HMS Valiant - 14. Chapter 14

September 25, 1799

Portland Place

Granger got back from Bridgemont House and shed his dress coat, then prepared to enjoy a relaxing meal before he went to the Palace. He had just sat down to dine when Cheevers entered.

“My lord, Lord Frederick Cavendish is here, requesting to see you.” There was no mistaking the scorn buried beneath Cheevers’ smooth façade. It was flattering and annoying at the same time: flattering that the staff would be loyal to him and not Caroline, but annoying that they presumed to make their feelings known.

Granger wasn’t sure he was emotionally ready to deal with Cavendish, but one of the main reasons Granger had been vexed at Cavendish was because he had not seen fit to come talk to Granger about this whole affair. He had evidently developed the courage to do so. If Granger was to salvage Caroline’s reputation, he would have to do as his father suggested. “Thank you, Cheevers. Please have them put out another plate for His Lordship, and then show him in.”

“Of course, my lord.” A servant quickly appeared with another place setting, and then vanished, almost exactly when Cheevers escorted Cavendish into the dining room. Granger stood to greet him, and watched as Cavendish walked in, limping only slightly on his prosthetic leg. Granger looked at his leg, and remembered how Cavendish had first wounded it. He’d shoved Granger out of the way of a falling spar and saved Granger’s life, only to receive a painful splinter wound himself.

Granger looked up and met Cavendish’s eyes, and could see the anguish in them. His father had been right. Cavendish had been a good friend to him, and he owed it to Cavendish to give him a chance to explain things. “I am sorry to interrupt your dinner,” Cavendish said, concerned that his timing was bad.

“I fear I must contradict you,” Granger said pleasantly. “As you can see, there is a place set for you, so the only thing you have done wrong is to delay me from eating.”

Cavendish smiled and took his seat, while Granger helped them both to some pork, and other dishes. “As this looks wonderful, and as my appetite has not diminished over the years, I will discount any concerns over my potential rudeness,” he said playfully.

“I fear that if your appetite has not diminished, there will not be enough food for us,” Granger joked.

“I would advise you, then, to eat with some alacrity, to ensure you get your fill.”

“But then I would find myself guilty of a being a bad host, by displaying horrible manners at the table.”

“You have an unenviable choice,” Cavendish teased. “To be boorish, or hungry.” Granger laughed, and their friendly banter reminded him of how much he enjoyed Cavendish, and how he had missed their friendship. And how much he truly loved Cavendish, even though he was mad at him. They continued to eat, and chat, and with their playful banter, they managed to ease the tension enough to address the bigger issue they had to deal with.

“When did you return to London?” Granger asked.

“On the 20^th,” Cavendish responded.

“You waited until I left before you came back,” Granger accused.

“Yes.” Granger was surprised he admitted that so easily, but he was in no mood to let him off the hook.

“You were avoiding me, rather than facing me, and telling me what happened,” Granger said, and felt his temper rising. “That would have been the act of a friend. To explain things to me, to apologize, and to attempt to help me through this.”

“It would have,” Cavendish agreed sadly, his lower lip quivering.

“I’m not supposed to be in London. I’m supposed to be in Portsmouth. You would have let me leave for months, and said nothing?” Granger paused to take a drink of wine, more to calm himself than anything.

“I have been a coward,” Cavendish admitted, shocking Granger. Of all the things Cavendish could have said to show Granger how upset he was, to acknowledge such a fatal flaw as being afraid was a huge admission. It told Granger how completely devastated Cavendish was by the wound to their relationship. “I have no fear of French broadsides, and I have no fear of greedy merchants and their political machinations, but the thought of facing you and your displeasure, and the knowledge that our friendship would be permanently impaired, if not destroyed, has turned me into a skulking milquetoast.”

“And as with most things, avoiding the problem has only made it worse,” Granger noted coldly, even though he felt himself melting in the face of Cavendish’s words.

