The Butler’s Dowry

Chapter 1

“Charlotte, where is my tea?” Richard called from his study. I sighed and willed the water to boil faster. He had just asked for it two minutes ago and he expected it to be ready instantaneously. Suddenly I saw a bubble form at the bottom of the pot and leaped for joy. Then I realized it was the only bubble in the bottom of the pot.

I took a spoon and dipped it in the water, then I touched my finger to the spoon. It was hot it would do. Besides by the time Richard actually gets around to drinking the tea it’s already ice cold. So I quickly poured the hot enough water into a tea pot with the dried leaves already at the bottom and carried the tray upstairs to the study.

“Here you are Mister Dubois.” I said putting the tray down on the only cleared place in the room. Mister Richard Dubois was one of the messiest men in the world and everyone knew it because as soon as the stepped into his study. I had begged him to allow me to clean it but he had become quite upset and I forgot the idea after about two years.

“Thank you Charlotte, say I don’t have anything to do tomorrow do I?” he asked calculating some figures on his well used piece of paper.

“Tea with Miss Susanna and her aunt in Whenton.” I said, then thought a bit more. “Oh and in the evening Mister Boyd is coming over for dinner.” I added. Mister Dubois is also a very forget man and has to ask me every day what his schedule is. I tell him but there really is no point because in the morning he will open the morning paper, drink his coffee in bed, get dressed, and go into his study to work on some great mathematical find and I would have to tell him an hour or so before he had to leave for whatever his appointment was.

“Oh damn I was hoping for an empty day tomorrow. But I promised Susanna to have tea with her and her aunt and Boyd will come to dinner even if I tell him it’s cancelled. Is there any day this week that have completely free?” he had stopped writing now and had propped his head on his hand which was resting atop hundreds of unsorted papers.

“Well Thursday is mostly free except for your lawyer is coming to drop off some papers at two in the afternoon. And why do you wish a free day Mister Dubois?”

“Well I wanted to try and finish this new machine I was working on. It’s like a guillotine but it has several little blades and it cuts vegetables. On Thursday I’ll show you. Speaking of Thursday make sure it stays free would you?”

“I will try Sir but if you go and make arrangement when I’m not around I can’t help you.”

“No you can’t but do your best.” He said. Then he turned back to his papers and I knew he was lost to the world, and so was the tea.

I went back downstairs and went back to what I was doing before he had called for the very unnecessary tea. I had been polishing the silver while helping Mary, the parlor maid, cook dinner. Because it was only Richard in the house I was not only the butler but the cook as well. Mary was hired to help me keep the house clean and do some of the cooking. Then there was Pierre who was Richard’s valet and the footman as well as the occasional gardener when necessary.

Pierre was out buying some things for the dinner tomorrow night and Mary was stirring gravy for tonight’s dinner which would probably only be eaten by the three of us downstairs as Richard tended to forget about dinner. I swear that if I didn’t bring him breakfast first thing in the morning the man would starve to death.

I finished the polishing then went to set the table for dinner. Mister Boyd was one of Richard’s oldest and dearest friends. He was also one of the few people who could stand to around the man for more than a couple hours before falling asleep from boredom.

I helped Mary finish cooking the light dinner of chicken, potatoes, salad, and cauliflower then went to eat something of my own quickly before Boyd arrived. He arrived promptly at seven and I went to answer the door and told Mary to quickly set the hot dishes out on the table.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite butler!” he said when I opened the door. Sometimes I believe that Boyd has a smile plastered onto his face, he is always smiling no matter what.

“Hello Mister Boyd, come in won’t you.”

“How many times must I tell you to call me Charles? Oh I guess you’ll never learn.” He laughed as I took his hat and coat.

“Mister Dubois is in his house upstairs if you need him right now. Dinner is ready whenever the two or you are.” I told him putting his coat in the closet.

“No let him stay there for a bit longer. Could I have my kiss?” he turned his cheek to me and waited as I scowled at him. Boyd was always joking with me like this. Every time he came over he would demand his kiss which he somehow got every time.

“Boyd no kisses this time. One of these days someone is going to catch me kissing you and think the worst of me. I’m a butler not a maid and I wish you would treat me that way.” I lectured.

“Oh come on one is here but you and me, and Richard is upstairs under a pile of books and won’t come down till you call him. Now come on and give me my kiss or I just might die.” He moved a bit closer to me so that his cheek was only a few inches from my face.

I rose up on my toes and pecked him on the cheek, it happens every time.

“There’s your kiss! Now wait here while I get Mister Dubois from the dungeon.” I said going upstairs.

“Mister Dubois? Mister Boyd is here for dinner.”

