Page 4 of Papa's Rules
Chapter Two
“A papa?” Hyacinth grabbed Cammie’s arm in a painful squeeze. Cammie knew her friend did not mean to cause harm, but her thin fingers were tight. Cammie tried to pry them off as she answered.
“Yes, Miss Wickersham has found a papa for me.”
“Who is he? When will you leave?” Hyacinth removed her fingers from Cammie’s arm but continued to stare. “Ohh, I wish I had a papa. When will Miss Wickersham find a papa for me?” Hyacinth put her hands on her hips and pouted.
“Now, now.” Cammie tugged on Hyacinth’s pigtail of golden curls. “I am the one who is getting a papa. You will have your turn soon. I am sure.”
“I am sorry,” Hyacinth said, looking at her friend with her big blue eyes. “I will miss you. I do not know if I should feel sad or happy.”
“Me too!” Cammie squealed then lowered her face and her tone, glancing over her shoulder to make sure no one else heard her raise her voice. Miss Wickersham had some strict rules about young ladies speaking too loudly, and Cammie had no desire to feel the ruler applied to her bottom again so soon, or to serve another stint on the naughty chair. “Is the building on fire?” Miss Wickersham would ask whenever she heard her charges talking in what she considered to be an unladylike pitch. “Because that is the only reason a proper young lady’s voice would reach such a volume.”
“Tell me everything about him,” Hyacinth said, pulling Cammie to the corner of the garden where the young ladies of Talcott House were spending some time getting Miss Wickersham’s required daily dose of sunshine and fresh air. While the others ran around playing tag or pushing each other on the swings, Hyacinth and Cammie shared secrets.
“Miss Wickersham says that his name is Lord Cavendish, and once we are married, I will be Lady Cavendish.”
“Ohhh,” Hyacinth squealed. “A lady! Oh, Cammie there is no one who will make a better lady than you.”
“Thank you, Cynny.” Cammie squeezed her friend’s hand. “I am very nervous. You know I am just a poor girl from a poor family. I do not even know anything about where my family came from. How can I be a proper wife for a lord?”
“Miss Wickersham would never select a papa who would not be just the right man for you. She loves all of us and wants us to be happy with our papas. She tells us all the time.”
“I know,” Cammie said, staring at her hands as she worried them together at her waist. “B-but, a lady? And, I do not know how to be a proper w-wife.” She put her mouth to Hyacinth’s ear and whispered, “What about the things that married people do together? The things that no one will ever tell us? Our special gift, that Miss Wickersham always makes us promise to protect and keep safe. I-I still do not know what she is talking about.”
“Oh fiddlesticks,” Hyacinth said, then covered her mouth with both hands when she realized she had used a naughty word. “You will be a wonderful wife.”
“But what about the other part? Cynny, I need to know.” Cammie felt panicked, desperate, even. She had no idea how to be a wife. Her own mother had died so long ago she could not even conjure up an image of her, and there was a decided absence of men at Talcott House. Although the sole purpose of Miss Wickersham’s establishment was the training of future brides for wealthy, powerful men, specifics had been sorely lacking. This realization weighed heavily on Cammie’s diminutive shoulders, and she implored her friend for reassurance. Unfortunately, Hyacinth had no useful information.
“Cammie, I am sorry. I cannot help you. But, it cannot be that difficult or else Miss Wickersham would have made sure we knew all about it, do you not agree? Or perhaps she will tell you before you leave.”
Cammie paused for a moment and considered all she had learned in her years at Talcott House: manners and posture, reading and writing, painting and singing. Her education had been more complete than anything she could have ever dreamed of before her arrival. Surely all those hours of preparation would assist her in pleasing Lord Cavendish. The tension in her shoulders eased a bit and optimism crept into her countenance.
“I am going to miss you, Cynny.” Cammie’s eyes filled with tears and she sniffed them back.
“I will miss you more.”
The two girls sat for a few minutes on a bench in the garden, holding hands while gentle tears rolled down their cheeks.
* * *
“Nurse Lister would like you to come with me to her office.” It was bossy Garland again, looming over Cammie the next morning as she finished her breakfast. Cammie looked up at Garland, certain that her face conveyed annoyance. She only had another day at Talcott House and she did not wish to spend any of that time with the silly old nurse.
“I do not wish to go,” Cammie said, her chin jutting out impertinently. “I have a papa and I do not need to listen to you anymore, so you can take your bossy self back to Nurse Lister and tell her the future Lady Cavendish has no interest in spending time with her today.” Cammie turned back to the last of her porridge giving Hyacinth, Daisy and Rosie a smug smile. All of the young ladies at Talcott House had been set a twitter at the news that Cammie had a papa. The whole morning girls had been stopping her and asking questions about her papa and wishing her good luck. Cammie puffed up with pride every time she told the story about how she would soon be a proper lady, married to Lord Cavendish. Her news was met with envious squeals and more than one of the youthful residents of Talcott House had been taken to stand in the corner for her loud and improper noises.
“I will give you one more opportunity to do as you were told.” Garland crossed her arms over her ample bosom and shifted her hips to the left. “You had best be out of your seat and on your way to Nurse’s office before I count to three. One...”
“Or what?” Cammie said, waggling her head about on her neck with a dangerous amount of pride and conceit. “What are you going to do to me, Garland? I shall soon be Lady Cavendish and you will still be here bossing around young ladies. Hmpfh. Why ought I to do as you say?”
Cammie glanced about her breakfast table at Hyacinth, Rosie and Daisy, expecting all of them to be suitably impressed with her big girl manners and ladylike demeanor. Surely she was destined to be an outstanding lady for her papa, Lord Cavendish. Instead of the admiration she expected, Cammie’s tablemates stared at her with wide-eyed wonder and a reasonable amount of shock. Daisy clapped both hands over her mouth and gestured with her eyes to something significant behind Cammie. A shadow fell across the table and Cammie carefully peeked over her shoulder, though before she could even get her head turned that far, a firm hand landed on her shoulder.
“Now,” the scratchy voice of Nurse Lister said, “I wonder why Garland is standing in the middle of the breakfast room counting. A group of smart young ladies such as yourselves ought not to need any help with your numbers. Besides, it is not time for lessons yet, is it?”
“N-no,” Daisy said against her palms which still covered her lips, though she lowered them to her lap after Rosie elbowed her in the ribs.
“You know”—The nurse’s fingers closed over the small bones of Cammie’s shoulder—“I do not care to leave my duties at the nurse’s office in case there is some sweet girl who needs my help. But, when Garland did not return with Cammie in a timely fashion, I had to abandon my post and come in search of her. What a shame if one of your sisters here at Talcott House has a tummy ache or a cold. You know all the girls here come to me for care and how frightening and upsetting it would be to arrive and find my door closed and locked. You would not want to be the cause of distress for one of your friends, now would you, Cammie?”
Cammie swallowed hard around the dry lump in her throat. “N-no,” she managed to squeak out. “I-I was just on my way to see you, Nurse Lister. I am sure you have something important to tell me.”
