The shocking rudeness of it hardly impacted Victoria and she tried not to laugh at the attempts of Marian to cross her. She knew that the girl was still a child and that this behaviour was her way of attempting to push her boundaries.
Looking Marian in the eye and speaking directly to her, Victoria continued her dominant, yet friendly manner.
“I think we shall get along very well and that under my tutelage you will understand how a young woman is meant to learn and to behave,” she said in a clear, concise manner.
A smirk that had begun on the child’s face faded as she apparently understood the gravity and sincerity of Victoria’s words. It settled in Victoria that the child was already recognising that this would not be such an easy situation to assert herself over.
“And what makes you certain of that? Do you have the proper credentials for being my governess? The others have all proven quite unworthy,” she retorted, openly and crossly.
Victoria felt a smirk of her own rising at the corner of her lips.
“My dear Miss Marian, I trust that it shall not take you long at all to learn that I am the sort of governess who sees to it that her charges learn quickly and without difficulty. I believe you and I will understand one another better than you might expect, and certainly better than your former governesses,” she alluded.
“”I can’t see how you’re any different,” Marian accused.
“Marian!” her father scolded.
“Do not worry, my lord, I am not concerned in the slightest. As I said, it shall not take long for Miss Marian to understand me and she shall prove herself to be an excellent and worthy student,” Victoria said with a grin.
“A worthy student requires a worthy governess,” Marian retorted again, defiantly. Victoria saw something in the girl’s eyes; a longing to be scolded. It was not the rude defiance that was easily visible; it was a desire to be spoken to.
Indeed, Marian Fairfax did not seem simply to be driven by her brash behaviour, but rather to be wishing for someone to give her the sort of attention, affection even, that she had been stripped of.
“And what do you believe makes a worthy governess?” she asked with genuine curiosity about what the child might value.
Marian’s expression told Victoria that she would never have anticipated that question. She was shocked and at a loss for what to say.
“There is nothing to worry about, you needn’t strain yourself. Just inform me once you have thought it through and I shall evaluate my methods according to your expectations, then we can decide whether or not we are a good fit for one another. How does that sound to you? Is that agreeable?” she asked, a hint of compassion in her voice. Victoria sensed the silence in the room and saw that even the Earl was in awe of her handling of his daughter.
“I must say that I have never seen my daughter at a loss for words when facing a governess before. I shall have to learn the secret of your wit,” he laughed.
Victoria smiled in reply, trying once more not to be distracted by the Earl’s appearance, but she was delighted at having impressed him. She hoped only that she might manage to continue and prove her worth.
Perhaps this position was right for her, after all.
Chapter 3
“Miss Franklin, would you mind ever so much taking Marian upstairs?” Reginald Fairfax, Earl of Hanover asked.
“Yes, my lord. Come,” she said to the Earl and then to his daughter.
Marian crossed her arms and looked at Miss Franklin with an attempt at disdain, and Miss Jamison mimicked the motion while keeping her eyes trained on the girl’s face until she conceded and took Miss Franklin’s hand to depart from the room.
Yes, this new governess was intriguing indeed. There was something about her that held him quite at interest. She was respectful to his daughter, yet unwilling to accept the attitude which she so frequently chose to give. It was fascinating. It was as though she recognised that his daughter needed more than just a governess. She needed a caring woman in her life.
Once the two of them stood alone together in the room, he felt he had a bit more freedom to try and get to know her. He could ask her the abundance of questions he had just formed in that short period of observation. But more than that, he was caught by the way she held such a frank gaze.
Miss Jamison was not like most governesses who would look away shyly or keep their eyes down. She held herself with a strength and poise that was more akin to a noblewoman. Indeed, she was nothing at all like what he might have expected from her.
And then there was the matter of her beauty. Hardly the first thing that caught his attention about her, it also could not be denied.
“Miss Jamison, I am glad to have seen you interacting with my daughter. I have to admit that I did not expect such frankness from you,” he remarked.
“I hope that does not disappoint you, my lord. I am not the sort of woman who backs down easily when she sees that a different track might be useful,” she told him.
“You are apparently an excellent judge of behaviour, for it seems that you knew exactly what might cause my daughter to show a bit of respect. That is a skill in which she is generally found lacking,” he remarked.
“Then I do believe it is time to right that small flaw,” she replied, as if forgetting herself. Then, with a sudden realisation, she spoke again. “Forgive me, my lord. I did not mean to suggest that your daughter is flawed. Only that there are certain aspects of her character which we might find ourselves able to work through.”
