An Inconvenient Companion Read online

  Her father died suddenly of a seizure. He was still young and it was a complete shock to everyone who knew him. That, for the Fairfield family was not to be the only shock they had to endure. Their father had not been as good with his finances as they had presumed. They had been living in blissful ignorance until his death was announced officially, when the creditors called in what was owed to them.

  Martha’s older brother Thomas had acted quickly and had sold off some of the land to pay off the debt, as he was a proud young man and refused to leave the debts outstanding. The continued good name of the family was important to all of them, moreso with the new financial difficulties. Thomas then had the difficult task of sitting his family down and explaining the consequence of paying off the creditors. It was a difficult conversation in which he told them that their property would no longer sustain the family.

  Martha’s mother had taken the news badly, partly still grieving for her husband and partly through shame of what had gone on without her knowledge. Her children had tried to reassure her, but she had taken to her bed for the foreseeable future, giving Thomas the further difficulty of dealing with an invalid mother and the costs associated with that.

  The second eldest, William had immediately informed the family that he was signing up to join the navy. He had always wanted to, but had been persuaded into following a career in the clergy. The potential of joining the navy and earning more money while following the career he wanted, was too much of a pull. At the same time as having the career he wanted, he would have the ability to send some money to his family each month, so it was a decision he found easy to make.

  The youngest boy was too young to work, so would stay within the family home. Thomas decided that he would look to have him apprenticed when he was old enough.

  Martha realised through the conversations which were held, that she herself, and her younger sister Susan, would have to secure a marriage and soon. Susan was too young, but she would need to be married almost as soon as she left the schoolroom, something which was not ideal in anyone’s mind. In her own case, Martha had come out the previous year and although had not received an offer of marriage yet, there were one or two young men that she thought may offer for her in time. Thomas spoke to his sister about her situation in private.

  “I didn’t want to have this conversation in front of the others.” he explained as they sat together in what had been his father’s study.

  “What is it?” Martha asked gently, thinking that her brother had aged over the last few months and she felt sorry for what he had faced and the decisions he had had to make.

  “Is there anyone who wishes to marry you now Martha?” he asked gently.

  “No, but I have only had one season, I don’t consider myself on the shelf just yet.” Martha teased.

  “Neither do I,” Thomas smiled at his sister, but the smile was tinged with sadness. “The problem is Martha, we cannot afford another season for you.”

  Martha looked at her brother, and the serious expression on his face helped the words to sink in. By not being able to afford another season, she would not be out socialising, which meant that she would not come into contact with any gentlemen. That lack of social interaction would guarantee that there would be no marriage proposals forthcoming. There were enough young ladies looking to marry for the available gentlemen not to have to search for someone they had met the previous year. Especially if she would no longer be attending the parties and therefore out of their social circle. Thomas was effectively telling Martha that he could not help her to marry, condemning her to spinsterhood.

  “Susan?” Martha asked quietly.

  “Not even a first season unless things change dramatically in the next four years,” Thomas said sadly. “I’m sorry Martha, I would if I could, but even without the expense of a season, the land we have left isn’t going to sustain us. I’m letting most of the staff go, William going the navy will help, one less mouth to feed and I think I will be able to get Henry apprenticed next year, but I cannot afford the expense which the rounds of entertainments would cost.”

  “Of course you can’t,” Martha said practically. She suppressed the feelings of sadness and bitterness at what she had lost. It was not Thomas’s fault, he was doing the best he could in the circumstances. She could spend her time hating her father, but all that would achieve would be to embitter herself, since her feelings towards him could not affect him. She had to be practical and help her family. “If things are so bad I need to help as well.”

  “You will need to take on some extra duties around the house, without staff there will be more work for us all to do.” Thomas said.

  “Thomas, I cannot be a burden on you for the rest of my days,” Martha said with a firm set to her mouth. “A spinster sister is a drain on what are already limited resources, and you cannot have such a burden for the rest of my days. I will seek a position as a Lady’s companion, I have not the ability to be a governess, but a companion I can be.”

  “No!” Thomas said. “The situation is not that bad!”

  Martha reached over and squeezed her brother’s hand. “You need help, so let me do as William is doing, and send some of my money home. It won’t be much, but you will have no expense from me and I can feel that I am helping. Maybe by the time Susan comes of age, things will be a little different.”

  “I am condemning you to a life of drudgery.” Thomas said quietly, taking hold of his sister’s hands.

  “You are not!” Martha exclaimed. “We could all end in debtor’s prison if we do not pull together as a family. I am happy to do this Thomas, it is for the best.”

  Martha had pushed aside her feelings of what could have been and secured a position with a lady who lived twenty miles away from Martha’s home. It meant that Martha could travel home twice a year and see her family. The lady was old, but not an unkind mistress and Martha genuinely cared for her. Martha felt real sadness when three years later the lady died and Martha had lost her position.

