That Would Be a Fairy Tale (6 page)

‘Everyone for miles around is following your lead. You refused my invitation, and so the local dignitaries have done the same.’

‘And you think if I change my mind they will then accept?’

‘I’m certain of it.’

Cicely was certain of it, too. The local area was a close-knit community, and knowing that she did not feel she could attend the ball, all her friends had refused their invitations likewise.

‘Come now, Miss Haringay, will it really be so bad?’ he asked, his eyes lighting with a surprising warmth. ‘An evening of good food, good conversation, good music and - I hope! - good company? If you snub me, no one will come to my ball and I will be dancing on my own.’

The humour was back in his face and his voice, making him look unsettlingly attractive. And it made her wish - foolishly, for one unguarded moment - that they had met under other circumstances, so that she might have been able to like him.

‘Not on your own, surely,’ she protested. ‘You will have friends coming down from
London
.’

‘Yes. I have. But my reason for throwing the ball is that I would like to get to know my neighbours. If none of them turn up it will defeat my purpose.’

Cicely did not want to attend the ball, but she realized that it would be unfriendly of her to refuse. He was trying to fit into the neighbourhood, and it was not kind of her to stand in his way. Especially as he had agreed to hold the picnic if she attended. Even so . . .

‘I am not keen on giving in to blackmail . . . ’ she began hesitantly.

‘Blackmail?’ he asked. ‘Call it rather a trade. I give you something you want, and in return you agree to give me something I want.’ He gave a tantalising smile. ‘You see, business and trade are in my blood. And now despise me for it if you dare!’

‘Indeed, I dare not,’ said Cicely with a smile. His talk of trading had reminded her that trading was an important aspect of village life, and she began to realize they might have more in common than she had supposed. ‘Besides, businessmen are not the only ones who know how to trade. You will find the villagers know all about it. Mrs Murgatroyd, for example, will be happy to trade you some of her excellent elderflower wine for some of the fruit from the Oakleigh Manor hot-houses if you ask her. I know. She has been trading with me for years!’

‘Elderflower wine,’ he laughed. ‘I must remember that. And we, Miss Haringay? Do we have a deal?’

She made up her mind. ‘We do. I will attend the ball if you promise to host the Sunday school picnic. I cannot promise that everyone else will come, mind,’ she cautioned him.

‘You don’t need to. I will take my chances.’

There was something so unsettling in his eye as it roved over her face that Cicely stood up quickly, saying, ‘I believe I must be going.’

He stood up, too.

‘So soon?’ he asked, crossing the space between them in one stride and taking her hand in his.

Even through her glove she could feel the heat of his fingers, and she felt suddenly hot. The strange tingling started again, filling her with a strange restlessness. She tried to draw her hand away but he held it fast.

‘Will you not stay for tea?’

‘Thank you, no.’ She made a determined effort to free her hand, and to her relief he let it go - although mixed in with the relief was a strange drop in her spirits, as though some part of her had not wanted him to.

‘I must be getting back to the Lodge,’ she said. ‘I’m still trying to get to grips with the range.’

His eyebrows rose, as though he had not expected her to have to bother with such things as ranges. But he made no comment, saying only, ‘Very well.’

He rang the bell and a minute later the butler arrived.

Exchanging goodbyes with Mr Evington, Cicely retrieved her parasol and walked out of the house; leaving Alex looking after her, an unfathomable expression on his face.

A minute later the door opened and Roddy walked in.

‘Who was
that
?’ asked Roddy, glancing at Cicely, who could be seen walking down the drive.

‘That,’ said Alex, drawing his thoughts with difficulty back to the present, ‘was Miss Cicely Haringay.’

‘
Miss Haringay
?’ Roddy let out a low whistle as he turned his attention again to the graceful figure of Cicely, whose straight back and delectable curves held his eye. ‘I thought Miss Haringay was a spinster who indulged in good works.’

‘And so she is . . . in a way,’ said Alex with a wry smile.

Roddy laughed. ‘It’s enough to make me take up good works myself, in an effort to get to know her.’

