Chapter 8 - The House Party Is Assembled
Library, Downton Abbey, April 2nd, 1922
Mary handed Cora what she hoped was the final version of the guest list.
"Duchess of Yeovil – I think Granny wants to renew the connexion ahead of Rose's season, she knows whoever Granny doesn't and is generally good natured – Mr and Mrs Jefferson, as you wished, as well as Lady Raven, Dowager Viscountess of Gillingham, Lord Gillingham and Sir John Bullock, as discussed. He asked for a permission to bring a friend, a Mr Sampson. I am not very happy to have a man nobody of us knows, but I couldn't find a polite way to refuse. Then there is Jack Weatherby, Matthew's friend – I don't know if you remember him, he visited us several times in London and was supposed to be Matthew's best man, but he got sick. His lungs got badly damaged by gas at Loos. That's everyone, nine guests altogether, unless you want to add anyone else? Granny and Isobel will of course join us for dinner every night and for the concert on the last day."
"You're not inviting any of your friends?" asked Cora in surprise. Mary shrugged.
"This house party is to celebrate your birthday. With your friends and the young gentleman, the guest list is already getting long."
"Nine people is not so many yet that we couldn't add one or two. It's also your debut as hostess, you should have somebody you want to see you shine in that role," she gave her daughter significant look. "What about Lady Caroline Blake?"
Mary smirked.
"Maybe I should. She did enjoy inviting me to all kinds of her events when she was married to Lucius," she sobered a bit. "You don't think it would be unkind to rub it in her face now? She never remarried after Lucius was killed."
"It would only be unkind if you mentioned it to her outright," answered Cora brightly. "And she might enjoy getting out of her mother's house for a bit. God knows any time spent with Lady Patricia tired me out very quickly."
Mary nodded, adding Caroline's name provisionally to the list and making a note to call her straight afterwards.
"What about that other friend of yours, Duchess of Crowborough?"
Mary winced.
"I would love to invite Agnes, but then I should also invite her husband, and I have no wish to have him here."
"It's always a problem when your friend marries someone you can't stand," nodded Cora in commiseration. "But maybe ask if he is even in England now? I heard that ever since the war ended he has been spending significant part of his time on the Continent."
Mary brightened up.
"Good point," she said, adding another note to her list. "That's it, then. Unless Edith wants to invite somebody as well."
Cora sighed.
"If only she would! But I am afraid the only man she would like to invite is Mr Gregson."
"Then we will better not ask, since inviting him would defeat the purpose," said Mary. "You better hope your chosen potential suitors will prove distracting enough."
"I do hope," answered Cora, nonplussed. "I hope for anything that would drag her away from that dreadful situation. If Tony Gillingham does turn her head, I would be overjoyed."
"Let's see," said Mary doubtfully. "Maybe your plans will work. Although I have to point out that you don't have the best of track record when it comes to matchmaking. I still didn't fully forgive you for trying to push Strallan at me."
She did not mention her mother's attempt to force her to keep her engagement to Richard or her manipulations to bring Lavinia back into Matthew's life. Neither the years passed nor the fact that she was safely married to Matthew now made either of those any less painful to dwell upon.
Neither Cora nor Mary noticed Edith hovering behind the pillar in the small library, her eyes flashing in anger.
Matthew's study, Downton Abbey, April 2nd, 1922
"Can you believe the gall of them?" Edith hissed into the phone angrily. "They are actually inviting men over in hope that one of them seduces me away from you!"
She heard Michael's sigh in the receiver.
"I guess it is understandable, if disappointing," he said reasonably. "They made it abundantly clear that they don't care for my situation. But in the end, it is your choice whether to stay with me or be seduced away. I can no less stop you from that than your family can force you into it."
"I know," Edith huffed, "But it's still so annoying that they cannot just respect my choices or the fact that I love you. I won't just suddenly change my mind because I meet someone who is single and available."
"Then they will learn of it, in time," pointed Michael soothingly. "And you don't know how much it means to me to hear it."
