Her eye was drawn to a bolt of lavender silk. She traced her fingers over it. It was cool and soft, and she imagined what it would feel like to wear. For a moment, the idea of going to a ball, twirling in a ball gown made just for her, felt impossibly romantic.
“May I help you?”
She opened her eyes. The woman standing next to her wore a scarlet gown with a great deal of lace and a smile so big that Prudence couldn’t help smiling back. “Is this your shop?” she asked.
“It is. I am Madame Olivier, the modiste.” The woman spoke with a French accent, but her English was clear. “What can I help with? Gowns for the upcoming season, I suppose?”
“Yes, I’ll need a few things. And I was just admiring this.” She held out the lavender silk. “I’d like something in this if that’s possible.”
“Of course. I don’t know why more people haven’t chosen this one yet. They haven’t, so you’ll stand out, but this is one of the finest fabrics I have.”
Prudence pondered for a moment. Her purse was so full after all, and her needs so few. “I don’t suppose you would sell me all of it?”
“All of it?” Madame Olivier raised her eyebrows.
“I’ll pay you what it’s worth, but I like the idea of being the only one to wear it,” Prudence explained.
Madame Olivier laughed. “A lady after my own heart,” she said. “I wish I could offer to simply not sell the fabric to anyone other than yourself, but I do have to keep food on my table.”
“Oh, no, I would never ask that of you,” Prudence assured her. “I only want to know whether you’ll let me purchase it.”
“I can hardly say no though it won’t come cheap,” Madame Olivier agreed, naming her price.
“That’s perfectly fine,” Prudence agreed. “You can have the rest of it sent to Desford Manor once you’re finished with what you need to make my gown.”
“You’re the Duchess of Desford, then?”
“I am,” Prudence confirmed.
“It will be an honor to have you wearing my gowns this season, Your Grace—and you are such a beauty, too. Why don’t you step over here so that I can begin to get you measured?”
Prudence followed Madame Olivier and stood to begin having her measurements taken. A moment later, her sisters joined her.
“Have you already seen something you like?” Arabella asked her.
Prudence decided not to report the fact that she had bought the entire bolt of fabric. Both of her sisters were so practical minded that they might not think it a good idea, and at best, they simply wouldn’t understand why she had done it. They wouldn’t be the sort to appreciate the idea of having a beautiful fabric that no one else could find anywhere in London. They would think she had wasted her money on something frivolous.
The way she would feel walking into Staffordshire knowing that her gown was special… no, they wouldn’t be able to relate to that feeling.
“You’ll look lovely in one of the styles I have in mind,” Madame Olivier said to Prudence as she continued to take her measurements. “You may have seen it on display on your way in. It’s the one in the center place in the window.”
Prudence hadn’t taken any notice, but both Arabella and Caroline gasped. “That one was lovely,” Arabella said. “Madame Olivier is quite right, Prudence. You’ll be stunning in it. I can’t wait to see how it comes out. And I’m sure everyone else at the ball will be having absolute fits when they see you. You’ll have every eye on you, make no mistake.”
Prudence couldn’t help smiling at that thought. “It might be fun,” she decided. “I never thought this was something I’d get to do after I was married.”
“Yes, how lucky that your husband has decided…” Caroline began.
Arabella held up a hand quickly to silence her. “We won’t discuss it here,” she said.
Caroline’s face flushed. Prudence understood. They didn’t know Madame Olivier well enough to trust her with the details of any of their personal lives and especially not the things Prudence and Leonard were going to such lengths to keep secret. She wondered briefly how it would have been if she had spilled the truth then had to go home and let Leonard know that everyone was going to discover his secret after all.
Not that I care about protecting Peter! I don’t care what happens to him. But I have come to realize that Leonard’s priorities matter to me, in spite of everything, and I don’t want anything to happen to him that he wouldn’t like.
She gave her sister a nod of thanks for her quick thinking, and Arabella nodded back.
Once Prudence’s measurements were done, she stepped down to allow Caroline to take her turn and wandered over to the window to look out at the street and the people passing by outside.
I don’t feel any different than I ever have. I feel like the same girl who daydreamed about balls and dresses and a gentleman who would choose me—someone I would love. And now, nearly all of those things have come true, but it doesn’t feel as though anything has changed.
