Page 16 of The Duke's Last Dance
She was not sure how to take that sentence, but she knew that the modiste meant well. Regardless, she followed the modiste further into the store.
“Here, we have the latest colors. A nice deep red, like that of a cranberry, and a deep sapphire blue. You would look beautiful in either color, but if you are in the market for lighter colors, pink and light blue are both good choices,” the modiste began. “There is nothing better for a good complexion than a variety of dresses. Of course, staples such as champagne and ivory are still in style, and all look beautiful with lace, trimmings, and such.” She began to pull out samples of everything that Catherine was being shown.
Some of the laces were simple, with just a soft pattern of flowers. Other laces were more intricate, ruffled and flowered and complicated patterns. Catherine was not interested in the ones that had so much going on she could not tell what the design was supposed to be.
“Feathers and things are not in style for hats this Season, but flowers are.” At this, the modiste showed her a few flowered hats. They were gorgeous, with large bouquets of white and orange and pink and blue. They were meant to match the various fabrics that Catherine had just been shown.
“They are all so beautiful…” She wasn’t sure where to start. “I do not know how to begin to pick…”
“Well, if you would prefer, I can take measurements and take a pattern. You can leave the rest of the choices to me and see what becomes of it,” the modiste suggested.
“I do like that idea. If I truly do have such a perfect complexion, then anything you pick ought to look good on me, and I trust you to make me look beautiful.” Catherine smiled.
“Good, good!” The modiste smiled, clapping her hands together in front of her chest. “Then, let us get the measurements I need, and we shall see you off in a beautiful gown or two very soon.”
The modiste led her into the back room, and she quickly took the measurements needed. Being measured was not necessarily the most interesting thing in the world, but Catherine found it rather intriguing. The tape measure was cold at the end, but that was the way metal worked. The metal endcap only touched her skin once, thankfully, but she imagined that it had warmed up as the modiste took her measurements.
“There we are. Now that I have your measurements, I have a few ideas for patterns…” The modiste trailed off, heading towards the shelf with the patterns.
Catherine could not make any sense of the patterns, as they were all different pieces cut out for other people, but she trusted the modiste knew what she was doing.
“Here we are!” The modiste’s voice startled Catherine out of her thoughts again. “Now, shall we return to where your mother and handmaid are waiting?”
Catherine nodded.
That had not taken anywhere near as long as she thought it would to get measured and get dresses ready. Perhaps that was because she had given the modiste much of the freedom to create these dresses, which was probably a good thing for the modiste.
As they walked out of the back room, her mother gave her a startled glance.
“Already finished?” Her mother frowned.
“Yes. It seems Lady Catherine did not know what she wanted out of all the fabrics, laces, and such, so she has given me the freedom to make her first dress as I see fit for her,” the modiste explained.
Catherine did not mind the way the modiste was explaining things. Instead of trying to get a word in, she walked towards her mother, stopping when she had reached an appropriate spot beside the other women.
“I am glad to see that she is trusting someone to make these decisions for her,” her mother said once the modiste had finished explaining.
Catherine had missed the rest of the explanation entirely, and she was not sure if the modiste had just said anything about what her dresses would look like when they were finally done. If she had, then her dresses would simply be more of a surprise than intended.
“Well, I must bid you a good afternoon, as you were my last appointment, and I must get sewing,” the modiste added. “Have a good day, Countess, Lady Catherine.”
“You too, ma’am,” Catherine said with a smile.
Her mother also bade the modiste a good afternoon, and then they walked back to the carriage.
Once they were in the carriage, her mother could hardly hold back a smile.
“Catherine, while you were with the modiste, Amelia informed me of a letter that came this morning. She had the forethought to bring it with her, and I must tell you what it said,” her mother began. “We have been invited to Almack House. The letter, you see, was a voucher to attend. Isn’t that exciting?”
“Quite exciting, Mother, yes,” Catherine said.
She was not surprised that her mother had received such a voucher. Her mother, as the Countess of Camberton, was well-connected. She had high standing with many women in Town, and she understood that her mother also had connections to the patroness of Almack House. This Season, those connections would be used to get Catherine a good standing in the town, and hopefully, put her closer to finding a good match for marriage.
“We will be attending, of course, since it is not every day that one is invited to attend a ball at Almack House. Oh, we must have the dresses ready before that!” Her mother began to fret about everything again.
Catherine and Amelia shared a soft glance. Not again.
Chapter Seven
