In Hiding Read online

  It was early in the morning and chilly in the late summer dawn. She was glad of the plain brown cloak she was wearing over her sensible dark fawn travelling suit.

  Her long fair hair was twisted up into a severe bun under a very sensible brown felt hat she had bought in a big London store that catered for sensible working ladies.

  “The Earl will be with you shortly, Miss Waites,” intoned Cobham. “I have arranged for your luggage to be put in the carriage. You will be driving directly to the docks at the port of Southampton.”

  Tamina nodded. She was too excited to reply.

  The last three days had seen a whirlwind of activity. She had collected the tickets from the Agency and smiled at the sum of money the Earl had enclosed. There was enough to buy new wardrobes for several secretaries.

  Tamina had placed the five pound notes carefully in her small carved jewellery box.

  She had no intention of using the Earl’s money to buy clothes. It seemed wrong to be paid anything for this job when she was only doing it to escape from Edmund, not to be a useful working member of society.

  She had closed up the family’s London house and informed the staff that she was travelling out to Italy to stay with her parents and that she had arranged for them to move down to the family estate in Devon.

  Next she had written to her mother, explaining that she was bored with the social scene in London and had agreed to go cruising around the Mediterranean with ‘a friend’.

  Tamina hated telling even a half truth to her parents, but she knew that if she confessed to what was really happening, her mother would come rushing home and that would cause all sorts of problems for her father in the diplomatic world.

  Her biggest problem had been her personal maid, Florence. Obviously, in normal circumstances, she would have taken the young girl to Italy with her.

  There was no way she could just leave her behind in England without some explanation.

  But just as Tamina was trying to find an excuse to send Florence back to her parents for a holiday – something the young girl would have found astonishing – fate stepped in.

  Florence was pouring boiling water into a bowl when the heavy jug slipped in her hand and she suffered a nasty scald on her arm.

  Tamina was deeply concerned, but luckily the doctor said that the burn would heal with rest and fresh air.

  Florence was sent down to Devon with the rest of the London staff and Tamina could announce that she would employ a maid when she arrived in Italy.

  And now her great escape was at last under way.

  With her tickets she had also found a note stating that she should join the Earl for the journey down to Southampton.

  “Ah, Miss Waites. It is very pleasing to me to see that you are a believer in punctuality.”

  The Earl was now running down the great curving staircase towards her, smiling.

  “When I find myself waiting for people, I tend to become irritated and that is not a good start to any journey.”

  Tamina smiled back warmly.

  “Indeed, my Lord, I believe it is impolite for anyone to be late for an appointment.”

  The Earl looked at her keenly.

  Slim and pretty, his new secretary’s appearance was smart and business-like, except for another hideous hat!

  He wondered vaguely why the millinery industry seemed determined to make such ugly apparel for women who could not afford to pay a great deal of money.

  But the hat apart, Miss Waites seemed keen and efficient.

  How different she seemed to the beautiful Lady Eunice who drifted through life with no aim or goal except to look elegant and was always twenty minutes late for everything!

  He had a strong sympathy for working girls such as Miss Waites. She was obviously well educated and her voice was low and melodious and although she was small and slim, she seemed strong.

  He wondered if her family had fallen on hard times and decided he would try and discover her story during their time together on the cruise.

  “Right, the luggage is in the carriage. Joe!” he called and his valet appeared. “Let us be away.”

  Tamina smiled at the servant who nodded his head in greeting. She followed him out to the driveway, wondering why such a young man looked so sad and worried.

  ‘Perhaps he is concerned about going to sea. If he has never travelled, he may think he will be seasick if the ocean becomes rough,’ she thought and decided she would try to do all she could to put his mind at rest.

  She had travelled by ship several times and was one of the lucky people who had, according to sailors, ‘good sea legs’. She never felt ill, even in the roughest of seas.

  Her brother, Peter, was a Commander in the Royal Navy and the Braithwaite estate in Devon enjoyed a long seashore. She had sailed in small dinghies with Peter when they were children and felt no fear of the sea.

  But Tamina knew that a young man such as Joe, who she imagined had lived in a poorish part of London all his life until he went into service, might never have even seen the ocean and so be terrified of what might happen to him.

  However there was no chance to speak to him as Joe clambered up to sit beside the coachman and Tamina realised that she was to sit alone inside the carriage with the Earl.

  She was pleased to discover that the Earl was not driving himself as she hoped to learn more about his plans for his book and to find out more about the man himself.

  ‘Can I really trust myself that my opinions about anyone will be correct in the future?’ she worried. ‘After all, I thought Edmund was the love of my life. I would have vowed on my soul that he was a gentleman of honour and integrity and I was completely wrong!”

  Oh, how she hated him! How could love turn to disgust so easily?

  Forced to flee the country because of her feelings for a man she knew was not worthy of her.

  But she could still feel Edmund’s kisses on her mouth and remember the ecstasy she had experienced when he held her in his arms.

  How could he have been so deceitful, not just to her, but to that other poor girl who believed they were already engaged and that he was intending for them to share a life together?

