Lady Adventuress 01 - His Wayward Duchess Read online

  There was no use in denying it: even if she went to London, she had not the faintest notion how she should get on once she got there. She would be a disaster in her plain gowns, with nothing but her country manners to rely on. She wondered if all the fashionable ladies secretly smoked cigars. She hoped not – the smoke was sure to give her headaches.

  With a sigh, she took off her bonnet and set it next to her, straightening out the ribbons to give herself a moment to think.

  “I have come to ask for your help – if you will forgive the audacity,” she said at last. “I had not realised that that is why I have come until just now – but you are correct. I might have accepted your invitation with just a note. It is much more than that. I am a duchess, you see, only I haven’t the faintest notion how a duchess ought to conduct herself. And… And I have nothing really suitable for a duchess to wear – only a few dresses fit for a debutante. And my husband…” she broke off there, unsure how to continue.

  There were such impassioned feelings bubbling within her that it felt as if they would all burst out of her at once. Holly’s words failed her.

  “If I remain here, I fear I shall never be more than a cipher. The country wife Strathavon would be embarrassed to escort into society. And then it will be almost as if I had never existed at all. I don’t care about Strathavon, mind – if he wishes to be in the journals, that is his affair. I wish only to learn to be a duchess and to be free.”

  The older woman nodded. “Ah. I thought that had something to do with it. It seems to me that you are very much in love with the fellow, yet now you are implying that you wish to be quit of him? It is a curious thing. Pray tell me the whole.”

  “Oh, Lady Louisa – I do not know what I want. I want never to set eyes on him again, and at the same time I want him to sweep me away into love. How can such a thing be possible? It is madness,” Holly sighed.

  “Love often is.”

  “Then I will tell you the story, unremarkable though it is.”

  “Yes, go on. Start at the beginning,” the lady waved her on with her fan, open again.

  Doing just that, Holly narrated the events of the past two months. Valiantly, she managed not to cry, though her lip and voice did tremble a little.

  When she was done, she sat very still and looked at Lady Louisa uncertainly from under her lashes, wondering is she had made a terrible blunder by sharing such a private matter.

  “You poor dear!” Louisa said immediately, looking distressed. She came over and stroked Holly’s hair as she might have done a daughter.

  “Would you have accepted him, had you known his lack of sentiment?” she asked shrewdly.

  Holly hesitated. She wanted very much to say that she never would have done, because that was the right thing to say.

  “I would have been tempted to accept him,” she replied thoughtfully. “I was in love with him, you see. But I think I could not have done it, in the end, because it would be signing up for even more pain: to bind both of us to such a thing. I think it would have been a cruel thing to do.”

  Lady Louisa nodded, though she did not tell Holly whether her answer had been the correct one.

  “Of course, that does not matter now.”

  “On the contrary, it does very much matter. I do not at all think it a bad thing that you have a tendre for the duke, my dear,” said her friend. “There are many marriages that started with a lot less than that. Besides which, you are a shrewd creature, and we can yet turn it all about. There is only one thing that will answer a problem such as yours. You have been seduced by him, and now you must turn the tables and seduce in your turn. But it is not mere desire you must create. Anyone can create desire. You will settle for nothing less than love. We must make of you a duchess: the most magnificent duchess that the ton has seen in decades. And we will see how this duke of yours will like to ignore you then, when all of London is abuzz with your name.”

  “But… I do not feel much like the sort of lady who could captivate the ton,” Holly said, suddenly blooming with hesitant hope at the brisk tone of voice with which her confidante seemed to assure her of success. “I am not even certain what is proper for a duchess.”

  Lady Louisa chuckled at that. “To be a duchess, my dear, one has to feel that one is a duchess. Fustian propriety isn’t worth anything so long as you attain a suitable strength of character and panache.”

  Holly, who knew perfectly well that she had never had a shred of panache in her life, must have looked unconvinced.

  “Don’t fret. We shall make a veritable hit of you, you’ll see. I have a genius for transformation. Why, I make a point to transform myself regularly. A lady’s greatest strength is not beauty or even wit, no matter what you may have heard. Such things matter, but it is unpredictability, mystery, that truly makes her an original. And the Duchess of Strathavon shall be unforgettable. We will begin, I think, with your hair, and immediately – one should never wait with such things. ”

  Ringing a bell and ushering Holly to the cheval glass, Lady Louisa set her personal maid to cutting Holly’s brown locks.

  “Cathy is far superior to even the most skilled London coiffeur,” said Lady Louisa. “I own there is not a match for her cleverness in all of England and also the continent. A cut and then curls, I think…Yes. Delicate spiral curls on either side of her face, Cathy. That should be most becoming.”

  Once Cathy had worked her undeniable magic, Holly examined herself in the mirror, this way and that. She almost didn’t recognise her own face, framed as it was by all the new hair. It had transformed from a listless brown to a rich, shiny chocolate that caught the candlelight. The spiral curls bounced around her face, making her look lively and earnest.

  Holly could not seem to be able to look away from her own reflection in the glass. She felt completely different, strong and brave: as though the woman in the mirror could be anyone she wanted. She thanked the maid with a most heartfelt delight.