‘I shouldn’t, if I were you,’ said Alex.

He cursed himself as soon as he had said it. There had been an unmistakeable note of warning in his voice, but fortunately Roddy, engrossed with the last glimpses of Miss Haringay’s retreating figure, had not noticed.

And why had it been there, that warning note? Alex asked himself. Before realizing that, in spite of the fact he deeply resented the landed classes for what they had done to his sister, he found himself devastatingly attracted to Miss Cicely Haringay.

What was it that so attracted him to her? he asked himself. He had known many beautiful women in his time, and Cicely was not beautiful, but there was something very appealing about her. Was it her hair? he wondered. It was not remarkable in either style or colour, but there was a softness about it that made him want to reach out and touch it. Or was it her eyes? They were certainly lovely, being grey and deep-set. Or was it her nose? No, that had been a little too long. Or her mouth? His face broke into a slow smile. It was certainly kissable enough . . . Or her chin?

His smile faded. No, it was definitely not her chin. It was too determined for his tastes, that chin. It reminded him that, soft and appealing as Miss Haringay might appear, she was in fact the product of a long line of the ruling classes, people who liked to have their own way.

His eyes lost their appreciative gleam and his manner became matter-of-fact.

‘You’ll be pleased to know that she has changed her mind about coming to the ball,’ he said.

‘Ah. Good.’ Roddy, too, became matter-of-fact. ‘Then the rest of the neighbourhood will follow suit. Which means that the ball will be well attended, and we can go ahead with our plan.’

Cicely was light-hearted as she strolled down the drive, her mission successfully accomplished. Not only had she managed to secure Mr Evington’s promise that the Sunday school picnic could go ahead, but she had also cleared the hurdle of making her first visit to the Manor as a guest. Though saddening, the experience had been bearable, and she was now secure in the knowledge that she would be able to visit it in future without having to dread the event. Which, as she was to help organise the Sunday school picnic, and as she had promised to attend Mr Evington’s ball, was a relief.

She followed the drive for a short way but then, instead of making her way back to the Lodge, she took one of the gravel paths that snaked through the grounds and followed it until she was almost at their edge. She had promised to visit Mrs Murgatroyd and let that worthy matron know how she had got on, and the way she was taking was the quickest route. Cutting across the grass she slipped through a gap in the railings and joined the road.

She had just done so when the sound of a familiar voice rang out in greeting.

‘What ho! Cicely!’

Cicely turned and smiled. Lord Chuffington, dressed in a natty outfit of narrow trousers with a sharp crease down the front, a white shirt with high starched collar, and a brightly-coloured blazer, was hailing her from the other end of the lane.

‘What ho!’ he said again as he ambled towards her, removing his straw boater as he did so. ‘Jolly day, what?’

‘Very jolly,’ said Cicely, smiling at his fashionable slang. Lord Chuffington - Chuff Chuff to his friends - was an amiable young man whose family lived at Parmiston Manor, the manor house in the neighbouring village.

‘Going into Little Oakleigh?’ he asked, smiling brightly.

‘Yes.’

‘Walk along with you, if you’ve no objection,’ said Lord Chuffington, falling into step beside her. ‘I say, Cicely, you’re looking dashed pretty today.’

‘Thank you,’ smiled Cicely.

‘Dashed pretty hat,’ said Lord Chuffington. ‘Feathers and what-not. Deuced pretty.’ He gave a grin then began to hum tunelessly, ‘Dum de dum de dum de dum.’

‘How is your mother?’ asked Cicely. She knew from long experience that when talking to Lord Chuffington it was necessary to help the conversation along a little.

‘The
mater
? Sound as a bell,’ he said, giving her another grin.

There was a silence.

‘And your father?’ asked Cicely politely.

‘The
pater
? Fit as a fiddle.’

Cicely kept the conversation going by talking of village matters, but Lord Chuffington seemed distracted. He hummed and hawed and at last said,  ‘Look here, Cicely old thing, when you’re tired of this bother with the Lodge, how about coming over to Chuffington Manor and living with me?’

