The Emerald Duchess Read Online Free PDF Page A

Racklin ball is only a week away, and you will certainly need a smart dresser for that. It is most important for me to stand well with Sir Reginald, especially now.”
    “But, Tony,” Lady Quentin interrupted, “you have not told me why he is of such importance, and I do not understand—”
    “It is nothing for you to worry your pretty head about, my dear. If you would please me, just be sure you look your most entrancing. Perhaps you should ask Bella to help you engage a maid; yes, that’s the ticket,” he added as Emily’s heart sank. “Bella will be glad to tell you what you should do.” With a wave and a blown kiss he was gone, even as the lady frowned at his last words and called after him, “But, Tony, when will you be home?”
    But the captain did not reply, for both of them could hear him running downstairs and the sound of the front door slamming behind him.
    All the light went out of Lady Quentin’s face as she sank back on her pillows with a little sigh. Catching sight of the letters of reference again, she returned her gaze to Emily’s face. “Bella, indeed! I suppose Tony is right, but somehow ...” She frowned a little and added, “I cannot call you Nelson or Margaret, what shall I call you?”
    Emily said nothing as the lady threw back her bedclothes. “Very well, never mind that now. Bring me my peignoir and we shall see how you dress me for luncheon with Lady Wilcox. She sets fashion: let us see if you can make me her equal. Not that I care especially what she thinks, but Tony insists I cultivate her.”
    Emily quickly removed her pelisse and bonnet, wishing she had thought to bring her apron and cap with her as she helped Lady Quentin into the soft pink robe that lay across the foot of the bed. She followed the lady to her dressing room, noticing how very short she was. Emily herself was only of medium height, but Lady Quentin lacked several of her inches. She could not repress a gasp when she saw the dressing room, and the lady turned around, her eyes twinkling.
    “Yes, it is unusual, is it not? Tony had his sister Bella design it for me as a wedding present. We have only been married six months, and I myself am not quite accustomed to it as yet.” She paused as if she were going to say more, and then she shrugged.
    Emily gazed at the gilded tub, shaped like a shell and set on delicate clawed feet, the mirrored walls, and the velvet chaise and matching chairs. Even the ceiling was painted with a soft mural depicting the sky and some rosy clouds.
    Lady Quentin threw open the doors of the wardrobe and selected an afternoon dress of dusty rose. “I shall wear this, I think, for it is new.”
    Emily restrained another gasp, for she had never seen so many clothes. Row after row of morning dresses, afternoon ensembles, ball gowns, riding habits, and beautiful furs. Although every color of the rainbow was represented, pink and rose predominated.
    “Tony likes me to wear pink, Nelly,” Lady Quentin explained, and Emily, her heart sinking at the thought of being addressed as Nelly, nodded her head. It appeared the lady called everyone by a diminutive, from her husband, Tony, right down to her lady’s maid. As she helped her to dress, Lady Quentin continued to chat. In spite of having to decipher some of her more tangled statements, Emily found herself warming to the young lady. She was just like a kitten, so open and playful, and when she squeezed Emily’s hand and declared she was more than pleased with her turnout, Emily was bold enough to ask the salary.
    “I paid Daffy twenty-five guineas, and you shall have the same,” Lady Quentin said in a businesslike way. “And any time off whenever I do not need you, as well as every other Sunday afternoon, and a full day once a month.”
    “That will be satisfactory, m’lady,” Emily agreed in relief, and as Lady Quentin was pulling on her gloves, she asked what other activities she was engaged in for today. At her look of surprise, Emily