Duchess by Design_The Gilded Age Girls Club by Maya Rodale

Author:Maya Rodale [Rodale, Maya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Avon
Published: 2018-10-22T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Nora is on the verge of compressing herself with Dashwood. Stop. Clara says she won’t wed at all now. Stop. When will you return with heiress? Stop. Starting to think about my dress for the wedding. Stop.

—Telegram from Her Grace,

the Duchess of Kingston

The next day

The House of Adeline

The workroom was full of chattering female voices discussing sleeves and hems, hairstyling techniques, society gossips, and landlord dramas, among other things. Rose and Rachel were there, along with some new additions to the shop, all of whom had been referred by the Ladies of Liberty: Margaret, Annie, and Lila. They all went silent upon the arrival of a young man in the uniform of the Fifth Avenue Hotel.

He presented a letter to Adeline.

“Go on, open it now,” Rose urged when Adeline started to slip the letter in her pocket to read later, in the privacy of her room.

She knew it had to be from Kingston. She recognized the strong slant of his handwriting.

There had been no word from him since their night at the opera, which she had presumed meant that the terms of their agreement had been satisfied, and that something between them was purposely left to die.

This was for the best, she told herself.

Because she was shocked and dismayed to discover that she felt bereft with his absence. She missed the way he looked when she teased him: startled, before his features eased into a relaxed and delighted smile. She missed the way one deliberate glance from him could make heat unfurl in her belly, course through her body, wake up her nerves, make her feel hot and alive all over.

She didn’t just miss him, she craved him.

And now she had a letter in hand from His Grace.

What could he possibly want now? Nothing good. Nothing decent.

“Open it now,” Rachel said with an air of authority. “You know that we will plague you until you tell us everything, so you might as well read it aloud now.”

Rachel. She was always so practical and efficient.

“Fine,” Adeline said. “I’ll open it.”

She did. And she read:

Dear Mrs. Black,

I have called upon Miss Van Allen and she possesses everything a man could want in his future duchess. However, I do believe that I should continue to make the acquaintance of other potential brides, just to be prudent. For this, I shall require your expertise.

Which is to say, I find myself missing your enchanting company and should like to see you again. Will you join me tomorrow night at Mrs. Mellon’s ball?

—Kingston

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