Dress 2 Impress: A Jennifer Cloud Novel (Jennifer Cloud Series) Page 3

  “Tell me about your brother,” she said, placing her glass on the tray of a nearby servant.

  “What’s to tell,” I said. “He’s an annoying, arrogant man who cannot follow orders.” At least I didn’t lie.

  “Is he in line for a dukedom?”

  A dukedom? I had no idea what lineage I was supposed to follow. We were to be husband and wife. That way the questions would be directed at Lord McGregor, future Duke of Dumb. Since Caiyan was off gallivanting with the ladies, I had no choice but to deliberately spill my wine all over my dress.

  “Oh my, I’m so clumsy,” I said, jumping to my feet. Lady Sarah looked up at me, aghast, with her hand over her mouth.

  “Accidents do happen,” she said. A servant was already dabbing a linen cloth at my dress. Lady Sarah instructed the servant to take me upstairs to find her lady’s maid and clean my dress.

  I apologized and followed the man into the foyer and up two glorious flights of stairs. Tapestries hung in the alcoves, and the rugs felt as if I was walking on a pillow. He led me down a long hall adorned with gold-framed oil paintings of past Bryants. He stopped at a door and knocked. A short, sturdy woman who reminded me of my aunt Agnes answered the door. The man explained our situation, and she escorted me inside. The room was lavishly decorated. A large fireplace was to my right, and a small fire crackled gently in the hearth, adding warmth to the large room. Beyond an adjoining door, a huge four-poster bed stood in the center, draped with purple velvet.

  The maid went to work on the bodice of my dress. After a bit of yanking and pulling, she removed the outer layer of clothing until I was down to the underskirts, corset, and hoop.

  I turned around to face her. “My name is Lady Jennifer.” I spoke because I felt if I was going to be half-naked in front of her, I should at least be on speaking terms.

  She stood staring at me. Her eyes were wide and fearful. She stepped back a pace, and I followed her eyes to my chest. My key was visible. I automatically reached for it.

  “Where di’ ye git that?” she asked.

  “It was a gift,” I stuttered. Then a thought crossed my mind. Maybe this maid would know the whereabouts of the maid we were looking for. “Have you ever seen one before?”

  She harrumphed at me and changed the subject. “I’m Mrs. Ogilvy. I am sure I can have yer gown cleaned quickly, Lady Jennifer.”

  I stood patiently on the padded floor as Mrs. Ogilvy brought out an exquisite royal-blue dressing gown. “This will keep ye warm while I clean yer gown.” She went to work at the washbasin, scrubbing the dress with a small stone.

  “There ye are, good as new.” She squeezed out the water and hung the dress near the fire to dry. She told me she would be back shortly to help me dress. I wandered around Lady Sarah’s room. Her dressing table held an ivory brush and comb set. A small round mirror lay next to the grooming set. I picked it up and caught a glimpse of myself. A wave of shock hit me as I saw my hair for the first time. I knew it was in some sort of updo, but I didn’t realize it was rolled up like two giant strombolis on my forehead. How difficult it must have been for a woman of this time to check her appearance. She relied on her lady’s maid or reflections from the looking glass, which was a distorted piece of metal hanging in a gaudy gold frame in the entry hall.

  After a short time, the maid returned and began preparing me for the dress. She fluffed my layers of skirt and tightened the pillow behind my butt that made my ass look three times its normal size.

  “Have you worked for Lady Sarah a long time?” I asked.

  “No, I jest been her lady’s maid fer two weeks. My daughter has been her lady’s maid fer some time, but she is pregnant with her first bairn, and the doctor wanted her to stay in bed.”

  “Were you employed before here?” I asked.

  The woman stopped what she was doing and gave me a careful study. “Aye, I was handmaiden to Queen Mary Stuart.” Her chest puffed as she said the name.

  My heart began to pump swiftly. Maybe this WAS the handmaiden?

  “You mean, Mary, queen of Scots.”