“Do you think I cannot see that? Do you think I haven’t realized that? But once it begins, once the hiding has started, coming out into the open becomes just that much harder,” Cavendish said, his voice sounding nearly hysterical. “I would not blame you if you did not believe me, but I acquired orders to escort the Elgins to Portsmouth just so I could meet with you before you left.”

Granger smiled briefly, a rueful smile. “I believe you, although I fear that escorting Lady Elgin would be enough to make you regret that decision.”

Cavendish smiled, and then chuckled, not because Granger’s comment was all that funny, but because it meant that Granger was willing to move beyond this. “I fear you are correct, and it saddens me to think of the burden you will carry all the way to Constantinople.”

“I have decided that we will have constant drills, and clear for action, such that she is forced to absent herself into the hold for her own safety,” Granger joked, making Cavendish laugh.

Then the mood got serious, and Cavendish stood up, carefully folding his napkin and placing it on the seat, then awkwardly knelt next to Granger, putting his hand on Granger’s leg. He looked into Granger’s eyes as he spoke. “I am sorry. I am here to beg you to forgive me.”

Granger stood up, holding out his hand to Cavendish, who took it. Granger helped lift him up, then, holding his hand, led him out of the dining room and up the stairs to his bedroom, where he firmly shut the door. He pulled Cavendish into a hug, reveling in the feeling of this man that he loved, and then kissed him. If he had wanted to maintain his anger at Cavendish, kissing him would have been a horrible mistake, because Granger had never encountered a person with whom he could merge his mouth so completely. He finally managed to break off their embrace, and guided Cavendish to the bed, where they both sat down. “Before I can forgive you, I must know what happened.”

Cavendish nodded, and looked saddened, even though he had known this was part of the process. “I had escorted Caroline to a party, which was not unusual. I have done that often enough in the past.”

“Prior to that evening, had you ever had sex with Caroline?” Granger asked.

“No,” Cavendish said. “Our relationship was not like that.”

“Until that evening,” Granger said.

“That evening was an aberration,” Cavendish said brusquely. “If I had wanted to sleep with her before then, I could have, but I didn’t.”

“You are telling me that Caroline has been trying to bed you? For how long?”

“It is not as if she had ripped off her clothes and thrown herself at me, but she had given off signs,” he said. “She is usually most aggressive right after you leave. It is as if you have awakened a beast in her.”

“So what happened that night?” Granger asked, getting back on topic.

“I had been talking with Major Treadway at the party for much of the evening. I know you can understand, having spent some time with him, why I would do that.”

“He is both attractive and charming,” Granger agreed, smiling to himself as he remembered how much fun Treadway had been.

“I found him to be both of those things; so much that I had made a point to spend time with him at several parties we had been to. And finally, at this one, the conversation had gotten more intimate; intimate enough to let me know there was a reasonable chance of success at getting him to sleep with me.” Granger would have normally felt a huge surge of jealousy when he thought of Cavendish with someone else, but for some reason, he being with Treadway did not elicit that response. It was a fascinating revelation, but one that he would have to ponder later.

“It took you several parties?” Granger teased.

“I was taking my time,” Cavendish said. “I have learned to be more careful after the issues with Arthur. I wanted to get to know him first, to make sure he was not someone who was merely masking his insanity.”

Granger actually laughed at that. “I think that is a good policy for both of us to follow.”

“Since I had escorted Caroline, I had to take her home. I asked her if Major Treadway could accompany us, and she agreed. On our drive home, she offered to let us use the baths, and Treadway was clearly excited about that idea, since he had heard of them, but had not tried them.”

“Or perhaps he just wanted an excuse to be naked with you,” Granger teased. He knew how hard this was for Cavendish, and now that he’d agreed to tell Granger what happened, Granger was determined to keep the tensions to as low a level as possible.

