A LADY NAMED ROSE
Chapter Seven
"What's the matter?"
Rose blinked and looked down to find little
Josephine tugging at her dress and staring into her face with concern. With the
exception of the dark brown curls tumbling wildly down her back, she didn't
resemble Cora Cartmell in the least. It was just another flight of fancy--like
Trudy telling her she was dead, and Jack bringing Cal's topcoat to her in the
hospital. Frightfully real, yet utterly impossible. Perhaps Dr. Freud had an
explanation in his writings.
She noticed Bridie and Victoria watching her
closely, and rushed to provide an explanation of her own. "I'm sorry, I-I
felt a little lightheaded. I'm afraid I skipped breakfast this morning,"
she confessed. Actually, she'd been too nervous.
"Really? Well, you must eat."
Victoria turned to Bridie, Josephine temporarily forgotten. "Find Arnolde
and see if there's any flapjacks left from this morning."
Bridie looked terribly put-upon as she lifted
the tray of spilled coffee and chipped cups, but she didn't say a word. Rose
moved to assist her, and Victoria promptly stopped her.
"Bridie will show you everything you
need to know later. Right now, I'd like for you to meet my husband."
Rose turned to find a rather large, handsome
but imposing dark-haired man in a three-piece pinstripe suit standing at the
foot of the stairs. How he'd managed to sneak up on them Rose could not fathom.
"What was that racket I heard?" he
asked, adjusting his necktie in the full-length mirror. "Sounded like
someone crashing plates on the floor."
"Something like that." Victoria
glanced in the direction of the study, but Josephine had gone back into hiding.
"William, darling, I want you to meet Rose Dawson. She'll be replacing
Jenny."
William nodded distractedly at Rose.
"Very good. We can use your help. Now where is Randolph? I don't want to
be late for that board meeting."
He continued to fuss with his tie. Victoria
glided over, moved his hands and adjusted the knot herself. "They can
wait," she said, her voice taking on a seductive tone. "After all,
you are the chairman."
He smiled and leaned forward to kiss her.
Rose blushed and turned her head at the display of affection, and felt
insistent tugging at her dress. Josephine was grinning up at her.
"Wanna see my dollhouse?" she
whispered.
* * * * *
Once her husband had left for the train
station, Victoria made Rose eat. Arnolde, the cook, had whipped up a fresh stack
of his delicious hot cakes, and served them to Rose and Bridie at the kitchen
table. Rose, jittery nerves forgotten, had to restrain herself from attacking
her plate.
"Arnolde is from New Orleans,"
Victoria told Rose later. "He's Cajun. He was the head chef at a French
restaurant where we used to eat until my husband lured him away. The restaurant
owner was fuming!"
While Rose was eating, Evelyn, the nanny,
returned from walking two of the older Scott children to school. (William, III,
the eldest, was at preparatory school in New York.) She was an older, proper
woman, and she looked exhausted, although she tried to hide it. She excused
herself immediately after her introduction to search for Josephine.
The minute Rose finished eating, Victoria
insisted upon taking her on a whirlwind tour of the Scott house. William had
had the thirty-odd-room mansion built four years earlier after the couple had
attended a soirée at the home of friends who lived nearby. The city was
beginning to feel crowded, and the children needed fresh air, Victoria
explained.
In addition to the kitchen and a dining area
with a table long enough to seat ten, the ground floor boasted a sunroom and a
great room with a grand piano, where the family hosted parties, music recitals
and other functions. The maze of rooms upstairs included five bedrooms and a
nursery for the anticipated new addition to the family. The master bedroom had
its own luxurious bath that was half as large as the bedroom itself.
There was a tennis court on the grounds, and
they eventually hoped to add a swimming pool and stables, Victoria confided.
Rose tried to behave as if she were impressed
at the size of the house and its lavish trappings; however, her own house in
Philadelphia had about the same number of rooms, and twice the number of
servants--for a family of three! All the Scotts had were Bridie, the head
housekeeper and lady's maid to Victoria; Randolph, the chauffeur who doubled as
a valet for William; Arnolde; and Evelyn, who shared in the housecleaning duties.
No wonder Rose had never made their acquaintance or even heard of them, and no
wonder Victoria was being so friendly. They were obviously what Ruth, Rose's
mother, had derisively called "new money."
Victoria had just finished showing Rose the
children's playroom in the basement when she remembered something vital. She
took Rose back to the second floor and unlocked a door they had bypassed
earlier. A steep flight of stairs led to an attic room. The hardwood floor had
been swept clean and a set of crisply folded linens sat on an unmade bed
underneath an arched window. There was a dresser and night table, as well.
"Well, how do you like it?"
Victoria asked.
"It's very cozy," Rose said
politely. "Who sleeps here?"
"Why...you will be. Unless you've
decided to turn down the position."
She hadn't given Rose the opportunity to
decline, but Rose had no objections. "Ah...of course, I'll take the
job," she stammered. "But I didn't know that these...accommodations
were included."
"Well, Bridie told me you were in need
of lodging. And we like at least some of our staff to live in, although only
Arnolde does now. His quarters are in our guest cottage."
"You can stay in the city on your days
off," Victoria added.
So that was why Bridie wanted her to work for
the Scotts! Rose marveled at how quickly Bridie was able to set her plan to
remove her houseguest into motion.
"I just wish Bridie lived nearby, like
Evelyn and Randolph do," Victoria sighed. "But I refuse to replace
her. She's been with us the longest, and she's very loyal. Not to mention
resourceful. Look how quickly she found you." She beamed.
"Rose, I have a good feeling about you.
I hope you will like it here."
I hope so, too, Rose thought.