  “Aye, ’tis sad she was taken to the stock at such a young age.” The woman looked sad as she began tightening the bodice of the dress, and I regretted the large pepperoni pizza Caiyan and I had shared last night.

  “Did you stay with her until the end?” I asked.

  “Nay, she sent me away the day she was to be executed. I cried like a babe because she always treated me with such respect. Like one of her own instead of a servant.” She drew in a quick breath, and with one hard yank she tied off the bodice. I knew if I took a deep breath my boobs would pop out the top, and we would have to start the whole process over.

  “Now let’s have a look at ye.” She spun me around to face her. “Ye’ll do.”

  I smiled at her, grateful for the help but unsure of how to approach the topic of the key.

  “Mrs. Ogilvy, did the queen ever give you anything of value?”

  She took two steps back from me. “What do ye mean?”

  “Well, she was the rightful queen of England. I just thought she might have given you something special.” I stammered a little. “You know, to remember her by.”

  “Aye, Queen Mary was a generous one. She gave me enough gold to get home to Inverness and start my family. Ye see, I had my eye on Mr. Ogilvy. He was a blacksmith in my hometown. As soon as I returned, he married me on the spot. Didn’t want to let a good thing get away. Ye get me.”

  I laughed and realized I had seen this woman before. When I was eighteen and I traveled for my very first time to 1568. The year Mary, queen of Scots, escaped Loch Leven and rode through the Scottish countryside. I had seen the runaway queen when I met Caiyan. She was riding with two men and a handmaiden, a much younger Mrs. Ogilvy.

  “I been at home raisin’ my bairns until my husband died last year. My children are all grown now, and my eldest is married to her second cousin, who was one of the grooms who worked fer Mr. Bryant. They have both moved back to the family home, so they kin raise my first grandchild.” She said this with pride and a little sorrow.

  “Did Queen Mary ever give you any jewelry like the necklace I wear?” I asked. I knew I had to tread very carefully here. If she had the key, I didn’t want to scare her into hiding.

  She stood staring at me as if she might have seen a ghost. “Are ye asking me about the key?”

  I breathed a sigh of relief. She knew.

  “Yes!” I almost knocked her over with my burst of enthusiasm.

  She began to unbutton her blouse and opened the neck to show me the key Rogue sought so desperately. It was a pale-blue moonstone engraved with an ocean wave. Tiny blue diamonds formed the crest of the wave. I moved closer to inspect the key.

  “It’s lovely,” I said. “And Queen Mary gave it to you?”

  She spoke slowly and with some trepidation about whether to tell me the story.

  “It was mine, ye see. I gave it to Queen Mary fer good luck when we were leaving Scotland. My grandmother gave it to me. She told me it was a special key, but she didnae tell me what lock it opened. She said, ‘Mary Margaret MacDonald Beaton, this is a key to a precious gift, and it should always remain in our family.’”

  The name MacDonald rang a bell. This maid was a MacDonald, and it did indeed need to stay with this family.

  “I knew I shoudnae have given it to the queen, but my grandmother told me it was magic, and I knew the queen needed help. I think it was the reason she lived as long as she did. I believe Lord Mafuso was in cahoots with Queen Elizabeth and wanted her executed right away.”

  “I think you did the right thing, but now more than ever you need to protect that key,” I said.

  She swiped at a loose hair that had come undone from her cap. “My grandmother told me the time would come when a member of our clan would work the key’s magic, and I would know if the person was
worthy.”

  I placed a hand on her arm. She didn’t have the gift. “She was right, but there is a bad man looking for you. He wants the key.” She started to take it off from around her neck, but I shook my head. “No, you need to give it to one of your grandchildren.”

  “How will I know?” she asked.

