"You're holding it upside down."
Alice turned it right side up, squinting at Bits's sloppy lines and notes. "Ah. Yes. That makes all the difference in the world." She tossed the paper back onto all the others. "Where were we?"
"The maid," Bits reminded her. "I was telling you how I do not require her services because I will not be attending the ball this evening."
It had been a fortnight since Hattie's funeral, Cora's death, and Rose's resurrection. Outside of Corrigan, it would have been considered scandalous for a household to host a ball so soon after such events. Here, it was expected, no matter how little anyone actually desired it.
"The firstborn of the Oberon must be presented and the appropriate rites given on the first full moon following the birth," Lily had explained. "And in a way, it will be one last gift from Lady Sidhe to her child. She began planning the event the moment she learned she was expecting."
And so the plans for the ball were being followed through. Cakes would be baked, decorations hung, and musicians hired. Throughout the night, Aisling would receive gifts ranging from toy rattles to protection spells, awaiting the moment she was formerly introduced as the child of the Oberon. If Alice was to be believed, every resident of Corrigan, from the lowest pauper to the richest of merchants, would be in attendance.
Which was exactly the reason Bits would not be.
"Don't be ridiculous. You have to attend the ball," said Alice. "Not only is it going to be a lovely affair filled with delicious food, marvelous music, and fine dancing, but I have bought you a special gift for the occasion." She nodded to the package on the bed. "Open it."
Bits didn't want to open it. Opening it was the first step in accepting it, and accepting it meant an obligation to appear at the ball. Yet, as always, her curiosity won out over her good sense.
The string must have been tied by a navy captain, for the knot was so secure she eventually resorted to sharpening one of her hairpins to cut through it. She parted the plain paper slowly, savoring the anticipation.
"Oh. Oh my." Words abandoned her at the sight of the green silk gown before her.
"I had a friend make some discreet inquiries around Town. This was made to the last measurements your modiste had for you." Alice nudged Bits with her elbow. "Go on, now. Hold it up we can get the full effect."
It was the most beautiful gown she’d ever seen. She carried it over to the mirror and held it up in front of her. The neckline was wide, but not cut so deep her breasts would spill from the top. The only ornamentation was a pattern resembling clockwork gears sewn with gold thread into the hem.
“Alice, I can’t take this. It’s too much.”
“It’s the perfect amount.” Alice said, coming to stand behind her. She reached around and took hold of the gown, pulling it against Bits so she could see how it would form to her body. “Look how beautiful you will be in it. Your skin looks like fresh cream, and the color brings out the green in your eyes.”
For a second, Bits allowed herself to imagine wearing the beautiful gown to the ball. She imagined it did all the things Alice said, plus more. It hid her curves, making her look as thin as any other lady in attendance. It tamed her wild, monstrous breasts, and made them the sort of thing men noticed, but in a good way. She imagined the dress making her not beautiful — because she couldn’t believe that, even in fantasy — but acceptable.
She imagined it made her worthy of Ezra’s affections.
“I can’t,” she said again. “I’m not going down to the ball.”
Alice poked her head around Bits’s shoulder to glare at her in the mirror’s reflection. “Why on earth not?”
“I am not Touched.” In the Nash home she’d forgotten the gulf between the Touched and Untouched. Ezra, Lily, and the Greens had simply been her friends. But the rest of Corrigan had not forgotten. It had been the worst during her week at the forge. People would refuse to speak to her and talk about her as if she wasn’t there, openly questioning the Duke of Sidhe’s decision to allow her to stay. Some even refused to enter the forge with her inside. It was better in Breena Manor, but it was obvious many of the servants disagreed with her being there. “This night is about Aisling. I won’t ruin her special night by causing an uproar among your people.”
Alice stepped out from behind her and put her hands on her hips.
“Don’t be ridiculous. Aisling is not even a month old. You cannot ruin her evening unless you refuse to let her eat or sleep.”
“But the ceremony—”
“The ceremony will happen even if an entire army of Untouched marches through the door.”
