Even in the dim light of that winter morning, she could see the dark slits of his eyes twinkle with a mischievous laugh. ‘As you say, my beauty,’ he whispered, bending his head close to hers, ‘it will be no more than I deserve.’ He touched her lips with his own before she could move away, then released her hand. ‘Now, I must catch the next tide if I want to reach my home by midday. I want you and your parents to visit me at Cheapside, just to satisfy you that a mere mercer can reach your high standards. Bring your cousin Aphra with you, too. She might help to convince you of my suitability.’
‘Please, don’t say any more about that. My intention was not to insult you, or the mercers in general.’
‘What was it, then? Is it that I’m not a courtier? Is that it?’
‘Yes,’ she whispered. ‘I am no nearer to the royal court than I was before and I find that hard to accept, my lord.’
‘Then let’s shelve the problem for the moment, shall we? You may find that, eventually, there will be other things to occupy your time and energy, mistress.’
She would have been a dullard indeed not to have known what he alluded to, but she did not think that, in the circumstances, the prospect was very enticing. Nor, if she could help it, was it even feasible.
Chapter Three
‘He kissed you, didn’t he?’ Aphra said.
‘You can tell?’
Aphra chuckled. ‘Well, there’s nothing to see, exactly, but...’
‘But what?’ Etta peered into the mirror, touching her lips with the tip of a finger, feeling not only the firm pressure of his mouth on hers but also the hardness of his thighs, even through her farthingale. His arm had pressed into her shoulders, bending her into him. Not a tender kiss by any means. She ought not to have allowed it, but Baron Somerville was not a man against whom she was likely to win any argument, as her time in the garden had proved. He would hear her side of things but, in the end, he would retain the upper hand.
‘You look as if you might be seeing eye to eye at last,’ Aphra said. ‘Are you?’
Etta scowled. ‘Indeed not,’ she said. ‘Not as long as I’m expected to live over a shop. He wants us to go and see it. As if that will make any difference.’
‘Just think of all those exotic fabrics and feathers, straight from the Orient and the Indies.’
‘Aphie! You’re not taking this seriously, are you? And anyway, where are the Indies?’
‘I don’t know, love. Sounds good, though.’
Etta was glad of her cousin’s company at a time like this when her deepest thoughts had begun to conflict with the impression she was trying to give of being resolute, strong-willed and still deeply frustrated by recent events. If the truth be told, her first experience of being held so forcibly, of being overruled, kissed without her permission and made to listen, had dealt a serious blow to her attempt at a frosty and implacable manner, and now she felt confused by a riot of new feelings brought on, she knew, by the man’s powerful and shocking closeness. Naturally, with his experience, he must have known how it would affect her, an innocent. He had been places, met people, done things, had women. That thought in particular made her frown. ‘He’s had women, Aphie,’ she said.
But Aphra was looking out of the window, her lovely face suddenly lit by an excitement she tried hard to control. ‘It’s Ben!’ she said, breathlessly. ‘I can see it is. He has someone with him. I must go down, Ettie. Come!’
Instantly switched to a different channel, Aphra dismissed Etta’s potentially interesting snippet of information to focus on their newest guest, their uncle, Dr Ben Spenney—Dr Ben, as he was known to the family—was the half-brother of Aphra’s mother and Etta’s stepmother, and was now an eminent apothecary whose home at Sandrock Priory had been left to him by his father, Sir Walter D’Arvall. Sir Walter and his long-suffering wife had been allowed to buy the priory after the closure of the monasteries over twenty years ago, spending a vast amount of money and effort on remodelling it for domestic use. Now, it was occupied by Dr Ben and his household, amongst whom were several young students of medicine from various parts of Europe come to study in England. He was a gentle and scholarly man, not unlike the monks with whom he’d been raised, and his family doubted he would ever find time to marry. In spite of the disparity in their ages, Ben and his niece Aphra had always held an extraordinarily deep affection for each other, though this had never been actively encouraged because of their close relationship. It was no secret to the family, but nor was it a subject ever singled out for comment, even by Aphra’s younger brother Edwin or the twin cousins with whom he worked. Now, as Etta saw the sparkle in her cousin’s eyes and the quick flush of colour to her cheeks, her heart ached for Aphra, whose special affection for Ben could never be allowed to flourish.
