Page 82 of A Duchess to Unravel
“Perhaps a rest would do you some good,” Rose answered in way of agreement.
“Give yourself time to think,” Ophelia added, both of them rising from their chairs.
Theo did not want to think. She wanted to sleep until the pain in her chest was long gone and wake up only when her memory of Alistair had completely faded. Still, she nodded and quietly excused herself from her friends.
“Pardon me, my lady,” Norma said, appearing in front of Theo at the door with two letters in her hands.
“Yes, Norma? What is it?” Theo asked, her eyes going straight to the envelopes. Her heart leapt as she recognized Alistair’s handwriting, and she had to stop herself from tearing it out of her maid’s hands.
“I have come with two messages,” Norma replied. “One is for you, and one is for Miss Gravesmoor.”
Rose stepped to Theo’s side as Norma held out the envelopes, and while Rose immediately opened hers, Theo took hers in bothhands and pressed it to her stomach. She was anxious to read it but decided to do so in private. Not at all sure what the contents would be or how it would make her feel.
“Oh, bother,” Rose sighed as she read her letter.
“What is it?” Theo asked, turning to her friend.
“It is my mother,” Rose replied, folding the letter again. “She has decided to join us and has arrived at our country house. She insists that I come back and get ready for a ball at the Herrington’s Estate.”
She gave Theo a regretful look.
“I am sorry, but you know how my mother is. I really have no choice but to go.”
Theo’s lips twitched toward a smile and she nodded.
“Of course. Please do not be sorry. Go. Have a wonderful time,” she replied.
Rose stepped toward her, placing her hands on Theo’s arm.
“I do not suppose you would want to join me?” She asked, her tone hopeful. “The three of us could hold up the wall the way we used to.”
Theo let out a hollow laugh at Rose’s attempt at humor but shook her head.
“No, I really am quite tired. But Ophelia could go.”
She turned to Ophelia with the same empty smile.
“Youshouldgo,” Theo emphasized. “No need to have Rose face society alone. We all know how boorish that can be.”
Ophelia raised a worried brow as she stepped up to both of her friends.
“Are you quite certain?” She asked. “It does not feel right. Leaving you alone, I mean. I could stay. Be here for you when you wake up.”
Though grateful for the offer and care her friends were providing, Theo shook her head.
“I am going to take a tonic for sleep,” Theo answered, then nodded toward Norma. Her maid nodded and curtsied, and left to fetch it. “I have not been sleeping well and I believe I should catch up. I think I shall try to sleep through the rest of the day and into morning. You can come back tomorrow and tell me all about the ball.”
Though Rose and Ophelia both looked reluctant at the idea, they both gave a begrudging a nod, and the three of them hugged farewell.
“We will be back for lunch tomorrow,” Ophelia promised.
Theo nodded once more but said nothing else as her friends left the drawing room. She waited a few more minutes, her thoughts churning on her friends’ idea of love, then, when she was sure they were gone, went upstairs to her room. Theo lay the letter on her bed, keeping her eyes on it as she changed from her day gown into her nightgown. She paused briefly when she realized she had pulled one of the few she’d had made for Alistair’s pleasure and looked in the mirror.
For a moment she thought of changing again. Of taking it off and rumpling it up before putting on one of her new ones. As she looked at her reflection though, touched the buttery soft fabric, she decided she could not bear ruining such a beautiful thing. She might have had it designed for Alistair, but that did not mean she could enjoy it for herself.
Lastly, she slipped the pins from her dark curls and fluffed out her hair before sliding between the cool sheets of her bed.
She heard a knock on the door. “Yes?” she called.