Bits carried the dress back to the bed, arranging it neatly over the counterpane.
Heavens, it was beautiful.
“I don’t like balls,” she admitted. “I’m rubbish at them. While other young ladies were learning how to dance, flirt, and not be a general embarrassment, I was working alongside my father in his shop. I’m a disaster in Society. I say the wrong things, if I manage to speak at all. No matter how I move, or don’t move, it’s awkward and clumsy. I am dreadfully uncomfortable, and I make those around me uncomfortable. My brother and sister would claim to want me there, but it wouldn’t take an hour for them to wish they’d never extended the invitation.” She was an embarrassment to her family and herself. She wouldn’t become one to her friends here. “I am sorry you went to such trouble for the dress, but—”
“You’re wearing the dress,” Alice said. “And you’re going to the ball. You’re not going to be awkward or uncomfortable.” Alice was younger than Bits, and smaller by half, but she was the daughter of a duke and had the bearing of a general. “I shall be there, as will Lily and Rose. None of us are exactly using the evening as a chance to further our social standing or make a match. We will sit together in our beautiful gowns and enjoy the food, music, and one another’s company. What could be disastrous and unlikable about that?”
When she put it like that, it sounded lovely. She did enjoy Alice, Lily, and Rose’s company. Rose was still coming out of her shell, so to speak, but she had a quick mind and dry wit that complimented Lily’s bright optimism and Alice’s brazenness. But still…
“You don’t understand,” she said. “If it was merely the four of us, a string quartet, and some cake, then I would be delighted to attend. But there will be others, and they will look at me as if I’m an exhibit in the Prince Consort’s Crystal Palace. And when people look at me, I can’t behave normally. A wild chicken could do a more convincing impersonation of an interesting, well-bred lady.”
“You do realize that this is a Corrigan ball, do you not? It is entirely more likely you will encounter a wild chicken on the dance floor than a well-bred lady.” Bits tried to protest, but Alice cut her off with a single raised finger. “The room will be filled with farmers and shop girls. Yes, people will be watching you. Not to judge how you’re behaving, but rather to learn how they are to act. If you start clucking and pecking the ground for seed, I guarantee no fewer than five other people will do the same.”
Bits hadn’t considered the lack of nobility at the ball before now. Could Alice be right? Would it be possible for her to attend without becoming every mama’s example on the fate a lack of manners would bring?
“I don’t know—”
“Well, I happen to know a great deal, beginning with the fact that you, Lady Elizabeth Warner, are not the socially inept troll you imagine yourself to be. And even if you were, it would not matter because you have so many more qualities to recommend you.” Alice came forward and grabbed Bits’s hands in her own. “Who could not adore a woman who quietly slips my son clockwork toys she constructs because she knows they bring him joy? Who would not want to befriend a person who allows others to speak their minds without fear of censor? Who would not want to watch the world through the eyes of someone whose soul is so pure and innocent they’re still able to see life as full of hope and wonder? For the love of the gods, who would not want to spend time with the V
elchan?”
Bits was speechless. Was this how Alice truly saw her, or was she just trying to talk her into attending the ball?
“And I know two more very important things,” Alice said, her mouth curling up on one side.
Bits almost hated to ask, but she couldn’t help herself. “And what would those things be?”
“One, you’re going to look as tempting as sin itself in that dress.”
“I don’t—”
“And two, green just happens to be Ezra Nash’s favorite color.”
Bits’s heart gave an odd little jerk and her face felt as if it had turned to flame. “I’m not certain how that is an important bit of information,” she said.
“Ah. Then it appears I know yet another thing,” Alice said, with a smile. “It seems, my dear, that you are a rather horrible liar.”
Chapter 35
“Oh, Bits, you are stunning,” Lily said from her place at the edge of the ballroom. Rose stood behind her, hands on the chair’s handles and back unnaturally straight as she surveyed the room as if a hidden assassin might be in their midst. “That dress is beautiful.”