Downstairs, by the roaring log fire, the delight at seeing Dr Ben after an interval of several months was truly genuine, Sandrock Priory being miles away in the Wiltshire countryside within visiting distance of other second homes belonging to the D’Arvalls and Bettertons. Far enough away from London for the air to be sweet and pure. Dr Ben’s companion was quickly made welcome. ‘Master Leon of Padua,’ said Ben. ‘One of my very brightest students. I’m taking him with me to lecture at the Apothecaries’ Hall. For the experience,’ he added.
Master Leon, a well-made young man with large dark eyes and a skin that could only have been burnished by an Italian summer, wore a sober gown of dusty black over a grey-brown wool tunic and a flat cap that had seen better days. His manner and speech, however, suggested that his education had been exceptional. ‘Dr Spenney,’ he told them, ‘is either trying to offer me the experience or show me how little I know and how much I have yet to learn.’
They laughed, but Aphra said, ‘How little you know about what, sir?’
‘About the curative qualities of plants, madonna,’ he said, smiling.
‘But any housewife knows which plants heal. It’s part of a woman’s training,’ she said. ‘We have recipe books that are generations old.’
‘Aphra,’ said Dr Ben, gently, ‘stop teasing. You know what he means.’
The glances they exchanged seemed to imply much more than words, and the laugh that rose in Aphra’s throat was of a kind not often heard by the others. But his half-sister, Lady Raemon, who also had a special fondness for Ben, suspected that the real reason why he had chosen Master Leon to accompany him was to meet Aphra, and it was not long before the two were gently sparring about which plants were native to their respective countries. Etta joined in, then took them both to inspect the herb garden. So it was quite by chance that they missed the arrival of two more guests in the same barge from further down the river, Baron Somerville and Sir Elion D’Arvall, the eldest son of the late Sir Walter, and elder brother to Lady Raemon.
Sir Elion D’Arvall had once aspired to a senior position in the royal household, having assumed that he might be offered the post as King’s Cofferer on the death of his father. But with the change of sovereign had come a change in many other departments and Sir Elion had been overlooked, only to be instantly recruited by William Cecil, advisor on financial matters to the young Princess Elizabeth. Now she was Queen at last and Sir William made Secretary of State, Sir Elion had become an extra pair of ears and eyes both in England and abroad, acting as diplomat in the courts of Europe. It was inevitable that he and Baron Somerville would one day arrive together, having often met while on business abroad. ‘Where was it last, Nic?’ Sir Elion said, passing him a handsome silver-lidded tankard. ‘Antwerp, wasn’t it?’
Lord Somerville took it from him. ‘I was doing deals with silk merchants,’ he said, remembering with a smile. ‘I’ve learned a lot since then.’
‘And now you’re to marry the lovely Henrietta. Well, you’ll have your work cut out there, lad, and no mistake. Brave man, eh, Jon?’
Lord Raemon twitched an eyebrow in Somerv
ille’s direction. ‘He knows what he’s doing,’ he said, laconically. ‘I’ve warned him. Don’t blame me.’
‘Shame on you both,’ said Lady Virginia. ‘Henrietta’s a lovely young woman and intelligent, too. If she has both of you running round in small circles, you can blame each other for forcing her hand.’
‘What’s this about?’ said Dr Ben, looking from one to the other. ‘Surely you didn’t think you could make Henrietta’s mind up for her, did you? Was that wise?’
‘It was the only thing to do, Ben, if we didn’t want to spend the next twenty years failing to see eye to eye on the subject. She’ll come round,’ said Lord Raemon, ‘once she gets this latest bee out of her bonnet.’
‘Which bee?’ said Ben. He looked at Somerville for enlightenment and was told of Henrietta’s insistence that, because she had Tudor blood, and looks, the new Queen would automatically want to know her. ‘I see,’ said Ben. ‘So if her father won’t oblige and her future husband won’t oblige either, who d’ye think she’ll try next to make it happen? Three guesses.’
