Chapter Four
On Monday morning Kaitlyn’s ladies’ maid, Maggie, woke her up by opening the heavy curtains in the room. Kaitlyn climbed eagerly out of bed, ready to start her first official day as a lady during the Prince Regent’s reign. Though if she really were an American heiress coming to England to visit at that time, not many people would want to talk to her. It was too soon after the whole messy break from Britain and becoming their own nation. But it would work for them now.
After a quick shower that she was grateful was still done with modern day plumbing instead of being a truly full immersion experience, she allowed Maggie to help her into the day dress.
Maggie held up the bloomers that would only go to just past Kaitlyn’s knees. They weren’t frilly or lacy and had a ribbon around the waist to be tied on. “You could go without these if you want, but a proper young lady wore them.”
Kaitlyn took the fabric from Maggie and pulled them on, then slipped the long linen chemise over the top.
“You’ll need to put the socks and shoes on first,” Maggie said. “Otherwise the corset will make it too hard to bend over.”
Kaitlin pulled on the long stockings, glad they had some elastic to keep them up. She put the boots on, thinking they felt a little awkward but were the perfect size. “You guys are really good at getting the clothing to fit right.”
Maggie smiled. “Yes, Aunt Nellie has a gift. She rarely gets things wrong.” She handed the corset stays to Kaitlyn, who pulled it over the top. It was different from what she’d expected when she heard corset, since it had shoulder straps and wasn’t as tight fitting as the kinds she’d seen before. But once Maggie laced the back ribbons up, Kaitlyn knew it was going to work just like the other kinds. She was glad she had decided against the bra even if she had kept her own panties.
More and more layers were added, including a petticoat with tricky buttons that she couldn’t do on her own. “No wonder everyone had to have servants to help them. You can’t get dressed by yourself.”
“Nope,” Maggie said. “A whole bunch of fuss, if you ask me.”
“I haven’t needed help getting dressed since I was four,” Kaitlyn said.
“Even the men need help,” Maggie said.
“Oh, but they sure do look fine, don’t they?”
Maggie smiled. “Most of them can pass pretty well for handsome if they put some effort into it. I haven’t seen a man yet who didn’t look nice dressed up.”
Kaitlyn smiled, thinking about the men last night. They hadn’t been wearing everything like the outer coat, but the suit coat looked even better than a tuxedo.
The top layer of the dress was made of a relatively thin fabric, and she was glad for the multiple layers of petticoats and chemise underneath. When she was all finished with the clothes, Maggie led her over to the embroidered cushion chair to sit in front of the vanity.
“We do a little cheating by using modern things for curling the hair. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not,” Kaitlyn said. “I’d hate to spend another couple hours just on getting ready for the day. I want to go start doing things.”
Less than an hour later, Kaitlyn was finally free to leave her room and Maggie. Hopefully, tomorrow’s dressing ritual would be a little faster. She was starving.
As she entered the breakfast room, she was happy to see that it wasn’t as full as dinner had been last night. She’d heard a few people leaving the house as she walked down the hallway toward the staircase leading to the breakfast room. They must have eaten and headed out to start their activities. Since they were still really close to the city of London, there wouldn’t be a lot of room to go riding carriages or horses like they would have done in the 1800s. She would have plenty of space to wander the massive gardens at the Twickenham estate. She couldn’t wait to get out in them and explore. Aunt Nellie had a maze made with chest-high hedges far enough from the house that it wasn’t possible to see the pathway from above.
Kaitlyn had always loved going through the corn mazes as a kid and had always wanted to do one of the kinds in England she’d read about in a book once. Maybe after this immersion week at Nellie’s, they might be able to go to the Leeds castle maze with a tunnel that went underground at the end.
When she got to the side table where the food had been placed almost like a buffet, she picked up her plate. The melon looked fresh. She took a few spoonfuls of the different kinds. She then moved down the table, looking at the other options and chose some sausages, some eggs, and toast with a tasty-looking current jam. An odd black patty sat on a tray. As she leaned closer to see what it was, Annette Price stepped up beside her.
“You might want to avoid that one. Unless you like blood pudding.”
“That’s what it is?” Kaitlyn asked. “Why do they serve it here? I thought that was more for the poorer class?” After she said the words, she cringed, knowing that made her sound like a horrible snob.
“Oh, it is. Some guests like the stuff, so Nellie provides it just in case.”
