Page 58 of A Scandal for the Beastly Earl

"I don't want anyone weeping..."

"Silence! Marguerite, bring the sapphire silk. No, wait—the midnight blue. It will match Monsieur le Comte's dark eyes."

"How do you know what colour my husband's eyes are?" Arabella asked.

"I dressed his mother for twenty years. I know everything about this family." Madame Phillipe's expression softened slightly. "She would be so happy to know her son has finally married. And to such a belle femme!"

Over the next two hours, Arabella was measured, draped, pinned, and transformed. The midnight blue silk was proclaimed perfect, and Madame Phillipe designed a gown on the spot that was both elegant and slightly daring.

"The neckline, perhaps a bit lower?" the modiste suggested.

"It's already quite low."

"Pah! You are married now. You can show a little more... how do you say... confidence."

"I think you mean bosom."

"That too."

Lucien chose that moment to enter, took one look at Arabella standing on a stool in her undergarments while three seamstresses worked around her, and immediately turned to leave.

"I apologise. I didn't realise..."

"Non!" Madame Phillipe commanded. "You stay. You must see the colour against her skin. Tell me it is not perfect."

"Madame, I hardly think..."

"Look at your wife, monsieur."

Lucien turned back, and Arabella saw his eyes darken as he took in the silk held against her, the way it made her skin glow.

"It's... indeed. Perfect."

"You see? A man knows when his woman looks beautiful. Now go. We have work to do."

But Lucien lingered a moment longer, his gaze meeting Arabella's with a heat that made her blush all the way to her toes.

"Four days?" he asked.

"Four days," she confirmed.

"We'll be ready," Madame Phillipe declared. "She will be the most beautiful woman there."

"She already is," Lucien said quietly, then left before Arabella could respond.

"That one," Madame Phillipe said with satisfaction, "is completely épris. How do you say... smitten?"

"We've only been married a week."

"Pah! Time means nothing. My husband fell in love with me in thirty seconds. We were married for forty years." She adjusted the silk around Arabella's shoulders. "This dress will make him fall in love all over again."

"It's just a dress."

"Non. It is armor. It is a weapon. It is a declaration." The modiste stepped back, studying her creation. "That Lady Velott, will be so distressed."

"You know about Cassandra?"

"I know everything, chérie. She tried to redecorate when she thought she would be mistress here. Wanted everything in white and gold. Like a tomb!"