[A/N. As I've already mentioned I spent a bit of time in hospital and am
now home recovering somewhat slowly. At the moment this basically entails
psyio and rehab, and I've got an appointment with my neurosurgeon next
Tuesday where I'll learn whether or not he thinks he is going to operate.
At the moment I am hobbling around the house like a very old woman, and I
can't bend over, stretch up or lift things, but I'm getting there. Even if
I'm still existing on painkillers. The general rule appears to be that I am
not allowed to sit up for more than ten or fifteen minutes at a time, but
I've been ignoring that a bit. So this chapter is most likely going to be
written in a few parts, and there probably won't be a lot of new chapters
in the next few weeks.]
London, March 1958.
"Aren't you the least bit nervous?" Eliza asked as they entered the restaurant.
"Not at all, why should I be?" Edward said. "Darling you've got to realise that just because they've got titles doesn't make them any less like you or me."
"But from things I've read- Edward people like that, aristocracy, always stick together. Surely they're not going to be entirely happy about their son marrying Margaret- a nobody." Eliza asked worried.
"A nobody?" Edward laughed. "Good lord Eliza, who could describe Margaret as that? Someone who was deaf and blind and didn't notice how loud and exuberant she is?"
"I'm talking about her not being a Lady, or a Duchess, or a Baroness or a-" Eliza began but Edward interrupted her.
"If Richard's parents are anything like him we're bound to like them." Edward assured his wife. "In the few days we've been here and out with them, have you ever once heard him abuse his title? Have you ever once heard him treat Margaret with anything but love and devotion?"
"I'm not disputing he loves her." Eliza said. "That's very clear to see. I'm just worried that his parents might not love her as much."
"Well they wouldn't offer to hold the wedding up at their estate if they didn't approve of the marriage, would they?" Edward asked philosophically. "Now, stop worrying and have fun sweetie."
*****
"So, Richard tells me that you've got a branch of your business over here- in Liverpool. You must be doing well for yourself." Lord Monksfield- or Richard as he'd asked them to call him- asked Edward as they waited for their entrees to arrive.
"Well enough to be thinking of expanding further." Edward admitted. "We've been debating opening up somewhere else in Europe but we've got no firm plans at the moment."
"We? Is your son- Ben isn't it?- involved in the business too then?" Richard senior asked.
"Actually he's not. He's a lawyer in New York. He's only recently graduated from Harvard Law and got the job so there wasn't any chance he could get over here for the wedding." Edward explained. "I'm thinking perhaps of floating the business once I get a bit older."
"A wise choice in the current climate." Richard senior agreed. "Richard here is going to go into the family business when he finishes at Oxford."
Whilst the men spoke about business Margaret, Eliza and Lady Monksfield- Elizabeth-talked about the wedding. "I have to admit when Margaret first began to plan it I was a little worried about the expense," Elizabeth said with a smile. "I didn't know at that stage how well off you were."
"Yes..well..Margaret's always had expensive taste I guess." Eliza said, not really sure how to react to the comment. Was the woman making a jibe at them, or was she simply stating a fact?
"Well a girl only gets married once Mama- she has to do it properly." Margaret said with a smile over in her fiancé's direction.
"True enough." Elizabeth said nodding. "You know Eliza Margaret speaks about you so much I feel as though I already know you and Edward, and they seem to be getting along well don't they?" She gestured in the direction of the men, who were now talking politics happily.
Eliza felt herself relax. It seemed as though all her concerns had been for nothing-Richard's parents were as nice as he was, and also as fond of Margaret as he was. "Yes, they do, don't they?" She agreed.
The waiter arrived with their entrees and as they ate the conversation turned to the time when Edward and Eliza had been living in Liverpool during the war.
"It must have been pretty damn scary." Richard senior said. "Of course we were out of it being up in the country and all, but if Hitler had succeeded how long would we have been safe for?"
"It wasn't exactly pleasant." Eliza admitted. "Especially if Edward was out when the sirens went."
"Bloody Hitler hey?" Richard senior shook his head. "I never would have thought he'd end up doing what he did. We all thought he was bignoting, grandstanding if you will, we had no idea what an evil sod he was."
"We thought the same back home." Edward said. "I was in touch with people back there of course when we were over here and the consensus was pretty much he was all talk."
"War talk." Elizabeth sighed dramatically. "The war's been over nearly fifteen years and we still get war talk."
"Sorry my dear," Richard senior patted his wife on the knee. "What do you want to talk about?"
"The wedding of course." Her eyes lit up, and he shook his head.
"You can't possibly imagine how excited she is about this wedding." Richard senior said. "When she and Margaret get together..and now add Eliza in, and god help us."
"Do you know," Richard said, smiling at his fiancée. "I had her convinced I was going to wear a purple shirt to the wedding, and she was horrified."
"You were terrible." Margaret said, glaring at him for a brief moment before smiling again. "And then he told me he was going to be wearing a pink tie if he wasn't allowed a purple shirt."
"He gets that from his father." Elizabeth confided. "Both the teasing, and the bad dress sense."