Bits couldn’t meet her friend’s eye, nor could she suppress her smile. The truth was, she felt pretty. After months of wearing hand-me-down wraps, the fitted silk of the ballgown was a revelation. The simple cut accentuated the flare of her hips and swell of her breasts in a way that made them appear enticing and sensual instead of lumpy. Alice had been correct about the color as well. The deep emerald green brought out the white of her skin, the green in her eyes, and even tamed the red of her hair.
“You are both lovely as well,” she said, meaning every word. Lily wore brown satin with embroidered flowers decorating the edges, and what Rose’s gown lacked in embellishments it more than made up for in the way the bodice hugged her slim waist. “I am so glad you are here.”
Lily had been eager to attend, especially since her new chair meant she wouldn’t be confined to a single seat for the entire evening, but Rose had taken as much convincing as Bits. She had yet to grow accustomed to her new body and life, often eschewing even Lily’s company to spend time alone in quiet reflection. Bits and Alice had visited the Nash sisters nearly every day over the past two weeks, but Rose had only joined them a handful of times, and then for only a few moments.
Bits could only imagine how overwhelming the crowd must be for her. The ballroom was packed, and despite Alice’s earlier assurances, everyone appeared to be wearing the most fashionable clothes and acting with complete and utter decorum. If it wasn’t for the lack of acquaintances doing their best to avoid her company, Bits would have had no trouble believing she was back in some grand Mayfair home surrounded by members of the ton.
The crowd parted for a brief moment, allowing the fourth member of their merry band of wallflowers to join them.
“There you are.” Alice gasped for breath as if she’d just run circles around the manor instead of simply crossing the ballroom floor. Most likely the combination of a too tight corset and a dress filled with so many layers and flounces it must weigh a stone was the culprit. “I was beginning to think I would never find you.”
Bits looked towards the door where guests were still streaming in. “I thought you were to receive the guests alongside your brother,” she said.
Alice’s nose curled. “I was, and was doing a rather splendid job of it too, until Flossie Adler showed up.” Rose and Lily let out a collective groan. “Do you know that woman refused to speak to me? I tried to greet her just as I did everyone else, despite the fact she’s an awful shrew with a hook nose and smells of rotten flowers. But instead of responding in kind, she turned to that horrid son of hers and said, ‘Why, Clarence. Do you hear that? I do believe I detect the sound of a rare beast. What are they called? Those horrid beings that spread their legs for the Untouched? A mere-something-or-another.’”
“No!”
“She didn’t!”
“I will kill her.”
The last was from Lily. For once, Bits was glad she wasn’t able to get up and walk about whenever she wished it. She wasn’t so certain her friend wasn’t completely serious about her murderous desires.
“Surely Sidhe didn’t let that stand,” Bits said. “I realize his thoughts have been elsewhere lately, and I can’t imagine this evening is easy for him, but he wouldn’t just stand there while some vile woman called you a… a…”
“Whore?” Alice supplied.
“Yes, that.” On second thought, perhaps Lily was onto something. A person who called another woman such a name really shouldn’t be allowed to continue to exist. “Sidhe would not stand idly by while someone called you one of those.”
Alice crossed her arms over her chest and grinned, revealing a seldom-seen dimple. “Oh, he didn’t. He had Demir escort her out, and then suggested she either have a formal apology drafted or her house vacated by tomorrow morning.”
“A threat of banishment. How lovely,” Lily said, clapping her hands together. “I do wish I had seen her hawkish face when he told her. I wonder, did she screech?”
“As if her foot had been caught in a trap. And the best part was, once it was over, he excused me from hostessing duties for the remainder of the night. He suggested I soothe my fragile nerves by seeking out my friends and enjoying the evening as best as I could.”
For some reason, Sidhe was convinced his sister was a fragile creature. True, she appeared as if she might shatter under the slightest bit of pressure with her small frame, big eyes, and halo of blond curls, but if ever there was a person made of steel beneath their flesh, it was Alice. She refused to speak of what happened to her during the years she lived outside of Corrigan, but they had hardened her into a woman who could weather any storm. A sharp-tongued woman could no more penetrate her armor than the sting of a wasp.
