Authors: Lindsay Kiernan
The Brentl
e
y's carriage had been elegant and more comfortable than their father's, but until now, Katherine had never guessed just how well off Mrs. Brentley had married. That a man with such means had married a simple shopkeeper's daughter brought her some hope that she and her sister would succeed in finding proper husbands that would please their mother. Winnie had told her that Mr. Brentley's family had never received a title, but it was clear that her father had been a man of some wealth, to be able to own such a nice house that was only used a few months out of the year.
They spent the next hour touring the house with Winnie as their guide. Since Mrs. Brentley had only accepted one charge at a time in the past, the two girls would have to share the same room and even the same bed during their stay. Katherine assured her that it would be no problem for them, as they had lived with the same arrangement back at home. The bright yellow wallpaper of their room was set off with a darker pattern of ivy leaves and a few small red flower buds intertwined between.
Katherine had a difficult time thinking about the room as her own, even for a short period of time as she had never stayed more than a night or two in any room besides the one that she shared at home with Robin.
Their conversation, about what hours they would keep while staying with the Brentleys, was interrupted by a knock at the door downstairs. “The gowns are here,” Mrs. Brentley called up to the girls moments later.
While Katherine shared Robin's confused glance, Winnie jumped at the sound and ran downstairs. Four large boxes were being carried inside with a half dozen smaller ones stacked on top.
“Katherine, your boxes have the blue ribbons and Robin's are red,” Mrs. Brentley told them, as if they should have been expecting the packages all along. “I had to order them off of the sizes your mother gave me in her letters, but I think that they will fit well enough for tonight. Later this week we'll have a few others made that you can help choose the designs and colors for. Within reason,” she added with a pointed glance at Robin that seemed to go unnoticed.
Robin was not the least bit bashful about the gifts and she tore into the nearest box tied with red ribbons. To her gleeful surprise, the dress was Robin's favorite color, a dusky green silk with amber earrings and a matching necklace to go with it. The bodice lines were much lower than those of their previous dresses and closer to the current fashions.
“I can't believe that our father was able to afford this,” Katherine commented as she watched her sister unpack more of the boxes revealing a second dress similar to the first but in a deep violet shade and many accessories such as slippers, gloves and a small matching reticule in the smaller packages.
Winnie was equally less hesitant about opening one of Katherine's boxes which housed an identical dress to those that her sister had received but dyed the same shade of pale cornflower blue as her eyes. “These aren't from your father,” Winnie told them as she compared the colors to Katherine's skin tone and eyes. “Mother always buys her charges new dresses for the season.” A thin strand of white pearls was pulled out from a small box and Winnie held them up to Katherine's throat to see if they were the right length.
Katherine's checks turned pink from the embarrassment of taking such gifts from a woman who was mostly a stranger to them. She had already offered them so much and purchasing new dresses seemed to go too far. It finally made sense to her why Mrs. Brentley had not instructed them to pack all of their things as she had already planned on buying them new items.
Mrs. Brentley smiled at the girl's reactions. “I'm surprised t
hat your mother didn't explain
all of this to you.” She seemed delighted at Katherine's humble acceptance of the gifts.
Opening the second box with blue ribbons Winnie discovered a light pink dress and she cooed over the color. “I wish that I could go to the ball with you,” she said as her hands slid over the soft silken fabric before holding the dress up to her own body. It was comically short as Winnie was so much taller than her. “Every year I sit at home and watch other girls attend parties and balls, it isn't quite fair.”
“You'll have your turn next year,” Mrs. Brentley reminded her daughter. Turning to Katherine and Robin who were still examining their new things Mrs. Brentley frowned. “Don't just stare at them.” She urged with an authoritative voice. “We're going to be late if you both aren't dressed soon.” Mrs. Brentley gained the girls' attention, as she again began directing a chaos of servants to do her bidding. “We'll need these bags unpacked, and send the maid up to help with the Wellings sisters' hair for the night. And bring the red roses that I ordered for Robin's hair. Winnie make sure to have the girl's things unpacked while we are gone, and if you see your brother tonight try to have him come by the Emerson's.” She sighed dramatically at the mention of her unwed son. “It wouldn't hurt for him to attend some of this year's events himself,” she lectured before ascending the stairs to change with the others.
“This is one of the best events for meeting eligible gentlemen,” Mrs. Brentley told them during the short ride between the two townhouses. “The Emerson's hold their party every year on the first day of Parliament. All of the serious marriageable men and women are in London by this time. Later parties will include more married couples, and a few of the bachelors who are looking to fill up ladies' dance cards between drinks of whiskey and bourbon,” she said reprovingly. “This party is the best one for finding out which men are really looking to marry this year and which are still out having a bit too much fun.”
Exiting the carriage, Katherine marveled at the crowds of beautifully dressed men and women. She realized that with their new gowns and beautiful jewels, she and her sister fit in quite well with the large group of handsome people. Few would have suspected that they were a pair of country girls visiting the city for their first time. Winnie had helped Robin place a deep red rose into her hair to replace the common wildflowers that she was used to wearing. The crimson color of the roses helped offset the dark green dress and amber jewelry.
Katherine could see that her sister was already getting used to the idea of being dressed in fashionable clothes and could only assume that she dreamed of forever replacing the wildflowers for the more mature and refined roses that a rich suitor could afford. Robin's fingers kept returning to the flowers in her hair, as if it was a reminder of some goal that she had set for the evening.