  She returned home temporarily. Her employer had left her a hundred pounds in her will, an unexpected windfall for Martha. She gave Thomas half the money and kept half for herself. She was practical enough to realise that at some point she would need some money for her retirement and although she could save little out of her wages, with sending money back home, a legacy such as this could not be squandered.

  When looking for another position, Martha decided to look for a younger person. She had enjoyed her time with her employer, but she did not want to be constantly grieving over the loss of people who came to mean something to her. She had mourned her dead employer as much as she would have done if it had been a family member.

  Thomas had by chance heard of a man in Lancashire looking for a companion for his young daughter. Martha visited the property and met the young Elizabeth Rufford and accepted the offer of an appointment.

  When, ten years later Elizabeth had married her guardian, Lord Dunham, Martha had resigned herself to the fact that she would have to seek another post, but Elizabeth would hear none of it. The pair were more than employer and employee, more like a mixture of sister, companion and mother all rolled into one. Elizabeth had insisted that Martha had to stay with her, and when an opening arose in Lord Dunham’s household, Martha became the new Housekeeper. She had not wanted to take up Elizabeth’s offer of being with her without a defined role.

  Martha was happy, in the main. She was sending money home regularly. Her promotion from companion to housekeeper meant that she was able to continue to build a nest egg for herself, adding to the money she had already saved. She was content in her role, except where Charles Anderton was involved. He was Lord Dunham’s man of business and very efficient, but every time he tried to ‘help’........Martha could not bear his interference.

  His regular offers of assistance had the effect of making her feel insecure in her position. He had never undermined her as such; it was just his manner that seemed to imply that he doubted her abilities. Ther
e was just the one time that he had been there when she needed him, Martha shook herself, but she would not let herself dwell on that incident. She had shown her vulnerability then, and it was not an event she wanted to dwell on for a number of reasons.

  She stood and wiped her hands across her face. Not one for dwelling on things that were out of her control, she pulled herself together once more. It was time to learn not to take everything he said to heart, they would be working together for a long time to come. An image of another life flashed before her eyes too quickly for her to suppress it. She felt an ache in her heart, before she pushed it away. She grumbled to herself about her stupidity and strode towards her bedroom door. There was work to be done, and she could afford no more of this maudlin mood.

  Chapter 2

  Charles Anderton gave Martha a wide berth for the following few days after their latest altercation. He could not avoid her completely, the house was large, but their employers very often invited Charles and Martha to share their meals with them. It was quite unusual for this to happen in an aristocrat’s house, but both Lord and Lady Dunham would never be described as your usual aristocrat.

  He puzzled over Martha’s reaction to his offer of help. He thought they were over the bickering and one-upmanship that had occurred when they first met. It had been a childish ploy on his part he admitted to himself. He had met the pretty, prim Miss Fairfield and had for some unknown reason wanted to ruffle her. He had set about it in his own way. He could not be openly teasing, because that would be frowned upon, but he soon realised that when he seemed to be offering his assistance, she could not control her responses.

  He thought she was delightful when annoyed, as her usually pale complexion heightened in colour and her blue eyes flashed deep marine blue. Charles had never wanted to make her feel uncomfortable, in fact he had been attracted to her from the start, but she had always seemed so controlled, so composed, that he had wanted to see if there was any way he could bring some discomfort to her composure.

  Charles knew that he should have behaved better when they had first met. The situation had quickly gone further than Charles had anticipated, and he cursed himself time and time again when yet another set of terse words had been exchanged. His initial behaviour had resulted in a dislike of him on her part. He very often wondered at his stupidity, he liked her but all he had achieved was to ensure she disliked him with a passion.

  It was his own fault, he cursed to himself on a regular basis. If he had not been influenced by his own insecurity he probably would have a very good relationship with Miss Fairfield by now. Unfortunately, he was now convinced that would never happen.

  The problem, he acknowledged only to himself, was that she made him feel inferior. She did nothing intentionally, and he was convinced that there was no malicious streak to be found anywhere in Martha Fairfield, but when he had first met her she had seemed so much above him in rank, he had acted in a way to try to shake her position. He had never wanted her to get into trouble with their employers, but it was his blundering way of trying to make sure that he felt more secure in his own position.

  He felt ashamed sometimes of the foolish things he had done and said to get a reaction out of Martha. She had reacted to him, he smiled to himself, there was fire under that calm exterior, but the result had not been to make him feel secure, but to create a real dislike of him on her part.

  He mulled over why he still felt insecure after the years in his post with Lord Dunham. His start in life had been humble, he had been working in the school that Lord Dunham attended, as a runner for the students. An unlikely bond had developed between the pair, probably because of Charles’ inability to keep his thoughts to himself about some of the students that attended the school. Lord Dunham, then plain Michael Birchall, had found Charles’ mutterings funny and their friendship had developed.

