Forbidden flirting ....

NOTE: Danny Peavy, falsely accused of assault and attempted murder, is disguised as a woman and working as a lady's maid in Victorian London.

In Under His Skirts, Frederick, one of the footmen in the house where Danny is working, is quite taken with "her."

Plotwise, it adds a bit of comic relief, gives Danny another ball to juggle in his game of deception, and several chapters later, Fred will unwittingly provide Dan with the men's clothing he needs for an escape.

During the Victorian era, it was very common for romantic notions between male and female servants to be discouraged and often forbidden. Indeed, Fred's taking a risk because the lady of this particular house would not think twice about dismissing him without a character if he was caught wooing the ladies' maid.

How can he flirt with Danny without putting his job at risk? A carefully timed wink? Performing tasks that aren't his but which make Danny's life easier? Reading up on the language of flowers and leaving blossoms where Dan will find them? To add to the confusion, Jennie, the heroine who has not a clue as to Danny's true identity, loves the idea of a forbidden romance and tries to help Fred with his courting.

Any other suggestions on subtle flirting between Victorian servants?

do not EVER break your write wrist. answers to comments will come in a month. I cn haz drugz now?

Update and info

That was not fun. Fractured wrist, torn thumb ligiment, broken ring and middle finger, surgery, @##!@ casts, now a splint and way too much physical therapy. All because of a Sunday walk in the woods, a rain shower, a slick, steep downhill slope on the Mountains to the Sea trail, and a serious lack of attention on my part. But I did learn that I can walk three miles in pain - albeit wailing like a banshee for most of the way.

Although writing ground to a halt, it allowed me to focus on research and the mechanics of the plot. It appears that I have a Victorian romantic comedy with overtones of farce on my hands. LOL with a bit of tears because I'm not sure there is a market for such a thing.

At any rate:

The household (at this point):

Father (bedridden) - valet, nurse/companion
Step mother - Lady's maid
Daughter (heroine) lady's maid (aka Danny in drag)
Stepmothers "aunt" - shares danny
Stepson (Nanny, tutor who does not reside in the household)
Butler
Housekeeper
Cook
2 maids (1 parlor, 1 upstairs)
1 Tweeny
2 footmen
Scullery girl
Laundress who comes in.

Major/minor supporting character servants are: valet, parlor maid, butler, housekeeper, stepmother's lady's maid and the tweeny. The rest are background

The house is new in the "suburbs" (recently got my lovely map of Victorian London and am now shopping for the exact location.) Father is a succesful textile manufacturer who invested wisely and has money.

In the story, the arrangement is as follows. Basement, 3 floors, attic. The female servants are housed in the attic. The male servants in the basement. Attic and basement are accessed by seperate stairs at the rear of the house. At this point - the kitchen is also in the basement w/dumbwaiter for transport of food to the dining room above on the ground floor. Ground floor - dining room, parlor, morning room, father's study, observatory. Stairs lead up to first floor: seperate bedrooms for father, stepmother, aunt, guest. Daughter, son, nanny. stepmom's ladies maid are on the second floor. I'm toying with the idea of one bathroom each on the first and second floor as they were coming into vogue in the 1880's but it's not essential to the plot.)

Feel free to critically comment and suggest.

As to romantic entablements amoung the staff, I'm treading carefully. (I just read a "historical paranormal" where the virginal governess has mad monkey sex with the master of the house in his library. IN 1855!!! Not that people didn't have sex - but it was impossible to suspend my disbelief.) At this point, the valet (yes, I know that Frederick used to be a footman, but being a valet allows him to be involved in a couple of plot points that a footman could not) has feelings for Danny while - I hope this isn't too far a stretch in station - the parlor maid who has dreams of being a housekeeper has feelings for the valet.

As for the servants' daily routine as a group: prayers every morning led by the butler since the father is bedridden, church every Sunday, meals are taken together, Danny has a half-day off every two weeks. In addition, he has the freedom of shopping trips for things his mistress needs and occassionally acts as a companion to her (afternoon museum visits, shopping, etc.) Also, he often goes with her to social events where he sits with other ladies maids in case there is a need for hem repair/spot removal/hair fixing. Several times, the valet arranges his half-day to coincide with Dan's. (I'm not certain this last one could happen, but I hope it's believable.) This, of course, annoys Danny no end as he uses these half days to meet with his actor friends who are playing at detecting in order to clear his name.

Gina Marie - Danny's occupation at the beginning of the book is that of a theatrical dresser, giving him a great many of the skills that a ladies maid would have.

Thanks for all of the book suggestions/links ... very useful.