  But as the carriage left London and headed down the busy roads towards Southampton, Tamina realised that she must stop tormenting herself over the past.

  ‘What I must do,’ she lectured herself, ‘is to leave behind everything that has happened in London and start a different life for better or worse. I must start anew and think anew. But I am certain that in a great many ways it is not going to be easy.’

  “I shall be glad to be away from England,” the Earl murmured, almost to himself and Tamina started. His words echoed her thoughts exactly.

  He must have noticed her surprised expression because he hastily added,

  “Oh, do not misunderstand me, Miss Waites! I love my country passionately and even though I have lived abroad a great deal, I always knew that this was home and where I would spend the rest of my life. But I have – reasons – to be happy to be away at the moment.”

  Tamina glanced at his dark brooding expression and she could see that as hard as he tried to hide it, the Earl had been deeply hurt recently.

  And she sensed that this was more than just the normal grief to be expected on the death of his older brother. She understood because she was in the same emotional state that this was very personal.

  She opened her mouth to ask a gentle question and then stopped.

  Of course she could not do anything of the sort! She was only Tabitha Waites, the secretary, not Lady Tamina Braithwaite, his social equal.

  She must not forget her new position in life for an instant!

  “So, Miss Waites,” enquired the Earl, pulling his thoughts away from Lady Eunice and her betrayal, “are you looking forward to our expedition?”

  “Certainly,” replied Tamina, her blue eyes bright with excitement. “I love travel, my Lord, and I am especially interested in your book. Will you please explain a little
more about your ideas?”

  The Earl smiled at her, the tight bands of despair easing a little around his chest.

  Wisps of golden hair had escaped from under the hideous brown hat and curled on her pink cheeks.

  Miss Waites made a very attractive companion.

  “It will be a mixture of history and new travel information. Madeira is to be our first stop and so I will be starting the book with a chapter about that island.”

  “Madeira sounds wonderful!”

  “Yes, it is a fascinating place; an old volcano rising up out of the sea to become a magical island with an incredible landscape. One side of the island is all rocks and steep cliffs, but the other is full of flowers and lemon and orange trees. It is truly enchanting.

  “But my book must not be just a dry list of facts and figures. I am a great believer that when you feel strongly about a place, you should let it show.”

  “And have you been working on this idea for some time, my Lord?”

  “I started this book some months before I arrived in England, but I threw that manuscript away because I was annoyed with what I had written. There seemed nothing different from what has been published many times before.”

  The Earl’s dark eyes gleamed with enthusiasm.

  “This attempt will contain more passion, more feeling.”

  His expression changed.

  “Unfortunately, I do have so much more personal experience to bring to my work now.”

  Tamina nodded and then to her horror she felt tears forming in her eyes.

  “I think books should always stir your emotions,” she whispered. “I feel honoured to help you produce such a work.”

  The Earl reached forward suddenly, as if he was about to touch her gloved hand before sitting back again, as if he had forgotten for a moment that he was speaking to a member of his staff.

  “You are indeed very young to feel so deeply,” he commented cautiously. “Do you have trouble in your life? If there is anything I can do to help – ”

  Tamina shook her head.

  This was dangerous ground. She must never let her guard slip again.

  If the Earl ever discovered who she really was, he would never trust her again and would probably send her straight home.

  “That is most kind of you, my Lord, but I can assure you there is no trouble in my life at all.”

  The rest of the journey passed swiftly and soon Tamina was feeling a thrill of excitement when the vast bulk of the cruise liner, the Blue Diamond, came into view.

  Tall white sides studded with endless portholes towered above her head. Crowds of excited people were rushing up and down the gangways – telegraph boys, florists and porters with carts of luggage.

  Flocks of seagulls soared through the air crying raucously and circling the two funnels with their bright blue diamond patterns whilst the breeze blowing off the Solent was salty and invigorating.

  “Joe? Joe? Where on earth has the boy got to?”

  The Earl had jumped out of the carriage and was staring round for his valet who had disappeared into the crowd.

  Tamina had been waiting automatically on the top step to be handed out of the carriage, but bit back a little smile as she realised that was not going to happen. She was a working girl, not a lady, in the Earl’s eyes.

  But she was wrong.

  As she started to step down, the Earl spun round and his strong hand slid under her arm to help her.

  “Thank you, my Lord,” she murmured.

  “I think Joe must have gone ahead to search for my main luggage,” remarked the Earl. “It was sent down to the ship earlier.”

  He sighed.

  “He should have waited until I told him to leave, but Joe is very young and not quite sure yet exactly what his duties are.”

  “But he seems a steady young man, my Lord.”

  “Indeed. He is, I believe, very much like his brother, Jacob.

  The Earl sighed again heavily and his dark eyes grew even darker.

  “He – Jacob, was with my brother when the accident happened. He never left his side although he was mortally injured himself. He even managed to write down my brother’s last words for me before he passed away. I owe Joe’s family a great debt.”

  Tamina nodded, but inwardly she was frowning.

  As she had stood for those few seconds on the top step of the carriage, she had been able to look out over the heads of the crowd.

