Tempting Fate Read Online Free PDF

she’d been studying a fashion plate to see Evie point out a…a something, displayed on a seamstress’s form. Light blue satin cut much too simply to be a gown, hugged rather than draped over the model.
    “Well, for heaven’s sake,” Mirabelle laughed. “What is the point of such a garment?”
    “I’ve no idea,” was both Kate’s and Evie’s reply.
    “To feel delicious,” was Sophie’s. Three heads immediately spun in her direction. She shrugged, a slight bloom of red showing on her cheeks. “Perhaps one needs to be married to appreciate the prettiness of it.”
    “Or be in the market for something pretty and pointless,” Evie added with a pointed look at Mirabelle.
    “That’s absurd, Evie,” Mirabelle chuckled. “We don’t even know what it is.”
    “Sophie appears to.”
    “Not really,” Sophie admitted. “I just think it’s lovely. Perhaps it’s a chemise.”
    “It’s too long.” Mirabelle argued. “It would reach near the ankles. And the material isn’t right.”
    Chemises were made of sturdy material that could withstand the abuse of repeated washings. The fabric before her looked as if it might melt in a hard rain. She reached out to run a finger down the material. And fell instantly in love.
    “Oh my,” she breathed. “Have you ever felt anything so soft?”
    “Ah, you have found my little experiment, I see.”
    At the sound of Madame Duvalle’s voice, Mirabellesnatched her hand back with a guilty start. “I beg your pardon, I shouldn’t have—”
    “Pftt. If I did not want it admired, I would not have left it out. What do you make of it?”
    “It’s divine,” Mirabelle whispered and had four pairs of eyes blinking at her. “Well, it is,” she defended. “It feels like…like water. What’s it for?”
    “It is a chemise.”
    “But…”
    “But it is most impractical, yes. And so every woman of means has informed me.” She gave an annoyed huff. “It is odd, is it not, that even the most frivolous of women would not be eager to indulge themselves thus?”
    “Because they can’t display it where others could see and envy,” Evie murmured.
    “Exactly so, my clever girl.”
    “A woman with a husband could,” Sophie said, considering.
    “This is true,” Madame Duvalle laughed. “But this piece is not for you, juene mère. It is for Miss Browning.”
    Mirabelle wouldn’t have been more stunned if she’d been offered the deed to the shop. Which is likely why she failed to see the look of understanding pass between Madame Duvalle and Kate.
    “For me? But I couldn’t. I couldn’t possibly. I…” She trailed off. “Couldn’t,” she felt, summed up her position quite well. She couldn’t afford it. Couldn’t find a use for it. Couldn’t all sorts of things.
    Her objections feel on deaf ears. “I insist. I would have my creation appreciated, not sitting in this room collecting dust.” Madame Duvalle began to pull the chemise off the model. “I ask three shillings and will do the alterations for free, yes?”
    Three shillings? It was a ridiculously low price.
    “Three shillings? That’s absurd. The material alone—”
    “Three shillings, stubborn girl, and also the currency of gossip. I would hear of the guests.” She held the material up against Mirabelle and squinted. “No alterations needed, I think. We are fortunate.”
    “A very hard bargain,” Evie cut in before Mirabelle could continue her argument. “But she’ll take it. Which gossip would you care to hear first?”
    Outnumbered, outmaneuvered, and not all that interested in having her way, if truth be known, Mirabelle dug into her reticule for the three shillings. “I’ll take good care of it,” she promised. “Thank you.”
    “Of course you will.” Madame Duvalle moved into the front of the store, which was—to Mirabelle’s vast relief—once again empty. “Now, tell me what you make of the Mr. Hunter who has come to visit.”
    Kate shrugged. “He has business with Whit. We