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Chapter Thirty
Minutes after dinner, Clara was half-asleep in her comfortable wingback chair, a blissful smile on her face, a forgotten book on her lap.
She didn’t mind having this quiet evening at home for once. Between the increased visits to James and her ordinary social schedule, she’d spent almost every evening out these past weeks. The nocturnal schedule was glorious, but exhausting.
Her leather-bound novel fell loudly to the floor; she barely stirred. Her eyelids felt so weighted, she couldn’t lift them. Anyway, what fiction was as compelling as reliving James’s declaration of love?
It seemed as if only minutes had passed since she’d settled into the chair when Molly woke her after several attempts.
“Time is it?” Clara slurred. She fell asleep again before hearing the answer.
“Come, my lady,please.”
“Very well.” But she turned her head and snuggled deeper into the chair.
Suddenly, two sets of hands helped her up.
“That’s it,” Mrs. Taylor, the housekeeper, encouraged. “And to the stairs we go.”
Clara never awakened fully as she was readied for bed, and she groaned gratefully when she sank into the cloud of her bed.
She slept solidly until her normal hour and even then, wanted more. Hoping to block out the sunlight filtering through the draperies, she flipped onto her stomach.
Yelping, she rolled onto her back. It felt as though her breasts had been compressed in a spiked vice!
Prodding gingerly, she discovered her breasts were exceedingly sore. She slid a hand under her night rail, swiping her thigh just below the pubic hair.No blood—yet.Glad she didn’t need her special linens, she pondered her schedule today and whether she needed to rise straight away.
She fell asleep again while attempting to think.
Sometime later, she woke to Molly’s hand on her forehead.
“Beg pardon, my lady. No fever.”
Clara struggled to exit the fog of deep sleep.
“Will you be wishing to go to thelending librarytoday?”
Groaning, Clara sat up.Violet House! Wake up, Violet House needs you.
She checked her thighs again, and finding no signs of menstruation, requested a breakfast tray.
It wasn’t long after taking care of her necessities that her breakfast arrived, which she tucked into with enthusiasm. Molly nodded approvingly at the ravaged tray afterwards, and set about dressing her for the day.
“Which gown shall I prepare for this evening, my lady?”
Clara frowned at Molly’s question.
This evening, this evening.She struggled to remember. Was the dinner with David and the Sideris family tonight?
A deeply unpleasant taste blossomed in her mouth, which she tried to swallow without avail. She forced herself to consider tonight’s gown.
“I was thinking about the cobalt silk, but…” Clara frowned at her reflection. Usually, the violet day dress accentuated her green eyes. Today, it merely amplified the matching violet lines beneath her eyes.
“Powder, my lady?”
“Yes, I rather need it, do I not?” Turning her head from side to side, she frowned. How awful she looked! “Assume I’ll wear Mama’s sapphires tonight.” The jewelry had been a gift from Sirena Sideris, and she knew Sirena loved seeing her wear them. “Hopefully, the cobalt silk will suit. If not, select something else that complements the sapphires.”
Clara closed her eyes to be powdered, unusually aware of her unmentionables chafing her upper body. A rush of metallic-tasting saliva filled her mouth. She tried to ignore the malaise enveloping her and opened her eyes to review the results of the powder.