  After two years, the then Lord Dunham had been approached by his heir and been persuaded to offer Charles a place as an apprentice for his uncle’s man of business. Charles had been astonished that anyone would offer him such an opportunity and was overwhelmed at his feeling of obligation to the young man who had spoken up for him. He had perhaps not recognised that Michael had seen the frustration that Charles tried to suppress about the menial tasks he had to perform, with little hope of promotion, or that he had seen the intelligence that was always on show.

  Charles had taken the position and over the next few years had worked harder than he had ever done, but this time it was work that he throve on. He learned as much as he possibly could, watching, listening, helping and never tiring. It would have been heaven apart from the behaviour of some of the staff who worked in the household. Charles would never have imagined that there was a hierarchy within an aristocrat’s house, but there was. Some of the staff objected to an unknown young boy being added to the household, when there were others who thought they should have had the opportunity.

  The disgruntled few made sure that at every opportunity Charles was fully aware that he was not worthy of the role he held. It was only by knowing the nephew that he had gained his position, not because of his own abilities. Although Charles tried to ignore the jibes, when said enough times it was almost inevitable that they would be believed.

  When the opportunity arose to be the man of business for Michael Birchall, who was still at that time, the heir to the then Lord Dunham, Charles grasped the opportunity. He would be managing a single gentleman’s business, not the huge household, which was the Dunham estate.

  By working with Michael, Charles’ confidence had increased. His employer always considered his opinions and treated him almost as an equal. Charles flourished and became even more competent. The sudden death of Lord Dunham thrust both Michael and Charles into roles they had not been expecting. Michael became the new Lord Dunham, and Charles became the man of business for a Lord of the realm, back in the household that had undermined him as a young man.

  Returning to the house, with the full support of the Lord, meant that the staff who still worked there treated Charles differently. This time he was not a young boy learning the ropes, but a man confident in his abilities and prepared to stand up to anyone that doubted him. There was no hint of the comments that had been made previously, but Charles did still feel insecure. He still sometimes felt that he had been promoted above his station in life, and meeting a woman like Martha Fairfield only added to that insecurity.

  She was confident and competent. A gentleman’s daughter, who really should have been part of the family, rather than working for it. The first time they had met, Charles had been struck by her appearance, she was not stunningly beautiful, but handsome, and with her air of composure and dignity, Charles had thought her very attractive. So, he should have welcomed her, cultivated their friendship in the hope that it would develop and then happy with his lot. Instead, he had allowed his insecurity about not being good enough to surface and had antagonised her at every opportunity, until it had become almost second nature.

  Recently, he had started to try and help her, in an effort to make amends for their poor beginning. He would not normally have bothered, not being one to pursue something that was hopeless, but there had been a glimmer of hope. When Lady Dunham had been in danger, Miss Fairfield had turned to him for help. She had been so shaken as to break down in tears. He had assured her that he would bring Lady Dunham back and he had asked Martha to trust him. She had replied that she did, it had nearly rocked him backwards with surprise, but he had managed to remain focused on the matter in hand.

  Only later had he allowed himself to dwell on her words. If she believed and trusted him, surely she could not dislike him to the level she appeared to? He decided that there was hope for him after all and he was determined to help her whenever he could. He was doing it to spend more time with her and to hopefully convince her that he was not the demon she had thought he was.

  His long term aim was unclear. Relations between staff were frowned upon in any household, so he had convinc
ed himself that he would work hard until she liked him and then at least they could enjoy working together. It was obvious that neither would ever leave their employer until their age forced them to. A good employer was always worth keeping hold of, but the feelings went further with Charles and Martha. They cared for their employers as if they were family, they were their family in many respects.

  He had thought that by offering to help to find a nanny it would relieve some pressure from Martha’s workload. Lady Dunham’s baby had arrived earlier than everyone had expected, so a nanny had not yet been appointed. With the need for extra organisation which a new baby brought, Martha’s work had increased. They had employed a nurse for the child’s early months, but a nanny was needed to take over the role of carer for the little girl.

  As soon as he had offered his help, he had seen her face change as she struggled to maintain her composure, and he immediately knew that he had erred. Charles had tried to explain that he had wanted to help ease her workload, but it had not seemed to ease the anger his words had caused.

  “I am fully aware of your lack of confidence in my abilities, there is no reason for you to explain your motivation.” Miss Fairfield had responded angrily. The stiffening of her body and flushing of her cheeks were a clear outward sign of the struggle going on within to maintain her usual calm.

  “It has nothing to do with your ability as housekeeper, I just thought that with you having no experience of children, or nannies, that I may be able to offer some advice…” Charles replied, trying desperately to retrieve the situation.

  “And you have obviously had so much more experience than I,” came the sarcastic response. “I have no real experience of clearing out fire grates, but I am perfectly capable of appointing a house maid to do the task. I shall employ the nanny to Lady Dunham’s requirements without anyone else’s interference! Perhaps if you confined your thoughts to your own position, it would make life a lot happier for us all,” came the prim response. “Please excuse me, I have things to do, for which, no, I do not require your help.”