  “When the grandchild reaches sixteen years, you will place it around the child’s neck. If it begins to glow, the child has the gift.” I decided sixteen was a safe age to tell Mrs. Ogilvy. A traveler could actually present much earlier than sixteen, but I figured if a sixteen-year-old could get a license to drive in my time, it was good enough for time travel as well. I wasn’t sure about the vessel. My luxury mode of transportation was given to me with my key. Maybe Caiyan could shed some light on how to find the vessel for her.

  She swallowed hard and nodded her head. “I am leaving fer home tomorrow. Lady Sarah is heading to the country estate and has a maid there. I was merely filling in.”

  “Good.” I thought for a moment. “My brother and I will escort you. I am without a lady’s maid, and we will need to go to Scotland tomorrow as well.” I was pleased with my plan, but Mrs. Ogilvy looked a little out of sorts.

  “My daughter’s probably had the bairn by now, and she’ll need me to help with the little angel.” Her eyes lit up as she spoke of her new grandbaby and the task of returning home.

  I returned to the ball as the music ended. I found Caiyan drinking a pint of ale with no less than five ladies dangling on his every word. Up front was Lady Sarah. I frowned. Prying off the ladies who would return home tonight was one thing, but having one staying in the very same house might be a different story.

  “Brother,” I said as I approached him. He looked up at me with a sheepish grin. “Could I have a word with you?”

  “Maybe later, dear sister. As ye can see, I am completely occupied by these lovely ladies.” He took a drink of his ale and licked his lips.

  “It’s about that piece of jewelry you were looking for yesterday.” His head snapped up, and his eyes widened with curiosity.

  “Oh, is it something rare?” asked one of the ladies.

  “Absolutely,” he said, disentangling himself from the lady on his left who was trying to ease her way into his lap. “Please excuse me, ladies.”

  A simultaneous sigh came from the group as he made his way over toward me.

  “What in the hell do you think you’re doing?” I asked with an artificial smile plastered across my face as the ladies watched our every move.

  He gently steered me toward an alcove under the stairs. “I am questioning all the ladies at the ball about their lady’s maids.”

  “Well, you can stop it, because I found her.”

  He looked at me in disbelief. “Where?”

  “She’s filling in for Lady Sarah’s maid, who is having a baby.” I crossed my arms over my chest, causing my breasts to bulge.

  “Good work—and I like the dress.” He was ogling the amount of cleavage spilling over the top of my neckline.

  I crooked a smile at him. “You shouldn’t look that way at your sister. People will talk.”

  His eyes turned hazy. “I think we should meet in my room so ye can fill me in on yer findings, and I can fill ye in—”

  “There you are.” Lady Sarah appeared, looping her arm through Caiyan’s.

  “Just having a few words with my sister over a misplaced piece of jewelry.”

  “Oh, I hope you find it.” She smiled a beautiful smile. Many of the girls did not have pretty teeth. Most were stained from wine or poor grooming habits. There were no braces in this age, and overbites were considered a sign of beauty. Sarah had inherited a nice straight set of pearly whites. “What does it look like?”

  “It’s just an old piece of stone, nothing important.” I shrugged.

  “I’m sure it will turn up after all the guests have returned home. We always find bits of this and that the valet has to deliver the next day. Keeps him quite busy.”

  Lord Bryant appeared and explained the ladies would be leaving for the night, but the men would be gathering in the smoking room. He invited Caiyan to join them after he freshened up in his room. The head servant escorted us up two flights of stairs to my room, which was next door to Lady Sarah. She bid me good night with a peck on the cheek. Caiyan, however, got a full kiss right on the mouth. He looked as astonished as I did, and the head servant stood by, clearing his throat as a gentle reminder that this was not the proper way for ladies to act. At least not in this time. He beckoned Caiyan to follow, and Lady Sarah stood in the hallway staring after him.

  “Has he offered for anyone?” she asked.

  Oh, you betcha. He offers all the time. I sighed. I knew what she was asking. “No.”

  “How is that possible?” she asked, turning her perky nose toward me. “He’s so gallant.”

