Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Your Grace, may I present Her Grace, the Duchess of Greymoor.” Emily smiled brightly, lightly touching Euphemia’s arm as she turned to guide her toward their hostess.
Yvette turned, her expression lighting up.
“Oh, there is no need for such strict formality, Emily,” she said with a welcoming smile, reaching out to clasp Euphemia’s hands.
“We have met once or twice before in passing, though it feels like a lifetime ago. I am absolutely thrilled you could make it tonight, Your Grace.”
Euphemia felt a sheepish smile form on her face on hearing her title from someone else’s mouth.
Before she could properly reply, Yvette stepped back a fraction, her eyes sweeping over her.
“My goodness, just look at you. You look exceptionally beautiful this evening. In fact, I do believe you keep getting prettier and prettier every single time I see you. Tell me, what is your secret? Why is your blonde hair always so incredibly shiny, and how are your blue eyes always so breathtaking? You are completely glowing.”
Euphemia felt a familiar, warm blush creep up her neck and into her cheeks.
She lowered her gaze for a split second, offered a graceful curtsy, and smiled up at her hostesses.
“You flatter me, Your Grace. Thank you so much for your kind words. It is an absolutely beautiful ball. Thank you for inviting me into your home.”
“Thank you for coming,” Yvette replied as she leaned in slightly and lowered her voice to a whisper. “I must tell you, later on in the evening, all of us ladies are going to have a special little activity together in the drawing room. A retreat away from the ball.”
Euphemia’s interest was instantly piqued, a genuine smile breaking across her face. “Oh, I would be absolutely thrilled to be a part of that.”
“Wonderful!” Yvette beamed, clearly pleased by her enthusiasm. She glanced around the room, searching the crowd before looking back at Euphemia. “Tell me, are your sisters here yet? I made sure to send invitations to them as well.”
“They are somewhere in the hall, I am certain,” Euphemia said, looking back over her shoulder toward the grand entrance. “But I have not managed to catch sight of them just yet. Knowing them, perhaps they have already disappeared to go get some punch or explore the gallery.”
Yvette let out a soft, amused chuckle. “Well, please tell them that I would absolutely love to meet them properly before they leave for the night. I truly hope they socialize enough this evening and make a great deal of friends.”
“I would like that very much for them too,” Euphemia agreed softly, her heartwarming at the hospitality.
After Yvette moved away to greet some newly arrived guests, the brief illusion of comfort shattered, and the reality of the evening pressed down on Euphemia’s shoulders.
They were finally here, standing in the very center of the grand Pembourne ballroom.
Euphemia felt a tight knot form in her stomach.
She was incredibly nervous, her heart hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird.
She could already tell that people were whispering about her.
She had not even been in the room for five minutes, yet the side-glances and the hushed murmurs that followed in her wake were impossible to ignore.
Deep inside, she felt as though she were shaking, but she refused to let it show.
Euphemia tilted her chin up and kept her head high, determined not to let the venomous stares phase her.
She was the Duchess of Greymoor now. She would not shrink away, nor would she give them the satisfaction of seeing her stumble.
She would be worthy of the title she carried, maintaining her composure even as her hands trembled slightly against her skirts.
Noticing the tension radiating from her, Emily reached out and gently took Euphemia’s hand into hers.
“While His Grace... Your husband is occupied talking with my husband, Theodore, perhaps the two of us can chat a little,” Emily suggested softly, guiding Euphemia toward a slightly quieter alcove near the edge of the floor. “How have you been, truly? How is everything at the estate?”
Euphemia let out a breath she felt she had been holding all evening. “Everything is well enough, I suppose. Though... His Grace and I have been rather awkward with one another for a few days now.”
Emily raised an eyebrow, her curiosity immediately piqued. “Awkward? Whatever has happened to make things awkward between you two?”
Euphemia opened her mouth, about to ask her friend the exact same burning question about marital logistics that had sent the Duke running from her bedroom. But just as the words reached the tip of her tongue, she caught herself. She noticed how completely curious Emily looked, and she hesitated.
