He had encouraged her to be herself, to not fit into the paradigm of a society lady, and then he had had the audacity to die. Everything had unraveled since then, the real world a great and awful shock to her entire being. Although she supposed it washerfault for believing that her peaceful, solitary existence at Stonebridge could last, when her own history should have told her otherwise.
I should have been preparing for this attack on my freedom. Instead, I wasted my time enjoying myself.
“And it cannot be that he does not have the resources to provide for me,” she continued, speaking more to herself than to Katherine. “I have seen the value of the fortune he inherited. There is enough for me to live comfortably as a widow here without affecting his wealth at all; he simply does not want to give me that gift.”
She came to an abrupt halt as she passed by the mirror, a soft gasp escaping her throat as she saw herself. For a moment, she was not even sure she was looking at her own reflection, as it had been so long since she had a reason to dress up for anythingother than a day of walking, tending the gardens, and fixing things around the manor.
“Oh, Katherine,” she whispered, as she smoothed her hands down the front of the exquisite, golden gown.
Draped to resemble the attire of Ancient Greek noblewomen, with two brooches pinned at each shoulder, the exposed skin of her arms boldly on display, and a neckline that was somewhat lower than usual, it was a symbol of liberty and defiance wrapped in clothing. It was perfect, for what sort of gentleman would look twice at such a brazen woman?
Well, a gentlemanmightlook twice, but he would not be thinking of marriage; that was for certain.
“How did you manage this?” Anna took a step closer to the mirror to admire the curved half-wreath of flowers that her lady’s maid had woven into her braided hair, despite her determination not to stay still.
Anna recognized them at once as wildflowers from the meadow, where the two women spent so much time together.
Katherine blushed, waving a shy hand. “It was nothing, Your Grace.”
“Nonsense,” Anna countered. “This is not nothing. This is… exceptional, dearest Katherine. It is certainly the best use ofcurtains I have ever seen. You have a talent, Katherine. Truly, you do.”
As long as no one ever used the unoccupied study in the eastern wing, none would be any the wiser as to where the majestic gown came from. Anna definitely was not going to tell any of the guests at the evening’s masquerade where the material had been sourced, since she did not plan to speak to anyone at all.
You think you have everything planned, Jeremy, but I shall not do as you please tonight.
“If I had had more time,” Katherine said, her eyes shining with delight. “I could have done more. In truth,youare the only reason it looks good. You are the perfect Aphrodite, Your Grace.”
The lady’s maid removed a gold necklace from one of the wooden boxes near the vanity, jewelry left behind by the previous duke. His mother’s, probably. Anna had never had much reason to wear any of it, even though it was legally hers. The only thing, in truth, that was legally hers now.
“I thought this would pair well,” Katherine said.
She slipped the necklace around Anna’s neck, the two women smiling at one another in the reflection. It was a beautiful piece of jewelry: a sizeable work of filigreed gold that curved and curled up to Anna’s throat, embellished with pretty peridot gemstones and a diamond or ten.
She frowned briefly, concerned it resembled a loyal hound’s collar too closely. She did not want Jeremy to get the wrong idea.
A knock at the door made her jump, her furrowed eyebrows shooting up in alarm.
The devil on the other side didn’t bother to announce himself as the door swung open and Jeremy strode in. “Are ye ready to leave, Duch–” He seemed to falter, his black eyes glinting as they roved over Anna’s body. “–ess.”
He had concluded his sentence, but it appeared he hadn’t concluded his assessment of her. She stood awkwardly as his gaze continued to wander, slowly taking her in, his attention so intense that she felt as if he were peeling away the draped layers of her gown with his eyes. Indeed, shealmostcovered herself with her arms, feeling somehow exposed though she was fully clothed.
His eyebrow quirked with something like appreciation, reminding her of the dark smirk that had gotten her into trouble the night before.
“If ye don’t want to be touched, to be kissed, to please me, then ye mustn’t tempt me. Don’t pretend that was all me, lass.”She heard his sultry voice in her head, made all the more potent thanks to his presence in her dressing room. Already, her heart had begun to race, her breaths becoming shallow.
“Why, yes, I am,” she said sharply, squaring her shoulders. “Ready to be paraded in front of at least a county’s worth ofgentlemen who might want to take me. Ready to flaunt myself for their highest bid.”
Her heart sped up slightly as she watched his eyes narrow, the amused quirk of his eyebrow now turning into a grim frown. She wondered if he ever bothered to smile genuinely, or if his handsome face was so perfectly sculpted, so like stone, that he simply could not show any real emotion.
Although perhaps men of such outward appeal didn’t need to know how to smile, laugh, or put effort into their character. He looked exceptionally handsome tonight, dressed in a pleated kilt that stopped at the knee, woven in what she assumed were his family colors. A black shirt enticed the eye to imagine the muscled body beneath, while the kilt sparked Anna’s thoughts into a frenzy, picturing the powerful thighs hidden above the hem.
For once, she would have preferred those tight trousers of his, for at least they didn’t encourage her to think of his thighs uncovered. Seeing his bare calves, however… how could shenotimagine what followed them upward?
“Miss Miller,” Jeremy said with stilted politeness. “Leave us.”
The lady’s maid hesitated, glancing at Anna.
“Go on, Katherine,” Anna urged, despite her promise to never be alone with Jeremy again. “I shall be quite all right. It is not as if I can suffer any further indignity from this gentleman.”
