Luck be a Lady Tonight (The Unsuitable Brides Book 4) by Merry Farmer

Author:Merry Farmer [Farmer, Merry]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-06-23T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

After the initial embarrassment of being caught by Joseph’s brother at the most inopportune moment possible wore off, Ellen found herself floating on a cloud of joy and victory. She had everything she wanted right within her grasp. She and Joseph were officially engaged, and she had received an invitation to the Duchess of Westminster’s ball. What more could a young woman attempting to make a place for herself in society possibly want?

“Being engaged makes everything seem so much brighter and more alive,” Ellen commented to Lenore as the two of them sat side-by-side, watching a series of young women wearing all the latest styles parade through the exhibition room of one of Oxford Street’s finest retail establishments.

Lenore sent her a surprisingly wicked sideways look and murmured, “Is it the engagement that is bringing you so much joy or the circumstances of said engagement?”

Ellen turned a shade of red that matched the ballgown of the woman crossing in front of her. She pretended to be fascinated by the daring new style—like so many of the other young women of society who were also in attendance at the fashion parade were—but really, her thoughts flew straight back to the parlor at Rathborne House.

She had told Lenore everything, of course. What was the point of having an older sister if one could not share everything with her, even the most scandalous and private details of life? She’d been unable to hold back her enthusiasm in relating how Joseph had found passion and power within him, and how he’d taken what he wanted from her in a way that Ellen had highly approved of.

She’d also consulted with her sister about possible ways to avoid the consequences that Lord Cathraiche had callously mentioned. After a few questions about Ellen’s monthly cycle, Lenore had determined the likelihood of consequences was minimal, but she’d presented Ellen with a foul-tasting herbal tincture, just in case.

It was a bit dangerous to know that enjoying such intimacies while avoiding the consequences was entirely possible, if a lady was careful. She’d whispered to Joseph of next time before leaving him to deal with his brother, and now she was most certainly plotting ways that there could be a next time. Her thoughts were far more engaged in that than they were in observing the ballgowns on display.

But her thoughts emerged from their lusty haze when she realized that the two ladies sitting across the aisle from her were not, in fact, examining the gowns as they paraded from one end of the room to the other, they were looking straight at her and whispering behind their hands.

Ellen’s pulse pounded anxiously. She smiled at the ladies, but for whatever reason, that only made them laugh.

Did they know? Was there some sort of a mark that appeared on a woman when she’d done something wicked with a man?

No, of course there wasn’t. If there were, she would have already had one on her when she arrived in London.

Of course, that could explain why none of the ladies of London society had ever truly warmed to her to begin with.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.