CHAPTER FIVE
It was a rainy afternoon and Anne was in her bedroom with Miss Bonteen, who was straightening out the clothes in her charge’s wardrobe. Anne, who had been standing by the window looking out at the rain, turned to her companion and said fretfully, “I don’t like London any more, Bonny. I’m tired of the parties. I’m tired of saying the same things over and over again. I’m tired of the noise and the dirt and the bad air. And most of all, I’m tired of these young men who like me but don’t think I’m good enough to marry.”
“That’s not true,” Miss Bonteen protested. Mr. Martin Abbey is in love with you. You must see that.”
“Perhaps he is, but his parents don’t want him to marry me, and I certainly don’t like the idea of being the unwanted daughter-in-law for the rest of my life.”
Miss Bonteen sighed. “My love, what choice do you have? What choice has your father left you?”
“None,” Anne replied bitterly. “He has stolen the money my mother left me, and thrown me upon the mercy of these hopeless suitors. Has anyone even mentioned to them that Papa said Grex could be my dowry?”
“I am sure Lady Moresack has told them, or has told their mamas. Unfortunately, my darling, Grex is more of a drawback than an asset. In its present state it’s not fit to be a gentleman’s residence.”
Tears shone in Anne’s eyes. She loved Grex, and the thought of it being abandoned hurt her unbearably.
“One of these young men will come up to scratch, Anne. I’m sure of it.”
“Yes, but the thing is, Bonny, I don’t want them to! I’m sick of them! I’m sick of being on parade, hoping someone will pick me.” She threw herself into the upholstered chair in front of the fireplace. “Do you know what I’d like to do?”
Miss Bonteen closed the wardrobe door and turned to face Anne. “What would you like to do, dearest?”
“I’d like to get enough money to buy Grex from Papa. If I could own the house and the lake and the paddocks, and had enough income to keep one servant and one groom, I should be so happy!”
Miss Bonteen came over to Anne and rested a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t torture yourself like this, my dear. You must do what women have done since Eve - you must find a man.”
Anne bent her head. “I don’t like Papa either,” she said in a muffled voice. “And I don’t like Percival. They are careless, selfish men, and I mean nothing to them. I’m a burden to be got rid of, that’s all. They neither of them care a farthing for my happiness.”
Miss Bonteen, who knew this was true, could find nothing reassuring to say to this girl whom she loved as a daughter.
# # #
Lord Grex was in alt when Lord Neviss told him about a possible buyer for Grex. Neviss reported back to Daniel that Grex would entertain an offer, and plans were made for the two men to travel to Yorkshire to view the house and property. So it was that three days after Neviss’ report, Daniel and Lord Grex were traveling to Yorkshire in a rented coach.
Daniel had been gratified to learn that Grex’s property was situated in Western Yorkshire. Western Yorkshire was close by the Lancashire border, and Lancashire was the center of the English cotton and iron industries. Daniel’s factory, which was northwest of the city of Manchester, should be easily reachable from western Yorkshire.
As the two men made the long drive to Yorkshire, Grex kept up a steady stream of eloquence about the many virtues of his home. Daniel wanted an historic home? Grex had been built in the days of Edward III! It was very historic. But it had also been kept up to date. Lord Grex assured Daniel he would be purchasing a house that boasted all of the features so dear to the hearts of English architects: oriel windows! twisted chimneys! long galleries! an inner courtyard with a fountain! Grex also had terraces and sundials and fishponds! It was exactly the sort of house Daniel was looking for – Lord Grex would guarantee that.
Daniel asked about the stables and the number of horses living there. Lord Grex was vague about the number of horses, but he assured Daniel that the stable was in use. When Daniel asked about the attached farms, Lord Grex said sadly that most of the farms had been abandoned because the men could make more money in the factories of Manchester than they could out of farming. However, Lord Grex continued, the home farm was still in operation. He had rented it to a fellow who worked it.
“I have an arrangement with Harding,” his lordship explained to Daniel. “In return for use of the farm, he and his wife live in the house and take care of it. So there is always someone on the premises, and when my daughter and her companion were living at home, Mrs. Harding would clean their rooms and cook for them.”
“There are no other servants?” Daniel inquired.
“I never go to Grex anymore, so there’s no need to keep a household of servants with nothing to do.”
“I see.” What Daniel was seeing was more and more of the atrocious neglect the property had been subjected to during Lord Grex’s tenure.
They arrived at Grex at four in the afternoon, as the sun was spilling a soft gentle light on the house and its windows. Daniel stopped the coach so he could get out and walk. As he stood on the drive, gazing at the mellow bricks of the old house, he felt a chill run up and down his spine. There it stood, his dream, there for the taking.
He tore his gaze away from the house and looked at the surrounding landscape. Unlike most great country homes, Grex did not stand in a park. Instead, low stonewalls divided the land into paddocks. In one of the far paddocks two horses and a pony stood next to each other, tails swishing as they watched the activity on the drive.
Grex had got out of the coach as well, and now Daniel turned to him. “Whose horses are they?” he asked.
“My daughter’s mare and pony, and a gelding my son used to ride.”