“Tell him to wait a minute while I finish some last adjustments on something.” He said from behind a bookshelf. He had separated his study into two parts with a bookshelf being the divider between the two. On the other side was his ‘laboratory’ where he invented odd little gadgets that he insisted were used throughout the house.

“All right, but don’t be too long or dinner may get cold.” I told him as I went back downstairs.

“Too busy eh?” Boyd asked me.

“He’s always too busy, would you like something to drink while you wait?”

“Yes please, whatever you think I’ll like.”

So I got him a drink then went to go make sure the food was covered so it wouldn’t freeze. I heard Richard’s footsteps coming down the stairs from his study and hurried back to the parlor.

“Dinner is still ready I’m assuming Charlotte?” he asked. He looked like he had just woken up from a nap his hair was so mussed up and his jacket was unbuttoned and screwy.

“Yes Sir it is.” I assured him as I led him and Boyd to the dinning room. They sat and I uncovered the food and began cutting the chicken and serving it.

“You know Richard you really do look a mess. I wonder what Susanna ever saw in you, perhaps she has bad eyesight, or is hard at hearing. That or she only sees you on the rare occasions when you are not in your study.” Boyd teased Richard.

“Charles why is it that you must always make fun of me? I enjoy my work and I believe that Susanna finds it almost as fascinating as I do. We’re quite happy talking about inventing and science together, for a woman she is very learned.”

“Or she likes the fact that you are an extremely easy ticket to money. Richard, have you really thought about this carefully? You are a rich man would could care less about getting married, everyone knows that. You only enjoy talking to people who like listening to you and that is all Susanna is doing, listening to you talk about your work. Charlotte could I have some more please?” I stepped forward from the other side of the table and served Boyd some more bread as Richard responded.

“Charles, you would be happy with a prostitute off the street. I am not like you. I want a woman who is educated and has a mind of her own and can carry a pleasant conversation with me. You on the other hand could care less what she was like as long as she was beautiful. No thank you Charlotte I don’t think I could eat any more than this.” The last part was to me as I tried to put more food on his plate.

“Oh come now Richard! Poor Charlotte here was only trying to keep you alive. If it weren’t for her you’d be dead from starvation by now.” Boyd defended me. Me and my unending effort to put some meat of Mister Richard’s bones.

“Sorry Charlotte I meant no offence, I’m simply not very hungry this evening. The tea you served me was quite sufficient.” I knew he hadn’t drunk nor eaten one crumb of what I had served him for tea but kept silent. Boyd may be a very familiar friend but I was still the butler and I intended to act as such.

“No offence taken Sir, perhaps I should leave you two to talk in private?”

“No I like you here.” Boyd stated grabbing my wrist gently.

“Charles if she wants to leave then let her do so. After all you do like to talk about such crude subject.”

“Oh do I? Charlotte do I talk about crude subjects often?” he did but it was not my place to say so.

“Not that I know of Mister Boyd.” I answered.

“There see?” he said to Richard. “Stay here and keep the room bright for me would you?” he squeezed my wrist softly and smiled up at me.

“I won’t leave if I am needed here, I was only asking whether you and Mister Dubois wished to speak in private without my presence.”

“Good then! You can sit down if you like, I won’t tell anyone.”

“Charles please stop harassing my staff!” Richard said sternly sending Boyd a hard stare.

He quickly dropped my arm and turned back to his food. I went back to my place and the edge of the room. To change the subject Boyd then asked Richard of his dealings with the stock market. The rest of dinner was then all money and numbers and no more was said about Susana or me.

I unfortunately had to agree with Boyd on his views about Susana. Of what I had seen of the woman she seemed to be interested in nothing but spending money and going to parties, two things Richard detested. But Susana seemed to transform from her usually bubbly self into a seemingly sophisticated easy to talk to woman, when my master was present at least.

After dinner the two men went back to the parlor for a drink and I helped Mary clear off the dishes and leftover food.

“Why doesn’t Mister Dubois ever have very many visitors?” Mary asked me. She was still very new to the job and had not yet learned all the ways of the house.

“Mister Dubois likes his peace.” I told her.

“Does he not have any friends?”

“He has a few good friends but not too many. What friends he has are very old friends from before he was so into his work.”

“Like Mister Boyd?” she persisted.

“Yes like Mister Boyd, now hurry up and get those dishes washed while I go upstairs. And do it quickly, no day dreaming!” I called behind me as I went up the stairs. Just as I was going up I heard the bell, they were probably in the middle of another argument or Boyd was just bored to death and wanted to go home.

“You rang?” I asked opening the door to the parlor.

