Kisses and Scandal (A Survivors Series Anthology ) - Shana Galen Page 0,92

the dress and send me away.”

He arched a brow. “Is that not how it’s usually done?”

“Mon Dieu!” Madame Renauld threw a fresh litany of French at him, only half of which he understood.

Fortunately, the seamstress intervened. “Sir, usually the first time a Renauld is worn, Madame herself assesses the fit and makes any alterations.”

“I see.”

“I don’t,” Raeni answered. “I’m perfectly capable of dressing myself.”

Madame Renauld began spouting French again, and Thomas understood why his butler had been eager to retreat.

Finally, Raeni motioned to a side table against the wall. “Let me see it then.”

“Thees is not how it is usually done.” Madame Renauld gestured to her assistant. “But I will make an exception.”

The assistant set the box on the table, lifted the top, and Thomas stared down at a froth of paper. As though she could see something he could not, the assistant reached into the paper and lifted the bodice of a silvery blue silk gown. He felt a surge of disappointment. He’d expected to see Raeni in bright colors that would highlight her beauty. But this was little better than the white most of the young women would be wearing.

Raeni, however, gasped in pleasure. “Oh. It’s...the color!”

Madame took the gown and showed Raeni the back. “You see, I have left this little bit unfinished. That is so I can adjust the fit so it is perfect, if necessary. Most likely, my work is already perfect. And I have included a few extras as well.”

Thomas did not think he was supposed to notice that she pointed to white undergarments laced with blue hidden in the paper. He stepped back, intent on making an exit and allowing the ladies to continue the battle, but Raeni surprised him.

“Very well. I suppose I could use some assistance. Alice is not back yet.”

“We should leave at eight,” Thomas told her as she ascended the steps with her new entourage.

Madame spoke before Raeni could. “She will be ready, Monsieur.”

He had no doubt. And she’d be wearing those white undergarments with the blue piping. Now how was he to erase that image from his mind?

Six

Raeni did not recognize the woman in the mirror. She’d barely recognized herself the past few days. She had gone to having nothing and sleeping on the floor of a church choir room to living in a town house that was finer even than that of the plantation house she had grown up in.

But her father’s house had been half a century old and worn by rain and heat. Money was always a factor, and when he made a profit Charles Sawyer bought more land, more seed, or more slaves. He did not fix a leaking roof or a sagging railing on the verandah.

But this town house was so new she could all but smell the forest from which the trees had been cut. And everything in it was new, from the carpets to the books to the linens on her bed. Thomas had told her he hadn’t been in London long, but she hadn’t really understood until she’d stepped into rooms in his house that had not yet been used. It was a lovely house, and it had the potential to be a home. It needed a few personal touches—but she did not need to think what those might be. It was unlikely she would be here much longer.

She’d all but forgotten about the ball until Thomas had told her to go home early today. And then after her bath she’d been summoned to see Madame Renauld. Now they were in her chamber, and she was being prodded and tugged into the ball gown. She thought about complaining, but it was difficult when the dress was so beautiful and the material so lovely and silky against her skin. She loved looking at the color. It reminded her of the ocean in Jamaica. It was that same pure blue that was so lovely it almost did not seem real.

And she did not feel real in the dress. Who was the woman wearing such a beautiful gown? Her skin shone, her eyes glinted, and when the seamstress—who apparently also had skills as a hair dresser—finished pinning her hair in an elaborate chignon, her hair framed her face with a halo of soft, dark curls.

Madame Renauld had fussed with the gown, but really very little alteration had been needed. The skirts were just the right length, the bodice low but not too low, and the sleeves cut so they edged off her shoulders,