Page 56 of Kissing the Debutant
“You make it look good,” Jack said with a wink. “Poufy dresses seem to be a theme tonight.” He glanced at the serious faces of the other debutants waiting nervously for their night to begin.
“Not like I had a choice on the dress. Mom brought a dozen white dresses to school for me to try on weeks ago. Three hours of torture trying them all on, and what do I end up wearing? A dress I’ve never even seen before tonight.”
“Of course.” Jack shook his head. “Makes perfect sense.”
Lillian guided him away from the other debs and their escorts. She’d noticed more than one disapproving look thrown their way. Jack stood out among the escorts mostly clad in black designer suits and silver ties complementing their deb’s dress. Jack had borrowed his suit from his dad and it was slightly too big for his slim shoulders, and not at all the fine quality this crowd was used to seeing. None of that mattered to her.
Being with Jack was like nothing she’d ever experienced before. He always made her smile, and he was the best part of most of her days. But she couldn’t deny, there was a level of satisfaction she got from defying her mother by bringing someone she would disapprove of.
“Escorts, lead your ladies this way, please.” Mrs. Fitzgerald snapped her fingers, expecting them all to fall in line behind her. She was the lead mother in this event and had worked tirelessly guiding her debs through their important year of society events. And she took this event seriously.
“What’s with the whole escort thing, anyway?” Jack asked. “Not that I’m not happy to be here with you, but they act like you couldn’t possibly navigate that staircase without a man to help you. It’s creepy.”
Lillian snorted a very unladylike laugh, reaching to cover her mouth. Mrs. Fitzgerald glared daggers at them, but Lillian couldn’t stifle her giggles. “It’s so ridiculous, but my mother is obsessed with the tradition. It’s supposed to be about celebrating each debutant’s accomplishments and her entrance into high society, but it’s really a leftover tradition from another age and an excuse to have a ball.”
Lillian and Jack followed the others up the back staircase to the upper level balcony over the ballroom, built for this exact purpose.
“Line up with your ladies, gentlemen.” Mrs. Fitzgerald directed. “Very nice.” She smiled, inspecting each couple. “Such a charming group we have this year. Almost perfect, one might say,” she added under her breath, staring down her long nose at Jack.
“Ouch.” Jack shifted nervously at her side, tugging on his collar again.
“Don’t listen to her, Jack. She’s a snob.”
Jack shrugged. “Eh, some people just don’t see how pretty I am.”
“Ugh, where have you been all these years I’ve had to suffer through these events with my mother?” Lillian struggled to keep her serious debutant poise in place, but Jack was so much fun to be with.
“What’s with the charity case?” someone muttered.
“You know, I really hate this whole scene.” A pang of regret shot through Lillian as she said the words. She shouldn’t have subjected him to this nonsense. As much as she liked spending time with Jack, they were from two different worlds, and she’d dragged him into hers, knowing they wouldn’t accept him.
“I can take it.” Jack drew close, brushing a kiss along her ear. “I’m with the prettiest girl here.”
Lillian blushed, leaning into him as Mrs. Fitzgerald sent them to queue up for their grand entrance.
“This will be over soon, and I promise we can leave early. We’ll ditch the fancy dinner and go get something good once my mom is satisfied I’ve fulfilled my cotillion duties.”
“You had me at cheeseburgers,” Jack said.
“I didn’t say anything about cheeseburgers.”
“I heard cheeseburgers.”
“You’re hilarious. I’m supposed to be serious right now.” Lillian couldn’t wipe the grin off her face.
“Serious is overrated.” Jack held his arm out. They were up next. “May I escort you down these perilous stairs so my lady doesn’t fall on her pretty face?”
“Yes, please, I couldn’t possibly make it on my own two feet.” Lillian tucked her hand in the crook of his arm as they stepped up to the top of the gilded stairs.
“Lovely, Lillian. Just lovely,” Mrs. Fitzgerald beamed at her in approval, barely sparing a glance for Jack.
“Ready?” Jack asked, reaching to squeeze her hand looped through his arm.
“Ready.” Lillian and Jack took the first step together to the oohs and ahhs of the crowd below. Someone announced her, reading off a laundry list of her accomplishments. She barely heard what they said about her, but she let out a startled gasp when they announced her escort as Jackson Butler III, rising star of the Defiance Academy polo team.
“Polo, huh?” Jack murmured. “That’s news to me.”
“It seems my mother’s been creative with her lies.” Lillian wanted to strangle her, but she held her head high as they made their way down the stairs. She heard the whispering and the odd looks cast their way. And there her mother was, right in the midst of the high society snobs, a look of horror on her face. That look gave Lillian all the satisfaction in the world. She stared back at her mother with confidence. All her life, her mother had influenced every facet of Lillian’s world, but things were changing. Lillian was changing. And it was time her mother realized that. She gripped Jack’s arm tighter, hoping her mother would see how happy he made her. A mother should wish that for her daughter. It shouldn’t matter where Jack came from. He was the best man in the room as far as she was concerned.
