Page 24 of Cinderella's Charade With the Duke
Hattie closed her chamber door with hesitation. While she was relieved to have survived the measuring, poking, prodding andfabric selection with Mademoiselle Dashiell, what was coming next was of greater uncertainty. Slowly, she followed the low murmurs and headed towards the elegant bath nestled within her chambers. The large porcelain tub with its extravagant claw feet was filled with steaming water and rose petals of all things. Hattie commanded herself not to gasp. She could not wait to tell Ophelia about this.
She would never believe her, of course. Nor would Trudy. Hattie was staring at it and she didn’t believe it. Who lived like this? Evidently the late Marchioness had.
‘Good evening, Miss Potts. We have prepared a bath for you as requested by Mrs Chisholm. Are you ready?’ the elder of the two young maids asked with a timid smile.
Hattie stood at the threshold and breathed in the fragrant steaming rose-scented waters and sighed.Thiswould not be so bad after all. When Mrs Chisholm had declared Miss Potts was to be ‘scrubbed and refreshed down to the bones’, Hattie had feared for her well-being. Now, she was relieved. The woman merely wanted her to have a proper bath and have her hair washed.
Despite feeling shy about disrobing in front of two women she did not know, Hattie did so with some speed and then stepped into the hot water. She did sigh then. It was exquisite. She eased herself into the water, letting the heat spread through her as she eased back. To her surprise the water was deep enough to cover most of her and only her head, neck and shoulders were exposed. She leaned back, closed her eyes and relaxed, feeling the ache in her shoulder which, while she didn’t need the sling today, was still tender. She was lucky she had minimal bruising, which wouldn’t show in a gown. Then she felt fingers threading through her hair. She started at first.
‘I shall just remove your hairpins and ribbons, Miss Potts. Then we will wash your hair and scrub you down.’
She stilled. While the first part sounded just fine, she wasn’t so sure about being ‘scrubbed down’. She was perfectly capable of scrubbing herself. Gently the pins were pulled from her hair one after another.
The comb pulled less gently. Hattie winced. ‘Sorry, Miss,’ the younger maid whispered. ‘I must get the tangles out before we wash it.’
‘Of course,’ she murmured and then cringed as the girl worked the tangles out with a bit more force than she expected.
Hattie closed her eyes.This was all for a better life.One week of pretending stood between her and a new life for Lady Millie, herself and hopefully for Ophelia and Trudy, too. All she needed to do was become someone else entirely. How many times had she wished such as a young girl in the orphanage? Honestly, this ruse might be more natural for her than she ever expected or wished to admit to.
The three of them had whiled away many a rainy afternoon in the orphanage pretending to be the long-lost daughters of a lady of high esteem in a household where they had all they wished for: care, safety, love and the extravagance of having a family, which was what they all had desired more than anything else in the world. Even now, if she allowed herself to imagine it for a moment, she still wanted it: a family of her own. A husband, children and a place they all could call home.
One final tug yanked Hattie back and she opened her eyes, her brief daydream vanishing. ‘Ow.’ She winced, unable to ignore the force.
‘Apologies, Miss,’ the younger of the two women said, releasing her hair and coming into view. She bit her lip and wrung her hands, her grey eyes widening. The poor girl couldn’t be more than seventeen.
‘I know my hair must be a fright,’ Hattie chuckled, trying to put her at ease. ‘Do what you must.’
‘You have beautiful hair, Miss,’ she said. ‘I am new here. Susie left to get some hair oils to soften and condition it. I am still learning.’
‘Oh?’ Hattie replied, dropping her voice. ‘Then we shall get along well. I have only been here a bit over a week myself. Perhaps we shall muddle through together? I’m Hattie,’ she said.
The girl smiled and nodded. ‘I would like that. Thank you, Miss. I’m Emma.’
The girl lifted the comb and Hattie sat back, relaxed to know she was not the only one who was nervous and uncertain about…everything.
‘I think it is brave of you to help His Grace and his daughter as you are,’ Emma stated, running the comb gently through Hattie’s hair.
‘Oh?’
‘Yes. Some of those women of thetonare absolutely horrid.’ Then she gasped. ‘I should not have said that. My apologies, Miss.’
Hattie covered her mouth and then chuckled aloud. ‘Perhaps not, but I do not disagree with you, even though I cannot say I have met anyone with any great means,’ she replied with a wink.
The older servant girl entered the chamber and the two of them reset their features and fell silent before the woman entered the bathroom. Hattie smothered her smile and closed her eyes, so she wouldn’t give herself or the young maid away.
Perhaps everything would be fine after all.
The older girl lifted one of Hattie’s arms and started scrubbing with some force. She cringed.
Well,maybe, anyway.
Chapter Ten
‘Good to see you, Cousin. Thank you for joining us for dinner this evening on such short notice.’ William pressed a kiss to Lady Daphne Buchanan’s cheek as he greeted her in the parlour. Simmons nodded to him and closed the door, so they could speak in private. Daphne was essential to the success of William’s plan. He prayed she would not baulk at his request for help in making Miss Potts into Lady Penelope Denning.
‘I see widowhood continues to suit you,’ he added, smiling at her. And it did, much as being a widower did him. It was something they had both shared and borne together: the loss of a spouse who had made them miserable for all intents and purposes despite how much they had initially loved them. Daphne had fallen for an older bachelor who held little regard for monogamy, much like William’s wife. In a way it had made him and Daphne depend on one another over the last year. She was the only one who truly understood and he was grateful for her friendship. He hoped what he was about to ask of her didn’t strain their relationship.
She smirked at him. ‘As it does you,’ she quipped. ‘So, what is all this secrecy about, Liam? My mind is a whirlwind of theories. I can hardly wait to see which one of my speculations is correct.’Her eyes sparkled from the light of the glowing sconces in the room as she clasped her hands together in excitement.
