My next release, on October 20, is a historical saga, Gilded Girl.
A sweeping saga that spans a Downton Abbey like world, Newport, Rhode Island and New York City during the Gilded age.
Here’s a sneak peek of the opening pages.
The letter that changed everything arrived on a cold, dreary Monday. Eliza Chapman was arranging Lady Caroline Ashton’s hair into a French twist when her father, Lord Ashton, knocked at the door of her dressing room. The door was half-open, but he knocked anyway.
“You look lovely. Your mother’s pearls suit you.”
Lady Caroline touched the necklace at her throat. “Thank you.”
“You are going to sweep Lord Billings off his feet. He’d make a very good match, you know,”
Lady Caroline sighed. “Yes, you keep telling me that.” She turned and smiled at him. “I’ll be on my best behavior. Promise.”
Her father laughed.
Eliza had always admired their bond. Lord Ashton clearly thought the world of his daughter, and she adored him. Eliza was a bit envious, not of their station in life, she knew better than to wish for something, that could never change, but she longed for their closeness. She’d had it once, with her mother, but she recently passed. Eliza never knew her father.
While the two talked, Eliza let her mind drift and it went as it often did to her last moments with her mother. She’d been so sick and yet she struggled to tell Eliza something. But all she managed to say was, “I need to tell you the truth about your father.”
Her energy was fading and her last two words were mumbled and almost incoherent, “A letter.” Eliza had no idea what that meant. Did she send a letter? Receive one? What was in the letter?
“Eliza?” By Lady Caroline’s suddenly sharp tone, Eliza guessed it wasn’t the first time she’d called her name.
“Yes?”
“Stop day-dreaming. Father was trying to get your attention.”
“I’m sorry, what is it?”
“Lady Ashton would like to see you in her study at your earliest convenience,” Lord Ashton said. Alarm skittered down Eliza’s spine. She took a deep breath, then secured Lady Caroline’s hair with a final pin and took a step back.
Lady Caroline turned her head to admire her hair in all directions before nodding and saying, “That will do. You may go.”
Eliza scurried out of the room and down the long hallway and two flights of stairs until she reached the study. She knocked lightly on the closed door.
“You may enter.”
Eliza pushed the door open and stepped inside. Lady Ashton sat behind a large gleaming mahogany desk, a stack of papers in front of her and an opened envelope and folded letter on top.
“Have a seat.”
Eliza sat in one of the two leather padded chairs across from the desk and waited. The only other time she’d been summoned to the study, she’d been in trouble for not following a rule she hadn’t been aware of. She wondered what she’d done this time.
“Do you have any idea why you are here?”
“No, I am sorry though, for whatever I did.”
Lady Ashton smiled. “You’re not in trouble, my dear. This is highly unusual though. I’ve just received a letter…From your father.”
Eliza leaned forward in her chair. Surely, she’d heard wrong. “My father?”
“You don’t know anything about this?” Lady Ashton looked intrigued. “Do you even know who your father is?”
“My mother never said. She tried to tell me, before she passed, but she couldn’t manage it.”
“I see.” Lady Ashton fiddled with the letter for a moment as though debating what to do, what to say. “Maybe it’s best if I just read this to you.”
Eliza nodded and waited for her to begin.
“My dearest Lady Ashton, it has recently come to my attention that I may have a third daughter. I believe Eliza Chapman is currently in your employ as a ladies maid. I met her mother many years ago when you and Lord Ashton were kind enough to invite me to spend several weeks with you one summer. Vivian and I grew close, but we lost touch when I returned to the states. I never knew that we had a daughter together until she sent me a letter. She mentioned being sick and wanting me to know before she passed.
After much consideration, I would like to invite her Eliza to come to New York City to meet her family. I want to try to be a father to her, if she’ll allow it. I’ve enclosed a one-way ticket for her passage. Please give her my best regards and let her know that my daughters, Meredith and Katherine also look forward to meeting her. I’ve enclosed a small sum of money so that she can purchase whatever she may need for the trip. Thank you for your kind assistance in this matter and I do apologize for stealing away one of your ladies’ maids. Yours most sincerely, Ward Redfield.”
Lady Ashton stopped reading and looked up for Eliza’s response, but she was speechless.
“Do you recognize the name, Ward Redfield?” Lady Ashton asked.
“I don’t. Should I?”
“He is one of the richest and most successful men in Manhattan. His Upper East Side mansion is the largest in the city. Your father is a very rich man.”
It was lot to take in. “And he wants me to come visit?”
“He sent a one-way ticket. He wants you to stay. To go home.”
“Home. To New York City.” Eliza was stunned.
Lady Ashton leaned back in her chair and met Eliza’s gave. “It won’t be easy you know. There is the small matter of being illegitimate. Americans may be more accepting about that than we are, but it may still be problematic for you. It would be impossible here. But, maybe we can help to set you up for success there. Andrew Archibald is a very good friend.”
Eliza thought about what it all meant. This Ward Redfield had met her mother years ago, left her with child and went home, never knowing about Eliza.
“I wonder why she never told him?” What would have happened if her mother had sent the letter when she first found out?
Lady Ashton shook her head, sadly. “It simply wasn’t done back then. She might not have been believed and even if she was, Andrew’s father never would have allowed them to be together. We always wondered what happened with your mother, who she was involved with. She never said a word, to anyone. And we never judged.”
Eliza nodded. She knew her mother was always grateful that the Ashtons had kept her on when they learned of the pregnancy and that they didn’t ask any questions. Like Eliza, her mother had been a ladies maid too, for Lady Ashton.
Lady Ashton picked up her bell and rang it twice. A moment later one of the housemaids stepped into the room.
“You rang, m’lady?”
“Yes, could you please fetch Lady Caroline, and tell her to hurry.”
Minutes later, Lady Caroline strolled into the room, looking annoyed. “What is so important that I had to rush down here?”
“I think you should sit.”
Lady Caroline sat in the chair next to Eliza and listened as her mother explained what was in the letter. When she finished, Lady Caroline’s first words were, “So, this means I’m losing my ladies’ maid?”
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