‘Living with you?’ she asked, startled.

‘Yes. You know. Lord and Lady Chuffington. Just the ticket. Any number of coves wanting to ask you, of course. Just thought I’d get my oar in first. You know, early bird catches the worm and all that.’

He paused expectantly.

‘So, how about it then?’ he asked.

‘How about what?’ asked Cicely, in something of a fog.

‘You and me. Read the banns. Joyful celebrations. A good time was had by all.’

‘The
banns
?’ asked Cicely in astonishment.

‘Got to do it sometime,’ said Lord Chuffington affably.

‘Do what?’ asked Cicely, wondering whether he could be proposing to her but thinking that even Chuff Chuff would have made things a little clearer if that had been the case.

‘Hm? Oh! Do what? Well, you know . . . ’

‘No, I don’t know,’ said Cicely in exasperation, wishing he would explain.

‘Man and wife. All that sort of thing. Orange blossom. Bridesmaids.’ He smiled cheerfully.

‘Chuff Chuff, are you asking me to marry you?’ she asked with a sigh, realising a direct question was the only way to find out for sure.

‘Looks that way,’ he said.

‘Oh, Chuff Chuff, it’s very sweet of you but I can’t marry you,’ said Cicely.

‘Not to worry,’ he said, not in the least put out. ‘Knew you wouldn’t say "yes" first time of asking. The mater said so, and the mater knows. Keep it for later then,’ he said with an amiable smile.

‘Chuff Chuff, I won’t be able to marry you later either,’ Cicely said, kindly but firmly.

‘Pish,’ said Lord Chuffington good-naturedly. ‘Ladies always say that.’

‘No, really, I do assure you -’ She broke off to wish old Mr Johnson a “Good afternoon”, then continued, ‘I can’t possibly marry you.’

They had by now almost reached Mrs Murgatroyd’s house. The door opened and Mrs Murgatroyd herself appeared, sailing out to the gate.

‘Cicely, I couldn’t wait,’ she said as she greeted Cicely. ‘Do tell me how you got on. Oh,’ she said, noticing Lord Chuffington. ‘Chuffington. What are you doing here?’

Lord Chuffington’s eyes glazed over at the sight of her. Mrs Murgatroyd was a forceful woman, and she made him go weak at the knees. ‘Oh, well, just . . well, you know . . . ’ he said vaguely, sauntering on the spot and looking like a startled rabbit.

‘Well. Are you going or are you staying?’ demanded Mrs Murgatroyd, as he hovered just outside the gate.

‘Oh, rather . .. that is to say . . . yes, what,’ he said hopefully.

‘Lord Chuffington was courteous enough to escort me to your door, but I believe he has business elsewhere,’ said Cicely kindly, knowing that Chuff Chuff could not wait to get away.

‘Right-o,’ said Lord Chuffington amiably. He smiled at Cicely and waved vaguely in her direction. ‘Toodle pip!’ he said, before shambling off up the road.

‘Thank goodness for that,’ said Mrs Murgatroyd as she closed the gate behind him. ‘I’ve told you a dozen times, Cicely, you really can’t go walking round the village on your own. A young lady like you ought to have a chaperon. Now why don’t you hire a companion?’

Mrs Murgatroyd had raised the subject on any number of occasions. She knew that Cicely had had to sell the Manor to pay her father’s debts, but she assumed that there had been a large surplus, so that she, together with everyone else in the village, thought that Cicely was comfortably off. For this reason it seemed perfectly natural to her to suggest that Cicely should hire a companion.

‘You know I have cousin Gertrude,’ said Cicely. ‘Or at least, I will have. She would have been here by now, but she has broken her leg. Until she is better I will just have to do without a chaperon. In the country it is not so terrible for me to be without one. Besides, Chuff Chuff is harmless enough.’

‘That odious nick-name!’ shuddered  Mrs Murgatroyd. ‘It makes him sound like a train! But enough of him,’ she said as the two ladies went into the house. ‘Do tell me, Cicely. How did you get on with Mr Evington?’