An Undeniable Passion Ch. 24

After about an hour she heard a horse out front and looked out the window expecting to see Drake returning. Instead it was a hired coach from town. Curious as to who it could be, she went downstairs. She opened the door and saw a young woman coming up the stairs.

"Hello. Are you Virginia Templeton?" she asked.

Assuming she was there in answer to the job posting, she replied," Yes, I am. Have you come about the position?"

"Yes ma'am, I have."

"Well, come in then." As the young woman passed her in the doorway, Virginia was certain she had seen her before, but couldn't place her. Must be just about town, she thought.

"It won't take long will it, ma'am? I can't afford to keep the coach waiting too long."

"Oh don't worry about that. I'll pay for it."

"Oh, thank you," she said. She was clearly nervous as she looked about the foyer.

"What is your name?" Virginia asked her, leading her into the sitting room.

"Rosalind O'Toole, but everyone just calls me Rosy."

"Well Rosy, why don't you tell me about other places you've worked."

They chatted for quite some time and Virginia immediately felt comfortable with her. Rosy told her that she had been caring for her grandmother who had been ill which is why she hadn't worked anywhere for the last six months. She announced that her grandmother was better and she was once again seeking a position.

"Do you live here alone?" Rosy asked her.

"No, there is one other," Virginia replied, not wanting to admit right away that she was living with a man.

"Your husband?" the young woman asked.

"No, not my husband," Virginia replied wanting to wait until later to explain her relationship with Drake.

Rosy suddenly seemed nervous as she asked, "Do you do much entertaining?"

"Entertaining?" she asked, puzzled by the question.

"Yes, such as having the neighbors over for dinner, or lunch." Rosy clearly was nervous asking these questions which puzzled Virginia even more.

Suddenly recalling that her neighbors were the Ogilvy's she answered, "No, the neighbors won't be coming over. You won't be expected to perform any kitchen duties, if that's what you're concerned about," she added.

Rosy stared at her for a moment and then suddenly smiled. "Yes, ma'am that is what I was worried about. I don't much care for kitchen work."

"Well, Rosy, you seem like a very nice, capable, and sensible young woman and I would love to have you as a maid. When would you be able to start?"

"Oh thank you ma'am. I could start this afternoon, if you like. I just need to return home and fetch my things."

"No need to jump into things so quickly. Tomorrow will be fine, although if you would like to come back this afternoon, you could get yourself settled." Virginia rose and began walking towards the front door. "I'll show you out and pay for your carriage."

After Rosy had gone, it was still niggling at the back of her mind where she had seen her before. She shook her head to rid herself of the thoughts and went upstairs to resume her work on Drake's riding suit.

A short while later she heard him pull up and looking out the window, she saw the he had bought quite a lot of supplies. She watched as he drove the cart around to the stable and a few minutes later he walked into her sewing room.

"How's my suit?" he asked, looking at what she was doing.

"It's coming along just fine," she replied. Smiling, she announced, "I hired a maid today. Her name is Rosy, she starts tomorrow."

"Good for you," he said. "Ah, breakfast in bed every morning."

"You will have to hire a man servant if you wish that. Being the mistress of the house, only I will have breakfast in bed every morning."

"Wonderful, I will breakfast with you then," he said happily.

She shot him a sideways glance, and smiling and shaking her head, she returned to her task, not even bothering to respond.

He just chuckled at her. "I'm going to go and get started on the stables. I'll see you later."

Later that afternoon, Rosy returned and Virginia greeted her at the door. She took one of the girl's bags and said, "I'll show you to your room. It's a little tricky at first, but you'll get used to it in no time. You don't mind attics do you?" she asked over her shoulder as they climbed the first set of stairs.

"No, ma'am. That's where most maids sleep."

They stood outside of Virginia's door and she showed Rosy where to press to open the panel revealing the staircase. Virginia could see the surprise and delight on her face.

"I've heard about these, but have never seen one before," she said, peering up into the darkness.

"I always keep a small lantern at either end to light the way," she said, picking one up. She lit it and they made their way up the stairs. They emerged into the light and turned towards the rooms at the front of the house. "There are five bedrooms here, but I've actually taken over two for sewing rooms, but you can choose between the remaining three."

