I have decided to show you around the Landsborough Estate today if of course you are not in a hurry to return to your home. Victoria had no desire to return at all, but she knew she must. One more day wouldn't hurt, though. Rosie will act as chaperone if you are agreeable.
Edward looked dashing as he showed Victoria to their pony and trap. The cold weather had relented, and it was a warm April day. He was wearing a blue tailcoat with a yellow waistcoat and blue trousers. Victoria hadn't thought to bring another dress, but she had packed fresh undergarments.
Edward clicked and the black pony set of at a speed that suggested it would much rather spend the morning in a lush field that pull a trap around. The seat wasn't very wide, and Victoria found her leg rubbing against Edward's. She liked it. Rosie sat behind them facing backward and tried her best not to listen to their conversation.
Tell me about your life, Miss Lambert. What is it like to work in a mill? Edward was genuinely interested. All his tenants were employed on the land, and he'd never met anyone working in industry.
It is hard, my Lord. Fifteen hour days for little pay. My colleagues are pleasant enough, and there is a camaraderie among us, but it is backbreaking work. On Sundays, I go to church, and the rest of the time I sleep and work.
You don't make it sound very attractive at all. I must, one day, go and see these things for myself. I'm stuck here in the countryside all the time.
You are lucky, my Lord. If I were you, I would be happy to be so. What was he going to do with the estate? If he refused to give it back to her, she had no choice but to accept his decision. She was totally at the mercy of his sense of right and wrong.
Perhaps you are right. I love rural life. As he spoke the trap fell into a deep run in the road, and they lurched to the right. Victoria gasped and held onto to him until the pony managed to pull them upright again.
Excuse me, my Lord, she pulled her arm from his.
He looked around and saw Rosie was looking in the other direction. No, please leave it there. I hope you don't think me forward when I tell you it is a nice feeling.
No, my Lord, I do not.
The view from the lane they were driving down was magnificent. Down the hill, in front of them, there were green fields full of cows grazing. Beyond the fields, Victoria could see a church spire surrounded by cottages. When they reached a gate, Rosie jumped down and opened it.
We're entering the Landsborough Estate now, Edward said. The village below us is called Wendsbury. Most of the houses belong to the estate. There are five farms in all and most of the villagers work on the farms.
Victoria noticed how enthusiastically he spoke about the place. She'd heard his father had been a difficult landlord, but she was sure Edward was a kinder man, by far.
It is much larger than I thought. Why had her father gambled so much away? Had he been so unwell that he had lost all clarity of thought, and what about poor mother? For her, it must have been awful.
I will show you the village and then take you to meet Mr. Jepson, at Manor Farm. The fact he was showing her all this, and introducing her to a tenant farmer was a good sign, and Victoria was suddenly a thousand miles away from her life in Ashworhy.
Edward noticed how her expression had changed. She'd lost the pained look of someone downtrodden, and gained a smile that made his heart race. He had never been with a woman before, and he was surprised when he began to have thoughts that made him afraid he would embarrass himself when he had to get down from the trap.
It's beautiful, she exclaimed as they drove through the village. It was a linear village, with a strip of green running between the road and the houses which lined it. The church was at the end of the village, and there was a quaint thatched inn called the Lamb and Flag opposite.
Yes, it is very beautiful. In all, there are sixty-three tenants here. Victoria had no idea how much a tenant was expected to pay in rent, but sixty-three times what she paid to Mr. Pickford was a lot of money each week.
They left the village and took a left turn at a fork in the road. Signposted Manor Farm. This was an arable farm, and there were two teams of shire horses plowing the land to the right of the narrow road. At the end, they reached a farmyard. It was probably the tidiest farmyard in the land. Mr. Jepson couldn't stand a mess.
Edward stopped and got down. He walked around the other side and helped Victora to the ground. As he did so, he caught her scent. It made him want her more.
Mr. Jespon, allow me to introduce Miss Lambert, Edward said proudly.
Mr. Jepson was dressed in a check shirt and a pair of very baggy trousers, held up with a pair of yellow braces. On his feet wellingtons. You mean Landsborough, my Lord, not Lambert.
No, Lambert, Edward reiterated.
Well if ever anybody had a face like Mrs. Landsborough it is the young lady standing here. He pointed to Victoria, who smiled.