‘I’m sorry to call unannounced,’ he apologised as he returned the pressure on his fingers and a little thrill ran up her arm. ‘But I didn’t think a reply would get to you in time and seeing as I had a day off, I thought I’d come and see how you were settling in. I thought perhaps we could go for a walk? It’s a lovely day.’
‘I’d love to,’ she told him. ‘I was wondering what I was going to do with myself. I don’t know my way about here yet.’
They were interrupted when Aggie hurried from the drawing room. ‘The mistress wants to know who’s ’ere.’
Emmy and Jake exchanged an amused smile as Emmy told her, ‘You can tell her it’s her nephew, Jake. Her brother Bernard’s son. He works in London too and I told him where I was living.’
‘Right y’are, miss.’ Aggie zipped away, returning a moment later to tell them, ‘The mistress says yer to take the young man into the drawin’ room. She wants to meet ’im.’
Emmy glanced at Jake and gave a slight shrug before following the maid into the room where Imogen was sitting in her usual chair.
‘So .?.?. it seems I see none of my family for years and then they all start turning up like bad pennies,’ she said rather ungraciously.
‘I apologise for not asking permission to call on my cousin, Aunt, but she only forwarded her address to me this week so I had no time,’ he answered respectfully. He had been about to say that the reason she had never seen him was because, like Emmy, he had not been aware of her existence until recently, but he didn’t want to hurt her feelings.
‘Hm.’ She narrowed her eyes and peered at him. ‘And how is Bernard – your father?’
‘He is very well, thank you, apart from a little trouble with gout.’
‘Probably due to too much rich food and drink,’ she said unsympathetically. ‘Mind you, I would have turned to drink if I was forced to live with your mother.’ As usual Imogen was quite happy to say what she thought and shame the devil. ‘Anyway, don’t just stand there making the room look untidy. Sit down, and I’ll order us some coffee. I usually have a cup at this time as Emerald will tell you. Aggie, go and see to it!’
‘Yes, ma’am.’ Aggie raced away as if old Nick himself was snapping at her heels and Emmy felt quite sorry for her as she and Jake took a seat.
‘Emerald told me you were training to be a doctor?’
Jake nodded. ‘Yes, I am. I’m sitting my final exams in a few weeks so hopefully I shall be qualified soon.’
‘Hm, and what will you do then? Will you return to the Midlands?’ Imogen asked, looking at him closely. She could see nothing of her brother in him but then she supposed he must take after his mother.
Jake shook his head. ‘No, I should like to stay in London and work in the poor hospitals.’
‘But surely the money to be made is in private practice?’ she queried.
‘You’re quite right but there are any number of doctors who are willing to tend the rich, not so many who are keen to help the poor,’ he answered.
Despite herself Imogen was impressed with him. ‘I dare say that’s very commendable but it’ll not make you wealthy,’ she pointed out. ‘What does our Bernard think of your idea?’
Jake smiled wryly. ‘He’s not too impressed, to be honest. He would rather I learnt how to manage the farm estate so that I could take over when he retires, but I prefer to do what I do. Father has pinned all his hopes on my younger brother taking over from him now, but Jasper isn’t too keen on the idea just yet, so Mother has persuaded Father to allow him some time to enjoy himself before he has to buckle down to work.’ He could have told her that Jasper had never been very keen on work of any kind and that he had even been expelled from school but he didn’t feel it was his place.
‘Huh! Sounds like she spoils him,’ Imogen said in disgust.
Thankfully, Aggie reappeared then with a tray of coffee and biscuits fresh from the oven so the conversation steered to other things.
Once the coffee was drunk, Emmy and Jasper took their leave, Jake promising that he would visit her again soon.
‘Crikey, she’s a strict old bird, isn’t she?’ Jake remarked as he tucked Emmy’s hand into the crook of his arm and they headed along the pavement.
Emmy giggled. ‘She’s not as hard as she likes to make out,’ she assured him.
They came to the park shortly after and entered through the gates. It was a glorious day with the sun riding high in a cloudless blue sky and the park was full of people, with nannies pushing their charges about in perambulators and families sitting on the grass. Children raced about playing with hoops and balls and dewy-eyed young couples strolled along arm in arm staring at each other adoringly. Eventually they came to a wooden bench beneath the shade of a large oak tree at the edge of a lake where they sat down to watch the swans gliding along the smooth surface of the water.
‘Do you think you will like living with your aunt?’ Jake asked after a time.
Emmy smiled. ‘I think so. I miss my mother and Abi, of course, but I realised fairly quickly that I have to give as good as I get with Aunt Imogen, otherwise I think she’d be unbearable. Poor little Aggie, the maid you met, runs around after her like a headless chicken, although they seem fond enough of each other.’
Jake chuckled and Emmy went on to tell him of their aunt’s interest in spiritualism. ‘Some of her spiritualist friends are coming to the house this evening for a meeting,’ she told him. ‘But I have no idea what they do.’
‘Ooh, I bet they’ll hold seances and have tables floating in the air and ghosts coming out of the walls,’ he laughed.