“That theory has some merit,” Cavendish said, smiling at Granger to thank him for being so kind. “When we got back here, the servants warmed up the baths while the three of us had some sherry. Not that we needed it. We were all quite inebriated.”

Granger could visualize the situation, and thought about how easy it was to show bad judgment in such situations. “That would make the conversation interesting.”

“Indeed. Cheevers told us that the baths were ready, Caroline bid us to enjoy ourselves, and so we went into the bathing rooms.” And then Cavendish went on to describe the scene exactly as Treadway had, with slight variations that were understandable based on his point of view.

“Did you know that Caroline was in the room?” Granger asked.

“I didn’t,” Cavendish said. “I am not sure if she snuck in, or if we simply weren’t paying attention. I wasn’t aware of her presence until she appeared while I was being fucked by Treadway.”

“That must have been embarrassing,” Granger said.

“I pledged to you to be truthful, so I cannot agree with you. To be honest, it was very erotic, to be on the receiving end of Treadway’s attentions, to be splayed out so my erection was so visible, and to then discover that someone was watching us,” he said. This was such a huge admission for Cavendish, that it stunned Granger, a reaction Cavendish took for disgust.

“I did not know that you were an exhibitionist,” Granger teased him, even as he put his arm around him. “I will have to perhaps think of a way to indulge you in that.”

“I am not sure that it is a constant desire, but in my drunken haze, at that moment, it was,” he said. “When Caroline appeared, I should have shown restraint. I should have stopped her. But I couldn’t. That probably sounds so weak to you, but it was such a potent cocktail, I gave in.”

“Freddy, I do not think that I could have done any better,” Granger admitted. Cavendish blinked at him, surprised that he would admit it, then continued.

“I came first, probably from the dual stimulation and from being exposed, and shortly after that, the whole thing became agonizing. I felt Treadway stiffen and ejaculate into my bowels, and managed to remain engaged enough so that Caroline could reach an orgasm, but by the time she did that, Treadway and I were so dismayed that we were probably not as polite as we could have been. We both dressed quickly, and Treadway all but fled from the house. I was not far behind him.”

“How did Caroline seem, after it was over?”

“She seemed satisfied,” Cavendish said.

“Satisfied?”

“Why is that so hard to believe?” Cavendish said, smiling. “Are you not usually satisfied when you are with me?”

“It has been so long, I have forgotten,” Granger said, flirting with Cavendish.

“Let us finish this conversation, then if you are willing, I will remind you,” he said. Granger leaned in to kiss him again, and it took every ounce of willpower to pull himself away so they could finish their discussion.

“I did not realize that Caroline would enjoy having sex with two men,” Granger said, and grimaced. “I did not think that is what it took for her to be satisfied.”

“I do not think her satisfaction was sexual,” Cavendish said.

“I don’t understand,” Granger said, confused. “What was her motive?”

He grimaced. “The next day, she cornered me about my attraction to other men, and demanded to know if you and I had been intimate.”

“Caroline joined you in the baths to find out if you and I were lovers?” Granger asked.

“Yes. I had originally thought she was just drunk and feeling frisky, but I think that her intention was as you just stated.” He paused to gather his thoughts. “She must have watched me flirting with Treadway, seen me trying to seduce him, and assumed that if I were a sodomite, this would be the time when I would couple with him.”

“And she was right,” Granger concluded. “What did she say to you?”

“As I said, she demanded to know if you and I were lovers.”

“What did you tell her?”

“I admitted to her that we were,” he said. “I told her that I loved you, totally and completely, and that I had for a long time. She asked me if you felt the same way. I told her that I thought you did.”

Granger could feel how tortured Cavendish was about this. “You were right,” he said, and took Cavendish’s hand in his. “What did she want from you?”

“Until that time, we had always been friends who supported each other politically, at least most of the time,” he said. “She intimated that now she would expect me to support her more fully.”

“She was blackmailing you?” Granger asked incredulously.