  Now there was a word I had never associated with Caiyan. He was sexy, charismatic, and definitely sneaky. Gallant, we would have to wait and see.

  I gave her a palms-up and yawned.

  “Oh, please forgive me. You must be so tired from your journey.” We parted ways, and I entered my room. I peeked out the door again to see if the coast was clear to go hunt down Caiyan, the gallant, before he went downstairs to the smoking room.

  “What ye lookin’ fer, miss?” came a voice behind me. I jumped three feet and let out a shriek.

  “Sorry to give ye a fright, miss.” The young girl was obviously here to help me with my dress because there was no way I was getting out of it by myself. She curtsied.

  She talked nonstop the entire time she helped me undress. Her name was Daisy, and she was fourteen and excited to be assisting such a fine lady tonight. I looked around to see whom she was referring to, when I decided she meant me. After Daisy stoked the fire and put away my dress, she left me standing in the center of the room in a white see-through shift. No underwear. I climbed into the bed and looked up at the regal ceiling. Daisy came and patted down the thick down bedcovers and then placed a tin pan she had retrieved from the fireplace under my mattress. “That’ll keep ye warm, mistress.”

  She retired for the evening, leaving me in stark silence. The room was not quite as elegant as Lady Sarah’s, but it was a nice shade of blue and the bed was goose down. I decided that if Caiyan wanted to talk, he would have to find me, because I was not wandering around this estate barely dressed. Time travel left me exhausted. My plan was to escort Mrs. Ogilvy into Scotland and the safety of her people. I could take her by vessel, but I had never done a lateral travel in the past. I assumed it was probably the same. I just needed to concentrate on an area, and my vessel would do the rest. My mind drifted off into a deep sleep. I was dreaming a hand was running up my thigh and light kisses were being caressed down my neck. Caiyan was whispering into my ear as his hand reached under my gown and massaged my nipple, which was already aroused from his touch. I came slowly back to my senses and realized Caiyan was in the bed with me.

  “What are you doing?” I asked with a half smile.

  “I’m committing incest with my sister.” He kissed me full on the mouth, and the taste of whisky made my bottom lip tingle. As I returned his kisses, he didn’t seem like himself. He was not in control. He was whispering things like how beautiful I looked tonight. Well, OK, he had told me that before but never with such emphasis and never without copping a feel.

  “We shouldn’t be doing this,” I said. “Lady Sarah is in the next room. She might hear us.”

  “I dinnae care if she hears,” he said a little too loudly. “I want to make love with my lady. Lady Jennifer, my one true love.”

  I stopped cold. Did he just say he loved me? My inner voice pursed her lips and explained not really. Yes, he definitely said the L word. My heart began to race—and then it happened. He passed out on top of me. Caiyan was drunk. I had never seen him
like this before. Out of control. Uncalculated. Romantic. I rolled him off me, and he lay there all mussed and gorgeous. I cuddled up next to him, enjoying the bond of heat between his intoxicated body and mine. We both drifted off into a deep sleep.

  Chapter 4

  I sat bolt upright in the bed. Something had awakened me, but I couldn’t figure out what until I heard it again. A woman screamed. This time Caiyan sat up, too.

  “What was that?” he asked, grabbing the side of his head as if a wasp had stung him.

  “Someone screamed,” I said. It sounded like it came from Lady Sarah’s room. I left the bed and pulled on the blue dressing gown Mrs. Ogilvy had given me earlier.

  “I cannae go oot there like this,” Caiyan said, still holding his head and trying to put his pants on. His morning arousal stood at attention, making it a difficult task.

  “I agree,” I said, unable to take my eyes off his imminent problem.

  He grimaced and continued pulling on his pants.

  I opened the bedroom door and peered out into the hallway.

  Lady Sarah was standing in the hallway surrounded by half-dressed servants and her uncle in his dressing robe. She saw me crack my door open and gestured for me to come out. I made my way into the hallway, trying to ignore Caiyan’s protest from behind me to wait until he was dressed.