  She had seen Joe in deep discussion with one of the young telegraph boys. And she had seen Joe and the boy wearing a dark green uniform, hurrying up the far gangway.

  ‘It seems he has accidentally met a friend from London,’ she thought, ‘but he should not have abandoned his Lordship in such a manner.’

  As they both reached the bottom of the first class gangway, Tamina braced herself to part from the Earl.

  She was well aware that as his secretary, she would have a cabin in the second class tier of the ship.

  The Earl stopped and gestured to her to precede him.

  “I have just changed the cabin allocation,” he said briefly at her look of astonishment. “I never know when I will want to work on my book. Sometimes it can be late at night and I will not wish to kick my heels until you are summoned from a lower deck, Miss Waites.”

  “Yes, of course, my Lord. It will be very pleasant to be in the first class section and, as you say, it will make our working together far easier.”

  “So you have no problems with working late at night?” asked the Earl as they climbed the steep gangway under the flapping white awning that protected them from the salty breeze.

  “None at all, my Lord. When I undertake a job, I do not feel I should only work between certain hours. I am more than ready to help whenever you wish.”

  They had reached the top of the gangway and the Earl nodded his head, his dark eyes warm with approval.

  He was struck again by Miss Waites’s sincerity and hardworking approach to life. He was certain she would never betray any trust laid upon her slim shoulders.

  Just then, a young ship’s Officer stepped forward to greet them. Tall and good-looking, he had bright grey eyes in a tanned face and under his cap Tamina could see hair that was as blond as her own.

  “My Lord, my name is Lieutenant Archie Oxburn. On behalf of Captain Reid and the Shipping Company, may I welcome you on board and wish you a pleasant trip.”

  “Thank you, Lieutenant. This is my secretary, Miss Waites. I believe my valet is attending to our luggage.”

  The young Officer held out his hand to Tamina.

  “Good morning, Miss Waites. Welcome aboard the Blue Diamond. I trust you will find everything to your liking.”

  “I am sure I shall, Lieutenant Oxburn. She seems a marvellous ship.”

  The tall young Officer laughed down at her.

  “Oh, I see you are well aware that ships are always referred to as feminine?”

  Tamina smiled.

  “Indeed, yes. I have an older brother – ”

  She stopped abruptly and then realising that she had to continue, took a deep breath and added,

  “Yes, I have a brother in the Navy. He has told me so many times.”

  “A brother in the Navy? Which ship is he serving in? Our paths may have crossed.”

  “I fear we are blocking the gangway,” interrupted the Earl before Tamina could reply.

  The Lieutenant frowned apologetically and at once signalled to a Steward to escort them to their cabins.

  But just as Tamina was about to take her leave, she turned and saw Joe at the far end of the companionway, still talking to the young boy in the dark green uniform.

  Her heart sank.

  She was sure the Earl was not the type of gentleman to censure one of his staff out of hand, but there was no denying the fact that the young man was not behaving well.

  It would be dreadful to have a bad and unhappy atmosphere right at the beginning of the trip.

  Swiftly she turned back towards Lieut
enant Oxburn, blocking the valet from the Earl’s view and raising her voice slightly to say,

  “Oh, I am so looking forward to leaving harbour. Will there be a band playing?”

  The Lieutenant looked surprised before replying warmly,

  “Indeed there will be. Streamers are thrown from the railings on the Promenade Deck and all the well wishers who have gathered to wish us bon voyage wave and throw streamers back. I shall be delighted to escort you – if your Lordship agrees?”

  “Oh, no, that won’t be necessary – I only – ”

  “Certainly, Miss Waites,” the Early broke in, his face now stern and distant, unlike his earlier friendly countenance. “I would not wish to stand in your way of enjoying the ceremony. I have experienced a ship leaving port many times.”

  Tamina murmured her thanks, but as she followed the Steward along corridors and up staircases towards her cabin, she felt strangely irritated and ill at ease.

  She had no desire to watch the leaving ceremony with Lieutenant Archie Oxburn at her side and even to her eyes she knew she had appeared forward.

  But the damage had been done, but maybe this was exactly how a Tabitha Waites would act on board her first voyage?

  At least the Earl had not noticed Joe ushering his young friend away.

  *

  In all the hustle and bustle of a big cruise liner getting ready to sail, no one paid any attention to the two young men as they hurried along the deck.

  Joe glanced down at Nancy – he had been quite astonished when he had realised that the green-uniformed youth waving to him as the carriage drove into the docks was the girl he loved so much.

  “Where did you get the uniform?” he hissed, glancing over his shoulder to where the Earl and the new secretary were climbing out of the carriage.

  “It’s Charlie’s, he lives next door but one,” Nancy told him softly. “He broke ’is leg last week and can‘t work. I gave ’im a shillin’ to borrow it!”

  Joe squeezed her arm and hurried her up the gangway.

  With her beautiful red hair pushed up under her hat, she passed for a young boy, as long as no one looked too closely.

  And there were several messenger boys’ running back and forward from the harbour offices to the ship. No one was going to notice one in particular.