Page 11 of The Marquess's Imperfect Brid
Chapter Six
Grace could hardly stand still to allow Juliet to help her prepare for the ball that evening. When she had first mentioned the ball, the marchioness had insisted that Grace go dress shopping with her. With her mother’s help, Grace had selected a silk, dark blue dress, thinking that if she chose an outfit in her favorite color, she would be less self-conscious about the event. But as Juliet laced up the floral-embroidered bodice, Grace felt more nervous than she had in ages.
Since her accident, she was always reluctant to attend parties. Many of her family’s closest friends were kind to Grace, and she usually did not mind dining or attending tea parties with them. However, at larger events designed to accommodate a wider circle of London’s elite society, people stared and whispered about her, despite knowing what had caused her terrible disfigurement.
People still gossiped as if some wild scandal was the reason behind her permanently altered appearance, hearing and sight. To Grace, it often seemed as though people wanted to believe that she transformed into a horrible beast for no apparent reason just to have a reason to gossip. She could not fathom how decent people could react so negatively to something which she could not help unless that were the case.
“Lady Grace, you must still yourself,” Juliet said, gently chastising her mistress.
Grace winced sheepishly, vainly trying to will herself to stop shifting her weight from one foot to the other.
“I apologise Juliette,” she said. “I just detest such grand parties.”
Juliette nodded. Grace knew that she was aware of hermistress’s distaste for social events. This was hardly the first time Grace had said as much while Juliet prepared her for one. Which meant that she knew precisely what her lady’s maid was about to say, so well that she recited it silently word-for-word along with Juliet as she spoke.
“I know that you worry about your differences,” she said. “But anyone worth your time will not notice them. Any smart man or woman will see you precisely as I do: as a beautiful, kind, intelligent and considerate young lady.”
Grace smiled. No matter how many times she heard those words, they always brightened her mood, if only a little. Though she could never bring herself to agree with the things Juliet said, she could appreciate why her lady’s maid was being so kind to her. And while Juliet was practically family, having served Grace most of her life, it was nice to hear such affirmations from someone other than her parents and siblings.
“Thank you, Juliet,” she said.
The lady’s maid put her hands on Grace’s shoulders, looking her directly in her eyes. Grace could only see out of her right one, but the direct intention in Juliet’s eyes was still perfectly clear.
“Pray, you must take me at my word, Lady Grace,” she implored. “Should you doubt it, the observations of others will become most apparent. This will only serve to stoke the flames of their idle gossip and cause you distress regarding your own worth. I beseech you to recall your true essence, and know that no superficial distinctions shall ever dictate your value or your beauty.”
Grace embraced Juliet tightly. She could not imagine a more loyal or kinder lady’s maid in all of England. She knew that she made the faithful woman’s job unnecessarily hard some days, fretting over her appearance. Yet Juliet remained as patient and devoted as ever. She smiled at the woman, understanding how fortunate she was to have such a wonderful maid.
“When you say it, it is impossible not to believe,” she said.
Juliet smiled at her, squeezing her hand as she pulled away.
“I am glad, milady,” she said. “Now, let us finish getting you ready.”
Grace managed to calm herself enough to allow Juliet to finish helping her get ready. But by the time Juliet was escorting her down the stairs, her heart was racing in her chest again. She put on a smile, feeling renewed fear when her father was not waiting for her at the base of the stairs. She knew he needed to be with her mother and siblings greeting their guests, especially since she would not be standing with them to do so. Still, she held her breath as she entered the ballroom with Juliet at her side.
Once the family’s butler announced her arrival, Juliet silently excused herself to wait at the edge of the room. Grace exhaled slowly, holding up her head, trying to ignore the trepidation she continued to feel. She glanced around, using the skills she had learned with much practice to focus as well as she could on faces with her right eye. It helped her direct her attention so that she was not acutely alerted to all the pairs of eyes which turned in her direction and the mouths that silenced as she walked past. But it did not allow her to muffle all the whispers from the other party guests.
“Have they gotten worse?” a woman asked someone just as Grace passed.
“It is a shame,” said a gentleman, loudly enough that Grace was certain she was meant to hear him. “I imagine she was quite lovely once.”
Grace forced herself forward, resisting the urge to hail Juliet and have the lady’s maid usher her to her chambers. She kept her forced smile as she scanned the room, praying to find a friendly face. She refused to ruin the evening and the house party for her family. But she did not think she could handle suchcriticism right then, not when she was already in such a state of anxiety.
Fortunately, she noticed hands waving from a corner at the back of the room. She turned her head, her knees weakening with relief when she saw Millicent and Anne motioning her over. She relaxed, allowing herself a small but genuine smile as she made her way over to the two other women. Anne, dressed in a crimson satin gown, threw her arms around her older sister.
“Grace, darling, that colour is magnificent on you,” she said. Anne always said that to Grace, no matter what color she was wearing. But Grace knew that her sister meant the compliment. And right then, it was precisely what she needed to hear.
“Thank you, Sister,” she said. “You look absolutely stunning, as always.”
Millicent joined the embrace. While Millicent was closer to Grace than she was to Anne, there could be no doubt that she loved the younger Farraway sister, as well. She smiled at both the women before kissing Grace on her scarred cheek.
“There are no women more beautiful in this entire room than the two of you,” she said, giving Grace an especially warm and caring smile. “And certainly none sweeter and kinder.”
Grace blushed. She understood that the women were trying to bolster her confidence. But she also knew that they meant their kind words. Even if she herself could not. However, she was grateful when the two women burst into animated conversation about the lovely shades of red, blue, purple and white of the outfits of the other guests. Grace was happy to listen and keep herself hidden from the eyes of the people who kept glancing their direction. She knew that Millicent and Anne were trying to urge her to join in their conversation. But it was a miracle that she had not burst into tears and fled the room. Talking was beyond her ability right then. She hoped her anxiety would pass, especially after a glass or two of wine. But right then,she wanted nothing but to hide behind her friend and her sister and pray the night would hurry and end.
As she was working on making herself as small as she could and trying to figure out how to remain invisible for the rest of the evening, the entire room fell silent all at once. Grace dared to glance up, relieved to see that all the eyes that had been staring at her were now redirected. She followed the collective gaze of the attentive guests to see that the butler had reentered the ballroom with a new group of people. And as they were introduced to the entire room, Grace’s heart stopped. Heavens, please. No…
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