Everyone laughed, and under the table Eliza felt Edward's hand rest briefly on hers. She squeezed it and smiled. The Monksfield's had well and truly accepted Margaret and her family. Margaret was going to be part of society, and she was going to have a husband who loved her greatly. It was all Eliza had ever wanted for her and she couldn't have been happier. She couldn't wait for the trip up to the country estate and the wedding itself. Of course, it would all be complete once Ben found himself a wife, but Eliza was sure that wouldn't take long- a handsome lawyer was too much to pass up, but she hoped that whoever Ben chose was like Richard and his family.
*****
"Isn't that a bit snobby?" Edward asked later that night when they were back in their hotel room. "I mean, it almost sounds as if you approve of the Monksfields because they have a lot of money."
"No, that's not it at all." Eliza hastened to assure him. "Remember Edward there have been times in my life when I've known what it's like to have no money at all. I wouldn't ever judge anyone on the size of their bank account. What I meant was a family like the Monksfields in the sense that they accept Margaret completely, and they're also very nice people." She leant against him on the couch and he put his arm around her shoulders.
"They are nice aren't they?" Edward said. "And isn't Margaret going to love being a Lady?"
"Oh my gosh yes," Eliza laughed. "Can't you see it now? We'll get letters home signed from Lady Margaret."
"With her personal crest stamped on top?" Edward added.
"Well we have the Gracie crest stamped on our things." Eliza teased him.
"That's purely for business purposes." Edward said. "Listen Eliza, I was thinking during dinner when the Monksfield's were talking about some of the places they've been. What do you think about travelling? I mean I'm going to retire in a few years time when I'm sixtyish, and wouldn't it be nice to spend some time travelling and enjoying ourselves?"
"That would be nice." Eliza agreed. "But we've got a few years to think about it."
"What you mean is don't disturb you- you're thinking wedding things?" Edward teased. "I pity the poor girl who marries Ben."
Eliza hit him. "Do you think Ben's going to get married soon?" She asked. "I mean, he's just turned 24!"
"I'm sure he will some day- I think building his career is a bit more important to him at the moment though." Edward said. "Remember what you said to me- people get married a bit later now?"
"True." Eliza said. "But I'd like to see him married before we go off travelling anywhere."
"Most likely we will, it won't be for another four or five years before we actually do it, if we do." Edward said.
"Isn't this all great?" Eliza said sleepily. "Richard is great, and Margaret loves him so much and they're great together. And the Monksfields are great too. They treated us like equals."
"We are equals. Truth be told we've got just as much money as they do." Edward said. "In fact, from now on I think I'll be Lord Gracie, and you can be my lovely wife, Lady Gracie."
"Idiot." Eliza said with affection. She sighed and closed her eyes. When she was a young girl growing up in a poor family she'd never dreamt she'd have the things she had now, in fact they hadn't even entered her mind. All she'd ever wanted was a husband and children and to be happy, the simple things in life. And thank god those simple things, even with the frills she'd not added on in her childhood dreams, were coming true.
London, March 1958.
"Aren't you the least bit nervous?" Eliza asked as they entered the restaurant.
"Not at all, why should I be?" Edward said. "Darling you've got to realise that just because they've got titles doesn't make them any less like you or me."
"But from things I've read- Edward people like that, aristocracy, always stick together. Surely they're not going to be entirely happy about their son marrying Margaret- a nobody." Eliza asked worried.
"A nobody?" Edward laughed. "Good lord Eliza, who could describe Margaret as that? Someone who was deaf and blind and didn't notice how loud and exuberant she is?"
"I'm talking about her not being a Lady, or a Duchess, or a Baroness or a-" Eliza began but Edward interrupted her.
"If Richard's parents are anything like him we're bound to like them." Edward assured his wife. "In the few days we've been here and out with them, have you ever once heard him abuse his title? Have you ever once heard him treat Margaret with anything but love and devotion?"
"I'm not disputing he loves her." Eliza said. "That's very clear to see. I'm just worried that his parents might not love her as much."
"Well they wouldn't offer to hold the wedding up at their estate if they didn't approve of the marriage, would they?" Edward asked philosophically. "Now, stop worrying and have fun sweetie."
*****
"So, Richard tells me that you've got a branch of your business over here- in Liverpool. You must be doing well for yourself." Lord Monksfield- or Richard as he'd asked them to call him- asked Edward as they waited for their entrees to arrive.
"Well enough to be thinking of expanding further." Edward admitted. "We've been debating opening up somewhere else in Europe but we've got no firm plans at the moment."
"We? Is your son- Ben isn't it?- involved in the business too then?" Richard senior asked.
"Actually he's not. He's a lawyer in New York. He's only recently graduated from Harvard Law and got the job so there wasn't any chance he could get over here for the wedding." Edward explained. "I'm thinking perhaps of floating the business once I get a bit older."
"A wise choice in the current climate." Richard senior agreed. "Richard here is going to go into the family business when he finishes at Oxford."
Whilst the men spoke about business Margaret, Eliza and Lady Monksfield- Elizabeth-talked about the wedding. "I have to admit when Margaret first began to plan it I was a little worried about the expense," Elizabeth said with a smile. "I didn't know at that stage how well off you were."