She chose the one next to Virginia's sewing rooms and stowed her bags there. Virginia was looking out the window and saw Drake coming in from the stables.

"Would you like to meet the other resident of the house?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am, I would." She had frankly been quite curious about the other resident. She had assumed that it would be a woman, perhaps a sister or even her mother.

They came down the stairs just as Drake came in the front door. He stood looking up at them as they approached. "Rosy, I would like you to meet Drake Stratford. He lives here as well. Drake, this is the new maid, Rosy."

"Well, hello, Rosy. Welcome to Aurora, I hope you'll enjoy working here."

Rosy just stood and stared at Drake with wide eyes. She almost appeared frightened. She took a step away from him. "Y-y-you live here, sir?" she stammered.

"Yes. I know it's a bit shocking that we live here together," Virginia began to explain, "But Mr. Stratford and I are old friends and I don't like living in this big house on my own, so as he's in town for awhile, he has agreed to keep me company."

Rosy was still staring at Drake with great uncertainty. Finally, dropping her eyes, she said quietly, "It's a pleasure to meet you, sir." She turned to Virginia. "If it's alright, ma'am, I'd like to return upstairs and unpack."

"Certainly, do you need some help with the catch for the stairs?"

"No, ma'am. I think I can manage." She turned and hurried up the stairs.

Drake and Virginia looked at each other. "Well, we certainly took her by surprise," she said. "She almost seemed frightened of you."

"Well, I am a very imposing man," he said, standing tall and looking imperious.

"Yes, of course you are," she replied, in a mocking tone.

Over the course of the next few days, as Rosy was getting her bearings in the house and her duties were being defined, Virginia began to grow fond of the girl, but was worried about her behavior towards Drake. She appeared to be truly frightened of him. One evening, after Rosy had retired, Virginia and Drake were sitting in the library.

"Drake, what do you think of Rosy?" she asked him.

"I think she's doing a fine job. I don't see much of her though," he commented.

"Do you find anything odd about her behavior towards you?"

"Well, I didn't want to say anything but she does seem, well, almost frightened of me," he said.

"Do you think it could just be that she sees you as the master of the house and that's what makes her nervous?" she inquired.

"No, I've seen that look before in servants and she is actually scared. Maybe you should talk to her and find out," he suggested.

"Yes, I was planning to do that, I just wanted to know if you had noticed it as well."

The next morning, after Drake had gone out to work in the stables, Virginia sat Rosy down and explained her and Drake's concerns.

"We were just wondering why you seem so frightened of him," she said gently.

"He's a man, ma'am," she said not looking up from the table.

"Well, yes, but he's a very nice man. You have no cause to fear him."

"I know how men treat servants, especially maids," she replied, beginning to get upset.

"What do you mean? I can assure you that Mr. Stratford will only treat you with the utmost respect. He's not the type to ignore you and not say thank you or to not commend you on a job well done," Virginia assured her.

"That's not what I meant," she said quietly.

"Please, Rosy, what is it?"

She hesitated and then said in a small voice, "I'm afraid he'll hurt me."

"Hurt you? You mean physically? I know that in some households if servants make a mistake or break something, even by accident, that they get beaten, but neither I nor Mr..."

"That's not what I mean either, ma'am!" she cried.

Thoroughly confused, Virginia pleaded with her. "Please, speak plainly, what is it you're afraid of?"

Almost in tears, she twisted her hands, trying to bring herself to say the words. Suddenly Virginia realized what it was that she meant.

"Oh, Rosy. No. He would never lay a hand on you in that way. I can promise you that."

The distraught young woman looked up at Virginia, still worried.

"You will not be expected to tolerate that kind of treatment here. Mr. Stratford is a good man and will not touch you," she said gently. "Were you treated like that somewhere else?" she asked.

Rosy nodded her head. "Yes, ma'am, I was. I didn't tell you because I didn't think they would give me a reference, but it was at the Ogilvy's."

Virginia felt the blood drain from her face. "Thomas and Doris Ogilvy?" she asked. She suddenly realized that that was where she had seen the young maid before. And why she had asked the puzzling questions about having the neighbors over for dinner.

