Chapter Text
“Dearest, dearest May, I cannot tell you how glad I am that you have settled in Perthshire again at last!” exclaimed Jemma excitedly, “although you have been such a faithful correspondent, I feel positively giddy at the thought of having you so close by once again,” As Lady Garner was a woman of few words, she merely smiled warmly and squeezed Jemma’s hand in response to her fervent speech.
Melinda May had been Jemma’s governess prior to her elevation to Lady Garner upon her marriage to Lord Garner some 10 years prior. Now she was a wealthy widow and occupied a far more elevated social position than her old charge. Yet, something about Jemma and her Uncle, Lord Coulson, and indeed all of Perthshire seemed like home to May. Now as she gazed upon Jemma, demurely attired in a round gown of rich peach which served to light her skin with a gentle glow; May mused that IF she were the type of individual to gloat over past successes she would have good reason to be inordinately proud of the young woman Jemma had become. To May’s biased eyes she imbued a perfect combination of brilliance, beauty, elegance and charm all tempered by the warmest of hearts. Naturally, Jemma had her faults, namely a slight propensity to interfere in matters frankly beyond her purview; however Jemma’s natural exuberance and general kindness prevented most people from finding fault with her ‘meddling.’
Jemma, being a solicitous host and of course a frankly curious young woman, turned to include Lady Garner’s young companion in her effusive welcome, “And you Ms. Johnson, I can already tell we shall be the best of friends, not only because the quantity of gently bred young ladies in the district is sorely lacking,” she said with a tinkling laugh, “but more because any friend of May’s or perhaps I should say Lady Garner’s, shall always be a friend of mine,”
“You are too kind, too kind by half,” responded Daisy, her brown eyes merry, “but if we are to be friends, I insist upon you calling me Daisy, Ms. Johnson sounds entirely foreign to my ears!”
“Well then you must call me Jemma”
“Oh, no I couldn’t,” Daisy said with a quick shake of her head
“Oh I insist!” exclaimed Jemma with such a genuine sweetness that Daisy was forced to capitulate in the form of a quick nod.
“Excellent,” Jemma stated in the manner of someone who has just settled a weighty matter of deep import, “Now tell me Daisy, have you had an opportunity to see much of the countryside?”
“No, not as of yet. I deeply love a good country walk; yet I have had much to do putting the manor to rights,” she replied.
Jemma was secretly pleased with the intelligence of Daisy’s eyes and ladylike manner with which she spoke. When May had written to Jemma upon her purchase of Barleigh Manor and her hiring of a lady’s companion after her widowhood some 14 months prior Jemma had been hopeful that May’s new companion would be someone who could become a friend.
“Were you jesting, or is the local society truly constricted?” Daisy asked shyly, “Not that I would mind, this is such a lovely part of the country, and as long as Lady Garner is happy” she followed quickly.
“No not at all,” Jemma replied with a laugh, “the society is quite good, full of interesting and thoughtful people, we are merely at a bit of short when it comes to young women you see,” replied Jemma, and with a quick appraisal of Daisy’s trim figure, lustrous dark hair and guileless eyes, “there shall of course now be a line forming at Lady Garner’s door of young men begging for an introduction.”
“That…” Daisy began haltingly before throwing a beseeching glance at Lady Garner.
“I’m sure Daisy will be pleased to make the acquaintance of everyone who lives here Jemma,” replied May with a definitive tap against her teacup.
“Just so, May,” replied Jemma with just the glimmer of a grin, she was glad to see that widowhood had not dulled her old friends imperious nature.
“I have made the acquaintance of one young gentleman,” daisy began, seemingly suddenly unsure as both Jemma and Lady Garner’s attention shifted quickly towards her again, “I didn’t speak to him long, but he seemed very kind and exceedingly affable,” Daisy said, imbuing the praise with a warmth that Jemma found surprising for the short acquaintance Daisy claimed to have with the young gentleman.
“Who was he?” May asked with the hint of a frown forming at her brow.
“A Mr. Campbell, he said he lived near the village,”
“Campbell?” Jemma mused quietly with the assurance of someone who knew the local society like the back of her slender hand, “I’m not well acquainted with a Mr. Campbell.”
“I believe his first name was Lincoln,” Daisy volunteered shyly.
“Lincoln!” Jemma exclaimed, “Lincoln is the local apothecary, when you said gentleman I assumed…” catching the bit of censure in May’s glance, she made her town more concilliatory “Not that he isn’t a perfectly amiable young man. You shall be quite thrilled with the gentlemen you encounter if you find Lincoln so memorable,” Jemma couldn’t help adding.
“Do you have an understanding Jemma?” Daisy before suddenly realizing the forwardness of such a question, she colored lightly, “pardon the question it was rather forward”
“Not at all,” Jemma replied with a warm smile, “I am rather determined to be a spinster you see,” and at Daisy’s widened glance, she quickly followed, “I have a comfortable independence from my parent’s legacy, a wonderful home here with my Uncle Coulson, a thriving career in botanical research and a very fruitful partnership with an old friend, Marriage would more likely than not disrupt all these things I hold dear while adding very little to my happiness.”
“Ah, the partnership persists?” asked May with a quirk of a slender brow.
“Why of course,” replied Jemma with a laugh, “although he has attained such fame and wealth that I somehow wonder why he stays here in Perthshire”
“I recall when he was just a slip of a boy, with that unruly mop of hair and a decidedly fearful look,” May mused.
“Somethings don’t change Lady Garner,” replied the object of their discussion from the doorway, his deep blue eyes alight with warmth. He was dressed rather plainly in a suit of dark blue superfine, and if Jemma looked closely she thought she could see the faintest of oil stains on this right shirt cuff. Fitz had never been one for elegance. He preferred convenience and practicality, both in his attire and in his hair, which currently was golden windblown hallo around his head. “It is a pleasure to see you again,”
“My dear boy, you are all grown up it seems,” replied Lady Garner, her eyes quickly flitting towards Jemma.
“Fitz!” cried Jemma happily, raising her hand out to him in welcome; he bowed over it absently as his gaze strayed towards Daisy.
“Ms. Daisy Johnson, allow me to present one of my oldest and dearest friends, Mr. Leopold Fitz, he is the partner I mentioned” for a moment Jemma’s gaze flitted between the two and she allowed herself to look at Fitz, her Fitz with unbiased eyes. He wasn’t the tallest or even the handsomest man in the district, but he had lovely eyes, perfectly symmetric facial features, and a warm firm mouth… Jemma paused her thoughts from straying into that direction.
“How do you do Sir?” Daisy asked with a sweet smile.
“Very well, thank you” he replied before turning to include Lady Garner in his reply, “You look lovely as always Lady Garner. I trust you ladies have been busy setting up your new home, you must be famished. I took the liberty of asking
Ms. Simmon’s butler to lay out a brief repast in the solarium.”
“You mean you must be famished,” Jemma teased him softly, her words suffused with warm affection.
“Those are not two contradictory statements,” he replied with a chuckle as he slipped Lady Gardner’s hand through his arm to escort them to the solarium, “I came to see if you had an opportunity to fiddle with that mechanism we were working on?”
“No I’m rather sorry I haven’t, Uncle has been a bit under the weather and dear Barbara and Mr. Hunter came by earlier for tea” replied Jemma remorsefully
“No matter,” he replied, his eyes distant, “I think I have come up with a more elegant solution,”
Jemma sensed he was about to launch into a scientific conversation likely to alienate her guests so she quickly diverted his attention, saying simply that they could work on it together tonight.
“I shall hold you to that” he said with a smile and a gentle squeeze of her shoulder before turning back towards her company.