turned down a Danish prince to marry an American and went to live in Charleston.’
‘My grandmother comes from Charleston. Well, she did forty years ago. Then she met my grandfather and went travelling with him, and they came back to England when he retired.’
‘She’s the one who wants to check me out?’
‘Yes. You’ll have to be on your best behaviour, too. She has Standards, my grandmother.’
‘I’ll do my best. Only one left?’
‘Yes. I hardly remember my mother’s mother.’
‘I have the full complement, God help me. My father’s mother lives in a castle in Wales, where she Encourages the Arts and breeds Siamese cats. And my mother’s mother has hobbies that include younger men and roulette.’
‘Goodness!’
It didn’t sound as if he liked either of them very much. Bella bit her lip. She adored Granny Georgia and hoped Richard would do the same. But it didn’t sound hopeful.
‘Here we are. My father’s apartments.’
There were servants here, though not the crowd she’d expected and not a pair of knee breeches in sight. A pleasant man in a neat grey suit took her coat, and another, very dignified, told them they were expected.
He led the way to another set of doors and knocked before entering.
‘The Prince of Wales, Your Majesty.’
This is not happening, thought Bella suddenly. This is just unreal.
But Richard held her hand tight and they went in.
It was quite a small room really, though it had large Georgian windows with theatrical curtaining and a lot of gold tassels. There were several glass cases containing substantial models of trains, and all the furniture was antique and beautifully polished. But apart from that it was quite homelike, Bella thought.
The King stood up from a chair by the fire where he had been reading. He shook hands politely and asked if they had known each other long. But Bella did not feel that he was really interested. His eyes kept sliding towards his book. He offered them a drink but seemed relieved when they both refused. He took Bella over to one of the glass cases in the corner, which enclosed some sort of structure with two huge wheels and a lot of moving parts. She had no idea what it was or was designed to do, and admitted her ignorance.
The King beamed. ‘It’s the engine of HMS Sphinx, a revolutionary steam paddleboat of the mid-nineteenth century. Designed by John Penn. The original is in the Institute of Mechanical Engineering here in London. He became their President, you know. Are you familiar with the Institute?’
Bella had to admit she wasn’t.
‘Pity. Pity. Ver’ good place. Ver’ good. Sometimes go to lectures there. They are building our future, Miss Greenwood. Engineers always find solutions.’
He showed her a couple of the train after that, and Bella couldn’t dredge up any more intelligent comments on them, either. She thought he was glad when they left.
Though Richard said, ‘He took to you,’ sounding surprised.
Bella was doubtful. ‘Really?’
‘Yes, really. He talked. He showed you the models. Normally, it’s painful introducing him to new people. But he liked you. He will be a lot more relaxed next time, now that he knows you. You’ll see.’
He said a courteous goodbye to the King’s servants and they walked to his mother’s apartments. There were a lot more signs of life in this corridor.
Richard said uncomfortably, ‘Look, there’s a protocol which might help with my mother. She gets to start the conversations.’
‘I don’t understand?’
He stopped striding down the red-carpeted corridor and drew Bella into a window embrasure. One of the men standing at the next door started forward, but Richard shook his head and the man fell back.
‘Do you know about Fanny Burney?’
‘Who?’
‘Fanny Burney – eighteenth-century novelist, daughter of the Master of the King’s Music. Anyway, she did her time at Court because the Queen wanted conversation.’ He seemed to be searching his memory. ‘She told Fanny that she had great difficulty in getting any conversation because she commonly not only always had to choose the subject, but also entirely support it. And the form hasn’t changed since. The Queen picks the topic. Got it?’
‘Got it,’ said Bella.
‘Just for tonight, until she’s got over her bate. Normally, she’s fine.’
‘I’m sure she is.’ Bella could feel her heart sinking lower by the minute. To disguise it, she said brightly, ‘Did Fanny enjoy her time at Court?’
Richard was matter-of-fact. ‘Hated every minute.’
Bella glared. ‘Thank you very much for the encouragement.’
He squeezed her fingers. ‘You’ll be fine. Remember, you’re not going out with my mother. You’re going out