Her brow furrowed as she parsed his words. Had he said what she thought he had? He seemed to realize his admission because he abruptly looked away. “Ah, here we are. Let us meet the tenants.”
He pressed ahead so that she fell two steps behind. Several men and women came to meet him.
“Mr. Beaumont,” said a white-haired man. He bowed warmly, and Henry stepped forward to grasp the man’s hand.
“Isaac. Well met again.” Then he addressed the woman at the man’s side, who produced a serviceable curtsy. “And Mrs. Cain. You appear as vigorous as ever.”
The old woman blushed. “’Tis this old codger who keeps me spry, what with ’is never-ending nonsense.”
“’Tis no nonsense! ’Tis my job to keep the neighbors well entertained.”
Henry laughed. “I shall side with Mrs. Cain, as I know you too well, Isaac.”
During the laughter that followed, Lucy stepped forward to Henry’s side. He extended a hand toward her. “May I present Lady Margaret Huntington, granddaughter of the Duchess of Ramsbury and guest at Ardmoore.”
Bows and curtsies ensued, drawing a blush from Lucy. She dipped her head in acknowledgment as Henry had taught her. “The pleasure is all mine.”
“Won’t you come inside for refreshment,” offered one of the other women. Henry waved his hand in amiable dismissal.
“Your offer is very kind, Mrs. Savoy, but I fear we have a terrible problem.”
Every face grew taut with concern, and Lucy frowned as she glanced at Henry. His expression was grim.
“It seems,” he said overly loudly, “We are beset by monsters, just behind those trees.”
Lucy followed his gaze to find several children of various ages peeking from behind a stand of trees some thirty yards distant, giggling and whispering. A smile replaced her concern as the faces of the tenants experienced a similar transformation.
“As protector of these lands,” he said regally, “I find it my duty to rid the area of such vile creatures.” His loud proclamation drew laughter from the trees. “So, if you will excuse me, I must fulfill my sacred obligation.”
With that, he bolted toward the trees. A cloud of children erupted from cover and fled in all directions, shrieking and screaming with delight. Henry quickly ran down two of the youngest, a boy and a girl of five or six. He hurried toward Lucy with one under each arm. She could not help but notice the ease with which he did so, or the flex of his chest beneath his shirt, or the strain of his shoulders beneath the jacket, or…
“Stop it, Lucy,” she whispered, shaking away such thoughts. Meanwhile, Henry reached her with the children.
“My lady.” His breathing was heavy from the exertion. “Will you guard these prisoners while I retrieve the others?”
She saluted. “Yes, Captain!”
When Henry put the children down, they surged from his grasp to clutch her skirt, heaving with laughter. He ran after the rest and tackled an older boy in the soft grass. The remaining children converged on Henry and made a squirming pile atop him, howling with glee. He began shouting.
“I am ruined! I am overcome by monsters! What shall I do?”
Lucy leaned down to her small charges. “Hurry now! Assist Mr. Beaumont!”
The children ran to the pile and began pulling at arms and legs in a futile attempt to unravel the jumble. Lucy watched the chaotic affair in bewilderment, astonished to witness a man of rank and social rules playing with children without regard to station, etiquette, or the judgment of others. Her breath hitched and moisture pricked her eyes as she imagined the notion of him playing with her children. When her blurring gaze found Henry’s laughing face, she could not suppress the feeling that she was seeing the man truly for the first time.
…
“What do you know of proper distance, Lucy?”
The question from Charlotte came shortly after Lucy and Henry returned from their visit to the tenant village. Lucy shook herself from distraction. “Proper distance?”
Charlotte bobbed her head. Henry smiled wryly at Lucy. “Brace yourself. You are sure to find this next portion of your education utterly baffling.”
Having been warned, Lucy prepared for the worst. However, she put on a brave face. “I am ready, then. Please explain the meaning of ‘proper distance.’”
“See here,” said Charlotte. “I have noticed these past few days an inconsistency regarding your encounters with the staff. An inconsistency that will surely be noticed by suitors and others who seek to critique you. I wish to protect you from such misguided opinions.”
“Oh? How so?”
“You appear to possess a certain familiarity with the servants. This trait, while endearing to those of us who know you, may lead to false conclusions by those who do not.”
She frowned. “I see. My apologies, for I did not realize my behavior was so out of the ordinary.”
Charlotte leaned forward. “Fret not, sweet girl. You mean well, and I admire you all the more for it.”
“Thank you. Now, please explain the extent of my ineptitude and the bounds of proper distance.”
Charlotte dipped her head. “As you are well aware, spoken and unspoken rules govern class interaction. This applies most keenly to interactions between master and servant. You must hold all servants at a proper distance that avoids familiarity, but must do so without aloofness, arrogance, or pride. Specifically, you must speak to them with a precise measure of civility. You must never speak to a servant as if he or she were an equal. Do you understand?”
“I believe so, but allow me to verify. Even though said servants live in the same house, and even though I encounter them repeatedly over the course of years, I must always speak to them as if I have never seen them before. Is that right?”
Henry appeared to swallow his tongue and choked a cough. “Pardon me. Dust again.”
Charlotte shot him a glare before smiling at Lucy. “Not exactly. You have seen them before, of course, and they may be very dear to you, but you must never…”
“Never allow them to know they are dear to me?” The fresh memory of Henry’s easy encounter with his tenants seemed to fly in the face of the well-meaning advice. In fact, she intended to say something of the sort, but a cursory glance at Henry found him shaking his head as if he knew her thoughts.
“That is not quite correct,” said Charlotte. “There are other ways to show almost familial affection to the staff. Ways that maintain distance through proper protocol.”
“Such as?”
“Generosity, such as sharing food and clothing or giving unexpected bonuses on payday. Graciousness, such as an occasional word of thanks. Consistency, so the staff knows what to do without fear of censure. Familiarity is just as discomfiting to the servants as it is to the master. Violation of protocol may cause them concern for their jobs.”