  “I did tell you Cathy has a genius. There really is nothing like new hair to feel an entirely different woman.” Lady Louisa was pleased with the result. “It is only the first step, mind, but we shall continue as we have begun. I have decided that I shall be mentor to you. After all, I have no daughter on whom to bestow such silly tricks. And my niece is much too prudish a thing to ever listen. Besides, it won’t answer to let your mal de cœur continue untended. Don’t fret: it is just a matter of learning the rules so that you might break them. You may possess some ignorance of the polite manners befitting a lady of your new status, you have a true and honest heart. And that is a far more important thing to have.”

  Holly was taken aback and very greatly touched at being likened to a daughter. Her own mama, while much beloved, was very different in character and very far away, and it was her good fortune to have two such different women in her life to guide her, each possessed of their own unique wisdom.

  Impulsively, Holly embraced her friend.

  Lady Louisa laughed and patted her arm. “There, there, dear. It is really nothing. To London then, to indulge in all the pomp and vanities that city has to offer.”

  Chapter 5

  The reconstruction of the Duchess of Strathavon continued as it had begun: there was a lot be done and very little time. Holly couldn’t help thinking of the whole remarkable process in architectural terms, because it was truly an architectural endeavour.

  If she were completely honest, a part of her missed her plain, comfortable gowns and longed for the familiar safety they offered. But there could be no going back – she’d come too far to retreat.

  The petticoats alone, in mull, satin and delicate gauze, were enough to make Holly’s head spin. She would never have thought of satin petticoats herself – but ensconced in the sinful fabric, she was very grateful that someone had.

  “Petticoats and corsets are even more important than gowns,” Lady Louisa had instructed primly, as she examined veritable mounds of delicate fabrics at the modiste. “They are the foundation of th
e whole ensemble, and a woman in expensive petticoats always has about her a certain knowing glow. It’s part of the illusion.”

  Seduction, Holly was learning, was all about illusion. It was a game and a hunt. In her day, Lady Louisa had delighted in nothing so much as charming society while mystifying and hoaxing them at the same time.

  “And you, my dear Lady Strathavon, will be my very greatest undertaking,” the lady said proudly.

  This was all entirely new to Holly. She had always been the practical sort of person to lay things up for a rainy day. She had been more affected than she had intended by a tome of morals for children which their governess had read to them.

  At the time, she and her siblings had only laughed at the thing.

  She knew nothing about illusions or teasing – or silk. This new incarnation of herself had come as an absolute surprise.

  Armed with unfailing determination, the two women carried out a most impressive raid on all the fashionable establishments to be found in London. Holly, who had never before had much money to spend on fripperies, could not believe the allowance Strathavon had given her.

  What could she possibly purchase for that much money? It felt almost dizzyingly surreal to be suddenly in possession of a fortune, when one had spent the better part of one’s life sharing and trading slippers and hair ribbons with one’s sisters.

  She had been struck compeletley speechless when Lady Louisa told her that she ought to be able to procure a perfectly modish hat for thirty shillings. Thirty shillings was more than the Millforte children got given in a year.

  In a bookshop on Charing Cross, Lady Louisa had picked up a tome on ladylike behaviour. It was the very same edition as the one that Holly had had given her as a wedding gift by some well-meaning cousin.

  The lady had paged through it a few minutes, then laughed and set it aside with devastating disdain.

  “This is exactly the sort of thing you will want to avoid,” she had informed Holly. “Second Fiddlesticks, all of it! You won’t learn much from these unless you wish to come across as a cit’s daughter.”

  Holly’s benefactress devoted much of her time to the improvement of Lady Strathavon’s fashionable accomplishments, because she believed that one was always learning something new so long as one was alive.

  Holly had been impressed to discover that Lady Louisa did not suffer from comme il faut, the malady of many well-bred people of the gentry – she did precisely what she wished to do, whenever she pleased.

  “Life is too short to humour society by observing every propriety, and this book will have you looking every bit the country cousin. Now, we had better be on our way to the chocolate shop. I am famished.”

  At the chocolate shop, the lady ran into an impressive bevy of acquaintance, all of whom wanted to know about her stay in the country. One would think, Holly mused to herself, that Lady Louisa had been on some exotic polar voyage to lands far-off and dangerous, instead of a brief stay in Gloucestershire. They made Holly nervous. She had never before been the focus of so many modish ladies and gentlemen.

  And she wondered if she would ever command such an army of admirers as did her friend – it was a frightful thought. Despite the fact that Lady Louisa never married, she had made it plain that she saw no reason at all to become a sad spinster or a reclusive heiress imprisoned in some remote country mansion.

  Ensconced in Lady Louisa’s London townhouse, Holly was instructed in every aspect of dress and deportment, in witty conversation and compulsory reading, in operas and important personages.

  In the evenings, when the nights were chilly, they sat next to a warm fire Lady Louisa had had lit and the lady told her of her own youth, of the people Holly would meet and what she ought to say to them, and of little things: how to turn a wrist and use a fan.

  It was too soon yet for her to launch herself on to society, and Holly was grateful for this quiet interlude in London with her friend.

