As a way to bring a different style of entertainment to Moniqueblog, each Sunday will be Polite Society day, where I post a chapter, soap-opera style. If you want to read more, click the link above to go to the website, or, if you want to download part of the book, click on the merch page to download chapters 1-6.
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Elizabeth-Ann Storey jumped out of the landau carriage, forgetting decorum. Usually, she would wait until the coachman came to her door and helped her down, but what she had to tell Amelie Vance couldn’t wait.
“Amelie!” E.A. said, rushing into the Vance household’s drawing room where Amelie was, working on some embroidery. “I have the most exquisite news!”
“You and Roose are finally getting married?” Amelie squealed, jumping ahead of herself. “I’m so happy for you! I’ve been waiting for this day for so long! I have just the perfect dress in mind-”
“That’s not the news at all! (And you know how I feel about marriage.) The big news is that Father is going to let us meet his friends from the Orient when we go to Worthing!”
Amelie pouted. “Aw, you’re going to Worthing so soon? I won’t be able to see you for at least two months, now.”
“You’ll still be able to write to me, silly!” E.A. playfully chided her as she plopped down on the couch across from Amelie, her panniers and skirts spreading out over the cushions.
“I’m so excited to meet Father’s friends,” E.A. continued. “They also have sons—”
“I thought there was a reason you were so excited,” Amelie interjected. “I thought it odd of you to be so crazed about meeting some old men.”
“You know me only too well, then,” E.A. responded before continuing to gush. “But still, how can you not get crazed when you hear names like Guangli, Devinder, and Abinhav?”
Amelie’s eyes widened. “Goodness, they sound so exotic!”
“More exotic than the name Emilio?” E.A. retorted, raising an eyebrow.
“Are you going to start on that tangent again?”
“Of course I am! You could be trying to snag one of these boys! Or any boy in Sussex! But a common stable-boy? He’s employed for a reason.”
“E.A.—”
“Amy, don’t you understand? He’s not in our class! He’s beneath us, only good for the work he can put into the upkeep of your house.”
“E.A., that is uncalled for! You’re talking about my love!”
“I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings, Amy, but sooner or later your father is going to round on you about that, not to mention Joshua. Do you really want Joshua to get preachy? That is something I wouldn’t wish on my worse enemy, let alone someone I consider my sister!”
Amelie put down her embroidery and leaned forward. “I appreciate that you are trying to help me out of what you think is a bad situation, but I have everything under control. I’m in love with a man who loves me back; how wrong can that be?”
“That’s your problem, Amy, you’re too idealistic. Partnership is supposed to not only include love, but love that is between two people of the same class or greater. Only then would they be able to understand each other completely.”
“But you just contradicted yourself! You said ‘the same class or greater’, meaning that someone from our class could marry someone far richer than us. How is that any different than me marrying someone from the servant class?”
“If you marry someone of greater stature, you’re still coming from money. If you marry someone with little or nothing to their name, think of the scandal it would cause. Think of how disproportionate your life experiences would be. How would he fit into our circle? What stories would he have to tell? Nothing anything we can identify with, just stories about cleaning the stables.”
“Well, what stories would you have to bring to the table if you married a comte or a duke, huh? They’re used to far greater propriety than we are; you’d be just as common as Emilio!”
“I sincerely beg to differ. Money talks; just as long as you’re not in the servant class, money talks quite loudly.”
“The mind also talks,” Amelie said. “It communicates no matter what bracket someone is stationed. And my mind says that I’m on the right path.”
E.A. raised her hands, disarming the conversation. “Well, just don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“In any case, what about your love troubles?” Amelie said, a sneaky look on her face. “Here you are, gushing over a couple of men coming to Sussex even though you have one of the most exotic, attractive, eligible men wrapped around your finger! How do you sleep at night?”
“Like a newborn baby,” E.A. replied, a cheeky grin spread across her face. “Let’s face it; it’s hard to have just one man when you’re someone who appreciates the delicate nuances each man possesses.”
Amelie looked disgusted. “You’re talking about men as if they’re knick-knacks to be collected!”
E.A. thought for a moment, then responded, “Yes, that’s a rather good way of putting it. I suppose it’s one of my great hobbies.”
Amelie sighed. “Well, like you told me, just don’t say I didn’t warn you when your collecting spree backfires. Just what do you plan on doing when your father’s friends come to town? What do you think you’ll gain?”