She couldn’t risk asking her. What if Emily got uncomfortable like the Duke had been? Emily was practically the only true friend she possessed in London outside of her own sisters. The thought of alienating her or making their friendship strained was too much to bear.
“Oh, do not bother about that,” Euphemia said quickly, offering a dismissive wave of her hand to brush the topic aside. “It is nothing of real importance, just a silly misunderstanding.”
Emily accepted the deflection with a gentle nod, though her eyes remained warm. “Very well. If you say so. How is everything else going, then? Are you getting along any better with his daughters?”
At this, a genuine, fond smile finally broke through Euphemia’s face. “I am getting along wonderfully with Cordelia. In fact, we play together almost every single day. She has so much energy, she honestly makes me feel like a child again because she loves to play and explore the grounds so much.”
Her smile faded slightly, replaced by a more contemplative, softer expression as she thought of her sister.
“But regarding Georgianna... she is still incredibly reserved. To be quite frank, she does not like me very much. She rarely meets my eyes when we are in the same room, and she barely speaks to me at all. I do believe she has not said more than ten words to me ever since I arrived at the estate about a month ago. I simply do not know how to get through to the young lady.”
Euphemia paused, looking back at Emily, trying to find the silver lining. “But... I do think we are making some semblance of progress. At least, I like to think we have made good progress recently. She is no longer throwing things back at me when I try to speak with her. She just watches me.”
Emily smiled warmly, giving her hand another reassuring squeeze. “I am truly glad to hear that, Effie. Gentle patience is exactly what a girl like Georgianna needs. You are doing much better than you give yourself credit for.”
“Thank you, Emily.” Euphemia said softly.
She glanced out across the swirling sea of people, her thoughts shifting to her sisters.
“Speaking of family, have you seen anything of my sisters? I know your husband’s business brought you to London a couple of weeks ago, and I am still so incredibly grateful you agreed to kindly watch over them while His Grace and I were away on our honeymoon. ”
She turned back to Emily, a small line of worry etching her brow.
“When I met them at the modiste almost a week ago, they mentioned they had been staying entirely indoors, refusing to go out. I fear they are falling right back into our old upbringing, becoming total recluses who isolate themselves from the world. I don’t want them hiding away. ”
Emily offered a reassuring smile and patted her hand.
“Oh, Effie, you must not fret. I have been doing my absolute best to take them out to social gatherings. Just the other day, I managed to take Leonora out for a promenade. Seraphina came along as well, and we had a lovely talk. They have actually made a few other friends in society already. I am doing everything I can to ensure they socialize with people their own age and keep up with the season’s events.
I was so happy they agreed to come tonight, as they were initially quite skeptical about the ball. ”
Emily squeezed her fingers gently. “Do not worry about your sisters, Effie. They are adjusting. For now, you must focus entirely on your own marriage and see how you can make it work.” Emily added, leaning in just slightly. “Tell me... have your feelings for His grace grown at all?”
Euphemia blinked, a look of utter shock crossing her face. Her voice caught in her throat. “What do you mean, feelings?”
“Well,” Emily chuckled softly, leaning in a bit closer again. “Have the two of you expressed any real closeness? Have you gotten closer, or found things you like in common?”
Euphemia let out a breath, her mind briefly flashing to the image of Nathaniel gently binding her cut thumb in her bedroom earlier.
“Well... the only real progress we have made is that we do not argue nearly as much as we used to. There is no malice between us. We have dinner together on most nights when he isn’t buried in his work, although we do not talk much at the table.
Georgianna doesn’t really like when there is a lot of noise during dinner, so we keep things very quiet out of respect for her.
But overall, we are cordial. We are like...
well, I wouldn’t call us friends just yet, but we are in a place where I can comfortably talk to him about one or two things.
It is very cordial. We aren’t fighting, and we both have the best interests of the children at heart. ”