Chapter 26
"Carson, is that you?" Lady Mary exclaimed happily.
She had been for a walk with Mr Talbot and Master George and as they had returned and neared the Abbey, she had spotted a familiar and much-loved figure sitting on the seat under the huge oak tree.
"Ahh Milady, how nice to see you," he replied, standing to greet her.
He had been miles away if truth be told; it was only three weeks until Elsie retired and their new life could begin and he had been making plans in his mind. He had already began to step down more and more; it would be disingenuous to think that Mr Barrow still needed him day-to-day at the House. The former Butler was pleased to note that the younger man was doing very well. Whereas in the past this thought may have perturbed Charles, it now pleased him greatly; he would be leaving the House in safe hands, both literally and figuratively.
Mr Talbot, with Master George on his shoulders, gave a wave to the former Butler as they continued to the House. Lady Mary joined Charles.
"It is lovely to see you too Carson. What on earth are you doing sitting out here?" she asked.
"I am waiting for Mrs Hughes, Milady. I am taking her to the Grantham Arms for lunch," he smiled contentedly.
A thought then passed through his mind; three more weeks and his wife could finally be known as Mrs Carson once and for all.
"How lovely. Did you not want to meet her inside?" Lady Mary asked, not sure why he would wait in the open air.
"I'm not needed at the House today Milady and so I find it's best to keep out from under their feet," he replied.
There wasn't any sadness to his tone, as there might once have been; he was simply stating a fact.
"... and it's a pleasant day and so I thought I would enjoy the view and the early summer weather. She won't be long now," he explained.
"Mrs Hughes is a lucky lady. Being taken out to lunch by her wonderful husband and flowers," she said, eyes sparkling as she noted the large bunch of carnations resting on the bench.
Charles chuckled, his face flushing pink.
"They are her favourite and whatever I do, I can't seem to grow them ... so I stopped off at Mrs Johnson's to collect a bunch,"
"I hope Mrs Hughes appreciates you," Lady Mary said, rather waspishly.
Charles knew that Lady Mary did not mean any harm when she made such comments. The younger woman had always held him on a pedestal and her devotion seemed to naturally set her against Elsie at times. Charles, too, was devoted to Lady Mary. On many occasions he had witnessed much kindness from her and therefore tart remarks such as this didn't normally bother him.
Every few weeks Lady Mary would drop by for tea at the Carson's cottage and relations between she and Elsie had certainly softened. The eldest daughter of the Earl of Grantham meant well and he would normally have let the comment slide but not today; Elsie's care for him for many decades had been remarkable and over recent months it had been even more extraordinary. I simply do not know how I would have coped without my wife.
"Mrs Hughes does appreciate me, yes Milady ... and I also appreciate her, more than anything. There is no doubt that I am the lucky one," he said sincerely and firmly.
Lady Mary's eyes grew wide at this statement; she knew she had been softly chastened.
"Of course Carson, of course ..." she smiled, acknowledging her error.
"And how is Master George?" he asked kindly, not wanting to cause any further ill-ease.
He could feel his right hand shaking slightly and so he placed it behind his back, out of sight. He had become accustomed to hiding his affliction as best he could whilst in company. Only in front of Elsie, and perhaps Beryl and Bill, did he refrain from doing so. He could see that thankfully Lady Mary had not spotted this.
"He is well Carson, growing taller by the day. And he and Mr Talbot have become somewhat partners in crime," she laughed.
"That is wonderful to hear," Charles replied.
Elsie appeared from the House and walked across to them.
"And here's me thinking I was early," she said sweetly, as she approached them.
"I was enjoying the fresh air," he explained, although he didn't need to. Elsie knew that her husband would never be late.
He kissed his wife lightly on the cheek. Lady Mary smiled happily at the couple although she didn't observe Elsie tenderly stroking her husband's hand behind his back. The Housekeeper knew exactly why he would be holding it like this and she wanted to offer him comfort. Her caress was brief and almost undetectable, other than to her husband whose eyes filled with love as he caught her gaze.
"And I am hoping those flowers are for me and not your fancy woman!" Elsie teased, deciding to inject a little humour into the conversation.