Sir Elion shook his head. ‘Oh, no,’ he said. ‘We don’t need three, do we? Any moment now, my niece will be in here to request a quiet word in my ear concerning a matter of courtly introductions. Do I have it right, Nic?’
‘That’s about the sum of it,’ Somerville said. ‘She’s not going to take no for an answer from any of us, anyway. We need a strategy.’
‘I think you need to be careful,’ said Ben.
‘I think you need to be very careful,’ said Lady Sophia, Sir Elion’s wife. ‘She doesn’t know the ways of the court as well as I do. She’ll be hurt.’
‘Not by any of us, my lady,’ said Lord Somerville, gently. ‘And anyone else who tries will have me to deal with.’
Sir Elion was familiar with personal disputes between couples whose marriages had been arranged for them, having helped to smooth the stormy path of his sister Ginny’s marriage to Sir Jon Raemon, as he then was. So he was not surprised to learn that their Tudor stepdaughter meant to have her own way in one direction if she could not have it in another and, knowing the Queen’s mind better than any of them, was able to see where the biggest dangers lay. When his friend Lord Somerville asked him how the new Queen fared once the excitement of the coronation had died down, his reply came as something of a shock. ‘Oh, it’s all about Lord Robert Dudley now,’ he said, witheringly. ‘Since she made him Master of Horse, you’d think a crown came with the job.’
‘What?’ said Ben. ‘He thinks he’ll be made king?’
‘There’s a lot of talk,’ said Sir Elion. ‘And not all of it innocent, either. Ah, here come the ladies. Congratulations, Niece,’ Sir Elion said to Henrietta.
‘Thank you, Uncle. Commiserations are in order. May I have a word in your ear, before we leave?’
‘Certainly, love. About how to cope with mercers, is it?’
And so they laughed and teased each other before the roaring fire that took up half the wall, the logs sizzling and spitting and smelling of last year’s apples.
Obligingly, Sir Elion made himself available to his niece, his answer formed well before her enquiry was delivered. ‘Will you be returning to court any time soon?’ she said.
‘Not before the wedding, I think. Will that be here?’
‘Yes, I expect we shall be going straight to Cheapside afterwards, but I want...well, the truth is, I want to find a way of seeing the Queen and I thought you might...?’
‘You mean, just to see her, or to have her see you? I can tell you now, Etta love, that if Somerville won’t take you, then I don’t see how I can.’
‘I simply want to see her, just to take a look. I don’t expect to be presented. Not until she wishes it, that is. That may take some time.’
‘And you want me to take you there? Is Somerville supposed to know about this? Because I shall not be doing anything unless he knows, Etta.’
‘Uncle, if he knows I’m with you, he won’t object, will he? And it will be all right for me to walk in with you, because you’re known there and I’m your niece. That won’t be against the rules, will it?’
‘Not as long as you abide by them, Etta. I can’t afford to get on the wrong side of court protocol when I earn my living there.’ Sir Elion saw this conversation taking a rather different course from the one discussed earlier, but what she was proposing sounded relatively innocuous, compared to what her father and future husband had anticipated as a head-on confrontation with their sovereign.
‘I know that, Uncle Elion. I would not do anything to embarrass you.’
‘Of course you won’t, m’dear. Shall we be invited to the wedding?’
Etta shook her head and looked away. ‘No,’ she said, ‘I doubt it. Lord Somerville prefers us to have a very modest ceremony. Only Mother and Father, that’s all.’
‘Oh, my dear,’ her uncle replied, taking her hand. ‘I’m sure he has his reasons. But give it time. You’ll get to know each other eventually. He’s a very astute man, you know. The Queen made him a baron at the same time as she knighted William Cecil, my master, and Baron Hunsdon, her half-brother. Somerville sent her money when she was still Princess Elizabeth and without a bean. When Queen Mary released her from imprisonment, she was in a sad state, poor creature. She doesn’t forget those who’ve shown loyalty to her in the past.’