“That’s nice of her,” Kaitlyn said.
Annette smiled. “It is. She is a very conscientious hostess.”
Just as Kaitlyn sat down at the table, Cyrus entered the room with Cora at his side, talking about the annoyance of the whole dressing requirements. She smiled at the other two when they saw her.
“Ah, Kaitlyn, I love that dress,” Cora said. “The green accents really look good on you.”
“Thanks,” Kaitlyn said. “You both look good, but you’re right, it takes forever to get ready in these clothes.”
“Do I have to wear this coat all the time?”
Annette chuckled. “Yes, otherwise it would be way too forward of you. Scandalous, almost. So unless you want to put all us in a compromising situation, it’s best if you stay fully dressed.”
Cyrus almost looked ready to blush. Kaitlyn thought he looked adorable. He fit this time so well, but it was a pity he was doing it alone. “I’m sorry Jem couldn’t come early with us.”
Cyrus nodded. “He would have just slipped into the role so easy.”
“Who would have?” Reese asked.
“Jem,” Kaitlyn said. At his name, Reese’s face went expressionless and Kaitlyn wondered what was up. Every time she’d talked about Jem, Reese hadn’t seemed very excited at all. Had he done something to make her mad? They’d always been friends. Maybe he’d been gone so long on his touring company that he just seemed like a stranger to her now.
***
As the week passed, Cyrus actually found himself enjoying the daily activities. Reese and Cora spent a lot of time together, leaving him free to take Kaitlyn out and about through Aunt Nellie’s property. They walked the different garden paths and Kaitlyn continued to rave about all the beautiful plants and pathways.
They also went riding once, but Kaitlyn didn’t like the way she had to manipulate the skirts. “I can’t wait to be able to wear pants again,” Kaitlyn said as they walked past the stables.
“Maybe we could go riding in one of the carriages.” Cyrus pointed at the little carriage that had pulled up along the back, since the front of Nellie’s property faced a neighborhood full of houses.
“That could be fun.” Kaitlyn took his hand and started walking toward the group getting out of the little buggy. She let go of his hand. Before he could grab for it again, she gave Annette a hug. “Where does this little road take you?”
“It goes along near the Thames, then comes back up to the manor house.”
Kaitlyn turned to the driver. “Do you mind going again? I’d love to see it.”
“It would be my pleasure, miss.”
Kaitlyn grinned up at him. “You coming, Cy?”
He bowed slightly, making her smile and giving him a thrill that he’d done something to earn her pleasure. He offered his hand to assist her up and she placed it in his after making sure her skirts wouldn’t get caught. When they were situated and the driver urged the horses forward, Kaitlyn leaned against his shoulder.
“Isn’t this place lovely,” she sighed. “It’s almost magical. And the light glimmering off the water fountains and even the glass windows just makes me feel so happy. Why isn’t it this pretty at home?”
“Probably because a vacation is always better than the hum drum of real life.”
“True,” Kaitlyn said. “I wish we could have come here earlier. I mean, the whole city of London is awesome, but this place is unbelievable, isn’t it?”
“It is,” Cyrus said. “I could totally picture you living in this world, being the lady to some lucky man and having all the finest things in life.”
“If only,” Kaitlyn said wistfully. “When we have to return home, it will seem so dull and boring after all of this fancy stuff. Of course, I do think cars and planes are awesome, but there is something wonderful about being able to step away from it all and see the world through different eyes.”
Cyrus nodded. “I agree.” He wanted to say something to make her laugh, but didn’t know what and having another person around constantly in the form of servants, and drivers, and the like made him feel uncomfortable sharing his true feelings. He didn’t want an audience if she shot him down when he bared his soul to her.
Instead of confessing his growing feelings, he enjoyed the sensation of her leaning next to him as they rode the small circle around Nellie’s property. When they reached the back of Nellie’s house where they’d gotten in the carriage, Kaitlyn spotted Reese and Cora and immediately went to join them. Cyrus watched after her with longing.
Determined to step up his efforts, he began to follow. Matthew intercepted him as he rounded the edge of the house as if running from his sisters. “Cyrus, please say you’ll go ride horses with me so I can get away from all these females.”
The boy looked so pathetic and hopeful, Cyrus couldn’t say no. He would have to find Kaitlyn at dinner and then hopefully get her to sneak away with him for another walk in the moonlight instead of playing cards with everyone else.