"They are ... she likes chrysanthemums not carnations, as you well know," he joshed in return, a lightness overcoming him as his wife was near.
Elsie laughed happily. Lady Mary was astonished; her favourite Butler really had loosened up under the care of his wife.
"Well, I won't keep you ... you both have a lovely lunch," the younger woman smiled.
"Thank you Milady," they replied in unison.
######
"Oh no," Charles muttered under his breath.
"What?" Elsie asked.
They had enjoyed a very nice lunch and were sitting at the window table in the pub having a slice of custard tart and a pot of tea to finish.
"Mr Bainbridge," he grumbled, placing his fork on his tea plate.
Elsie looked behind her and saw that the man was approaching them.
"Charlie don't start, for heaven's sake ..." she whispered, raising her eyebrows.
Charles was convinced that the new Grocer had been overly familiar with his wife following Church yesterday morning. He felt that the man's interest in his wife had been far from professional despite Elsie's protestations that her husband was being ridiculous and her assurances that the man was only being civil. Charles didn't know the Grocer very well, he had taken over providing goods to the Abbey after Charles had stepped down.
"Mr Bainbridge, it is lovely to see you," she exclaimed, perhaps a little too enthusiastically to try and paper over the slight tension that had arisen.
"And it is lovely to see you Mrs Carson, and of course Mr Carson," he added, almost as an after-thought Charles reflected.
Charles made some sort of rumbling noise by way of response and looked at the man grumpily. Elsie shook her head slightly at her daft husband.
"And I hope you are well Mr Bainbridge?" she added politely.
"I am Mrs Carson. I am. I was actually planning to make a delivery to the House this afternoon but as you are not there, perhaps it would be better to leave it until tomorrow," he said.
"Mrs Patmore is more than capable of receiving a delivery," Charles added, glaring at the man.
"Of course she is Mr Carson ... only I do like to do things properly and so I would rather Mrs Carson was there. I must admit, I also enjoy catching up with your wife when I am at the Abbey," he said genuinely, smiling at Elsie.
Oh dear, that probably wasn't the best thing he could have said, she reasoned. She bit back a snort of laughter as she looked at her husband; she thought there might actually be steam coming out of his ears any second. He looked furious.
Elsie wouldn't admit this to anyone but it gave her a bit of thrill to know that her husband was still capable of getting a tad jealous. She was also certain that Mr Bainbridge was not in any way interested in her; he was simply a pleasant and somewhat lonely gentleman who enjoyed a bit of a chat.
"Well then, I'll see you tomorrow Mr Bainbridge," Elsie replied kindly, hoping he would take this gentle hint and take his leave. He smiled and did just that, bowing his head to the couple to bid them good day.
"Charlie ... he's lonely, have a bit of compassion," she said, more amused than irritated by her husband's fuming expression.
"I have compassion ... I just doesn't see why he needs to find company with my wife," he responded unapologetically.
"Charlie, I talk to him for about five minutes once a week when he comes to the House ..." she sighed with a smile.
"You talked to him yesterday as well ... at Church," he replied defiantly.
"Oh yes I forgot about that clandestine meeting ... when you were there too, as well as about eighty other parishioners, and we talked about the weather and the Village cricket team. That really was a rather scandalous meeting," she said, raising her eyes to high heaven.
"Well I don't like it," he said childishly.
"You don't say," she responded just as pettily, although she couldn't keep the grin from her face.
Try as he might, he couldn't resist his wife's smile and he smiled back soppily. He knew he was being silly and yet he did think the Grocer's interest in his wife was a little inappropriate.
"So, I have nothing to fear from Mr Bainbridge then?" he asked, reaching forward to hold his wife's hand across the table.
He loved to feel her soft hand in his much larger, rougher one and he was pleased to see that his tremors had eased since earlier.
She really is beautiful, he thought, not for the first time that day.
"Nothing at all," she replied warmly and with certainty.
My lovely, lovely man, she thought, as she gazed at Charles with a joyful heart.
A/N: Thank you for all of the very generous reviews both from guest reviewers and those I am able to thank personally. I appreciate them so much and they are a joy to read x