Edith basked in the unfamiliar feeling of being loved and desired and suddenly got an idea.
"Why don't you come?" she asked impulsively.
"To the house party your sister is throwing? Would she even agree?"
"I don't have to ask her," said Edith stubbornly, set on bringing her idea to life. "It's my house as well."
"From what I understand, it is Matthew's house and Mary is the hostess," pointed Michael carefully.
"I still live here and I am allowed to invite my friends over if I feel like it," countered Edith immediately. "They won't dare to throw you out while you're here. And if they try, I will just go with you. I won't allow them to manipulate me or set me up with a man I don't give a whit about, when they know perfectly well it's you I love and want to spend my life with."
Michael was quiet for a long moment.
"Then I will come," he answered finally with grim determination. "I fully expect there will be some unpleasantness, but we will face it together. I am not ashamed of my feelings for you and I won't be scared off showing them openly."
"I will ask Mrs Hughes to prepare a room for you on the morning of your arrival," said Edith happily. "Even if she goes to tell Mary, it will be too late to stop us."
The main entrance, Downton Abbey, April 14th, 1922
Mary stood proudly next to her husband, looking every inch the Countess and the Earl of Grantham, their household lined up to welcome the guests to their first house party. A line of cars was just arriving from the train station, with additional chauffeurs hired for the weekend.
This was what she always imagined her life should be like.
She glanced at Matthew, looking resplendent in his well-cut suit, with a blue silk tie bringing out his eyes and felt a surge of love for him. He glanced back, as if feeling her eyes on him, and smiled in that darling way which made it clear there was nobody he loved as much as her.
Scratch that, thought Mary. This was way better life that she had ever dared to imagine.
She reluctantly turned her attention back to their guests, just getting out from the cars, and put her Lady Mary, Countess of Grantham, a gracious and dignified hostess' mask firmly on. She was determined that this house party was going to be a success.
She felt Matthew's hand giving hers a discreet squeeze in reassurance and her smile growing more natural in response to his quiet support.
The first car brought Lady Raven and the Thompsons; all being Mama's friends, so she greeted them quickly and left them to Mama for making conversation. The next Duchess of Yeovil, Lady Caroline Blake and Agnes, Duchess of Crowborough (the Duke turned out to be otherwise engaged at the Riviera, as predicted). The final car brought Dowager Viscountess of Gillingham with her son and Sir John Bullock, who immediately sent the driver back to fetch the three remaining gentlemen, who were obliging enough to agree to the short wait at the station.
"Three gentlemen?" Mary frowned questioningly.
"My friend Sampson, Mr Weatherby and Mr Gregson," answered Sir John easily. "All very obliging chaps, to be sure."
Mary kept her mask on, but Matthew's expression grew thunderous. She hastily invited the guests to get into the house and dismissed the assembled servants to attend to their duties before he had a chance to explode. Matthew had a steady temper and was not quick to anger, but when it was aroused, it tended to be powerful. Thankfully, unlike Papa whose bellowing could raise rooftops, Matthew got quieter the angrier he was.
"How dare he?" he hissed as soon as they were alone. "I presume you did not invite him, did you?"
"Of course not!" scoffed Mary angrily. "But I bet everything that Edith did. He did not strike me as presumptuous enough to come without any invitation whatsoever."
"He should very well know that he is not welcome," said Matthew frostily. "He abused my trust. I believed him to be an honourable man and accepted his word that he was going to break his romantic ties with Edith, which he clearly never intended to do. I accept the fact that there isn't much we can do about the situation, but I'm sure not willing to let them pursue their relationship under my roof while he remains married."
"I know," said Mary soothingly, putting her hand on his arm. "But we can hardly refuse him entry now. The other guests travelled with him on the train and expect him to be here; it will cause all kinds of gossip if he is not. And as much as it pains me to say, the last thing we want is to make Edith the subject of gossip, considering their relationship would not stand any kind of closer public scrutiny. As it is, he moves in too different circles for anybody who matters realise that he is married."
