Wife in the Morning

Hampshire, EnglandAugust 1852Anyone who has ever read a novel knows that governesses were considered gentle and submissive people. They were also supposed to be quiet, subservient, and obedient, and, of course, deferential to the master of the house. Leo, Lord Ramsay, wondered exasperatedly why they hadn't chosen one of those. Instead, the Hathaway family had hired Catherine Marks, who, in his opinion, did not reflect well on their profession.
It wasn't that he wasn't pleased with Miss Marks's work; in fact, she had done an excellent job instructing her two younger sisters, Poppy and Beatrix, in the rules of etiquette. Yet they had required exceptional dedication, since no member of the Hathaway family had ever imagined they would end up moving in the highest circles of British society. They had grown up in a strictly middle-class environment, in a village west of London.
Their father, Edward Hathaway, a scholar of medieval history, had been considered a man of good stock, though by no means an aristocrat. However, after a series of unusual events, Leo had inherited the title of Lord Ramsay. Although he had trained to be an architect, he was now a viscount, a landowner and tenant farmer. The family Hathaway had moved to the Ramsay estate in Hampshire, where she struggled to adapt to the demands of her new life.
One of the greatest challenges the Hathaway sisters had faced was learning the absurd array of rules and manners expected of such privileged young ladies. If not for Catherine Marks's patient instruction, the Hathaways would have ventured through London with the same elegance as a stampede of elephants. Marks had worked wonders with them, especially Beatrix, who was undoubtedly the most eccentric of an already eccentric family.
Although Beatrix was happiest cavorting through the fields and forests like a wild animal, Marks had managed to convince her that a different code of conduct was required in the ballroom. The governess had even written a series of poems for the girls as rules of conduct, with literary gems such as:A lady must be modestwhen talking to a stranger. Flirting, arguments or angerThey damage our reputation.
Of course, Leo couldn't resist the temptation to mock Marks's poetic gifts, although privately he had to admit that her methods had worked. Poppy and Beatrix had finally made it through a successful season in London, and Beatrix had recently married a hotelier named Harry Rutledge. Now only Beatrix remained. Marks had assumed the role of lady-in-waiting and confidante to the vigorous nineteen-year-old.
As for the rest of the Hathaways, Catherine Marks was practically a member of the family. Leo, for his part, couldn't stand that woman, who expressed her opinion whenever she felt like it and dared to order him around. On the rare occasions when he tried to be nice, she answered him rudely or turned her back on him in disdain. When Leo expressed an opinion that was perfectly rational, he could barely finish his sentence before Marks had listed all the reasons why he was wrong.
Yet every time he was confronted with her everlasting antipathy, Leo couldn't help but respond with kindness. He'd spent a whole year trying to convince himself that it didn't matter if she looked down on him. There were many women in London who were infinitely more beautiful, charming, and attractive than Catherine Marks. However, none of them fascinated him like she did.