Dashing her tears away with one hand, Lady Darnell shook her head. “Turn the poor child over to strangers, when she’s just found her family? Certainly not! If I could bear standing by, watching your dear papa dwindle into a shriveled husk of the man he’d once been, I can tolerate Helena’s appearance now. Despite all that she went through, she is a bright, clever girl. She will learn how to get on quickly enough, and with proper nourishment, her looks should improve. Her mama was quite the beauty.”
“If anyone can make her appear to best advantage, ’tis you!” Adam said, encouraged by Lady Darnell’s assessment. “Still, as you know far better than I, the rules of the ton can be a trap for the unwary. I shouldn’t wish you to suffer for the social lapses that she will inevitably make, inexperienced as she is.”
Lady Darnell waved a hand. “One of the benefits of age, my dear, is the freedom to ignore the opinions of Society. My friends, who will all know her circumstances, will understand, and I care nothing for the rest. That is, as long as you and Charis aren’t embarrassed by it.”
“Since I have no doubt that Charis will capture some discerning gentleman’s affections long before Helena is ready to make her appearance, and I may be on my way to being settled myself, you needn’t worry on our account. I only wish to make sure you are assuming this burden not out of a sense of duty, but because you truly wish to.”
It was a testament to his stepmother’s absorption with Helena Lambarth that she didn’t immediately task him for details of how he meant to get “settled.” Oblivious to all else, she continued, “’Twill be a challenge to my skills—and a delight. While you were working, I sought her out to apologize for my rude reception. We had a very pleasant chat. Oh, how I do see Diana in her! Teaching her proper deportment may be easier than you imagine, for she has already begged me to instruct her.”
Lady Darnell patted her eyes one last time. “When I think of what Lambarth made Helena suffer, Diana’s kin all unknowing! No wonder the child wants nothing to do with any of her father’s family.”
“It shall be as you wish, then. Mind, she and her lawyer insisted that all expenses for her upkeep should be paid from the proceeds of her mama’s estate, so you needn’t be outfitting her from your pin money.”
Lady Darnell’s enthusiasm faltered. “Oh, dear. Must I follow a strict budget?”
Adam chuckled. “Quite the contrary. From the figures I was shown, the girl might just be the wealthiest young woman in England. Buy whatever you think needful.”
Lady Darnell clapped her hands and gave Adam one of her most brilliant smiles. “Excellent! Mark my words, Adam, when I am done with Helena, you shall not even recognize her!”
CHAPTER SIX
EARLY THE NEXT MORNING Helena left her chamber to share breakfast with the two ladies who had been so welcoming. After experiencing the confusing array of tastes and scents at dinner the previous night, she was happy to discover that the first meal of the day consisted of toast and tea served informally in the breakfast room.
More than her cordial reception, Lady Darnell’s stories about Helena’s mother had established between them the intangible link of kinship. Feeling more loved and accepted than she had since the loss of her mother, Helena vowed to do her utmost to fit into Aunt Lillian’s world.
Eager to begin that process, as they sat sipping tea, Helena asked, “Shall we go to the dressmaker today?”
As she spoke, both women’s gazes went to the damaged hand she had unconsciously brought up to support her cup.
Deciding the first step in her resolve would be to set their minds at rest about her hand, Helena tucked it back in her skirt and said, “As I expect you’ve noticed, I also have an immediate need for gloves.”
After a glance at Aunt Lillian, Charis said tentatively, “Does…does the thumb still pain you?”
“No. The accident happened long ago. But it left the hand rather unattractive. I should like to conceal it as soon as possible.”
“And so you shall,” Aunt Lillian said sympathetically. “Rather than go to the shops in person, however, Charis and I agreed it would be better to have the merchants call upon you here. You can then make your first public appearance after you’ve had your hair styled and your new wardrobe completed, and have had some schooling in the behavior that will be expected of you as a young lady in London. I’m afraid you will find the rules a bit more restrictive than those you have been used to in the country.”
She would have to be exiled to the polar reaches of the planet to move in an environment more restrictive than that from which she’d escaped, Helena thought sardonically. But her kindhearted aunt didn’t need to learn that. “Please, do instruct me,” she replied. “I don’t wish to make errors and embarrass the family.”
Though the teeming city just outside beckoned beguilingly, Helena told herself she could tolerate being confined for a few more weeks. Should her resolution falter before Aunt Lillian pronounced her ready to greet the ton, she need only recall the shocked revulsion that had wiped the polite greeting off the face of Adam Darnell.
She intended to carefully avoid that particular gentleman until she could be sure that the response she evoked in him at their next meeting was more positive.
“We shall be happy to tutor you!” Lady Darnell said, pulling Helena from the humiliating memory. “I have already dispatched a note requesting my favorite mantua-maker to wait upon us this afternoon. Before she arrives, Charis and I will go to the shops and bring back a selection of shawls, gloves, shoes and undergarments from which you may choose. And I shall tell Harrison to contact his usual employment agency to find you a lady’s maid.”
The last item in this list drove the smile from Helena’s lips. “I’ve always waited upon myself, Aunt Lillian. I don’t wish to have a stranger.” And she had a compelling reason not to bare herself before one, as well.
“Helena, a maid is a necessity!” Charis said. “The simple round gown you are wearing now is…adequate, but your new clothing will require someone to adjust and pin it properly, to lace you in and out of your gowns and stays.”
Inspecting the morning gowns worn by her two companions, Helena realized Charis was correct. The bodice of the gowns closed in the back with tightly drawn laces extending from the high waist to the neckline. It would be impossible for her to manage lacing them alone.
“You mustn’t worry,” Aunt Lillian said. “Any candidate the agency sends will have excellent references.”
Any candidate with excellent references would likely be contemptuous of an employer who knew as little as Helena did about gowns and fashion. To say nothing of the other…
“I would rather employ someone just starting out, as I am. Could not one of the maids already here serve?”
Aunt Lillian frowned. “I suppose if you would feel more comfortable being assisted by someone within the household, Harrison might assign one of the housemaids until you feel ready for a proper lady’s maid.”
Perhaps she might request to have the maid who had summoned her for breakfast, Helena thought, brightening. The girl appeared young enough, perhaps, to not immediately recognize the deficiencies in Helena’s upbringing, and her merry smile suggested a sunny disposition. But she, too, would probably be shocked when she saw Helena unclothed.
That sobering thought extinguished the delight Helena had been feeling at the prospect of a new wardrobe. “Must I disrobe to be measured for gowns? I have not undressed before anyone since my mother left.”
Both women looked at her in surprise. “Surely you had some female to assist you,” Aunt Lillian said.
Helena shook her head. “My