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‘I think not.’
‘Mama,’ Jay put in quietly, ‘Miss Giradet’s grandfather was the late Earl Wentworth.’
‘But that’s…’ she began and stopped.
‘Yes, Mama, but it is of no consequence. Pray, do not go on.’
Lisette looked from one to the other in puzzlement. Jay’s face was stony, his eyes had become hard and she noticed his hand was gripping his fork so tightly, the knuckles were white. The name Wentworth meant something to him, something he did not want to talk about. It left her curious, but not daring to ask.
‘I have a few jewels and a little gold in coin,’ she said. ‘They will last me a little while and then I could earn some money translating and teaching English. There must be French people wanting to learn.’
‘Indeed there are,’ Lord Drymore said. His wife was looking at Jay in consternation and Jay was pretending to concentrate on the fish on his plate. ‘I am sure we can introduce you to some. Even out here in the countryside, there are émigrés and their families. The children in particular need to speak English if they are to live here.’ He chuckled softly. ‘And it would not do my grandchildren any harm to learn French. You have already met two of them and there are four more. Would you undertake that?’
‘Gladly. It will help pay for my keep.’
‘That is not why I suggested it.’
‘No, but it is why I accept.’
‘Sir,’ Jay put in. ‘My children have a governess who teaches them.’
‘Miss Corton’s French is atrocious,’ his lordship said. ‘Even I can do better than that. Let Miss…Lisette teach them properly. You never know, Edward might want to enter the diplomatic service when he is older, and as for Anne, knowledge of French is always a good accomplishment for a lady.’
‘Edward will very likely go into the navy.’
‘So he might and a facility in languages will still be an advantage. I cannot think why you are so against it, Jay. What would you have Lisette think of her kind offer?’
‘It does not matter,’ Lisette put in quickly. ‘I will teach the other four, if their parents approve.’
‘And have my two left out?’ Jay said. ‘They will wonder why and feel hurt. Miss Giradet, I will be pleased for you to teach my children French. I will send them here to join their cousins for the lessons when you have decided the day and time.’
‘Then I will write to Amelia and Charlotte and suggest it,’ Lord Drymore said. Then to Lisette, ‘Amelia lives in Downham Market and Charlotte in Ely, neither of them very far away.’ He turned as servants came in to remove the first course and bring the second. ‘Ah, I smell roast chicken.’
His remark signalled the end of the discussion and they moved on to more general observations. Lisette watched Jay covertly. He seemed to have returned to his previous good humour, but she could not be sure. He had been manoeuvred by his father into a position he did not care for, but could not refuse without being uncivil, and she wondered why he found it so abhorrent. All she wanted to do was teach his children French. That would not corrupt them or mean that she would be any more often in his company; he had said he would send the children, not come himself.
As soon as the meal was finished, she pleaded tiredness and made her way to her room. Tomorrow she would sit with her father for a while, write her letter to Michel, prepare the French lessons and perhaps explore her surroundings. There would be plenty to keep her busy.
She woke to the sound of childish laughter. For a moment she wondered where she was, but then it all came flooding back: the escape and the voyage and the slow journey up the river when she had learned a little more about the enigmatic Jay Drymore. She had never been very curious about her English relations, perhaps because speaking of them distressed her mother while her father forbade the name mentioned, but now it had been aroused by a few words said at supper the previous evening. What connection did Earl Wentworth have with Jay Drymore? Why did his whole demeanour change at the sound of the name? It would seem her mother had not been the only one ill used by the man. But Jay had referred to him as the late Earl, so the man who had been her grandfather was dead. But what of his heirs? Did they even know of her existence?
The sound of squeals of laughter came to her again. Guessing it was Edward and his sister, she rose and padded over to the window. The rain had gone and below her the moat sparkled in the early morning sun. On the other side of it was a garden and an area of grass. Here the children were playing a game of tag. Edward was hugging a large ball made of stuffed hide and Anne was chasing him to take it from him. Lisette smiled as she watched them, two happy children without a care in the world. Jay had done a good job helping them over their grief at the loss of their mother.
