His mother was oblivious to his fury. She merrily counted on her fingers who would be there that evening.
“Lady Penrose will likely appear with her odious son. Her daughter has married very well indeed, however. I saw them promenading last weekend, and they are quite the most elegant couple. Lady Winterbourne has cancelled due to sickness. I do not believe I have ever seen her healthy...”
Colin remained where he was, nodding at intervals as he listened to his mother prattle on about the eligible women he would meet tonight.
In truth, the thought of marriage was something that filled him with dread. He had met plenty of very pleasant ladies in his time, but all of them had left him cold.
Colin was not good at expressing his feelings. He had never learned affection from those around him, after all. It often perplexed him that his parents had so longed for children yet when Colin eventually arrived, they had rarely shown him any warmth at all.
Perhaps I am simply impossible to care for. What kind of woman would choose a man like me?
“Colin, are you listening to me?”
“You have been listing women's names for the past five minutes together, Mama. As far as I am aware I can only chooseonewife, or do you wish for me to propose to them all?”
Colin snapped his mouth shut, but the damage had been done. He had allowed his temper to get the better of him, and his mother’s eyes widened comically for a moment before her cheeks heated in a violent blush.
“I see,” her voice was small and quiet now. “I was merely endeavouring to prepare you for the company you might need to entertain this evening. Clearly, you have matters well in hand.”
Colin came out from behind the desk and approached her. The guilt in his chest only grew as he saw the hint of tears at the back of her eyes as he took her hand.
“I am sorry. It has been a trying day. I am grateful to you for what you have told me, truly. I did not mean to lose my temper.”
His mother swallowed, pulling her hand from his and stepping away, her throat working as she fought with her emotions. Even a simple brush of a hand was rare between them.
I touch my valet more than I do my own mother.
“I am going to go and get ready for the ball. I shall instruct Carter that I must be dressed to impress,” he said.
That won him a faint smile, and he swiftly left the room before her unhappiness faded and she began speaking of eligible ladies all over again.
***
Charlotte stared at her reflection in astonishment.
While caring for her mother for the last three years, how she looked had become secondary. She needed practical clothing that would not matter if it became soiled and she had barely looked in a mirror once per day, always at her mother’s bedside or reading to her late into the night.
It was only when Sarah entered the room and audibly gasped at her appearance that Charlotte hurried to the full-length mirror to ensure she wasn’t wearing something entirely inappropriate. Quite the contrary. She looked like a lady.
When her father had told her he had ‘selected a gown’ for her, Charlotte’s heart sank to the floor. Although her father was well-versed in gentlemen’s fashion, a lady’s dress was very different from the right sort of waistcoat or fob watch.
The dress, however, was perfect—dark green in color and embroidered with gold stitching in a floral design. The sweeping silk of the skirt fit her perfectly, widening out from her narrowwaist where a band of gold settled just below the corset. Delicate lace lined the bodice, and the capped sleeves were beautifully complimented by elegant white gloves that reached over her elbow.
“Oh, my Lady,” Sarah said, coming further into the room and smiling widely. “You look absolutely glorious.”
Charlotte tweaked the skirt, unsure what to do with such a compliment. She was not used to such attention, and Sarah’s eyes were full of something that looked like awe. It was unnerving.
“Sarah, I look the same as I always do, only in a finer dress.”
“No. None of that. You look beautiful. You look as you should for your debut. Your mother would be proud.”
Charlotte managed a strained smile, trying to hide how much those words cut to her soul. Her motherwouldhave loved this dress. She had always been Charlotte’s biggest supporter and confidante. Not having her beside her today was a fresh pain she had not anticipated.
“You look very lovely, too,” Charlotte said, looking Sarah over. “Is that a new dress?”
“Your father told me I was to accompany you and not disgrace you. He purchased this at the same time as yours, I believe.”
Sarah’s dress was much more understated than Charlotte’s, made from muslin and pale in color, but it complimented her dark hair. Charlotte’s strawberry blonde hair was tied up nearly at the back of her head and secured with a green ribbon to match her dress. She did feel pretty when she looked at her reflection, and she was glad that her father would find her suitable.