Daniel looked at all the empty paddocks and pictured them filled with gorgeous Arabian horses. He’d rather have a view of horses than a park he decided, as he followed Lord Grex into the house.
Mrs. Harding was at the door to greet them. “My lord.” She greeted Grex with a small curtsey. “I received your letter and your room and a room for your guest are prepared.”
“Thank you, Mrs. Harding. Will you have Harding carry the bags upstairs for us?”
“Of course, my lord. He was doing something in the garden, but he’ll have heard the carriage coming down the drive. He’ll be with us in a moment.”
“Would you like me to show you around or would you like to rest first?” Lord Grex asked Daniel.
Daniel, who had never in his life rested in the afternoon, replied promptly, “I’d like to see the house.”
His host took him from room to room, expounding upon all the important people who had slept here or played billiards there. But nothing Lord Grex could say was able to hide the devastating neglect the old house presented. The draperies had holes, the windows hadn’t been washed within Daniel’s lifetime, nor had the walls seen a paintbrush. There were empty places on the walls where he could see paintings had once hung. The rugs were threadbare, and all the furnishings were soiled and sagging. The ceilings looked extremely precarious. And dust had accumulated everywhere.
When the tour was finished Daniel began to add up in his head the amount of money it would cost to restore Grex to its former glory. As he stood with Lord Grex in the dining room, looking at the naked walls and bare china closet and sagging ceiling, the numbers ran higher and higher. And Daniel was certain the outbuildings would be in as bad, if not worse, condition. He shuddered to think of the stable. No horse of his would live there until everything was up to his standard.
It would take a fortune to make this estate the landmark he wanted it to be. But Daniel had a fortune, and he expected to earn another one from his factory. And he wanted Grex. The realization came to him, as he looked up at the filthy glass chandelier that hung in the dark, unlit hall. He wanted this home. His children would be born here, and they would never know the pain of rejection. He would send them to the best schools and they would marry into the best families. And his father would know that, on his own, he had surpassed the heritage his father had never granted him.
# # #
A week after the papers were signed and Grex had legally passed into the hands of Daniel Dereham, Lord Grex paid a visit to his daughter and gave her the news. Anne listened in silence, and when he had finished, she said accusingly, “Grex was supposed to be my dowry, Papa. Has the sale given you enough money to return my original dowry to me?”
Lord Grex’s mouth tightened. He had the money, but he needed it for himself. He hadn’t been well lately, and he planned to retire to Brighton to recuperate. “No, Anne,” he said. “I’m afraid I can’t replace your dowry.”
Anne had never expected that he would. She raised her chin and stared directly into his washed out blue eyes. “What do you suggest I do if I can’t find a husband, Papa? I have no home to return to, and I can’t remain here with Aunt Julia forever. Have you thought of me at all? Am I to beg for my bread on the street?”
“I have not forgot you Anne,” the earl said with dignity, “and you won’t have to beg on the street. I have found you a husband. The man who bought Grex has agreed to marry you.”
This was a slight exaggeration on Lord Grex’s part. Daniel had agreed to meet Anne and then decide whether or not he wished to marry her. But Lord Grex was not worried. Anne was a lovely girl, and she came from the oldest family in the country. Under other circumstances, Dereham wouldn’t have been allowed near her. But circumstances change, Lord Grex told himself. And Anne would be able to remain at Grex, which he knew she loved.
“Are you going to tell me who this man is?” Anne asked. There was a white line down the middle of her slightly upturned nose. She was furious.
“It’s Daniel Dereham,” Lord Grex answered, his voice sounding slightly defensive. “You may have heard of him.”
“Daniel Dereham!” Anne’s cheeks flushed a rosy pink as she thought of the mystery man she had seen at a ball and on a horse trail. “Why on earth would someone like that want Grex?”
“I didn’t ask him, my dear,” her father said. “If you’re so curious about his purpose you can ask him yourself. He is coming here this afternoon to have tea with you.”
“Tea? With me? Will Aunt Julia be there?”
“No, Anne. It will be just you and Dereham. With Julia out of the way, you’ll have a chance to charm him.”
“What are you talking about, Papa? Have you told Aunt Julia about this scheme? She won’t allow me to be alone in a room with a man she knows nothing about! We don’t know who he is, or who his family are…” Her voice trailed off as her father stood and stared down at her, a set expression on his face.
“You have few choices, my girl. Julia tells me that none of your supposed suitors has come up to scratch, and she’s afraid you might be left on the shelf. There’s no future for you as a spinster. You have no sister or brother to take you into their household out of pity. The only home you have now belongs to someone else. If you really don’t want to find yourself begging for your bread in the street, you’ll do everything in your power to please this man.”
He turned away from her and went to the door. “Think upon that, daughter, while you wait to meet Daniel Dereham. Be nice to him and he’ll marry you. You’ll have Grex to live in. You’ll have your own horses and dogs.” He opened the door and stepped into the hall. Before he closed it, he cast a look over his shoulder to where she sat appalled on the sofa. “Don’t be stupid, Anne. Be nice to the man so he’ll marry you.”