“That is perhaps a bit strong, but something like that,” Cavendish said. “It was more subtle than that. Instead of us being at a similar level, she had in effect turned me into her subordinate.”

“Why did you not come to me about this?” Granger asked.

“That was part of the deal. She promised not to say anything to you, and forced me to pledge to do the same thing.”

“And you knew you could not lie to me, so you avoided me,” Granger concluded. Cavendish was looking down, in complete misery, and only nodded.

“But I decided that the whole thing was dishonorable, and that I would not be able to live with myself until we talked about it.”

“You are lucky,” Granger said.

“Why?”

“Because I already knew most of what you have shared with me, and so you have not violated your oath by filling in mere details.”

“How did you find out?” he asked, aghast.

“My suspicions were aroused when I saw Caroline and Treadway together. It is not something anyone else would notice, but I know Caroline well enough to tell when she is hiding something.” Granger paused. “I thought they had had an affair, or perhaps a single intimate encounter, and were both embarrassed by it. I resolved to say nothing, since I am certainly no saint, but I found that it was like an open wound. Perhaps that is because Treadway is one of my officers, but regardless of the reason, there was obviously something there.”

“I can see where that would have bothered you,” Cavendish said sympathetically.

“I finally confronted Caroline, and asked her what had happened, and she refused to tell me.”

“She refused?” Cavendish asked, stunned.

“She did,” Granger said. “And that has created a huge rift between us. If it were simply an affair, an encounter, I would have moved beyond it. But for her to defy me, and not tell me, was inexcusable.”

“So did she finally tell you?” Cavendish asked, wondering how Granger had found out.

“She did not. She has not. I found out when one of my footmen got drunk, and gossiped about it with members of my crew. That is the point at which it reached my ears.” Cavendish was smart enough to guess that it was Winkler who probably told him, not that it mattered. “They merely noted that the three of you had come home and had gone into the baths together, and that Caroline had given orders that you weren’t to be disturbed.”

“So they did not see anything,” Cavendish mused.

“They did not have to,” Granger snapped. “Merely being seen going off with the two of you like that is enough to destroy Caroline’s reputation.”

“And ours,” Cavendish said somberly, although he would not be nearly as damaged by this as Caroline.

“When I heard that the servants were gossiping, I had reached the end of my patience. I confronted Major Treadway, and extracted the tale from him.”

“How did you do that?” Cavendish asked.

“I threatened him, and then I fucked him,” Granger said.

“That would undoubtedly elicit a confession from me as well,” he said, flirting, and then got serious. “Can you trust your servants?”

“Evidently this has been much talked about below stairs,” Granger said, and saw Cavendish cringe. “I think my staff is very loyal, but I think it is highly likely that someone will say something, in the form of what they would consider harmless gossip. And if they do not, it is much harder to restrain seamen from gossiping.”

“Undoubtedly,” Cavendish said with dread.

“I have spoken with my father about this, and we have come up with a strategy to save Caroline, and to a lesser degree, the rest of us from the shame of this encounter.”

“You told your father?” Cavendish asked, truly upset. “Why did you tell him? I don’t know how I will be able to face him.”

That seriously annoyed Granger. “Who else would you have me go to in order to seek counsel on this matter? Caroline is clearly not an option. You have been avoiding me, and it had appeared you had all but discarded our friendship. And even Arthur has avoided me, although I don’t know why that is.”

“I don’t think Arthur is avoiding you, I think he is avoiding London,” Cavendish said. “I do not know why, but it is something he sometimes does.”

Granger ignored his comments, even though he had heard them. “So as I noted, I had nowhere else to turn, and I am glad I spoke with my father, because his counsel was, as usual, quite good. I did not disclose any of the details of the encounter, only that the three of you were seen going into the baths.” Cavendish relaxed a bit, knowing that the duke hadn’t gotten graphic details.

“What did he suggest?”