If Bits had been the subject of Flossie Adler’s barbs, she would have spent the evening fighting back the tears and would have fled the ball the moment the first opportunity arose, but not Alice. In fact, she seemed to forget the incident entirely by the time the musicians changed songs. She listened with the others as Lily prattled on about the various gowns and gentlemen, occasionally dropping in a comment of her own when Lily stopped to gather a breath.
They’d been enjoying Lily’s thoughts on Persephone Carlyle’s very pink, very lacy, very flouncy dress when Bits became aware of a gentleman standing along the wall. He wore a rather smart blue jacket and striped waistcoat. His cravat was tied in simple, yet well-done knot, and his hair was styled in the latest London fashion. He looked every inch an entitled aristocrat, and he was staring at Bits.
“Has my hair come unbound?” she asked, interrupting Lily’s speech on whether or not a cake made of Persephone’s dress would be so sweet it would make one ill.
“It’s lovely,” Alice said. “Isla really outdid herself.”
“What about something on my face? Or maybe an ink stain on my dress I cannot see?” She had already checked to make sure her breasts were staying well within the confines of her top, and since she had yet to partake of any refreshments, she knew there was nothing hanging from her teeth.
Alice eyed her critically. “You are perfect,” she finally said. “Why…?” She surveyed the room, her eyes quickly finding the gentleman who was doing a splendid job of making Bits feel like an art exhibit of questionable taste. “That is Mr. Harvey Hicks. He specializes in salves that reduce blemishes on the skin and has made a respectable fortune selling them to the Untouched. He’s also acceptably handsome, still young enough to be interesting, in possession of all his own teeth, and generally regarded as one of the most eligible bachelors in all of Corrigan.”
Acceptably handsome was a good way to describe Mr. Hicks. He didn’t make Bits’s blood sing like a certain Touched surgeon, but looking at him was no great hardship. He was in conversation with a lad who was most likely a stable boy playing at being a young gentleman, and even though Mr. Hicks was smiling and responding in all th
e appropriate places, his eyes kept returning to Bits.
“Why does he keep looking at me like that?”
“Like what?” Lily asked.
“Like I’ve done something to amuse him when I’m only standing here.”
“I believe,” Alice said, “he’s wanting an introduction.”
“An introduction?” Typically Bits’s introductions were forced upon gentlemen. “I hope he doesn’t believe I can help him make connections for his business. Not only am I cut off from the outside world, but my sister is the only lady of true influence who might listen to me. Sadly, her skin is flawless, and she would be greatly offended if I even mentioned blemish-removing salve to her.”
Lily smiled up at her. “Perhaps it’s because he thinks you’re pretty and would like for you to join him in a dance.” Her eyebrows wiggled up and down. “Maybe he would even like to waltz with you.”
Bits would have laughed if she wasn’t so mortifyingly embarrassed. “Thank you, Lily, but I’m a practical woman. A bluestocking, if you will. I don’t need you to feed me false stories of besotted gentlemen to lift my mood.”
“You know, I spent most of my life being jealous of Untouched ladies who had governesses to teach them Latin and sums and all the important things in life,” said Rose, who had been doing a fairly disturbing impersonation of a Sally Maid up until this moment. “I thought they had to be the smartest, most insightful women, but you have to be one of the daftest creatures I’ve ever met.”
Bits didn’t blush. A blush was a slight warmth in the cheeks. Bits burst into flames. “I beg your pardon—”
“Excuse me.” The voice that cut her off was unfamiliar, male, and close. Too close. Bits yelped and jumped back, her foot catching on the hem of Lily’s gown. In a panic, she reached out, grabbing the closest thing available, which happened to be the arm of Mr. Harvey Hicks.
This was why she didn’t go to balls.
A Dance Like Flame (Of Magic & Machine Book 1) Page 22