  At last, all the dresses had been ordered, lace pinned, glass beads and pearls scattered and trim added. It was all like some very strange dream. All the while, Lady Louisa watched Holly with a sharp, critical eye and laughed whenever Holly ventured to wonder whether wearing a certain outrageous colour would put her to the blush.

  “You must wear whatever pleases you – provided it is in mode.”

  “Well, yes, but I haven’t the presence for chartreuse.”

  “Presence? Do you mean to tell me that you have been a ghost all this while?”

  Holly flushed, trying to explain. “A lady must have certain gravitas of bearing, and a fair amount of charm, to be able to boldly don such colours. Why, I may as well wear olive green.”

  “Don’t be silly – olive green wouldn’t do with your complexion at all. But chartreuse will suit very nicely.”

  Holly frowned at that, feeling as though she had once again failed to learn the things Louisa was trying so hard to teach her.

  “I fear that I must seem a dreadfully dull rustic by comparison to all the ladies of fashion.”

  “If that were true, that would hardly be tragic – you’d be sure to pick something up along the way,” the older lady dismissed. “But as it is, stuff and nonsense. What is appropriate for a debutante is not appropriate for a married woman: especially one of considerable rank. To wear nothing but pastels would make you look a cake. Now, that deep burgundy will do admirably. The trick is to look tasteful, innocent and just a little daring all at once.”

  Lady Louisa was a great believer in daring décolletage and thin fabrics which whispered suggestion of the figure hidden beneath. Holly didn’t think that she had ever had such great fun at the linen draper’s in her whole life, as they pored over fabrics and debated drape.

  Holly was still not certain that she dared to appear at the opera in such eye-catching ensembles, but she was also rather excited to try. She was also nervous about making her grand entrance in London, where all the eyes of the world would be watching.

  Tentatively, she voiced this concern, only to have her friend stare at her in honest bewilderment.

  “It does not matter where you are: you must endeavour never to look uncomfortable in your own skin,” she lectured. “Discomfort and shyness will ruin any dress, and that would be a very great shame.”

  “But how can one not look uncomfortable, when launching themselves in London?”

  Holly remembered her previous experiences on the Season with a mixture of chagrin and dread.

  “I think I had better go to Bath. It would be far less intimidating to attend the assembly rooms. I have always found it to be very tolerable there.”

  Every autumn the part of society who did not care to spend the winter at their country residences retreated to the greater comforts of Bath, to take the waters and enjoy the Bath Season.

  “It wouldn’t do. It is in London where reputations are made, and it is to London that you must go. Bath is a retreat: but you are not setting out to take curative waters or rest your nerves. No, you are on the offensive – if you’ll forgive the military cant.”

  Now, the very first thing we must do is procure you subscriptions for balls, card parties and concerts. The opera too, I think. And Almack’s.”

  So many outings!

  “Card rooms?” Holly asked faintly. “I fear I have never been any good at cards. And papa was always adamant that we never learn to play hazard.”

  “Certainly not. You have to yet achieve the…gravitas, you called it? Well, the gravitas to play hazard without causing a scandal. As to card games, we shall practice the rules. But it is not about betting to win – it is about being seen to play, and charming the table enough for you to start to receive invitations.”

  “It all makes me rather anxious.”

  “I expect it does, but that will pass. Want of courage could be mistaken for inability, my dear. But I know already that you do not want for courage.”

  “How can you?” Holly asked softly.

  “Because you took a chance. You
have taken a great many chances since I met you, and even before then: to marry, to speak to me, to come here to London. Timidity will deprive you of every advantage, but courage will see you safely through the storm.”

  Was it madness that she was prepared to embark on such a bizarre endeavour? Was she merely clinging too desperately to a childish dream? Was it possible that she was only deceiving herself?

  *

  Of all the skills that Lady Louisa had taught her, Holly decided that she enjoyed driving and riding the most. It took a great deal of effort to learn how to sit a horse like a proper horsewoman, but Lady Louisa had been tireless in her teaching.

  Holly had always been wary of horses, having never really had much truck with them growing up. In fact, Holly had been extremely surprised to find she enjoyed the company of the elegant animals very much. Something about their soft eyes and unmistakable personalities had completely won her heart.

  Thinking about this precious victory went some way to helping her overcome her anxiety about the challenges that still lay before her.

  All great ladies drove their elegant carriages in London and on their estates, and now Holly could make her own turn about the park, come the fashionable Promenade hour.

  Her vehicle was neither so fashionable nor so smart as theirs, and yet she felt great pride in being able to handle it with uncharacteristic deftness.

  Though she could hardly drive Lady Strathavon’s old brougham in London: Lady Louisa was adamant that she needed to purchase herself a carriage and pair.

  They would have to pay a visit to Tattersall’s of London. It would be most unladylike. Holly felt a thrill of excitement shoot through her at the very thought.

  How exhilarating life was, with Lady Louisa for a friend. She felt as though almost anything could happen next.

  *

  What happened next was the arrival of the packages from the various establishments the ladies had visited to outfit Holly for her new role. Boxes upon boxes crowded Holly’s dressing room, tied with gorgeous ribbons, and filled with the most delicate tissue paper.