“He suggested that while it is possible that gossip amongst servants may ultimately reach higher levels of society, as long as there were no facts to corroborate those rumors, they would be discarded. So in that regard, we must all appear to be friendly with each other, especially you, me, and Treadway.”

“Is that why you are being so forgiving?” Cavendish asked drily. “So that we can keep up appearances?”

“That is insulting,” Granger said loudly, an audible sign of how enraged he was.

Cavendish put his hand on Granger’s arm. “I am sorry. That was uncalled for. Please factor in how upsetting this is for me.”

In an interesting phenomenon, Granger’s rage dissipated as fast as it had formed. “It is not easy for any of us.”

“So if you and I appear to be as close as ever, and we remain on good terms with Treadway, when these rumors arise, people will scoff at them because it is unreasonable to think you would befriend men who had fucked your wife, together?”

“That is the plan,” Granger said.

“What about Caroline?”

“I will have to go out to Brentwood for a visit tomorrow or the next day, to make it seem as if there are no problems with us.”

“Will you talk to her about this issue?”

“I think that is unlikely. I have given her several chances to tell me what has happened, and she has refused, so I will ask no longer. I feel as if I cannot trust her, so I will be wary around her. As it stands, I will probably spend my time with my children. They have brought joy to my life, when the rest of you have not.”

He saw that irritate Cavendish greatly, but he let it pass. “It seems that I promised to bring joy to your life.”

Granger smiled. “Sadly, our current opportunity has passed, because it is the hour for me to attend His Majesty. Perhaps you would like to accompany me, and then we can return here and spend some time together.”

“I would like that,” Cavendish said.

“Then tonight, we can visit Carlton House together, so the wags can see us carousing and gambling together.”

“And you can further erode my inheritance,” Cavendish joked, since Granger usually won money when he played Hazard with the Duke of Portland.

“It is my goal to have you fully dependent on me for money, so you are all but my slave,” Granger said with a growl.

Cavendish’s eyes bulged at that, and clearly he was excited by it. “Do we not have a quarter of an hour to spare?” he asked, desperately.

“I want to take more time than that,” Granger said, as he ran his hand across Cavendish’s groin, massaging his hard cock through his breeches. “Let’s go.”

“You are truly evil,” Cavendish said, smiling.

September 26, 1799

Brentwood

Granger slowed his horse as he rode up to the impressive gates to his estate, while the two footmen behind him did the same. They were both strapping young men, and quite handsome, just as footmen were supposed to be, but they were also excellent riders. Granger loved to ride and the faster the speed, the better. In the past, he had taken to riding on his own, because that gave him the flexibility to go as fast or as slow as he chose. But a combined intervention by Caroline and his parents had finally persuaded him that a person of his means, and with his popularity, was unwise to travel alone. He had greeted their arguments with a decided lack of grace, but had ultimately agreed to take an escort with him when he went beyond his own estates, and so he had.

The three men took in the beautiful scenery in this part of England, and of this prosperous estate, as their horses trotted purposefully toward the manor house. Granger pulled his horse back into a walk as they got closer, admiring the sprawling structure that had started life as an Abbey. He chuckled as he thought about how ironic that was, that he would live in a place once dedicated to the church, but then pondered that most of the churchmen he knew were decidedly less holy even than he was.

Granger rode up to the house and a groom emerged to take care of his mount. “We will return to London tomorrow morning,” he said to the footmen as he dismounted.

“Of course, my lord,” the older one said. The younger one, Merlin, dismounted to follow Granger. He would act as Granger’s valet.

Granger climbed the stairs to the house and found the door open, with the butler, Hudson, waiting to greet him. “It is an unexpected yet pleasurable surprise to see Your Lordship.”

“Thank you, Hudson,” Granger said with a smile. “I was in London for a few days before I sail, and decided to come out and see my family.”

“Your wife is in the drawing room, while the children are in the gardens, my lord,” Hudson said. “Is Winkler not with you?”