Matthew exhaled loudly, but reluctantly nodded in agreement.
Great Hall, Downton Abbey, April 14th, 1922
Matthew stood by Mary, bravely attempting to make appropriate small talk with a bunch of aristocrats he had never met before. Well, he assumed that some of them might have been present at his wedding, but as that was an event which seemingly brought hundreds of the species, it didn't help much. He felt woefully out of practice with those kinds of things. The last time he was required to act in similar fashion had been at Robert's funeral and he had had much bigger things to worry about then.
Thankfully, this was exactly the kind of thing his wife excelled in.
"I hope you will enjoy the concert tomorrow," she was just saying to the elderly Duchess of Yeovil. "Granny mentioned that you are an opera afficionado and Dame Nellie Melba is rumoured to be a true wonder."
"That she is, that she is, my dear," answered the Duchess earnestly. "I had an occasion to hear her in London and I am very much looking forward to hearing her again. Oh, excuse me, I see Violet has just arrived and I have a particular matter I wanted to discuss with her."
Just as the Duchess walked away, Matthew was finally approached by a very welcome Jack Weatherby, his best friend ever since his half-forgotten Oxford days. He noted with pleasure that Jack, although still a bit pale and thinner than he should be, looked much better than the last time he had seen him.
"Nice of you to finally show up when I invite you," he teased Jack, who indeed was visiting him at Downton for the very first time, having missed the wedding and usually preferring to arrange meetings in London for convenience.
Jack grinned unapologetically, waving his hand at the opulence surrounding them.
"Obviously I was just afraid that I will get so intimidated by all this that I will forget it's just your stupid self and start to address you as my lord."
He turned to Mary.
"But it's always a wonderful pleasure to see you, Lady Mary, especially when you look as well as today."
"Thank you, Jack," said Mary graciously, but then narrowed her eyes. "But you are still not wholly forgiven for bowing out of being Matthew's best man, you know."
"But you told me you did forgive me!" whined Jack at Matthew, widening his eyes imploringly. Matthew snorted.
"I did forgive you, of course. You never asked me if my wife did though."
"Which I didn't," said Mary imperiously. "It caused as all kinds of problems on the eve on the wedding."
"But I heard I was replaced admirably by your brother-in-law, wasn't I?" beseeched Jack and Mary reluctantly admitted it to be so, clearly reluctant to let Jack off the hook, but equally unwilling to disparage Tom in any way. Jack let out an exaggerated sigh of relief at this victory.
"Is it he talking to Duchess of Yeovil now?" he asked, pointing discretely to Tom, clearly extremely uncomfortable in a chair next to the kindly aristocrat. Matthew frowned in concern. He was well aware that this was not Tom's natural environment, even less than it was his own.
"He does look to be in need of a rescue," he agreed. "Shall we?"
"Just as soon as you tell me who's the glamorous pirate over there," said Jack, observing the tall, darkly handsome man with appreciation. Matthew raised his eyes heavenward.
"It's Viscount Gillingham and you better leave him in peace. I was firmly told that he is on a lookout for a wife and there are hopes he will decide on my sister-in-law."
He smirked at the heated scowl Mary sent him at his candour.
"I am never telling you anything again if you are going to speak so freely about it," she hissed. He laughed softly, entirely uncowed.
"Then who are you going to be all catty and disparaging with?" he said unrepentantly, winking at her expected eyeroll. "Come on, Jack, let's go and rescue Tom. Poor chap really seems to need it.
xxx
Mary did glare at her husband's retreating back, but she had to admit he was right. She was enjoying exchanging catty remarks with him way too much to deprive herself of her pleasure. Not many people realised that Matthew had a mean streak of his own when it came to observing other humans' foibles – he was just way better than her at hiding it.
With a sigh, she turned towards her mother leading Dowagers Viscountess Gillingham and her son to her.
"Mary, you remember my friend Viscountess Gillingham and her son, Anthony?" asked Cora brightly, looking around. "Have you seen your sister, by the way? I wanted to reintroduce them too."
