Chapter Seven #2
As Nicola laid the silver dress back on to the bed and begin to hunt around in the jewel box she brought with her for the appropriate adornment, Caledonia’s thoughts turned toward her wedding night with Robert.
He had been married before and had therefore taken little time with his new bride, who had gone to his bed a virgin.
She’d had no idea what to expect because the only thing she’d been told about it had been by Lady d’Umfraville when she fostered at Prudhoe, but also by the silly gossip and speculation of her fellow wards.
At that age, girls were curious about the act of intercourse and most of them tended to listen to the servants, who had spectacularly misinformed tales to relay.
It had made the marriage night both terrifying and titillating, but in her case, it had been uncomfortable and embarrassing.
It occurred to her that she was about to face that again with Thor.
That very realization put Caledonia in a rather quiet and apprehensive mood as Nicola went about dressing her for her wedding mass.
She remained wrapped up in the linen towels even after her hair was dry, because Nicola and the servants wanted to dress her hair before she donned her clothing.
Caledonia sat and brooded in front of the fire as Nicola went to work.
The first thing Nicola did was heat up a hair iron in the hearth.
That was used to roll Caledonia’s thick, rather straight hair into curls that were then gathered up and piled on the top of her head, like an enormous bun.
Nicola had set aside a section of hair that was braided and wrapped around the base of the bun.
The result was absolutely elegant because it looked as if Caledonia was wearing a silver crown.
Nicola made it look clean and chic by rubbing a slight amount of fragrant pomade on her hands, made from almond oil, and ran that over the hair that was leading into the bun to tamp down any stray hair.
The result was a very groomed appearance with a beautiful smell from the almonds.
After her hair was finished, Nicola focused on Caledonia’s face.
Caledonia had never worn cosmetics in her life, but Nicola had brought some with her.
Fashionable noblewomen wore rouge and lip stain, and plucked their brows.
Caledonia had beautifully shaped brows with a natural arch, so there wasn’t much to do with them, but Nicola did put a bit of tint on her cheeks and on her full lips.
Just a hint, enough to give her a bit of a glow.
After that, it was simply a matter of putting on the dress, so Nicola had Caledonia stand up as the servants peeled away the drying towels.
A shift went on first, sleeveless and soft, and over that went the silver dress, made from the finest silk and embroidered with silver thread.
It had a daringly low neckline, lined with white rabbit fur, and the long, belled sleeves were lined at the ends with the same white fur.
Because of the silver embroidery around the neckline and bodice, Nicola put silver earrings on Caledonia’s earlobes that dangled, with a sapphire in the center surrounded by small pearls.
After that, she stepped back to admire her handiwork.
“There,” Nicola said, smiling. “Now you look like the Countess of Tamworth and Stafford. Let me ask my brother to see if he thinks you look like a bride.”
With that, she sent one of her servants to the door to summon Thor, who was still standing right outside in the corridor. He immediately entered, taking about five steps into the chamber before his gaze fell on Caledonia. She looked at him, he looked at her, and the man came to a dead stop.
He simply stared at her.
“Well?” Nicola said. “What do you think? Does she look like a bride?”
Thor couldn’t answer her right away. His gaze was riveted to a woman in silver that, he was positive, was a figment of his imagination. He’d never seen anything so exquisite in his entire life. Lifting a hand, he pointed at her.
“Caledonia?” he said in disbelief. “It is truly her?”
Nicola laughed softly at his reaction. “What do you think?”
He shook his head in amazement, coming a little closer as his eyes drank in the sight. “I think she looks like an angel,” he said honestly. “She’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
Caledonia had been holding her breath when he came into the chamber, fearful of his reaction, but his unbridled response had her blushing furiously.
She was suspicious of it at first, but from the expression on his face, she could see that he meant it.
Having never been praised in her life, not by her mother or father or dead husband, hearing someone compliment her beauty was a new experience entirely.
Embarrassed, she lowered her head so he wouldn’t see her flaming cheeks.
“Lady Nicola is to be praised,” she said. “This is all her doing.”
Thor came forward, a smile playing on his lips. “She had quite a bit to work with,” he said. “How do you feel?”
Caledonia shrugged. “My head feels a little better.”