“He is in London, preparing things for my departure. I chose to leave him behind to attend to those things, and because he is not a skilled horseman, and I wanted to ride a bit more briskly than he is capable.”

“That is understandable, my lord,” Hudson said, with a rare smile.

“Merlin has joined me instead, and will attend to me,” Granger noted.

“Excellent,” Hudson said.

Granger was wearing his second best uniform coat, along with trousers and riding boots. He took off his coat and handed it to Merlin, then headed first to the drawing room. When he entered, Caroline looked up at him with both surprise and irritation. “I was not aware that you were coming to Brentwood.”

“I did not feel required to inform you of my plans to visit my own home,” Granger said coldly.

“Evidently,” she said.

“I merely stopped by to greet you. I will be in the gardens,” he said. Granger went out and found his children, and ended up having a marvelous time playing with them, especially with William and Charlotte. He found that he did much better with his offspring as they got older; he was not much for dealing with babies and toddlers.

They found a corner of the garden where a puddle had formed, and used that to make mud, and then with the mud, they built various things, including a castle. Charlotte crafted a very poor representation of a horse, while William attempted to build a replica of Valiant. None of their works was remarkable, but the joy in creating them was. The staff dedicated to caring for the children made an attempt to disrupt their afternoon, but a few cold words from Granger drove them away. It was not until hunger began to ruin their moods that Granger finally walked up to the main house with them. The staff gave them disapproving looks, since they were covered with mud. They made to drag William off, but Granger stopped them.

“Would you like to take a bath with me?” Granger asked.

“Yes,” William said enthusiastically. That got frowns from William’s governor, who evidently didn’t think that six-year-old boys should be immersed in water, but Granger could not care less.

The servants heated the baths while they got ready, then Granger led William into the bathing room. “Since we’re dirty, we start out in there,” Granger joked, pointing to the soaking tub. They did, and got clean while splattering soapy water all over the floor, then went into the main pool to rinse off.

Granger discovered, much to his annoyance, that William didn’t know how to swim. As the baths were designed for adults, it made it difficult for him to enjoy them, unless he wanted to cling to the sides. So Granger spent a goodly amount of time teaching him how to swim. There was some progress, but it would require more work and time than he had.

Granger got dressed, and went down to his study, where he summoned William’s governor and Charlotte’s governess. They walked in, looking nervous. “You asked to see us, my lord?” the young man asked.

“Yes,” Granger said. “I took William into the baths today and was disturbed to discover that he does not know how to swim. I assume that is also the case for Charlotte?”

“Yes, my lord,” he said. The governess said nothing, letting him do the talking. “The doctors advised us that swimming may be unhealthy.”

“Then we will have to seek out new doctors for them,” Granger said. “I am going to be gone for at least two months. When I return, I expect to find that both William and Charlotte are accomplished swimmers.”

“Of course, my lord,” he said.

“At each of our homes, we have heated baths that will work well for such a purpose. You may use them,” Granger said.

“We will make arrangements with her ladyship,” the governess said.

“You will do no such thing,” Granger snapped. “You will follow my instructions. I have told you the results that I require. Can you accomplish that?”

“Yes, my lord,” the governor responded. The governess was so shocked, she was almost shaking.

“I certainly hope so,” he said, glaring at them. They swallowed, and then left his study. Granger spent some time on correspondence, and then Hudson came in to alert him that supper was ready.

He found Caroline already in the dining room, seated at her end of the table. There were a few leaves in, making it longer, and symbolizing the distance between them. They ate in silence, and it wasn’t until they had finished that Caroline spoke. “I understand you took a bath with William.”

“You should have joined us,” Granger said quietly, so the servants would not hear. “If you had gone into the baths with the two of us, it would not have scandalized society and risked your reputation like the last time you bathed with two men.” She stared at him, horrified, while he gave her a contemptuous look, stood up, and walked out of the room.