Veiled in Blue (30 page)

Impossible to give an answer yet, but the reaction to her promise gave Eve more clues about the character of Julius’s only daughter. Caroline was a child of reason. “Is there anything else you like to do?”

Caroline tilted her head to one side. “I like to read. Papa says I am advanced for my age.”

Not to mention beautifully spoken. “Then would you like to read with me? I have been choosing new clothes, and I would appreciate a dish of tea and some quiet time.”

The girl nodded to her gown. “Is this one of them?”

“It will be. My maid says it doesn’t fit right, but she has taken my measurements and is making herself and some of the housemaids busy on the others.”

“Do you not like clothes?”

Eve got to her feet and glanced around, discovering a comfortable sofa set under the window. She made her way to it and disposed her skirts, leaving Caroline to join her, if she wished to.

Caroline wished to. She folded her hands neatly on her lap and turned her attention to Eve.

“I like clothes, especially new ones, but the way the maids were fussing gave me the headache. Who needs twenty gowns?”

“You do,” Caroline said. “You will need more next season, too.”

Eve nodded to a maid, who left the room, presumably in search of tea. “I’ll look at them when the maids have finished their quarrelling.” She picked up a book from the side-table, relieved to discover it was not a book of improving sermons. She remembered those from her own childhood. They were all her father had allowed them to read on Sundays, tedious moral tales of children who had done the wrong thing and been damned for it. Eve believed in forgiveness and second chances. “Is this the book you’re reading?”

“Yes.”

“Do you like animals?” Aesop’s fables had been a staple of Eve’s own reading, when she was not forced to open the dreaded book of sermons. Although they all had a moral lesson to teach, the stories also had a charm and a lightness absent in the heavier tomes.

“Yes. Papa says I must learn to care for them, but he will not allow me a puppy.” The wistfulness in her tones wasn’t easy to miss.

Eve did not miss it. “We shall see. Perhaps your papa has a good reason for his decision. Have you asked him?”

“He says I must think about my choice and convince him I need one.”

“I see. Then we must do that. If you are set on a puppy?”

“Or a cat.”

Eve would ensure Caroline had time to play with both potential pets, but she thought the child might be better off with a small dog to romp with. Perhaps soon there would be a brother or sister for her, and if there was, a pet of her own might help to assuage her realization she was no longer an only child.

They settled to Aesop and to get to know each other. Eve answered Caroline’s questions honestly and thought the better of the child when she showed no response to Eve’s humble origins. Of course Eve did not mention her connection with the Stuarts.

When the door opened, she did not look up. She didn’t need to, for she was now as attuned to her husband’s presence as to her own. When she did, he was smiling at them, the kind of intimate smile he rarely shared with others outside his immediate circle.

Eve lost herself smiling back. She had no idea how much time passed with her grinning at him, but he came forward, hands outstretched, and took one of her hands and one of Caroline’s. “My two favorite ladies in the world. I cannot tell you what a lovely picture you make.”

“She is beautiful, Papa, is she not?” Caroline piped up.

“Indeed she is.” He turned an unabashed look of admiration on to Eve. “But that is not why I married her, Caro. There are many reasons for marrying a person, but good looks do not form an adequate one.”

“And yet—”

He quelled his daughter with a fulminating glance. “In time you will learn the truth, I hope and pray. Have you had a productive morning?”

“We did not linger on the morals, I have to confess.” Eve flipped the book closed, keeping her finger in their place, so Julius could see the title of the book.

“All the better. I loved that book.” He nodded. “Meantime, my lady, I came to see how you were doing in your selection of costumes and found you had eluded them. Do you not enjoy the process?”

“To an extent.” Eve met his eyes. This close, she detected an edge in his slightly narrowed gaze. “But such fussing over details tries my patience. I told them to narrow all choices down to three each, and I would make the final decision when they had done so. I chose half a dozen gowns they could alter immediately, and they may set to work on the rest.”

“A taskmaster.” He seemed amused by her response, his mouth curving, but when he glanced from his daughter to herself, the edge returned.