"I think I saw her walking into the library," she answered, omitting the tidbit that it was in the company of Mr Gregson. "How do you do, Lady Gillingham? Of course I remember you, you were always so elegant and kind when we saw each other. As for you, Lord Gillingham, I remember a very superior young man who found three little girls extremely tiresome to deal with."
Mother and son smiled, she with amusement, he with a slight embarrassment.
"In my defense, you were always teasing me or stealing my things. Although Lady Sybil always brought them back in the end."
Cora's smile grew wistful at this mention of her baby daughter's kindness.
"She always was a most darling girl," she said thickly. "Please excuse me, it still moves me so to speak about her."
"Not at all," said Lady Gillingham immediately. "How about we leave the young people to reminisce and we walk outside for a moment? The weather is extremely mild for so early in the spring and some fresh air should do us good."
Cora smiled at her friend gratefully and they promptly walked towards the doors, leaving Tony and Mary looking at each other a little awkwardly for a moment.
"I heard that your house was a convalescent home during the war, just like Downton was?" asked Mary, striving for a topic of conversation.
"It was a fully functioning hospital, actually. We never moved back after the war."
"And now?"
"It's a girls' school."
"Hmm," hummed Mary in lack of a better answer, thanking Providence once more for Mr Swire's inheritance.
"But we're quite comfortable in the Dower House. Did you ever see it?"
"I remember having tea there once with your grandmother. She gave me ice cream and I got it all over my dress. Nanny was furious."
Tony chuckled.
"That sounds like Grandmama. She'd always say how children should be spoiled. She's gone now, so
she'll never know if I took her advice."
"You have no children?"
"No. No children, no wife. I've come close a couple of times. In fact, I'm close now. What about you?"
"I have a son, George," answered Mary proudly. "And I must introduce you to my husband, Matthew. He is the blond man there, by the fireplace."
"I can say that he is an exceptionally lucky man," said Tony, looking at her in an intent way, which Mary did not like one bit. Where was Edith who was supposed to be the recipient of his looks?
"You may tell him that yourself then," she said brightly, leading him towards Matthew and Jack.
Some reinforcements could be useful right now.
xxx
"Lord Gillingham seems awfully interested in your wife," noted Jack shrewdly. Matthew shrugged, unconcerned.
"She is a damnably attractive woman. Men often are," he said dismissively.
"You don't mind?" asked Jack curiously.
"No at all," answered Matthew smugly. "Ever since I've met her, she was always surrounded by a gaggle of besotted men – with me among them, of course – so wishing it was otherwise would be totally pointless. But you see, in the end she chose me. All the others may just keep wishing."
"And you're not worried she will choose someone else if the competition is fierce enough and you grow old and boring?" teased Jack.
"I'm working every day to ensure that it never happens," answered Matthew, watching Mary with darkening eyes.
xxx
"We only invited him in hope he would fall for Edith," Violet reprimanded her. Mary rolled her eyes in irritation.
"It's hardly my fault!" she defended herself furiously. "If he took my behaviour as encouraging in any way, he is clearly delusional. I could understand him preferring me over Edith, but if he prefers paying attention to a married woman than search for somebody eligible, then maybe he is no great loss. I may not like Edith much, but I would not wish a philanderer for her."
"She could hardly be critical, considering her choice of company," pointed out Violet, sending a disapproving glance at her middle granddaughter and Mr Gregson, thick as thieves in the corner. "Why hasn't Matthew thrown him out?"
Mary huffed in annoyance.
"We didn't want to cause a scene or invite gossip. If some of the guest learnt he was put firmly out of the door – and you know they would, those things always get around – there would be more cause for talk than Edith being chummy with her editor."
Violent acquiesced, although with clear reluctance.
"Going back to Tony Gillingham," said Mary. "He told me he is close to Mabel Lane Fox, the most eligible heiress of the season. So whether he would like to have some fun on the side with me or not, it is not very likely that Edith stands a chance."
