Chapter Eleven
The next three weeksflew by for Tessa.Despite Tessa’s reluctance, Lady Gosforth had dragged her off to order far more than a couple of riding habits.
“I don’t need any new clothes,” Tessa objected.She had no desire to play the beggar maid to Marcus’s King Cophetua.
The old lady had snorted.“You don’t want to disgrace my nephew, do you, by wearing those things?”she’d declared, gesturing distastefully at the clothes Tessa had deliberately chosen for their drabness.
Tessa bit her lip.She didn’t really want to keep them, nor did she wish to keep the clothes that had been chosen for her by her husbands, but she also didn’t want to feel like a charity case.Or a gold-digger.
“Pah, what nonsense!”Lady Gosforth declared when Tessa said as much.“You will go into this marriage with your head held high, my gel—or I’ll want to know the reason why!My nephew is obscenely wealthy, and he wouldn’t even notice the cost of a dozen trousseaux.However,” she raised her lorgnette and eyed Tessa through it like an eagle eyeing a mouse, “hewillnotice if you dress like a servant!And even if he doesn’t—and men can be ridiculously oblivious—the rest of society will!And you can take it from me, it will reflect badly onhimif you dress out of the rag bag.Everybody will be talking about this wedding, and I intend to make sure that it is for the right reasons!Now, enough of your nonsense, the carriage will be here in half an hour and I’ll take you to my own dressmaker.”
“Um,” Tessa hesitated.
The old lady’s eyes narrowed.“Well, what is it, gel, spit it out.”
“I would prefer to go to the House of Chance,” Tessa said.The old lady was immaculately and stylishly dressed, but Tessa didn’t want to go to her dressmaker: she was bound to take control, and Tessa had had enough of having others choose her clothing for her.
Both her husbands had had very clear notions of what they wished her to look like and had been present for every fitting.Tessa’s opinions and tastes—when she ventured to express them—had been summarily dismissed.
And since Lady Gosforth was a woman of strong opinions, Tessa would sure it would be just the same.She didn’t want to fall out with Marcus’s aunt before the wedding, but this time she was going to stand up for herself.
“The House of Chance?Never heard of it.”
“It’s relatively new, but many of the, um, younger society ladies speak very highly of Miss Chance’s designs,” Tessa said.Society ladies might have ignored Tessa when she’d attended her few society events in the past, but that didn’t mean Tessa had ignored them She’d passed the time by examining what the most fashionable ladies were wearing and picking up stray snatches of conversation.She’d overheard all kinds of gossip in passing, and had heard the House of Chance mentioned several times.By beautifully dressed young ladies.
Lady Gosforth snorted.“Mischance indeed!Younger ladies?You’d be better guided by an older and wiser head.”
“Possibly.Nevertheless, if I must purchase a trousseau, I will get it from the House of Chance,” she said firmly, hoping she wasn’t making a dreadful mistake.
Lady Gosforth pursed her lips, then shrugged.“Be it on your own head then, but first we will go to the person who has been making my riding habits since I was a young gel.Or do you have a preference for someone else?”she ended acidly.
“No.”
But the carriage took them not to a ladies’ dressmaker, as she’d expected, but to a gentlemen’s tailor.”
“Men make the best riding habits,” Lady Gosforth stated.“I wouldn’t dream of going anywhere else.”
To Tessa’s relief, the tailor had a young woman assistant who measured her up.Then she, Lady Gosforth, her dresser, Bragge, the tailor and Tessa chose the fabric and design.Tessa was looking through rolls of gray wool.Lady Gosforth sat tapping her fingers on her silver-headed stick.
Seeing Tessa’s hesitation, Bragge pulled out a roll of fabric in a soft, dove gray-blue with lavender overtones.“This will bring out your eyes, I think, m’lady,” she said quietly, and held it up against Tessa.
Looking at her reflection in the mirror, Tessa had to agree.
“Yes, yes, that would do very well,” the tailor said, and pulled out a roll of darker purple velvet.We could use this for the collar, lapels and cuffs.What do you think, m’lady?”He looked at Lady Gosford.
Tessa followed his gaze.To her surprise, Lady Gosford simply waved the question aside.“Don’t look at me, it’s my niece who will be wearing it.”
