“You ain’t the only tardy ones,” Vera grumbled. “Fiona’s note says that she’s running behind too. ’Ow am I supposed to transform you into toffs in less than an hour’s time?”
“If anyone can, it’s you,” Livy said.
“Then let’s not waste time tipping over the butter boat.” Vera waved them to the dressing screens where she’d already hung their costumes. “I’ll give you a hand getting changed.”
After Glory and Livy donned their male attire, Vera sat them in front of adjacent dressing tables and set to work.
“So, luv,” she said as she brushed cosmetic onto Glory’s face. “I ’ear you’ve a follower.”
Beneath the sweeping bristles, Glory’s cheeks burned. “Um, where did you hear that?”
Vera snorted. “Where do you think?”
Glory and Livy looked at each other.
“Fiona,” they said in unison.
“Well, is it true?” Vera said. “’Ave you found yourself a fellow?”
As Glory chewed on her lip, debating what to say, Livy spoke for her.
“She has, but the fellow in question doesn’t know it yet.” Livy looked at Glory. “I still say you should have told him.”
“How could I?” Glory said miserably. “Mr. Chen had just finished telling me how much I reminded him of his sister.”
“One o’ those situations, is it?” Vera’s face was sympathetic as she thickened Glory’s eyebrows. “The bloke you care for don’t return your affections?”
“He called me a ‘disrespectful pest’.” Glory heaved a sigh. “Even though he was teasing me, I wager he wouldn’t say that to a lady he was attracted to.”
“The attraction is two-sided,” Livy insisted. “Hadleigh and I both think that there is a special connection between you and Mr. Chen. You just need to work up the nerve to clarify the situation.”
“It’s not that simple.” Frustrated, Glory tried to explain. “Mr. Chen is my teacher and my friend. And even though I might want more, I don’t want to risk losing what I have. I am afraid that if I tell him my feelings, he’ll stop giving me lessons. That he might disappear from my life for good.”
To prepare her for tonight’s assignment, Wei (having called him by his given name, she now couldn’t stop thinking of him that way) had given her lessons each of the past three days. Their time together had brought home how much she enjoyed his company. It didn’t matter what they were doing. He could be teaching her martial arts, or they could simply be bantering. Since he’d told her about his sister, she felt a deeper connection to him, and she thought he might feel the same way. In his presence, she felt happy and accepted for who she was.
Paradoxically, Wei also set off a trembling tension inside her. Images of him, his gaze smoldering and bulging muscles sheened with sweat, intruded constantly upon her thoughts. At night in her bed, she dreamily reimagined their kiss in the flash house. This time he wasn’t wearing his shirt, and she’d felt every hard, rippling ridge of his chest. Beneath her nightgown, her nipples had started throbbing, and she’d touched them, imagining it was Wei’s fingers rubbing and pinching. That it was his hand that had traveled lower, between her ribs and down her belly…
“Sorry I’m late!” Fiona tripped in, her cheeks pink and eyes bright.
Flushing, Glory asked, “Is everything all right, Fi? Was it nausea that kept you?”
“Quite the opposite.” Fi pranced behind a dressing screen, her voice muffled as she undressed. “I haven’t felt this full of energy in ages.”
“Then why were you late?” Livy called out.
Fi peered coyly around the edge. “As it happens, Hawksmoor was also feeling rather frisky.”
“Fiona Garrity Morgan, you are shameless.” Livy’s smile was knowing.
“I know. Isn’t it wonderful?” With a giggle, Fi ducked back behind the screen.
Witnessing the exchange, Glory felt a wistful pang. She’d always valued her independence; as a young girl, her mama and aunt’s self-sufficiency had made an indelible impression. Even after Papa and Mama had reunited, Glory had retained the notion that she would not rely on anyone for her own happiness.
Since meeting Wei, her dreams had undergone a shift. She saw with new clarity what her friends had. A partner who adored them and whom they adored in return. A connection that was passionate and playful, that allowed both partners to grow. She wanted all of that too…if only the object of her affections could feel the same way.
With Vera’s help, Fi was soon dressed like a fashionable swell. She took the dressing table next to Glory’s.
“Did I miss anything?” she asked.
