Her eyes shot open with a start as images of the duke’s bare back and chest flitted across her mind. Her skin began to feel a little too hot as she turned and faced the other direction.
I have to keep my attention on the club.
No matter how handsome he is.
Isabella awoke long before the pale winter sun had fully blessed the sky. For a lingering moment, she lay still beneath her cover, eyes tracing the faint beams of morning light slipping through the curtains, her heart already quickening with the excitement she had tried, and failed, to contain the night before.
It was the first official day at the club, her first day stepping into something that was hers, and the realization alone banished any remnants of sleep she felt. Within moments, she rang for her maid, Collette.
What followed was a flurry of haste as Isabella, despite the display of dresses she’d laid on her bed and the one she’dinitially picked for the event, could not make up her mind what to wear. It wasn’t until she closed her eyes to pick that she settled on one.
It was a winter-blue dress trimmed with delicate embroidery, the shade picked for the way it complemented both Isabella’s complexion and the crispness of the season. Her maid arranged her curls, weaving them into a style elegant yet free enough to give her room to think without tugging on her.
She had never prepared for such an undertaking before. She had been dressed for balls, teas, dinners, and assemblies, all predictable and rehearsed routine, but never for something she herself had helped to build.
When she finally descended the stairs, she found Christine waiting for her in the hallway, wrapped in a warm cloak of soft wool.
“Awake before your maid?” Christine teased, looping her arm through Isabella’s. “That alone tells me everything I need to know.”
Isabella smiled, a quiet breath leaving her.
“Then I shall save you the trouble of asking further.”
Christine arched one brow. “Nervous?”
Isabella shook her head with more conviction than she had expected.
“Not this time.”
Christine’s warm, approving nod accompanied them out the door and into the waiting carriage.
Everthorne House was already alive with activity when they arrived. Two footmen hurried down the steps to assist the ladies from the carriage, while another rushed down after seeing the rectangular board attached behind the carriage, their boots crunching softly against the thin sheet of frost that clung to the stone. A cold wind cut sharply through the air, yet the sight awaiting Isabella warmed her more thoroughly than any fire could have.
Carriages lined the drive. Dozens of them. A far greater turnout than anyone, save perhaps Lady Kendrick, could have imagined. And yet she thought she’d arrived early.
Inside, Ladies shed their cloaks and gloves, revealing fashionable gowns in every jewel tone imaginable, and excited murmurs floated above each other.
Isabella’s eyes widened when she recognized several familiar faces, most of the ladies from the presentations two weeks ago. They approached in pairs, in clusters, offering eager greetings like they hadn’t laughed in her face before.
Still, Isabella replied to each greeting as politely as she could, refusing to partake in any activity that would ruin her excitement.
Then Lady Kendrick appeared.
“Oh! My brilliant girl,” the older woman exclaimed, swooping Isabella into her arms with surprising vigor for someone who frequently complained of frailty. “What a turnout! I knew they would come. Did I not say so?”
“You did indeed, My Lady,” Isabella laughed, allowing herself to be guided alongside Lady Kendrick and into the ballroom, the only place in the mansion the Duke of Everthorne allowed them for their meetings.
The sight took Isabella’s breath for the second time that day.
The magnificent ballroom, already beautiful, had been transformed for the club’s first gathering. Its tall windows were framed by sheer drapes that moved with every whisper of cold air, and candles burned in tiers upon the walls, their flames reflecting off crystal droplets suspended from the grand chandelier above.
And along the far wall, the large rectangular structure Isabella had brought with her was draped with a deep navy fabric.
Lady Kendrick clapped her hands, her eyes bright as diamonds.
“Welcome, my dears!” she called, her voice carrying through the space with ease. “Please, do come in!”
As the ladies gathered, two footmen positioned themselves beside the covered structure, their hands gripping ropes that connected to the draped fabric.
