Emmie studied each dress, realizing they were made from the finest silk. Every dress was lovely, but what was more thrilling than the pretty gowns was that these dresses were actually from an aunt she had never known, whom she knew her mother loved dearly.
“Pick anyone you would like. My daughter will not wear these anymore, so you might as well get some use out of them.”
“I thank you, Georgia,” Emmie told her with a catch in her voice.
Georgia moved toward the door to leave. “There are some undergarments in the drawers by the bed. Just snoop around to see what you need. Let me know if you need any help dressing. I will send Amy up if you do.”
“No need. I have been dressing myself for quite a while now.”
“All right. I will leave you to get dressed, then. But can I have her come fix your long, lovely hair?”
Broderick’s words rang in her ears, reminding her that she hadn’t had pretty hair since starting her role as lady’s companion. “I would love that.”
“Splendid. I’ll send her up. Oh, and the chamber pot is behind that screen.” Georgia left the room and closed the door behind her.
Emmie eyed each gown carefully. Most of them still looked new, and she could tell the cloth was an expensive cut, as well. Out of all the fine gowns, only one caught her eye. The blue-mint velvet dress had short sleeves and a scooped neckline. Without a second thought, she grabbed it and laid it on the bed. Looking through her Aunt Victoria’s drawers, she found other things needed to make her attire complete and then proceeded to change.
After hurrying with her necessities, she stood in front of the full-length mirror fully dressed. An entirely different woman stared at her from the glass. She couldn’t believe how pretty this dress made her appear. The color enhanced her face, which made her blue eyes stand out more.
The material hugged her bosom and emphasized womanly curves Emmie never thought she had. All in all, this dress fit her better than any dress she had ever worn. As if it was made for her.
She took pleasure in looking this pretty and wanted to look even lovelier, so she went to Aunt Victoria’s vanity table and finished her toiletry by brushing her hair until it shone.
A knock came upon the door, and when she called out to have them enter, a woman—perhaps in her thirties—walked in and introduced herself as Amy. The woman took the brush from Emmie and fashioned her hair so beautifully, it left her in awe.
By adding a little blush to her cheeks and a rose-colored cream to her lips, Emmie tried making her face appear more feminine. She couldn’t believe the difference it made. For the first time in her life, she thought she looked beautiful. Not just passively pretty, but exotically lovely. Maybe even more so than Anna. Emmie couldn’t wait to show herself to her grandmother and, most importantly, to Broderick.
The more she thought about him, the more her mouth stretched into a grin. She couldn’t believe she’d let him kiss her those few times, because certainly the earl’s daughter didn’t allow men such liberties. But how could she stop him? He was sovery passionate and tender, unlike those men who tried to court her and forced their unwanted attention on her.
Amy smiled and gave Emmie an encouraging nod. Nervously, she left the room and made her way back downstairs. Voices rose from the dining room, those of Georgia and Broderick. Pausing before going in, Emmie took a deep breath for courage and tried to keep her heart rate under control. How would he act seeing her this way? She’d find out in a moment.
*
“And this isa miniature of my wonderful husband, God rest his soul.”
Broderick smiled and sat patiently as Georgia showed him nearly every picture she had in her house. She was such a dear woman, and it was obvious she didn’t have many guests stop by. It surprised him that her house was so grand, mainly because Emiline hadn’t mentioned having a wealthy family.
“And after the birth of our youngest daughter, Victoria, my wonderful husband had this house built.”
Broderick nodded, hoping the older woman hadn’t realized he wasn’t paying much attention to her storytelling. “And what a fine house it is, Georgia.”
She smiled as her cheeks flourished with color—so much like her granddaughter.
There had to be a reason Emiline was fearful of getting to know her grandmother. But more importantly, how could he get the woman he couldn’t stop thinking about to trust him—to open up and share her thoughts and dreams with him? To tell him about her life? Deep down inside, he worried that she was holding some deep, dark secret.
Then again, he held a secret from her, so he shouldn’t expect something he wasn’t ready to give himself.
When he had first come down the stairs and found Georgia, he asked about Emiline’s whereabouts. Georgia told him she was upstairs in her daughter’s bedroom changing. Now as he sat at the table talking with the older lady, he waited for the woman he wanted to cuddle with, to kiss. To hear the small sighs when he touched her. He didn’t know how much time had passed since he’d last laid his lonely eyes on the pretty girl, but it seemed like hours.
This morning had been wonderful, and the kiss endearing. He hadn’t wanted it to end, and even now, he wondered when he could kiss her again. Would she allow it? She hadn’t seemed repulsed by what they’d shared earlier, so perhaps she was growing to have feelings for him just as he was for her.
When Georgia’s chatter suddenly stopped, he snapped out of his thoughts. Her gaze was pinned to something behind him, and her blue eyes widened as a smile graced her face. She nodded as if approving of what she saw.
He turned to see what she was looking at… and almost fell out of his chair. Emiline stood just inside the room, a vision of loveliness swathed in a bluish-green dress. He’d never seen anything so beautiful before. For a moment, he had lost his breath until it all came out in a gust.
Although he’d seen her in dresses before, they had always looked out of place on her. Now he knew why. Emiline didn’t belong in plain, ugly dresses. She belonged in a dress made for a princess, which was what she looked like now.
And her hair! Never had he seen it so beautiful—nor had he seenanywoman’s hair done so artfully and perfectly. Instead of being pulled tight in a bun, her hair was in a loose coil on top of her head as thick tendrils graced her ears.