Katherine felt less at ease wearing the beautiful cornflower blue dress and white pearls around her throat. Before leaving she had glanced in the mirror, hardly recognizing the woman who stared back at her. She was still unsure if that was a good or bad thing to feel. She had never disliked who she was before but that didn't mean that she couldn't like who she was becoming.
Before entering the large townhouse Robin pulled Katherine aside just as Mrs. Brentley was taken away by an old friend with new gossip. “Don't forget what mother asked you to do.”
Katherine could not imagine why her sister would now suddenly care so greatly about who she chose for a husband. “Why do you care if I marry a titled gentleman or not?”
“I can't listen to what Mrs. Brentley says. I want a rich husband and I am going to get one. However I have taken her advice to heart, I might find it difficult to fit into some circles unless I am the sister of a respectable duchess, or lady or something. That means that you have to marry respectable. You probably would have anyway for mother's sake but I just think it would be best for the whole family really.”
Katherine hated how even now her family was asking her to help pick up after her sister's missteps. Everyone was trying to guide her life and her own opinion did not seem to matter to them. “I will do my best,” she said through clenched teeth.
Robin did not seem to notice Katherine's remark before plastering a carefree smile to her face and striding purposefully into the house. It told Katherine enough about her sister's mind set, and even worried her a little to see such drive so early in their husband hunting.
She had to remember that both of them were there for a purpose tonight. Not just for fun like most of the girls with their mothers or aunts who saw the event as mostly a source of amusement. Even the more serious girls who wanted to pursue Dukes and Barons spent more than one season looking into their choices for husbands, refusing a few offers before selecting one to pursue. The Wellings had no such luxury. By the end of the season they would be dropped off at their father's home if they had not procured a husband, and that would be the end of their chance to marry well. They needed to choose quickly; otherwise Katherine might never hear the end of it from their mother.
The glittering chandeliers and rich golden hued ornamentation of the Emerson's Ball did not distract Robin nor Mrs. Brentley. They each had clearly stated their goals and Katherine watched as both women sought out men using very different sets of rules to determine eligibility.
Many of the men they were introduced to were handsome enough, and both girls accepted every request for a dance, often only to be polite. Shortly after returning from such a dance the other women in the group who were friends of Mrs. Brentley would whisper back and forth about the advantages and disadvantages of the man, such as what wealth he had, if he was prone to scandals, or how many mistress he had been known to keep. Katherine discovered that some of the women that surrounded them included Mrs. Brentley's previous charges. They all treated Mrs. Brentley as the supreme authority on anything to do with husband hunting.
Nearing the end of the night, neither Katherine nor Robin could find one man amongst those that they had danced with that would work very well for either of them. Mr. Blackworth was far too poor, and had been openly searching for a rich bride over the past two years. He danced with both girls before declaring them divine creatures and then leaving them alone for the rest of the evening.
Charles Wentworth, Lord of Grinley, held an important seat in the House of Lords and was very kind, which quickly made him a favorite choice of Robin's for Katherine, as he was too sedate for her. He was in good health for being nearly fifty-five and relatively handsome with a few gray streaks to his hair. As Katherine danced with him, she could only think about the fact that he was older than her own father. Robin had accused Katherine of being too picky when she called him old, despite the fact that she too had declined interest in the man.
“Few men of great influence, power, and money are very young,” Robin chided her.
“I don't care, he may be a kindly man but I am not going to marry someone who could die of old age before I reach forty,” Katherine said.
“Then you would be an influential widower and could marry whoever you wanted to. That is not a bad plan to have,” Robin countered before running off to the dance floor with her next partner.
Robin's only repeated partner, Mr. Holbrook had a small estate in London and a much larger one on the border of Scotland, but Robin hated the cold weather up north and after their second dance she quickly dismissed him as a serious choice.
One of Katherine's favorites was Oliver Buckman, the heir to a rich Lord who was held in high esteem, and a force to be reckoned with in London's high society. However, Oliver's own experience and intelligence left much to be desired, and until his quite healthy and virile father's death, he was without a title and had little of his own wealth to speak of as he had a habit of spending anything that he received from his father.
At all times, the girls were cocooned with old matrons and anxious young women searching for the man that their mother or chaperone would approve of. For this reason any man who approached either twin came from solid backgrounds and had made a name as a good respectable person.
Of course there were other types of men present, those who did not have easily discussed backgrounds and businesses. Katherine watched Robin's eyes stray to a different corner of the room whenever she danced closer to that group.
It was a more boisterous section, where the men talked a little too loudly and an occasional word of profanity escaped their circle when voices were raised above the usual din of the room. All of this made it easy to spot the men who were considered part of London's scandalous new money, the very people that Mrs. Brentley had warned them against.
Most of them came to the events to speak to the influential men in parliament. They would encourage the politicians to vote on bills that would help their businesses and allow them to make more money. Sometimes money was even passed during such exchanges. Some of the rich new men were able to find wives amongst the higher circles, often as part of a business alliance, but most did not care to marry into the blue blood of London's elite. A few of the roughish men might never take a wife at all, sticking with mistresses and other less cultured women to keep company with.
Katherine wondered if some of the loud and impolite women draped over the men's arms might be their mistresses, who were never supposed to be taken out into public. Not that the men seemed to show any respect for the rest of the customs of London's elite society.
Watching the odd group, Katherine could see why Mrs. Brentley had strong feelings against marrying such men. They had not grown up with the same rules and therefore did not play the upper society's games as they were expected to. Most titled families would rather go penniless than be shamed by working for a living. Keeping their self respect, even if it meant losing everything they had once owned. Rich American women preyed upon such men, offering them wealth in the exchange of a sought after title that the women couldn't find back home.