"Pity," said Violet crisply. "We will have to start from scratch. I guess the only use for this party is your mother enjoying herself."
"Well, it is her birthday, so it's only right. And it is nice to have some people here again. It's been so long since we had any guests. Do you think we could have another house party in the summer? Maybe for the garden party or Matthew's birthday?"
"We will try until we succeed or she marries that man," nodded Violet in agreement, making Mary roll her eyes again.
"I didn't mean an attempt to matchmake for Edith!" she hissed in exasperation. "I told you, I hated when you and Mama were pushing me at any man sitting next to me at dinner, and I have no interest in doing it to Edith. This is wholly your pet project. I do agree to invite whatever poor man you manage to scavenge for the purpose, but I won't do anything more."
Now it was Violet's turn to raise her eyes heavenward.
"It did work out for you and Matthew, didn't it? You can hardly complain about the results."
Mary stared at her incredulously.
"If it wasn't for your absolutely unsubtle and obnoxious interference, we could have been married long before the war! If anything, it slowed things down considerably. I wouldn't have been half as opposed to him as I was for ages if you all were not pushing him down my throat constantly."
xxx
"Matthew's friend is very handsome," noted Caroline speculatively. She was a thin, pretty blonde with grey eyes and a sharp nose. She and Mary had come out together, which made them friends of sorts, in addition to being third cousins. Lady Caroline Spencer, as had been, had married an heir to a baronetcy and one of the biggest estates in Ulster, but he had the bad grace to get himself killed at Gallipoli in 1915, leaving a distant cousin as the heir and his wife with nothing much to show for her marriage. "And didn't you mention at some point that he is quite rich?"
Mary snorted delicately.
"He is, on both counts," she answered curtly. "But don't waste your time with him."
"Why not?" Caroline's eyes narrowed in challenge. "You don't think I would have a chance?"
"No, you wouldn't."
"You're so certain, are you?"
"Yes," said Mary firmly, rolling her eyes. "He is not interested in whatever you have to offer. He is more... well, let's just say that he and Agnes' husband have some things in common."
Caroline's eyes widened.
"Oh," she said, then moaned. "Why are all the handsome and eligible either already married or otherwise inclined?"
Mary shrugged in commiseration and smug knowledge that she managed to snatch the best of them herself.
"Is he a total rotter as well, as Crowborough?" asked Caroline, still eyeing Jack with interest.
"No," answered Mary immediately. "He is a truly good man, nothing like the Duke."
Caroline's eyes gained a speculative gleam.
"Then maybe he is still worthy of some consideration. He will need a wife at some point, even if he's not that interested in the prospect."
Mary looked at her friend in astonishment.
"You would knowingly enter a marriage like that?"
"You said yourself that he is nothing like Agnes' husband. I don't search for affection, but for a position. As long as the man is decent and would neither treat me cruelly nor humiliate me publicly, I'm sure we could come to an understanding. We wouldn't be the only married couple to find our fun somewhere else."
Once upon a time Mary would be alright with such an arrangement herself. Once upon a time, while engaged to Richard, she feared something even worse. She sent a fervent prayer of gratitude for being married to Matthew, against all odds.
"Well, you're welcome to try then," she said only, concluding the conversation. "Just don't say I didn't warn you."
Drawing room, Downton Abbey, April 14th, 1922
Rose was absolutely thrilled. Finally, finally, something was happening! The house was full of guests and there was even a handsome young man who seemed very interested in her and was appropriate enough that no relative was likely to come running to separate them! And he liked jazz!
"I love Al Jolson, don't you? I've got all his records."
"Including 'April Showers'?" asked Sir John and Rose nearly jumped in excitement at this show of authenticity of his interest in her favourite music.
"Of course. I love it madly!"
They sat down together, waiting until all guests gathered to proceed to dinner.
"Are you ever in London?" asked Sir John suggestively and Rose's heart sped up.
