Page 28 of Seduced by an Irresistible Lady
“You really want me to be with him,” Helena said.
“Oh, the blues if we could get married on the same day,” Lady Lavinia said.
Helena saw Miss Justina cover her blush with an arm. Lady Lavinia could be so hilarious sometimes. Helena wondered if she was making the right decision. She had felt something with the doctor. She hardly knew this rich Lord. She shook her head. There was no choice. Now she had set her sights on Lord Jeffrey, she had to work towards getting him.
Chapter 6
White Faced
Helena stared at herself in her big mirror. She dazzled. She was almost completely white. The white dress and accessories were like a second skin, rhyming perfectly with the bleached colour of her flawless skin. The gown had a dipping neckline with an even sharper dive at her cleavage, revealing the creamy elevations of her breasts. She imagined the effect she would have on any interested man. She puckered her lips, the red even more evident against the white colour of her apparel. Her lips were like a beacon, the way they stood out. Her eyes were plain as always, someone not so observant would take them to be white, along with her dress. She had a red brooch pinned at the middle of her neckline, just above the slit. She had chosen to wear a small hat with long nets that covered her entire face.
Mystery girl.
She laughed. She had never been so careful about what she put on to a ball. She turned to the side and glimpsed the reaching slit in the middle at the back of her dress. Her white skin was exposed till the slit ended at the upper regions of her back. She raised her left arm and flapped the white fan it held. She had bought the fan when she went shopping along with Lady Lavinia, Miss Justina, and Lady Lavinia’s cousins. Prince Drew had not come along. Helena had still not seen him. She really was eager to see the man that had taken her friend’s heart. But first, she needed to get downstairs so she got to the ball early enough. There was a short knock on her door.
“Justina.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I’m done. I’m coming out,” Helena said.
Miss Justina said nothing. The knock had been to remind Helena, and she didn’t need to be reminded. She walked out of the room, pushing her room door open gently so as not to hit Miss Justina if she was behind it. She wasn’t. Miss Justina was walking towards the sitting room. Helena walked behind her, taking her steps carefully. She didn’t want anything happening to her dress. She wanted to look as mesmerising as this till she got to the dance.
Lady Lavinia had decided they would meet at the ball. She was attending along with Prince Drew and her twin cousins. As Helena pushed the entrance door open, she imagined what Lord Jeffrey would say upon seeing her. She imagined he would be mesmerised and bereft of words, stuttering as his tongue refused to cooperate with his surprised mind.
Stop imagining impossible situations.
Lord Jeffrey was a sophisticated gentleman. She had not spoken to him, but she knew someone of such a high stature who was so known among the ton was going to be of excellent composure.
“He wouldn’t fumble for words but hide his surprise with a slew of flattering words.”
Her soliloquy quieted her wild mind. Helena walked down the stairs to the waiting coach. Miss Justina stood by the open door, waiting for her mistress to get in. Helena carefully went in, watching the end of her gown closely to ensure it didn’t hang to any corner. Miss Justina stepped in after her.
“You look magnificent, Miss Helena,” Miss Justina said.
Helena smiled. She felt hot and flapped her fan, sending a soft current on her face. She expected to feel cooler when the coach started moving properly.
“Thank you, Justina. You don’t look bad yourself.”
Helena chided herself for her well told lie because she had been so engrossed in her own appearance that she did not remember to appraise her maid. She studied her now. Miss Justina was in white too but chose to punctuate with a black hat, black fan and black shoes. She did not have as big a bust as Helena, so her gown didn’t look so full around the chest. She opted for a gown with a high neckline. Her caramel skin blunted the shock of the black on the white. She wasn’t looking bad.
“I’m sure you took extra care to look this impressive,” Miss Justina said. Helena blushed.
Of course, I did.
“Not really, I knew I had to look really good so I looked it. I cannot remove the fact that I have another reason why I am attending this ball, though, but it’s not the single reason I took my time,” Helena said.
Miss Justina looked at her mistress and nodded before breaking into a smile and looking outside the window as the coach went out the gate of their house.
Who am I fooling? Definitely not Justina.
Helena said nothing more. She would only look more defensive.
“Is it a long trip to the Duke of Beaufort’s house? I have forgotten the length of time I spent on the road last year when I travelled there,” Helena said.
Miss Justina shook her head, indicating she didn’t know. She leaned forward and opened the window behind the driver.
“Mr Booth,” she said.
