Lady in Red Read Online Free PDF

about you setting yourself up as a dressmaker. That is a very difficult profession. Many go blind sewing over candles at night.”
    “Oh, I shall only use the best candles,” Portia said with the confidence of the very young, waving aside her sister’s very real objections.
    Honoria stifled a sigh. It wouldn’t do to start an argument with Portia. Not right this moment anyway. “Olivia, is that all?”
    Olivia gave a smart nod and consulted her papers one more time. “Aye. The jibs are out of tune and we’re sure to sink else we find a strong wind to carry us to shore.”
    Cassandra sighed. “I don’t understand how things could be so wretched. Who put the jibs so out of tune?”
    “We did,” Honoria said promptly. “All of us together. With Portia’s silk and Juliet getting Hercules a new horse blanket and the increasing cost of coal and my silly purchases for the shop… Olivia, exactly how much do we have left?”
    “Less than sixty pounds.”
    A faint silence met this pronouncement. Honoria found she couldn’t swallow. Surely Olivia was wrong. They should have had two hundred pounds left, enough to make it through the coming winter until Father could send them something from his new investment. It would not be much, but it would get them through a few more months after that and perhaps give Cassandra a little for her wardrobe. She was seventeen now and Honoria had hoped to see her sister presented this year.
    She stole a glance at Cassandra, who was calmly setting small, perfect stitches on the hem of a delicate lace kerchief. Honoria’s heart swelled. Tall, slender, with golden hair and a sparkling smile and rich violet eyes, her sister was as opposite Honoria as could be. But then Cassandra had inherited Mother’s looks, while Honoria favored Father and the Baker-Sneeds.
    But it wasn’t just Cassandra’s looks, blindingly beautiful as they were, that made her so special. It was a peculiar sweetness of expression, a gentleness of spirit. Cassandra was as pure in heart as she was in form. And Honoria was resolved to see to it that her sister had every opportunity to shine. If they could but find Cassandra a sponsor who would gain her entry into the right places, Honoria knew her sister could take the ton by storm. After all, she’d quite enraptured every man within a fifty mile radius of their home in Hampstead, where they’d lived before removing to London . The thought made Honoria grimace, for of the many suit-ors who had come to call, none had possessed the gentle and refined spirit that would ultimately attract Cassandra. The experience had caused both Honoria and Ned a good bit of concern. They simply could not see gentle, loving Cassandra married to a coarse farmer. Thus they’d moved to London .
    Of course, coming to London and becoming a part of society were two separate issues. They’d arrived without problem, but thanks to their aunt’s refusal to honor her offer to sponsor Cassandra, they were now at a standstill. If only Honoria could find a way to get Cassandra into society… It would only be a matter of time before she attracted the attention she was due, a man of mature breeding and the sort of refined spirit that Cassandra herself possessed. And if he happened to be enormously wealthy as well, their problems would be solved. Surely Cassandra’s new husband would agree to sponsor Portia and then Juliet and Olivia and perhaps even—
    Honoria mentally shook herself. There was no sense in living in the future. What she had to do was take care of the now. They would have to economize. Part of the blame for their current condition could be laid at her feet, as well. Just last month she’d had to pay a little extra for Portia’s music lessons. And Honoria knew she had forgotten to include in their budget the pittance they gave the vicar every Tuesday for George’s Latin and Greek lessons. But, worst of all, were her little purchases she sold at the antiquities shop. Though it turned