Rosy again nodded. "He was terrible. He always urged his sister to hire young maids so that he could...well...he favored virgins, ma'am. He would use them for awhile, taking his pleasure when he desired and then sack them. That's what happened to me while I worked there." She looked up and saw Virginia stricken face. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you."

Virginia found she was having trouble breathing. She heard Rosy's voice as if from a distance, apologizing. "That's alright Rosy. You can return to your duties now," she said absently. "I need to speak with Mr. Stratford. Please excuse me." She rose and slowly walked out to the stables, forgetting to take her coat, not noticing the cold.

Drake looked up when he saw her enter. "Hello V, what brings you..." he suddenly noticed her dazed expression and the fact that she wasn't wearing a coat. "V, what's wrong? Are you alright?" He guided her into the back of the stables, where it was a bit warmer. He wrapped a blanket around her and rubbed her arms, staring at her with concern.

She stared straight ahead. "Rosy is afraid of you because she's scared you might rape her," she said flatly.

"Rape her?" he asked, clearly horrified.

"She confessed that she had omitted a particular house from her list of previous employers because the man of that house treated his servants that way. He particularly liked virgins," she said, still staring straight ahead, her voice emotionless.

"My God, what kind of a man would do that?"

"It was the Ogilvy's," she said, her voice breaking. She looked up at him, her eyes shining with tears. "It was Thomas."

He stared at her a moment and then pulled her into his arms and held her tight. He closed his eyes, thankful that he had exposed Thomas and that she was no longer involved with him. "I was seriously considering marrying him," she said quietly. "Thank you, thank you so much," she murmured.

He loosened his hold on her, so that he could look at her. "For what?" he asked.

"For showing me what sort of a man he is, for getting me away from him."

He wiped away the tear that trickled down her cheek. "I'm glad I was able to do that for you. However it happened, I'm glad you're not with him anymore," he said gently. And heaven help him the next time I see him, he thought.

"I assured her you would never do such a thing, so she shouldn't be scared of you anymore," she said. "And Drake, any grooms or farm hands or any men that I hire on this farm, I want you to make it very clear to them that they are to treat the female servants with the utmost respect and courtesy. I know they sometimes behave in a rough manner and I don't want any of that going on. Can you do that for me?"

"Yes, of course," he replied. "You must be freezing, and now that I've stopped working, I'm beginning to get a bit chilled as well. What do you say we go in the house and have some tea?"

"That sounds very nice." She stood, keeping the blanket wrapped around her. "Thank you, Drake," she said, placing her hand on his arm. He wrapped his arm around her and they walked to the house.

He still had his arm around her as they entered the house. Rosy stood in the shadows just off the mezzanine and watched them. She wondered why Virginia had reacted so strangely to her confession about omitting the Ogilvy's from her list of experience. She had immediately gone and told Mr. Stratford. I'm going to get sacked, she thought fearfully as she continued to watch them.

"You're sure you're alright?" he asked her again.

She nodded and removed the blanket, placing it on the couch. She stood in the foyer and said to him, "You exposed him as a liar but I had no idea he really was so terrible. I can't believe he treated his maids like that. I know that in some big houses where there are lots of servants that some have affairs with the sons or even husbands who employ them, but to brutally rape the virgins in your employ? Oh, it's too terrible to think of," she said rubbing her face.

They began to walk into the sitting room, when Rosy heard her say, "I'm so glad we hired Rosy so that now she has a nice and decent place to work. I wonder if she knows any of the other maids that worked there. We still need two more."

"Why don't you ask her?" he suggested.

Rosy's heart soared. They weren't going to sack her! They were glad to be able to help her. For the first time in months she really felt good about things. When Virginia called for her, she happily ran to do whatever it was that she wanted.

Virginia asked Rosy about other maids that had been in the employ of the Ogilvy's and hired Dolly and Sarah, both of whom were wary of Drake until Rosy spoke with them, assuring them that they would be treated well at Aurora.

Virginia found that she enjoyed having servants in the house. Not only did it make for a busier atmosphere but she no longer had to do so much of the work herself and was able to relax and enjoy herself. She spent much of her time in her sewing rooms happily working on Drake's riding outfit. She made Rosy her personal maid and enjoyed her company.

