The Governess Club: Louisa Read Online Free

Wonder is—was—the reigning champion. For years. The best since Jack Broughton, many said. Broughton civilized the sport, by the way, by introducing more rules to reduce the gore and chaotic nature of the bouts.”
    She tilted her chin. “I fail to see the civility of a sport where the object is to beat a man to a bloody mess.”
    Mr. Taylor drank more ale and held some bread and cheese in one of his large hands. “It can be quite lucrative. The prizes are monetary, some purses more than you would imagine.”
    She sniffed. “The slave trade is lucrative; hence the reluctance of the slavers for its demise. Yet you will not see me condoning that either simply because the color of the coin is pretty.”
    He popped the food into his mouth and waved a hand, indicating the room. “So lucrative, in fact, that it facilitated the purchase of this inn.”
    Louisa stared at him for a moment before a quick laugh escaped her. “Are you telling me that you are the Five Hit Wonder? Ridiculous.” She continued to laugh, but misgivings began to tickle her spine. The man had the size to be a prizefighting champion.
    Without speaking, Mr. Taylor stood and crossed to a door at the back of the room. He opened it and took one step inside the room. She could see a shelf of books and the corner of a bed as he pulled out a brown book with a plain cover. It must be the bedroom he mentioned. Closing the door behind him, he moved back to the desk and held the book out to her, and after a moment she had no choice but to take it. The misgivings grew into dread as she opened it to find playbills and articles pasted to the pages. The playbills proclaimed the coming bouts of John Taylor, the Five Hit Wonder. The more recent ones had pictures of him stripped to the waist, poised in a fighting stance with a fierce look on his face. The articles spoke of his accomplishments, his history, his revolutionary approach to the sport.
    Louisa swallowed and focused on a piece of information in one of the articles. “You were in the army?”
    He had resumed his seat. “The King’s Twenty-sixth Grenadiers. But armed service is bloody boring when there is no active combat. It is where I started boxing as a way to amuse myself.”
    She shot him a disapproving look and said, out of habit more than anything else, “Your language is still in the prize ring, I see. Please be more mindful.”
    He raised his eyebrows in surprise and chuckled. “Oh, well done, Mrs. Brock. You would make a fine governess with that prim tone.”
    Louisa shut her mouth and pressed her lips together.
    Mr. Taylor leaned forward and folded his arms on the desk. “Who I am is not a secret; I do not intend it to be. But I told you this story because I want you to know that I understand the need to begin anew. My questions are not meant to interrogate you. I merely want to know if an angry husband or some other family is going to appear and cause trouble.”
    When she didn’t speak, he continued. “I have been watching you since you started here and I can tell that you have never been a maid before. Your language, your inefficiency, even your dress does not speak of life in service. I have no intention of holding it against you. Everyone can learn a new trade. But I am putting myself and my inn at risk if I am harboring a runaway wife or daughter or even convict. I need to know that my investment in you is sound and that there will be no issues.”
    Louisa swallowed and lifted her chin. “There is no husband, family or constable looking for me. There will be no such trouble.” I hope.
    A ghost of a smile tugged at his lips and he sat back. “Good. As I just said, I will be lenient as you learn your job. How goes the room cleaning?”
    She hated to say it, but the man said he would be lenient. “I may need more time than a week. I have only managed to clean four of the rooms.”
    He nodded slowly. “Fine. There is not much need for them just yet, the customers mainly being the locals