It was well past time she discovered who. And if it turned out that this secret benefactor was indeed Sebastian…
Her breath caught and she pressed a hand to her chest before hurrying after Thea.
If it was Sebastian…
Well. She needed to know that too.
12
Estella stood like a soldier preparing for battle as she awaited the duchess’s verdict.
With her hands clasped before her, she waited near the carriage that would take them to the ball. And truly, she felt…beautiful.
She was clad in the new gown the duchess had provided for her, and her blonde locks artfully arranged by one of the duchess’s most skilled maids. All day she’d been pampered and prepped…
Like a goose being dressed for supper.
Estella smothered a laugh at the thought. It was an alarmingly apt metaphor.
"The neckline is perfection." The duchess adjusted a fold of fabric near Estella's shoulder with a practiced eye. "And the color does extraordinary things for your eyes. You look—" She paused, considering. "You look like yourself, my dear. And that is a beautiful thing."
Estella blinked against an unexpected sting behind her eyes. The duchess seemed cold and rigid when one first met her, but the more time Estella spent in her home, the more certain she was that the outward cold front masked a very warm heart.
If the duchess noticed her sudden bout of emotion, she didn’t let on. She merely handed Estella a pair of silk gloves—new, and perfectly fitted—and said, "Come. Blackwood will be waiting."
The mention of Sebastian sent a fresh wave of nerves crashing over her. She hadn’t forgotten Thea’s words. And she was no more certain of his intentions or his feelings toward her now than she had been after the musicale. But perhaps tonight she would learn more.
On the carriage ride to the ball, it occurred to Estella that perhaps she could ask the duchess about how Sebastian came to be a part of this plan. And maybe even if he’d had anything to do with the help her family had received over the years.
But the carriage rolled to a stop before she’d summoned the nerve. The duchess shot her a mischievous little smile. "Are you ready to face your horde of adoring suitors, Miss Hale?"
Estella burst out in a laugh. Adoring? Hardly. And she wasn’t even certain she had one real potential suitor, let alone a horde.
The duchess’s smile was genuine and warm. "You have a lovely laugh, Miss Hale. You should use it more often."
It occurred to Estella, not for the first time, that the Duchess of Ashworth must be rather lonely. The thought was there and gone before she could examine it, because a footman was opening the carriage door and the noise of the ballroom was spilling into the night.
Once inside, Estella's eyes swept the ballroom. She told herself she was taking in the room, assessing the crowd. She was absolutely not looking for one specific person.
But she found him almost immediately. Sebastian was standing against the far wall, near a pillar, with a glass in his hand and his usual solemn expression. His dark coat was impeccable. His hair was slightly too long, as always. And even from across the room, she could see the scar along his jaw.
Her stomach did a slow, treacherous flip.
"Lord Alderton is over there, dear." The duchess nodded toward the opposite side of the room.
Estella's gaze snapped to where the duchess was indicating. Lord Alderton stood in a small cluster of gentlemen, looking pleasant and well-groomed and exactly as kind as he always looked.
But that wasn't who she'd been looking for. The realization sent heat flooding into her cheeks, and she was grateful for the dim candlelight.
"Yes," she murmured. "Thank you."
There was no denying it any longer. At least, not to herself. She'd been looking for Sebastian. She'd walked into a ballroom full of London's finest, and her eyes had gone straight to the brooding, difficult, monosyllabic man against the wall as though he were the only person in the room.
Thea's voice echoed in her mind. “Secret admirer.”
Her heart did a silly little dance behind her rib cage. Drawing in a deep breath, she smoothed her skirts and tried to compose herself. The duchess squeezed her arm once, a brief gesture of reassurance, and then drifted into the crowd to speak with an acquaintance.
Estella was left standing alone, but it felt different tonight. The sapphire gown made her feel pretty. The duchess's confidence in her still lingered like perfume. And across the room, Sebastian was watching her. That, more than anything else, made her feel…