One morning she was helping Virginia work out some particularly nasty tangles in her hair. "I don't know how I managed so long without a maid, Rosy. You are truly a godsend," she said as she gently guided the comb through the knots.

"Oh, ma'am, it's nothing. I'm just glad to have a good position for a change. You and Mr. Stratford are my godsends. And I know that Dolly and Sarah feel the same."

"Well you're all doing a wonderful job. I just feel dreadful for any girls still over at the Ogilvy's and for the new ones going in."

"I don't think there are any new ones, ma'am. Quite a few servants were sacked before me, but new ones weren't hired." She lowered her voice to conspiratorial whisper. "Quite frankly, I think they're having financial troubles over there." She nodded her head as if to confirm the point.

She recalled what Thomas had said the night of Billy's wedding about being almost destitute. "Well, that's a good thing then that no more innocent girls will fall victim to him."

A week later, as Virginia and Drake were enjoying a friendly game of billiards, she mentioned that his suit was coming along nicely and that when he had a chance she would like him to come up for a fitting.

"Certainly, my dear. Will I be required to entirely disrobe?" he asked, with a wicked gleam in his eye.

She shot him a sideways glance and said, "Well yes of course. Did I not mention that I'm making you underclothes as well?"

"Oh well, I didn't realize I would need special undergarments for riding a horse. I'm rather looking forward to this fitting." He walked up close to her and said in a low voice, trailing a finger along her arm, "We could go up right now and do it."

She shrugged off his hand and walked around the table, away from him. "Stop that," she said. "You're just trying to get out of finishing this game, because you know I'm going to win."

"Well, it was worth a try," he chuckled.

A month had passed since Drake began working on the new groom's quarters and Virginia decided to see how things were progressing. He had been out there for a few hours and thinking he might be hungry she asked Rosy to prepare a lunch for them. It was a cold and blustery day in late-February, with the sun peeking out between the clouds now and again. She pulled on a warm cloak and walked out to the stables.

She entered and froze in her tracks, mesmerized by what she saw. Drake had finished the new quarters and was now in the process of removing one of the stalls to begin the new tack room. He was tearing down one of the walls and didn't notice her enter. She stood in the shadows watching him.

He had removed his jacket and waistcoat and was clad in just his shirt, breeches and boots. His shirt was damp from his exertion and he paused to wipe his brow. Her breath caught in her throat as she watched him strip off his shirt and undo the leather strap holding his hair back. He walked over to a bucket sitting beneath the water pump and picked it up. It was full of water and Virginia thought she might faint as she watched him lift it above his head and slowly pour the contents over himself.

She stared transfixed, as the water cascaded over his upturned face and down his neck, splashing onto his broad shoulders and raised arms, then flowing over his muscular chest and stomach to soak through his breeches, revealing his strong thighs. He dropped the bucket and shook his head, sending water droplets flying through the air. The sun broke through at that point, catching the drops, causing them to sparkle and flash as they soared past the window. He tipped his head back and slowly drew his fingers through his hair, pulling it back from his face. He lowered his head back down and a few pieces of hair fell forward, framing his face.

It was cold in the stables, but his hard work had heated his body and now a light steam rose from him. Virginia had never seen anything so utterly masculine in her life and she found she could scarcely breath.

With the sunlight illuminating the stables, Drake suddenly noticed her standing near the door. Even at that distance he could see the passion and desire burning in her eyes. Witty comments flew through his mind but he didn't dare speak and break the spell that she was under. He slowly walked towards her, dripping water, the light steam still rising from him. He ran his hands over his slick chest and stomach and shook them at his side, casting off the excess water.

She suddenly found her breath and it burst through her lips in gasps. . Her heart pounded as he approached and stood before her. His body glistened in the sunlight and she visually caressed each muscle until her eyes reached his face.

His warm amber eyes immediately drew her in. She could think of nothing except him, the way he was at this moment, and that she wanted him desperately. Before she knew what she was doing, her hands pressed against the warmth of his chest. She traced the muscles there and slid her palms over his ribs. He caught her chin in his hand and tipped her face up to his. They stared into each others eyes and she whispered, "I want you Drake. Now, here."