“Yes I did. Charles is ready to leave now so would you please show him out and then come back in here so I can talk to you.”

“Yes of course Mister Dubois.” I curtsied then held the door open for Boyd. He waited by the door as I got his hat and jacket then I helped him put them on. Before he left he looked back at the parlor door, which I had closed, then he looked at me.

“I hate to see such a jewel hidden in a place like this.” He whispered. I was going to ask him what he meant by that when he suddenly bent down and kissed me square on the lips. It lasted only an instant and when I had regained my composure he had already gone out the door and was gone. I was rather shocked at this behavior on Boyd’s part and I could feel my cheeks growing warm as I touched my fingers to my lips.

Boyd had some tricks up his sleeve but never had they been so forward. I would comment on my dislike of it the very next time I saw him. I was so preoccupied with my thoughts of Boyd’s behavior that I almost forgot about Mister Richard in the parlor. I hurried back and went back in then waited to hear what he had to say.

“Charlotte you don’t regret being my butler, do you?”

“No Sir why should I? I have everything that I need and you are a good master no matter what people might think.”

“Yes but are you truly happy here? Is there anything you’d rather be doing for example.”

“Not at the moment Sir, after all what else could I possibly do other than be your butler? If I were to leave I doubt anyone else would have a woman as their butler, I would probably be a maid or a cook and I don’t want that. Really Sir I assure you that I am quite fine ere with you. Is that all you wanted to talk to me about?”

“No there are a few things actually. I need a woman’s advice on something. Now please tell me what you truly think or this will not work.”

“Yes Sir.”

“It’s about Susana, what do think of her? As a woman who sees character rather than beauty what do you think?” I absent mindedly chewed my bottom lip. I didn’t want to tell him but I knew I should.

“Well Sir it’s hard to say, from what I hear she is as many women, buying things and attending parties. But when with you she seems to take on a different face for your pleasure. I hate to admit it but I agree with what Boyd said about her in the dining room.”

“Oh, I see. And tomorrow when I see her, what should I say? I have only met her twice now and that was in the park. But I do like her so far and I want to know what she truly is like. What do you suggest?”

“Bring her here Sir, show her your work. If a woman does not understand and find your work truly interesting that I fear that she is not the woman for you. After all you are so involved in your work that it would only be right to have a wife that is just as involved is it not?”

“Brilliant! I will invite her and her aunt here for dinner one evening and then show her some of my calculations and inventions. If she seems anything but interested I will know for sure that she doesn’t really find it as fascinating as she says she does. What night am I free to have them over next week?”

“Well so far all evenings are free, except that Wednesday is my day off. Perhaps on Friday, yes Friday would do nicely.” I told him nodding my head.

“Excellent, would you write that down for me so I won’t forget the date? Thank you. Now, if you would, call Pierre to come help me undress for bed. I think my work can wait till the morning.”

I must admit I was relieved to here him say that because it was very late at night and Pierre still had some chores to finish before he could go to bed. The young man didn’t get much sleep with Richard’s unusual sleeping habits and I feared he might not stay very much longer if he couldn’t keep up.

I went downstairs where he was helping Mary wash up the last of the dishes and told him to go up and help Richard get undressed for bed. He went up while I helped Mary finish the dished then put away the leftover food. After a while I sent Mary off to bed telling her I could finish up the cleaning up while waiting for Pierre to come back down.

“Charlotte.” Pierre called me coming down the stairs.

“In the kitchen.” I answered.

“Oh there you are, um is everything finished now?”

“Yes, you go off to bed now. You and Mary can sleep in a tad in the morning since I won’t need you till later. Mister Dubois has to go to tea tomorrow and you’ll need to go with him. Other than that I can do the rest with Mary’s help.”

“Thank you, oh and Mister Dubois says that he forgot to tell you that Boyd said he’d be coming back with a very important guest on the eleventh for tea. He says he doesn’t know who it is but Mister Boyd said to make sure we were prepared as if royalty were coming. I have no idea who it could possibly be but Mister Dubois said you’d know what to do.”

“Yes thank you Pierre I do know what to do. Now hurry off to bed or sleeping in tomorrow won’t do much for you.”

“Good night Charlotte. I turned off the lights upstairs so you don’t have to do that.” He said leaving to go to his room. I finished putting everything away then followed suit by going to my back rooms behind the kitchen.

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A/N: New story folks! Sorry if you hate me for this. It’s been sitting around all summer so I decided to put it up. It’s not the most exciting stories of all times but I think it’s got a pretty good plot, not a long one but a good one. I’ll see how far I can get with it. Thanks for reading and please let me know what you think.