“I meant about your appearance. How do you feel?”
Caledonia was going to shrug again until Nicola put a hand-held mirror in her grip. That forced Caledonia to look at herself, to see what Thor and Nicola were seeing, and she found a woman she hardly recognized staring back at her.
Thor was right.
She was beautiful.
And it scared her to death.
“This… this isn’t me,” she finally said, tossing the mirror aside and backing away from Thor and Nicola. “People will laugh!”
The smiles faded from Thor and Nicola’s faces. “Why would they laugh?” he asked. “Caledonia, you are an exquisitely beautiful woman. You should dress like this every day. It would make me the proudest man in England.”
Caledonia was becoming increasingly distraught. “Why?” she said. “This is not what I look like.”
“It is exactly what you look like.”
“People will think I am pretending to be something I am not!”
She was starting to tear up, and Nicola wasn’t sure why, but Thor did. He’d had a glimpse into her world and suspected what the trouble was.
It was going to be difficult to convince her otherwise.
“I do not think so,” he said with quiet firmness.
“Caledonia, listen to me. You are the Countess of Tamworth and Stafford, only no one has allowed you to shine before now. They’ve kept your light dimmed, your beauty hidden behind those peasant clothes you wear, but that is going to stop now.
You deserve to wear the finest clothing.
You deserve to be respected, and I swear to you that I will do just that.
You needn’t fear that people will ridicule you because that will not happen. ”
“It will!”
“It will not because you are finally assuming the position you were born to assume. This is you.”
The tears were falling from her dark eyes as she looked at him, trying to determine if he was really telling her the truth.
She felt terribly uncomfortable, but she also felt as lovely as she’d ever felt in her life.
Wiping at her eyes, she picked up the mirror again with a shaking hand, studying herself in it.
But after a few moments, she closed her eyes and set the mirror down again.
“God’s Bones,” she whispered. “I am so uncomfortable.”
Thor took a few steps in her direction and ended up standing next to her. “Why?” he murmured.
Caledonia shook her head, bewildered. “I… I am not sure,” she said.
Then she snorted ironically. “Believe it or not, when I fostered, my mother made sure I had lovely clothing. I had some very pretty things. But once I married Robert, he did not want to spend any money on my clothing and there did not seem to be a need. I was never head of my own home, or the hostess of a great feast. There was no reason to have fine clothing, so I suppose seeing myself like this… It is a shock.”
Thor couldn’t help it. Reaching out, he put a couple of fingers under her chin and forced her to look up at him. When their eyes met, he smiled.
“You were born to look like this,” he said softly. “You are magnificent, and if I must tell you that every day for the rest of your life until you believe me, then I will.”
Her cheeks flamed again; she could feel it and he could see it. But she couldn’t manage to tear her gaze away from those piercing blue eyes.
“And this… this pleases you?” she asked, running a hand over her sleeves. “You do not mind that I dress like this?”
“After we are married, we will go into London immediately and I will commission a dozen dresses just like this for you,” he told her. “Then I am going to take the peasant clothing you wear and burn it.”
He chuckled. She chuckled. As they lost themselves in what was perhaps their first true moment of warmth, Nicola invaded their space and put her arm around Caledonia’s shoulders.
“I will go with you,” she said. “I will help you pick out the styles that are fashionable right now. We will spend all of my brother’s money!”
She said it so gleefully that Caledonia laughed softly. “I do not wish to make a pauper out of him,” she said. “I can pay for it.”
Thor shook his head. “You will do no such thing,” he said. “As your husband, it will be my pleasure. I will have the most beautiful wife in England, much to the envy of everyone. Let me be proud.”
Caledonia didn’t know what to say to that.
Nicola hugged her, reassuring her that she was beautiful and that it was fine for her to feel beautiful, and Caledonia simply went along with it.
Kindness had lowered her defenses, and she could feel herself being swept away by people who seemed genuinely interested in her.
It was an amazing feeling.
“Do you know that no one has ever asked me how I feel?’ she said, looking at Thor. “You are the first man that I can ever recall asking me that.”
He snorted softly. “It will not be the last, I am certain,” he said, his eyes glimmering. “Are you ready to be married? To me?”