Read Online The Governess Was Wanton by Julia Kelly - Free Book Online Page A

but I imagine we’ll be one of a dozen groups of women all dressed the same.”
    â€œYou’ll make a perfect . . . Who is it you’re dressing as?”
    â€œDiana,” said Lady Eleanora.
    â€œA perfect fit. Diana was wild and free and fiercely independent.” All traits Mary suspected lay buried beneath her charge’s reserve. If only she could tease them out and show Lady Eleanora how to become the woman she was meant to be.
    â€œDiana’s one of the maiden goddesses who swore never to marry. She’s the goddess who protects virginity .” Lady Eleanora practically whispered the last word.
    â€œAnd that’s problematic because?”
    She blushed a bright shade of red. “Miss Cordelia told me that I’ll never find a husband, and I might as well be London’s own Diana.”
    This had to stop. This intimidation of Lady Eleanora was more than unkind. It was blatant bullying. Her charge might not think she was strong enough to stomp it out on her own, but Mary knew better and would stand by her side for as long as it took to show the girl her worth.
    Drawing in a deep breath and praying she wasn’t making a huge mistake, she said, “It would be a shame for such a beautiful-sounding dress to go unworn, and I’ve always loved indigo.”
    Lady Eleanora’s eyes brightened. “Does that mean you’ll come?”
    â€œWhen you look so happy, I don’t see how I can say no.”
    â€œOh, thank you!” cried the girl. “I’m certain we can find you a mask in time. You won’t regret it.”
    The excitement in Lady Eleanora’s voice was as seductive as any proposal. Her words held all the vigor and promise of youth. Mary could still remember the nights she’d lain awake in her room, waiting for the day she would finally be brought out. She’d planned everything, from the dress she’d wear to the feather that would don her first headpiece. But then her father had died, and her own mother refused to go quietly into her widowhood. There were rumors and scandal and no season for Mary.
    Now she had the chance to taste what she could have had if only her life had been a little different. But was she brave enough?
    â€œIf I’m caught—”
    Lady Eleanora jumped to her feet, practically dancing with excitement. “But you won’t be! Don’t you see? The front door will be locked, but you can slip through the kitchen, up the back stairs, and into your room without anyone knowing. You only have to be home before Warthing locks the kitchen door at one.”
    â€œYou seem to forget one vital detail,” she said, her mind ticking through everything that could go wrong, inviting her to find fault with the plan. To back out. To not risk everything indulging a dream that had died long ago.
    â€œWhat is that?” Lady Eleanora asked with a frown.
    â€œI have no invitation.”
    â€œBut that’s the easiest part! Slip in through the marquis’s gardens and no one will be the wiser.”
    The risk of discovery hung over her head, but Mary couldn’t tamp down her desire to attend. She wanted this. She wanted the glamour, the excitement, the freedom. But really, deep in the most sheltered part of her heart, she wanted for just one night to be the daring sort of woman who made men fall at her feet. Men like Lord Asten.
    â€œYou seem to have thought of everything,” Mary said, even though the lingering fear of what if gripped her stomach. “How long have you been dreaming up this scheme?”
    Lady Eleanora shuffled from foot to foot, eyes cast down at the ground. “Since you chased Lady Laughlin away the morning of our first lesson.”
    â€œWell, it looks as though you’ve got your way.”
    Lady Eleanora hesitated for a moment, and then threw her arms around Mary’s neck. Chaucer barked, hopping about on their skirts and no doubt wanting very much to