Page 46 of A Mayfair Maid

“Exactly,” Lady Lydia clapped her hands together as if she very much liked her plan. “I have informed Mrs. Cavendish of your goal, and you shall meet no resistance there. I’ll even permit you use of the little drawing room,” she said with a wink. “There is a chaise there, and it is sufficient for your needs. Edward and I…” she trailed off in her musings and Marilee stared at her appalled. With this thought in her mind, she was sure she would not be able to bring herself to sit upon said chaise.

“Anyway,” Lady Lydia said waving a nonchalant hand, “it is not as if I often entertain there. I prefer to take myself out into the world.”

Marilee felt her eyes grow wide. Could she have misunderstood? Certainly, Lady Lydia was not suggesting what she thought. She really expected Marilee to seduce Nikolas? She even seemed to think that Marilee would be willing to forego her own maidenhood just to distract the man. Of course, considering her own actions, she probably would not believe that Marilee was a maid. It was absurd. What if it had happened that she had loathed him? She would still have been expected to follow the command no matter her feeling for the man. Perhaps worse, Marileedidlike Mr. Crowley, and this felt like a betrayal. Still, she had kissed him, and she should not even offer kisses to a man not her affianced bridegroom…to offer more than her kisses. Good heavens, she had not known him for long and, even then, not in a situation where either of them could fully be themselves. It was horrifying and offensive that she might be asked to stoop to such levels, and yet how could she naysay Lady Lydia’s plan?

Her utter silence caused Lady Lydia to consider her shrewdly.

“I can see that you are not convinced,” Lady Lydia shattered Marilee’s thoughts with her ringing voice. “Let me just say that if you do not feel up to the task, then I can always send you away and bring someone else in to do as I request.” Her eyes went to the hapless Hetty, who gave a barely audible squeak. “I only thought that you were already well enough acquainted that he might be sooner turned to the effort.” She smiled wide and full of victory for she must have known that Marilee would fear being sent back to the brothel. “I would hate to waste time, when he is already such a bother. Now. Will you give the man something else to think about? Hmm?”

Marilee found that she could only nod. Words had failed her. Shock at the mere suggestion had left her dumbstruck.

“Excellent,” Lady Lydia squealed. “I shall send a card calling for him this evening. I have soirée at Lady Bastion’s that will keep me out, and you can make my apologies that the engagements happened to overlap. I must have gotten my calendar crossed.” She turned to the new maid, who seemed to be doing her best to hide her own shock at the conversation. She picked up a fan and smacked Hetty’s hand with it. “Come now, Hetty, close your mouth. You look like a fish. I think I shall wear the ruby fillet this evening.” Hetty hurried to serve the lady.

Lady Lydia waved Marilee away.

Once Lady Lydia had shifted her attention, it was clear Marilee had been dismissed. She exited the room and stood in the hall for several minutes catching her breath before she could even attempt to comprehend what had just occurred.

Nikolas had been getting close to something. Of that there could be no doubt. But how Lady Lydia had discovered his efforts was unclear. She would have to talk this through with Peggy. Maybe they could make some sense of this.

As she was descending the narrow servant’s stair, she was met by Mrs. Cavendish who gave a knowing smile which made her feel dirty.

“Here, girl,” the housekeeper thrust a small stoppered bottle into Marilee’s hand. “Works for me every time.” She walked away before Marilee could refuse the bottle of fragrance that now rested in her palm. “Excellent,” the housekeeper said.

“Excellent,” Marilee parroted the lady, but butterflies descended upon her stomach. She was not cut out for such intrigue.

Marilee wrinkled her nose as she smelled the perfume in the bottle. It was rather overpowering. Marilee continued on downstairs.

“I am sorry,” Peggy snorted when she had been apprised of the whole ordeal. “I shouldn’t laugh, but do they really think that gentlemen like that sort of thing?”

“Gentlemen at the brothel, perhaps,” mused Marilee as she took another sniff of the pungent liquid. “I don’t think Nikolas would fall for something like that, but I suppose he is going to have to pretend.”

“Oh no,” Peggy added. “There is no pretense there. The man definitely has feelings for you.”

Marilee sighed and covered her face in embarrassment. She muttered between her fingers some comment that she was glad that the house was not a social one or the assumption of her lack of virtue would have already disintegrated her reputation. The mere suggestion had offended her senses.

“Do not worry about it,” Peggy said as she pulled Marilee into an embrace. “This actually works in our favor.”

Marilee began to object.

“Hear me out,” said Peggy. “You and Nick will be given time in one another’s company which, contrary to their belief, you do enjoy. Furthermore, it is the perfect guise for passing information. If their intention is to leave you wholly alone…”

“So I can seduce him!” cried Marilee.

“Well,” said Peggy with a sheepish grin.

Marilee slapped her with a wet washcloth, and she giggled.

“Right,” Marilee shook her head, “but they want him distracted. Which means that whatever he has been doing, he has to stop.”

“No,” Peggy argued. “It means whatever he has been doing is yielding merit. He has to be more subtle, but now he will know that they are watching him. He can take precautions. It gives him a step ahead. Lady Lydia is setting a stone in her own shoe because she cannot realize that even if he loved you, it would only fuel his determination further, not keep him from the point.”

Marilee scoffed. “Lady Lydia obviously knows nothing of love.”

“Well, I agree with that,” Peggy said. “But she cannot know that he is aware of our true situation, only that he thinks us mistreated on occasion, and that we are free to leave at the end of our contract. She would have no idea that his motivation would lie in releasing us from our servitude. She thinks he only cares about the debts, not that he wants to pull the cornerstone from her entire operation. She knows nothing of his true nature. Love, in her eyes, will cause him to wait and moon about, not tear her house down brick by brick to save you.”

“Us,” Marilee corrected. “Save all of us.”

“Exactly,” Peggy nodded. “If he seems devoted to you, then Lady Lydia will become complacent. Her attention will turn elsewhere. She is a flighty chit, anyway. We only have to hope her attention flits elsewhere.”

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