“Did you?” Sophia’s voice was colored with shock.
“Yes, I realized that deciding for yourself signified your boldness. That is a characteristic that is much needed in a duchess,” the Dowager affirmed.
Relief washed over Sophia. So, she had not messed up completely, after all.
“I wish that you do the same tonight,” the Dowager continued. “You should choose a dress for yourself to wear at the ball. I trust you to make the right choice.”
Sophia noted, “I can do that.”
“Good.” A rare smile appeared on the Dowager’s face. “You will need all the confidence that you can muster up if you are to survive in this society. I will send the maid over with a selection of dresses to your room shortly.”
The Dowager fulfilled her promise, and a while later, Sophia found herself face to face with a rack full of choices.
Sophia had never been presented with such a wide variety of new dresses before. She ran her hands across the silk fabric, and she just knew that it was of the highest quality available.
Being the Duchess was not without its privileges…
Sophia went through the dresses, one by one. Each one was more stunning than the next. She was spoiled with choices.
But then, her eyes finally landed on a teal dress. It had a plunging neckline which exposed more skin than Sophia was used to showing, but it felt like love at first sight for Sophia.
When Sophia held it up against herself in the mirror, a gasp escaped her lips. The teal color complimented her skin perfectly, and she knew that this was it.
Sophia had found the perfect dress.
“I thought that the only reason I had to attend these balls was to find myself a wife,” the Duke said to his mother as he walked downstairs in his suit. She had been waiting for him at the end of the steps. “Why must I still attend them when I have gotten married now?”
“It is expected that a duke attends with his newly wedded wife,” his mother replied, fixing his cravat.
“I reckon you are going to break some hearts tonight due to you not being single anymore,” Jacob laughed from the corner. “I cannot wait to see it.”
“You seem to extract a strange sense of joy from seeing my discomfort,” Duncan shot back at his brother.
“Of course, that is what brothers are meant to do in the first place,” Jacob laughed.
“We should get going,” Duchess Anna announced. “I promised Lady Elizabeth that I would give her company for the entire night, and I do not want to keep her waiting.”
“Yes, we are all ready to go. We are just waiting on Sophia, but she should be here any… second.” The last part of the Duke’s sentence was followed by a stunned silence.
Standing at the top of the stairs was Sophia, but she did not look like her usual self. Clad in a teal gown that hugged her curves but still looked classy, she looked gorgeous.
“I am sorry if I have kept all of you waiting,” Sophia said.
“No need to worry over such a trivial thing. You are right on time,” Jacob replied and then nudged his brother gently in the ribs, dropping his voice down to a mere whisper. “Can’t take your eyes off her, can you?”
“Oh, be quiet,” Duncan shot back, but this time, he had to admit that it was true.
Sophia looked like a vision in that dress.
“Your Grace,” she greeted him as she got to the bottom of the stairs.
Duncan’s eyes drifted briefly to the low cut of her neckline, but he quickly looked back up at her face. It was also then that he realized that she had decided to wear gloves with the dress.
“Shall we go?” she asked, cheerfully. She did not seem to have any clue about the effect that she was having on him.
“Err…” Duncan cleared his throat. “Yes, of course. We should get going. You look beautiful tonight.”
Sophia blushed at his compliment and looked down at the floor.