Ah, she understood. Of course, she should have known. “Instead I introduced myself to Caro. We have come to an agreement. She will call me mama, but neither of us will allow her mother’s memory to lapse.”

He breathed out, the sapphire at his throat glittering in the bright sunlight that streamed through the window behind Caro and Eve. Eve had guessed right. He’d probably planned how to introduce his wife to his daughter. Instead, she’d done it herself with as little fuss as she could contrive, exactly how she preferred to run her life.

She feared there would be much more drama in the future, but she could do her best to eliminate as much as possible. She had a role to play in this marriage, and she was finding her way toward it. She could be of use, could be more than a helpmeet, a vessel for heirs.

Relief swept through Eve, she had for once placed her foot on firm ground. Since she had met Julius and learned her little secret had come to mean much more than she had ever wanted or dreamed of, she had wobbled along her path, taken far beyond the place she knew and felt safe in.

She had a long way to go, but at last she’d begun to regain her footing.

Julius tilted his head slightly, a mere change of position but she was learning him and that, with the slight frown, told her he had noticed and he wanted to know. Smiling, she shook her head. “It’s nothing. In a little while I’ll return to our rooms and discover what the maids have decided. I daresay they had little time to present me with the options in a coherent way. With any luck, they’ll have arranged matters.” She shot him a grin. “Of course that might be because what arrived was the contents of a shop or even a warehouse. With so many choices, anyone might be forgiven for going into a mild panic.”

He frowned. “Your maids panicked?”

“In an orderly way. They pretended, but on consideration, I don’t think they had any better idea than I did. I told them to sort the fabrics into colors and then into the time of day the fabric should be worn. If I give them a few hours, they may have achieved that task.”

“My wife is a woman of order,” Julius said with that smile.

Caroline made a discovery. “Why, Papa, you are in love!”

Julius did not deny it.

* * * *

Guests continued to arrive for the next few days until the Abbey was filled to bursting. The house party at Edensor was a much coveted invitation and only available to the friends and family of the Duke of Kirkburton. Prince Frederick had attended before his sad demise four years earlier, and now the great and the good crowded into the house. Every room appeared to have someone in it, for as well as the guests, they brought their servants, swelling the considerable staff who customarily attended to the Abbey so they were forced to double up the number in each room.

That meant the duchess had not had time to find her oldest son a more suitable suite, and Eve still shared his bed, much to the delight of both of them. Dressing was less problematic, once Eve had arranged the sitting room as a boudoir and had her maids use that as her dressing room.

On the night of the ball, Eve’s maids fussed around her until she thought she would scream. Taylor had an assistant now, and the girl fluttered so much Eve determined to replace her as soon as she could. The girl, thrilled to be serving a countess, would not stop addressing her as “Your ladyship,” which was driving Eve mad.

Much of her irritation arose from nervousness. At the ball, she would be presented as Julius’s wife. Although the company naturally knew, this was a formal step Eve was not looking forward to with any enthusiasm. That was despite the gown, the finest she had ever worn in her life. The white silk petticoat was heavily embroidered with spring flowers, and the gown itself, ice blue, was of the finest, coolest silk. She shook back the triple ruffles of Brussels lace foaming from her elbows and picked up her fan, a gift from Julius she feared was decorated with diamonds rather than the brilliants she had originally thought them.

When the door opened, she smiled up at his reflection in her mirror. He waited until her maid had carefully inserted the last diamond-headed pin into her hair and then took the woman’s place, setting his hands lightly on her shoulders, his fingertips tickling her throat. He wore a coat of deepest ultramarine velvet over an ivory silk striped waistcoat, his clothes complimenting hers but equally magnificent.

“Every inch a countess,” he murmured, ignoring the two maids as he bent to feather a kiss on her neck. “You were wrong, my love. You are the epitome of aristocracy. When you are presented at court, they will fall before you.”

Eve sucked a breath in deep, despite knowing he said it to accustom her to the idea. Already she had become used to the luxury around her, everything she touched, everything she saw was the best it could be. No skimping on food, furniture, or anything else was allowed at the Abbey.

But court? Royalty? “Will they know who I am?”

“Of course.”

