Caroline Courtney Duchess in Disguise (pdf)

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leading the fashionable world by the nose every now and again.
Wait till the Prince Regent s ball, said Emily. Clorinda is going to
amaze everybody with her beauty. What is Madame Latour making for
you?
The two girls fell to discussing muslins and flounces and the rival merits of
ribbon colors, so that Jack whistled a tune rudely all the way home,
complaining that he had never in all his life been so bored by a
conversation.
After he had left, Clorinda remembered what Lord Chiltern had said. Do
you think Jack should have been in the Army, rather than simply lounging
around London? she asked her sister.
Perhaps I should have stayed back at Westhampton and waited for the
Duke? she said worriedly. He might have bought Jack a commission in
the Army, if I had asked him at a favorable moment.
Then she thought of her drive with the Duke. She gave a little chuckle as
she remembered the Duke s scowling face when she had mentioned Lady
Lancaster.
Perhaps I shall win this battle with him after all, she said to herself.
Perhaps the dowdy Clorinda de Villiers will conquer the great and
powerful Duke of Westhampton.
CHAPTER SEVEN
It was a ball gown that would have graced a fairy princess. Over a perfect
white satin which gleamed and caught the light, Madame Genevieve had
draped a silvery gauze material. At the hem, the edge of the little puffed
sleeves, and at the top of the low cut bodice, drawn silver thread work
embroidery discreetly gathered up the gauzy folds.
The most cunning touch of all, however, were the tiny seed pearls scattered
like teardrops among the embroidery. The whole effect was that of a
silvery cloud, misty and mysterious, sparkling with little raindrops.
Clorinda, however, felt uncertain. It makes me look rather young, she
said, a note of dismay creeping into her voice as she stood in front of the
large mirror with its gilt cupids and flowers framing her. I am afraid the
Duke will think I am just. . . a young girl.
She was right in her perceptions.. As never before, the strangely silver
material outlined her immaturity. If the Eau de Nil dress had made her look
like a woman, this gave her a strange ethereal quality, an other-worldliness.
Madame Latour simply smiled at Clorinda s criticism.
Lady Lancaster, she is older, is she not? she said. You must not try to
fight fire with fire, little one. You have what she has not, and can now
never have, which is innocence and youth. Of a surety, she would give her
all to recapture what this dress. makes so clear in you.
Trust me, she added. I know a little about the ways of men. Sometimes
one must excite them, but sometimes it is necessary to make them adore.
This is a dress to create adoration.
Clorinda sighed, and decided she would trust the Frenchwoman s taste.
Beside, there was no more time. The great ball at Carlton House was for
tonight. She had taxed the resources of Madame Latour s establishment to
their utmost to get the dress finished at all.
And now, the final touches." Madame Latour produced tiny satin dancing
shoes, which Clorinda saw had the same little pearls sewn on them.
Pointing each toe in turn before the mirror, Clorinda admitted that they
were delightful.
They are almost like Cinderella s glass slippers, she said joyfully.
As she spoke, Monsieur Lafayette let himself into the room. She turned
toward him, and displayed to him a deep and dignified manner in what he
called a grande dame style. Then happily she danced over to him.
He took the hand which she held out and raised it to his lips. His eyes in
their deep sockets smiled at her. Eh bien, my lesson has not been wasted.
I could almost wish I too was a visitor at this most magnificent of balls.
You have done well, Genevieve. She looks like a Diana, a virginal goddess
of the moon. I am glad to have seen her thus before I retire.
Where are you going? , asked Clorinda with interest.
It is my custom to spend most of my days in a small cottage in Little
Repton, . he said. Since I have adjured society, I attempt to find my peace
of mind in my garden there. It is not far from Westhampton, my child. It is
a countryside which reminds me of happier days, days that I cannot
recollect without regret.
Perhaps you will come and visit me at Westhampton?" said Clorinda
tentatively. She was dismayed that the old French aristocrat was leaving
London. If my plan does not succeed I shall be very lonely there. I shall
need a friend, she added pathetically.
You shall visit me, my dear, said the old man. Remember I am always
your friend and you can come any time. And perhaps if your plan succeeds
and you ask the Duke s permission, I might visit Westhampton once
again.
You have been there before?" Clorinda was surprised.
Many times but so long ago, said Monsieur Lafayette in a tone of
deepest nostalgia. Now that you see me as an old man living retired, you
cannot imagine that I was once a gallant, as 'fashionable as your Duke.
Before the Revolution tore my country apart, I visited Westhampton-and
lost my heart.
I did a great wrong for love in those days. But I was punished. I hope that
perhaps through you I can restore some love and gaiety to Westhampton.
But this is too long a tale to explain now. Be happy, my child. Come, let
me try your waltz.
It was an odd sight. The elegant old aristocrat, all in black, and the
ravishingly beautiful young girl in a cloud of white silver, circling the
salon to the sounds of imaginary music. As they came to a halt, Monsieur
Lafayette bent down to the small figure in his embrace, and kissed her
gently on the forehead.
I am not the Prince who shall awake this sleeping beauty, but allow me
the privilege of a man old enough to be your father, my dear, he said
gently.
It seemed to Clorinda that this gesture of his was somehow a blessing. For
a moment she had the oddest thought that perhaps her journey in search of
love was partly undertaken on behalf of others-this strange couple, the old
French aristocrat who had lost the woman he loved in mysterious
circumstances, and the charming French woman whose life had been
ruined by a ruthless deceiving man.
You have both been very kind to me, she said wonderingly. I do not
really, know why.
Perhaps it is because we see our old selves in you," said Madame [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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