Etta was deeply impressed by her uncle’s glowing tribute, causing her to wonder why, when he had told them so much else about his adventures in trading, Lord Somerville had said nothing concerning his generosity to the woman she wanted to meet. She could not help but speculate whether the Queen’s memory would extend to herself, at whom she had looked so intently on her progress through Cheapside. But now there would be much to attend to in the next days, the preparation of her clothes and the packing of all the dear childhood possessions she hoped would be given a place in the house on Cheapside above the mercer’s shop. Aware that she had misrepresented Lord Somerville to her uncle over the wedding ceremony, she was now obliged to accept the results, stark as they promised to be.
To her surprise, and disappointment, too, Lord Somerville did not avail himself of the chance to speak to her in private, apparently finding the conversation more interesting with Sir Elion, Dr Ben, Master Leon of Padua and his hosts. She could not really blame him after her coldness of the previous day, though now she began to see that he felt no particular need to make himself agreeable to her if she did not intend to do the same. She wondered, after he and Uncle Elion had returned home in the barge, whether what she’d said about the wedding would ‘accidentally’ come to his ears, which only reinforced her regret that the most important day of her life would hardly be distinguishable from any other. Quite capable of blaming herself for this state of affairs, she wept quietly into her pillow that night as Aphra’s comforting hand moved gently over her back.
* * *
Pretending a total lack of enthusiasm for the visit to Cheapside, Etta climbed into her father’s barge which was to take them down river as far as Puddle Wharf, after which there was nothing for it but a rather dirty and noisy walk up towards the great cathedral of St Paul’s. Beyond that lay the broad sweep of Cheapside from where she had witnessed the coronation procession, though now the stands had been dismantled, the shopfronts denuded of tapestries and carpets, bunting, and showy gold plate. With her were Aphra, Lord and Lady Raemon, and Etta’s maid, Tilda, also Ben and Master Leon, whose appointment with the apothecaries was that day, those two talking quietly together about what to expect. Huddled against the sharp river breeze, Etta watched the passing wherries bearing passengers clutching at their clothes without the benefit of a canvas awning.
Threading their way through the noise and bustle of Cheapside, avoiding delivery wagons and stepping over muddy cobblestones, the five guests of Lord Somerville found at last the gilded Sign of the Bridge hangin
g outside an extensive five-storey building. The front of this was almost entirely made of diamond-paned glass windows with intricately carved mullions between, carved wooden friezes decorated with shields and curved brackets holding up the jutting storey above. Carved doorposts had polished galleons over a stack of merchant’s symbols, hardly an inch undecorated. The windows on the ground floor were especially large, allowing customers to see the wares by daylight. It was one of the largest and most impressive shopfronts on a wide street known far and wide as the most fashionable thoroughfare in the City of London. Etta’s mother said what she herself was trying hard not to think. ‘Well, my dear,’ she murmured, ‘if I had to live above a shop, I think I might choose one like this without too much heartache. Just take a look at this doorway, Jon. Can we have one like that?’
‘Yes, love,’ he said, unsmiling. ‘Remind me to cash in your dowry, will you?’
A liveried apprentice stood to one side to let them pass. ‘Finest taffety and cambric, mistress,’ he called, ‘in the Queen’s favourite colours. London fustian and Naples serge. New stocks, best prices.’ Eyeing Tilda, he gave her a cheeky wink and opened the door. The clamour outside was cut off as it closed behind them, the interior of shelf-lined walls muffling all but the low murmur of customers and well-dressed assistants, the latter throwing ells of coloured silks across the counters, billowing it like sails, gossamer-fine, twinkling with metal threads. As if from nowhere, Lord Somerville came forward to greet them, bowing gracefully and giving them time to observe his restrained but elegant suit, a tan doublet with a high-standing collar of soft kid and a pleated neckband, tiny gold buttons and gold-edged slashes on the sleeves. The peacock feather was missing from his hat; in its place, a gold enamelled badge of the Mercers’ Company.
Taming the Tempestuous Tudor Page 6