He pressed her shoulders in warning, but she needed no reminder. She would not speak in front of any servant. The fewer people who knew her origins, the safer she would be.

“But not everything. That is our secret.” He kissed her neck, working up to her ear, and murmured, “You are my princess, always.”

She caught his hand where it rested on her shoulder, her eyes filling with tears. Determinedly, she blinked them away. She would not spoil the evening. Tomorrow they would slip away, or so he claimed, but she doubted his family would allow that. They would want to send him off with a great deal of pomp.

Shivers coursed through her as she responded to his caresses, but with a final gentle kiss to her lips, he straightened. “I have something for you.”

From the capacious pocket of his coat he produced a velvet box. The air stilled, as did the two maids. Such boxes rarely contained anything but jewelry.

This was no exception. Out of the box, Julius lifted a glittering strand of sky and stars. The sapphires were oval, clear and rich blue, surrounded and linked by diamonds. Simple in design, breathtaking in execution. He draped the necklace around her throat, the cold stones imprinting themselves on her skin. As he fastened the clasp, Eve stared at herself. The stones flashed with a life of their own, drawing her in.

She touched the central pendant, now draped above her breasts. The jewel glinted. “I love it.”

He grinned but said nothing, producing the earrings and bracelet that completed the set. When they were in place, he narrowed his eyes and surveyed her reflection. “Perfect. I am glad you decided not to powder your hair. You’ll make an impression nobody will ever forget.”

Enthralled by the inner life of the stones, Eve hardly heard him. The value of the gems occurred to her, only for her to dismiss it immediately. What did it matter when compared to items as beautiful as this? While she had tolerated the plethora of silks, satins, brocades, tabbies, lustrings, lace, and the paraphernalia that went into the wardrobe of a fashionable lady, her heart went out to the precious stones. These were worth dressing for.

At last, the key. She had to make her appearance worthwhile, to earn the right to wear these beautiful things. She got to her feet and faced her husband. He was as multifaceted as the jewels she now wore, as worthy of study and adornment. In order to appear as Julius Vernon in Appleton, he had hidden a great deal of himself, but now he was in the open. He dazzled her.

How could she not love him? While amazed he loved her, Eve accepted he did. How could she not, when he was gazing at her with that slight smile as if she encompassed his whole world?

She spoke the simple truth, the one thing resting in her heart all the time these days. “I love you.”

He raised her hand and kissed it. “And I you. Shall we go down to dinner?”

So all her days she would run with this man, whom she adored.

* * * *

They found Augustus in the drawing-room. Eve had last seen him just before she and Julius had set out to come here. Her mother, gowned fashionably, stood by his side. After she had embraced her mother, Eve turned to Augustus. He greeted her with the same friendly smile he’d used before, bowing over her hand and breathing heat over her knuckles in an audacious near-kiss. When he flicked a glance at her, Eve was hard put not to burst into laughter. Augustus was all life, bursting with energy, where Julius was restrained, at least in public.

Dinner took on more of the nature of a banquet. Eve sat at the duke’s right hand. The great dining room was packed, the long table replete with all its leaves, increasing the size so it could accommodate the fifty guests—or was it more? Perhaps sixty. Eve tried to calm her agitated senses, to accept she was part of this distinguished gathering.

She took her cue from Julius, who appeared perfectly at ease, but every gesture, every pose was carefully considered and taken. As many of his kind, Julius had a distinct public character he used to cover the parts of his nature he preferred to keep to himself. When he was in the public eye so often, the habit was vital for anyone who wished for a private life.

Although he should properly have sat next to his mother at the foot of the table, Julius took a seat opposite her, where she could see him easily, bolstering her faltering confidence.

The chatter rose to a positive din, the gentle clink of silver against fine china pervading the air, crystal glasses glinting in the light of the chandelier and wall sconces. Landscapes of this house and others the Vernons owned adorned the walls in a discreet display of wealth, and the fireplace sported an elaborately carved surround. No doubt the carving was beautiful, but all Eve could think was it must be hell to dust. She exchanged a glance with her mother, who was seated halfway down the table. Her mother smiled back and raised a brow.