"I might be," she answered coyly, already making plans how to convince Matthew to let her go. Surely he was her best chance to get Cousin Cora to agree!
xxx
By the fireplace, Matthew was talking to Jack and Mr Sampson. Lord Gillingham joined the group.
"What about a hand at cards?"
"Why not? I'll get them to set up a table for you in the smoking room," answered Matthew easily and called the underbutler's attention. "Barrow?"
"Already done, m'lord," answered Barrow with visible satisfaction. Matthew hid his amusement, but appreciated Barrow's professionalism. He just never could forget the snotty way he had treated him when he first arrived to Downton.
"Will you play, Lord Grantham?" asked Sampson politely. Matthew shook his head. He never was a fan of cards and during the war he had played enough to last him a lifetime out of sheer boredom prevalent in the trenches. If they had not been shelled into stone age, at least.
"Er, I don't think so. Not tonight."
Edith and Gregson overheard this.
"Do you ever play?" she asked him with interest.
"Well, I used to. Tonight I'd rather be with you."
xxx
Mary was joined by Lord Gillingham on a settee, where he inquired whether it would be possible to borrow a horse for a ride.
"It's no trouble. We have plenty of horses," she answered proudly. She was very aware that this once common state of affairs was not at all a given nowadays. "Have you anything to ride in?"
"We packed it all, in case."
"Well, that settles it. I'll send a message to the stables tonight."
"Will you come out with me?" asked Tony, in a perfectly polite tone but, yet again, with a look giving her a slight pause. Still, she would love a ride and it's been ages since she had some interesting company while doing so.
"Actually I might. I haven't been in the saddle for ages. I'll be as stiff as a board the next day."
The laughed easily. She had to admit that for all his soulful looks he was not wholly unpleasant. She still found it prudent to address the room at large.
"Would anyone else like to go riding tomorrow morning? Sir John? Mr Sampson?"
They both answered in the negative, Rose following suit as soon as she ascertained Sir John was not going. Which made Mary desperate enough to ask Edith, who immediately turned the question to Gregson, and, after ensuring he had no will to go, refused as well.
"What about Lord Grantham?" asked Tony.
Mary shook her head regretfully.
"He hasn't been able to ride much since the war. It aggravates his back injury."
"I'm afraid you're stuck with me then," announced Tony cheerfully, not sounding troubled by it at all.
Mary sighed. She hoped it was her vanity and not her intuition which read more into his words.
Mary and Matthew's bedroom, April 14th, 1922
Matthew flopped on the bed in mock exhaustion.
"One night survived," he grumbled. "Just two more to go."
Mary sent him a sardonic look, rubbing cold cream into her hands.
"Was it all so bad as that? I seem to recall seeing you having quite a lot of fun with Tom and Jack."
"I did," admitted Matthew, "They hit it off, just like I knew they would, so we had several very entertaining conversations. But it doesn't nearly make up for the amount of small talk with people I don't know and don't care about, having nowhere near the time to talk with you I would like to have, being forced to tolerate Gregson's presence in my home and at my sister-in-law's side and Tony Gillingham salivating at you without giving any of them a punch in the face. All in all, I'd say I earned the right to be grumpy."
"I'm afraid what I have to say will make you even grumpier," said Mary casually. "I'm going riding with him tomorrow."
Matthew threw her a caustic eye from the bed.
"You suddenly got me wondering if a day in bed with a hot water bottle and excruciating back pain is not worth interrupting this tete-a-tete he has planned."
Mary rolled her eyes.
"Whatever he has planned, he is not going to get it. And if he proves too much an annoyance, I am too fast on Valiant for him to catch me."
"Just don't break your back while running away from him, it could prove mighty inconvenient."
"In what ways?" asked Mary, approaching the bed coyly. She did notice predatory gleam in her husband's eyes and she was shivering slightly in anticipation.
"Because then I would not be able to do that," growled Matthew and, pouncing from the bed, threw her on it in his place, quickly following on top of her. Mary just hoped that the walls were thick enough to absorb her laughing shriek at his actions.
Then she lost her ability to think about anything but her husband.
