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“I assure you, Hannah,” Lily insisted. “Why don’t we try it on to see how it fits?”
Belle nodded and with the help of the two sisters, she donned the dress. Lily and Julia brought her over to the mirror, both smiling widely.
“Sit,” Lily ordered. “And allow me to do your hair. I’m going to make you look like a princess.”
“She’s good at that,” Julia said by her side as Lily began to run her fingers through Belle’s hair. “She does more than just braids.”
Belle could testify to Lily’s great skills a short while later. She’d piled Belle’s hair to the top of her head in a classic updo that Belle would have most certainly worn to a London ball.
“Oh, goodness, Hannah,” Lily said once she was done. “You look so beautiful. You truly do look like a princess.”
“How much do you think this dress cost?” Julia asked curiously. “It looks like the type nobles like to wear.”
Belle hoped her smile wasn’t filled with the guilt she felt.You’re right. It is like the dresses nobles wear. Like the ones I used to wear.“You think so?”
“It doesn’t matter how much it cost,” Lily said. “What matters is that you’re going to look wonderful for tonight’s celebration. I promise, Stephen will not be able to keep his eyes off you.”
Belle studied herself in the mirror. For the first time in a while, she looked like her old self again, like Lady Belle Sinclair. But the people around her knew her as Hannah Brown and that fact somehow made her image lose its luster. She was lying to these people and the longer she did it, the more it took its toll.
Yet, Belle couldn’t stop the excitement of tonight, seeing Stephen’s reaction to her wearing the dress. She wanted to see him smile, to see that spark of lust in his eyes. And if he got her alone...
Belle shook her head of the thought, her cheeks warming. Tonight would be about Anne and Robert. She hoped her yearning for Stephen didn’t make her lose sight of that.
* * *
Stephen kept glancing outside. He knew why, even though he knew that looking out his window wouldn’t allow him to see the woman he really wanted to see. The anxious move gave him a fair amount of distraction, even though it increased his longing to exorbitant heights.
“Stephen?” said the Dowager Duchess, drawing his attention back to where he was. They were in the dining room, awaiting the arrival of the special guest.
“Yes, Mother?”
“Tonight is a very important night,” she said to him. He looked up at her to see she was giving him a stern look. “Please have an open mind.”
“Mother, is this another lady you’re trying to match me with?”
“Yes, actually it is. And I honestly think she is the perfect lady for you.”
“I’m sure that’s what you said about Lady Penelope.”
She waved her hand dismissively. “Lady Penelope is much too mousy. I think you need a strong-willed wife, not someone who will bow to your every command.”
You’d be surprised to learn how strong willed she actually is. Is strong willed is your own only requirement?”
“Of course not. She should be beautiful as well. Your heir will certainly be quite good looking which means he’ll have no issue finding a wife in the future.”
“You've certainly thought that one through, have you?” he asked in surprise.
“Haven’t you?” she countered. “She mustn’t be boring. I cannot imagine you being able to impress many doting husbands of thetonif their wives do not like yours. Those are only a few of the things I think your future wife should have, but I’m sure you know the list is not exhaustive.”
Despite what she was saying, Stephen couldn’t help the amused smirk. “And the lady who will be attending this evening has met all those requirements?”
“And then some,” the Dowager Duchess boasted. “I truly believe she is the one for you, Stephen. I only ask that you keep an open mind when you see her.”
“That makes me think that I’m not going to like her.”
“I hope that you do.” She didn’t get the chance to say anything else because the butler entered the room.
He bowed deeply. “Your Grace, the Duchess of Fernridge has arrived.”