"Yes..well..Margaret's always had expensive taste I guess." Eliza said, not really sure how to react to the comment. Was the woman making a jibe at them, or was she simply stating a fact?
"Well a girl only gets married once Mama- she has to do it properly." Margaret said with a smile over in her fiancé's direction.
"True enough." Elizabeth said nodding. "You know Eliza Margaret speaks about you so much I feel as though I already know you and Edward, and they seem to be getting along well don't they?" She gestured in the direction of the men, who were now talking politics happily.
Eliza felt herself relax. It seemed as though all her concerns had been for nothing-Richard's parents were as nice as he was, and also as fond of Margaret as he was. "Yes, they do, don't they?" She agreed.
The waiter arrived with their entrees and as they ate the conversation turned to the time when Edward and Eliza had been living in Liverpool during the war.
"It must have been pretty damn scary." Richard senior said. "Of course we were out of it being up in the country and all, but if Hitler had succeeded how long would we have been safe for?"
"It wasn't exactly pleasant." Eliza admitted. "Especially if Edward was out when the sirens went."
"Bloody Hitler hey?" Richard senior shook his head. "I never would have thought he'd end up doing what he did. We all thought he was bignoting, grandstanding if you will, we had no idea what an evil sod he was."
"We thought the same back home." Edward said. "I was in touch with people back there of course when we were over here and the consensus was pretty much he was all talk."
"War talk." Elizabeth sighed dramatically. "The war's been over nearly fifteen years and we still get war talk."
"Sorry my dear," Richard senior patted his wife on the knee. "What do you want to talk about?"
"The wedding of course." Her eyes lit up, and he shook his head.
"You can't possibly imagine how excited she is about this wedding." Richard senior said. "When she and Margaret get together..and now add Eliza in, and god help us."
"Do you know," Richard said, smiling at his fiancée. "I had her convinced I was going to wear a purple shirt to the wedding, and she was horrified."
"You were terrible." Margaret said, glaring at him for a brief moment before smiling again. "And then he told me he was going to be wearing a pink tie if he wasn't allowed a purple shirt."
"He gets that from his father." Elizabeth confided. "Both the teasing, and the bad dress sense."
Everyone laughed, and under the table Eliza felt Edward's hand rest briefly on hers. She squeezed it and smiled. The Monksfield's had well and truly accepted Margaret and her family. Margaret was going to be part of society, and she was going to have a husband who loved her greatly. It was all Eliza had ever wanted for her and she couldn't have been happier. She couldn't wait for the trip up to the country estate and the wedding itself. Of course, it would all be complete once Ben found himself a wife, but Eliza was sure that wouldn't take long- a handsome lawyer was too much to pass up, but she hoped that whoever Ben chose was like Richard and his family.
*****
"Isn't that a bit snobby?" Edward asked later that night when they were back in their hotel room. "I mean, it almost sounds as if you approve of the Monksfields because they have a lot of money."
"No, that's not it at all." Eliza hastened to assure him. "Remember Edward there have been times in my life when I've known what it's like to have no money at all. I wouldn't ever judge anyone on the size of their bank account. What I meant was a family like the Monksfields in the sense that they accept Margaret completely, and they're also very nice people." She leant against him on the couch and he put his arm around her shoulders.
"They are nice aren't they?" Edward said. "And isn't Margaret going to love being a Lady?"
"Oh my gosh yes," Eliza laughed. "Can't you see it now? We'll get letters home signed from Lady Margaret."
"With her personal crest stamped on top?" Edward added.
"Well we have the Gracie crest stamped on our things." Eliza teased him.
"That's purely for business purposes." Edward said. "Listen Eliza, I was thinking during dinner when the Monksfield's were talking about some of the places they've been. What do you think about travelling? I mean I'm going to retire in a few years time when I'm sixtyish, and wouldn't it be nice to spend some time travelling and enjoying ourselves?"
"That would be nice." Eliza agreed. "But we've got a few years to think about it."
"What you mean is don't disturb you- you're thinking wedding things?" Edward teased. "I pity the poor girl who marries Ben."
Eliza hit him. "Do you think Ben's going to get married soon?" She asked. "I mean, he's just turned 24!"
"I'm sure he will some day- I think building his career is a bit more important to him at the moment though." Edward said. "Remember what you said to me- people get married a bit later now?"
"True." Eliza said. "But I'd like to see him married before we go off travelling anywhere."
"Most likely we will, it won't be for another four or five years before we actually do it, if we do." Edward said.
"Isn't this all great?" Eliza said sleepily. "Richard is great, and Margaret loves him so much and they're great together. And the Monksfields are great too. They treated us like equals."
"We are equals. Truth be told we've got just as much money as they do." Edward said. "In fact, from now on I think I'll be Lord Gracie, and you can be my lovely wife, Lady Gracie."
"Idiot." Eliza said with affection. She sighed and closed her eyes. When she was a young girl growing up in a poor family she'd never dreamt she'd have the things she had now, in fact they hadn't even entered her mind. All she'd ever wanted was a husband and children and to be happy, the simple things in life. And thank god those simple things, even with the frills she'd not added on in her childhood dreams, were coming true.