“Hopefully, I’ll gain more notoriety for being among the company of such striking creatures,” E.A. said. “You know how Englanders are about minorities; they’re a prized commodity. Just saying you have one as a pageboy will garner you envious looks. I have one as my lover; I have already received numerous invitations to the homes of various ladies who are probably gagging with jealousy. I don’t have a concrete plan for when Father’s guests come. Perhaps I’ll just stare at them—I do like the look of exotic men. But the news that will go round the circle is that I was in their company. I entertained them. That’s all I really need in order to get into the higher echelons of society.”
Amelie was hurt. “Do you even love Roosevelt?”
E.A. was stunned. “Of course I do. I love him more than any of my past loves.”
“Is he enough for you?”
E.A.’s eyes wandered to the floor.
“I’m a different person from you, Amelie. I’m not as romantic and idealistic as you. In this world we’re in, there’s a certain level of ambition a woman needs to have in order to make something of herself in high society. I’m determined to become highly recognized, even if it’s the last thing I ever do.”
“You don’t have to do that.”
“I need to do it.”
“Well,” Amelie said, giving a sad smile, “I can only wish the best for you, I suppose.”
“Thank you,” E.A. said. “I’m definitely going to need it.”
*****
Amelie snuck out later that night to meet Emilio.Cuarón, the Vances’ stable-boy. He was lying on the grass, staring at the stars. Upon seeing Amelie running up to him, he sat up. She fell to her knees, throwing her arms around his torso.
“Good evening, Emilio,” Amelie said happily, quickly kissing him on the lips.
“Good evening to you,” Emilio said, his voice mellow and sweet.
“I hope you haven’t had a hard day today,” Amelie said as she settled alongside him, his arm around her.
“It was as hard as it usually is,” Emilio responded, his slight Spanish accent coloring his words. “But I’m used to it.”
“Someone as kind and thoughtful as you shouldn’t be used to it,” Amelie said, looking up at him. “Someone like you should’ve been born with a title to your name. There are plenty of people who think they are someone in society when they don’t even deserve the recognition they get. Someone should give you recognition for all you do.”
Emilio rubbed her arm with his hand, snuggling her closer as he said, “Just the recognition you give me is recognition enough.”
They stared at the sky for a while. Amelie penetrated the silence.
“E.A. came by to visit me today,” she said. “She’s going to be leaving town soon; her father is meeting some of his colleagues from Asia.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah. She’s really excited.”
“Men are involved?”
“Naturally.”
Emilio sighed. “When will she learn? That man Roosevelt needs to wisen up. He doesn’t deserved to be yanked around like that.”
“I tried telling her that, but she is almost proud of the fact that she collects men. I love her like a sister, but she’s an odd one. I don’t understand why Roose isn’t enough for her. He’s perfect for her.”
“He’s a total gentleman,” Emilio agreed. “Ah well. Forgive me for saying this about her, but she’s not good enough for him. He deserves much better.”
Amelie sighed. “No, you’re correct. I wish she could appreciate him.” She thought for a moment. “Emilio, what do you think about love?”
“Love?”
“Yeah. E.A. doesn’t view love as something natural, I don’t think. She’s more concerned with the connections she makes and how much gossip she can stir up with her relationships. She says that women in my social class are concerned with making a name for themselves, and that this is her way of going about doing it.”
“Well,” Emilio said, exhaling, “from what I’ve heard about women in your class, many women do fall into this trap of creating gossip one way or another. But, there are just as many women who do things against the grain, such as yourself. Many women just do what they feel is natural for them, and honestly, that’s the type of woman I value most highly.”
Amelie smiled before her brows furrowed suddenly as a disconcerting thought entered her head. “Do you…do you think I’m making gossip by being with you?”
“Well, you’re certainly talked about, I’m sure,” Emilio said. “I know I’m talked about in the servants quarters for being with you. But these people just don’t understand that there is nothing different between you and I just because we come from different classes. People get hung up over that type of class structure nonsense. Just know that I love you, and I will not stop loving you, no matter if the King himself is talking about us.”
Amelie smiled, her gaze filled with joy. “And I love you, Emilio.”
Meanwhile, in the servants quarters, several of the young male servants were discussing their “favorite” colleague.
“Who does Emilio think he is?”
“He’s always been the Vances’ favorite, ever since he was a child. You remember how they used to invite him to tea, just because Amelie favored him.”
“And now look where it’s got them. He’s practically an in-law, now.”
“He’ll get his, someday soon. Those Vances will show him where he really belongs, and when he comes crawling back to us dregs, we’ll put him in his place.”
