed herself whenever she was in the children’s presence, had become a reluctant ally against the new arrival.
Lessons without their ringleader had become particularly difficult. Wink was angry, Piers jealous and Nell, listless. Jamie simply sulked. Caroline had never been prone to headaches before, but she was rapidly developing the tendency.
“Jamie.” She moved around the table to stand beside him. “You must master your sums. This is not a choice, but a requirement. I know you’re capable, but you need to apply yourself to the equations for more than two minutes at a time. There will be no games until after you complete your work.”
“Wanna go outside.” For the third day in a row, the freezing rain had curtailed their outing, and all of them, even Caroline, were feeling restless.
“Finish your lessons,” she instructed, rather more sharply than she’d have liked. “And perhaps after luncheon, we’ll find some way to take some exercise.”
“Yes, Miss Caro.” Yet another thing Mr. Berry had loudly disapproved of was the rapid slide into informality that had occurred in the household. Uptight prig . No one had called her Caro since her mother died, and Caroline found she liked it very much indeed.
She managed to keep control over them for another hour until their meal was served, with Miss Dorothy as a special guest. Since the advent of Mr. Berry, the children had not been invited to dine with the family. Caroline approached Dorothy about her concerns and received permission to use the ballroom for some games. “After all,” Dorothy said, “it’s not like we ever use it for entertaining.”
Caroline had noticed. While Sir Merrick and
Mr. Berry did not say a word in greeting, just stared rather rudely.
Caroline dipped her head to her employer. “Certainly not. The storm came up suddenly, and there was an incident with a reckless driver that frightened the children. Good day to you, Sir Merrick, Mr. Berry. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’ll go see to my charges as well as to my own repairs.” At Sir Merrick’s nod, she marched toward the stairs, but was unable to resist lingering to watch for just a moment.
“Good afternoon, sir.” Tommy held out his hand, which the tutor conspicuously ignored.
Instead, he gave Tommy a glare. “Please clean yourself up as best as possible, then meet me in the library in fifteen minutes. I warn you, young man, tardiness shall not be tolerated.” With a brief bow to Merrick, he turned on his heel and stalked away.
“He’ll get better with time, lad,” Merrick muttered to Tommy, clapping the boy on the shoulder. “For now, best to do as he says.” Then he too, disappeared, back into his study, leaving a somber Tommy to follow Caroline up to their rooms.
Just like that, the semblance of ease Caroline had achieved with the children was gone.
Edwin Berry was, to put it bluntly, an ass.
Caroline wanted little more than to see the snooty bastard’s balding head on a shining silver platter. How dare he criticize her management of the children? According to the toplofty Mr. Berry, nothing Caroline was doing with her charges was up to snuff. They were too loud, too unruly, and she was obviously made of the same inferior stuff. In just two days, the dreadful man had terrorized Jamie, Piers and Nell, made Wink withdraw into her machines, and turned Tommy into a somber ghost who had apparently been told to stay as far from the others as possible.
The one and only good thing that had come from his highness’s occupation was that even the disapproving Mrs. Granger had thawed slightly toward Caroline and the children. Mr. Berry had criticized her menus one too many times it seemed, so now the housekeeper, who still crossed herself whenever she was in the children’s presence, had become a reluctant ally against the new arrival.
Lessons without their ringleader had become particularly difficult. Wink was angry, Piers jealous and Nell, listless. Jamie simply sulked. Caroline had never been prone to headaches before, but she was rapidly developing the tendency.
“Jamie.” She moved around the table to stand beside him. “You must master your sums. This is not a choice, but a requirement. I know you’re capable, but you need to apply yourself to the equations for more than two minutes at a time. There will be no games until after you complete your work.”
“Wanna go outside.” For the third day in a row, the freezing rain had curtailed their outing, and all of them, even Caroline, were feeling restless.
“Finish your lessons,” she instructed, rather more sharply than she’d have liked. “And perhaps after luncheon, we’ll find some way to take some exercise.”
“Yes, Miss Caro.” Yet another thing Mr. Berry had loudly disapproved of was the rapid slide into informality that had occurred in the household. Uptight prig . No one had called her Caro since her mother died, and Caroline found she liked it very much indeed.
She managed to keep control over them for another hour until their meal was served, with Miss Dorothy as a special guest. Since the advent of Mr. Berry, the children had not been invited to dine with the family. Caroline approached Dorothy about her concerns and received permission to use the ballroom for some games. “After all,” Dorothy said, “it’s not like we ever use it for entertaining.”
Caroline had noticed. While Sir Merrick and
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