Meredith Meets Phillida D'Arby
Meredith's Tender Awakening 6:1
Previously Mr Bairstowe aired his opinion of Admiral D’Arby
Meredith and her Aunt had not had time to visit the modiste, and so she was dressed in one of her London gowns to visit Admiral D’Arby's wife, who Aunt Cecily knew well enough to refer to as Elfrida, and her second daughter Phillida. She hoped the dress passed muster amongst members of the ton in Bath.
“The eldest daughter Clara is already married to a naval officer,” Aunt Cecily informed her over the noise of the carriage wheels; on the relatively smooth streets of Bath it traveled at quite a clip. “He’s a highly decorated individual I hear - and she sometimes sails with him.”
Meredith found that arrangement unusual, but intriguing. She gazed out of the window at the passing architecture of Bath, already enchanted by the grand houses arranged in crescents and the elegantly dressed people milling about on the streets, paying visits to friends and acquaintances.
When the carriage stopped, a servant at the D’Arby’s elegant property descended the steps to open the carriage door for Meredith and her aunt. She observed his a smart livery, offset by a powdered wig that was snowy white.
“I have come to call on Lady D’Arby,” Aunt Cecily sounded imperious. “Is she at home?”
“Indeed Madam,” the servant took the calling card she presented, nodding deferentially
Aunt Cecily gathered her skirts enough to ascend the steps and Meredith followed suit. The brisk tone her aunt used didn’t fool her, she was feeling intimidated too. Entering the wide vestibule, she would have liked more time to admire the paintings and study the huge urns and porcelain figures spaced along the walls, but she followed her aunt’s ramrod-straight back down the hallway until they were shown into a grand morning room. Here Lady D’Arby and her beautiful daughter were elegantly seated on a gilded chair and a silk upholstered settee respectively.
Aunt Cecily made the introductions and Meredith lowered her head and curtsied as she was introduced. Phillida watched with eyes as green as a cat, equally wary and calculating.
While tea and pastries were summoned Meredith occupied herself smoothing out skirts and surreptitiously admiring the decor of the room: rich rugs, delicate furniture, and large vases of fragrant flowers.
“How are you enjoying your first season?” Lady D’Arby enquired solicitously once everyone was holding a cup of China tea.
“It’s been quite exciting,” Meredith lied smoothly, “so many new people to meet and dances to attend.”
She sensed that her statement prickled Phillida, and she was glad. Although she has come from London, this young woman managed to make her feel like a country bumpkin, with her arch glances and undisguised hauteur.
Phillida’s complexion was creamy and her golden hair was artfully arranged in ringlets to one side of her face, but her countenance was sulky, Cupid’s bow lips were set in a pout, and little frown lines nestled like the number eleven between her brows. Meredith felt justified in her earlier misapprehensions about this meeting. The two young women had taken an instant dislike to one another.
[To be Continued …]
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