“That looks lovely,” Mrs. Bennett remarked. “Quick, try it on.”
“E-excuse me?”
Mrs. Bennett whirled Fiona around and Giles draped the necklace around her neck from behind. Wait, Fiona thought, give me a minute! She stood there, wide-eyed, her spine tingling from Giles’s sudden proximity and the faint feeling of his fingertips on her neck as he finished fastening the necklace. It was of an antique design, with beautiful golden flowers and tiny pearls strung together like lace. There was a yellow diamond at the center that matched her ring.
Mrs. Bennett took a step back to admire Fiona and breathed an awed sigh. “It’s absolutely perfect in length, size, and color. What excellent craftsmanship.” She was right: The chain elegantly hugged the line of Fiona’s clavicle, beautifully adorning her chest. It was a perfect match for the dress.
“I am relieved to hear you say that,” Giles said.
“I changed the position of the corsage to accommodate this necklace. It’s a good thing it’s this magnificent.”
Giles chuckled. “Harsh words, my lady, but you are a professional.”
So that was it. Mrs. Bennett had changed the dress design to go with Giles’s necklace. It all made sense to Fiona now, but she had little time to contemplate it. What should I do? This is too much!
The jewelry was not just delicate; it was also expensive. What if she dropped it or snagged it on something? The mere thought made her shudder.
Mrs. Bennett and her assistant bowed to Fiona and Giles and left, leaving them alone in the room. After a long silence, Giles murmured anxiously, “Is it not to your liking?”
“Th-that’s neither here nor there. I don’t remember you telling me about this!”
“Well, that’s because I didn’t tell you.”
Fiona had thought that the look of the dress was too simple when the corsage was removed from the bust, but she would have never have imagined this was why Mrs. Bennett made the change. She raised both hands gingerly, terrified to even touch the necklace, and Giles snickered.
“Truth be told, I was going to get you matching earrings.”
“O-out of the question!”
“I figured you’d say that, and Mrs. Bennett said the same.”
“You saw right through me…”
Giles offered his hand as he always did, and for all Fiona’s groaning, she obediently took it. As they walked, she looked up uncomfortably, and Giles smiled softly back. His gaze reminded her of that moment at the opera when he held her close, and her heart began to pound.
“It suits you,” Giles said. “You should wear it all the time.” The directness of Giles’s words left Fiona at a loss. What was she supposed to say to that? It was not a command from a nobleman or a future earl; it was an innocent request from a man. Fiona couldn’t argue with that.
Even more alarming than his words, however, was his gaze. Fiona knew that if she looked into his eyes for a moment longer, the memory she was supposed to have forgotten would come rushing back.
“All right,” she conceded finally. “But if it starts to fall off, you must tell me.”
“I promise.”
“D-don’t laugh! This isn’t funny! But, um…thank you. It’s beautiful. I’ve never worn such a nice necklace before…”
She looked down to hide her burning cheeks and caught sight of Giles’s wrists. Shining on his cuffs were a pair of familiar black cuff links.
These cuff links…
Noticing Fiona’s gaze, Giles flipped up his jacket sleeve and showed her. The onyx cuff links with the earl’s crest—they looked just as Fiona remembered them. “Did you put them on yourself?” she asked him.
“No, Dalton did it for me.”
The cuff links were old, and there was a trick to putting them on. The night of the prince’s party, Giles lost them because he tried to adjust them himself—or so Fiona had later been told. If the Bancroft’s reliable butler had fastened them for him this time, though, there was no need to worry about them falling off. Fiona smiled, regaining a little of her composure. “Well, I suppose you won’t take them off at all tonight, then.”
Giles raised an eyebrow as he walked. “As long as you’re the only woman I dance with.”
“But you have to dance with other—”
“I won’t.”
He sounded unconcerned, but this was a formal royal ball, not a common soirée. Attendees were expected to dance with many partners. “What about the quadrille and reel?” Fiona asked.
“I’ll only dance the waltz.”
“Lord Gil…you seem strangely resistant to changing your opinion on this.”
“And I have no desire to change.”
“Please don’t be so stubborn.” Fiona burst out laughing at his bullheadedness, and Giles’s cheeks softened in turn.
Laughing, they descended the staircase together to find everyone waiting for them in the entrance hall. So many oohs and aahs came their way that it was difficult to tell which were for the beautifully adorned young lady and which were for the obvious smile her escort was aiming at her. In the sea of merry faces, however, Fiona’s father’s frown stood out like a sore thumb.
Fiona and Giles came to a stop in front of him. “It is an honor to escort Fiona tonight, my lord,” Giles said respectfully.
“Y-yes, quite,” said the baron. “Take good care of her. Fiona…you look beautiful. Your mother would have loved to see you like this.”
“Father,” Fiona murmured, rapidly blinking back tears. Because his love for her was so big that he could drown in it, her father rarely mentioned his late wife. To hear him do so now had Fiona choked up.
Reginald came to her rescue, pushing himself between Fiona and her father. “Brother dearest, that sounds like something a father would say to his girl on her wedding day, don’t you think?”
“Wha—b-but I didn’t mean—”
This teasing was effective at drying Fiona’s eyes. Her father took out his handkerchief and wobbled away, busily dabbing at his own eyes and his brow.
Reginald glanced at Giles, then smiled sweetly at Fiona. “Yup, you look lovely. Can’t say I’m thrilled that this guy is the one on your arm, but I do hope you have a great time anyway.”
“Thank you, Uncle. I’ll see you later.”
Giles, who seemed not the slightest bit bothered by the icy scorn in Reginald’s tone and gaze, bowed lightly back. Reginald shook his hand and then took a step forward to give Fiona the customary parting kiss on her cheek. But—
“Let’s go,” Giles said and spun Fiona around into his arms.
Huh?!
While everyone stared at them, wide-eyed, Giles offered the room a breezy goodbye and tugged on Fiona’s hand. The next thing she knew, she was in the carriage. She turned back to look at the unusually rowdy entryway, and the carriage began to move, leaving Fiona’s home behind.