Her Devious Scoundrel

Chapter 3

Penelope stared forward, gazing airily into the large mirror attached to her dressing table, watching as Gilda applied pins to her complicated hair style. She had been sitting her for what seemed like hours, preparing for a party that she dreaded attending. She didn't even like Lady LaGrange or her nasty daughters. Penelope had grown up in the shadow of the Lagrange twins, and never once had they let her forget it. She had always been awkward coltish, not developing curves until long after all the other girls of the ton. Even now, though Penelope knew her curves had come in quite nicely, she was forever stricken with the taunts of the other girls and therefore remained very critical of her odd looks.

Penelope studied her reflection in the mirror, her eyes rolling from the thick dark hair down to her pale skin, which she knew clashed together. The black mop of curls when down made her face seem almost ghostly and if that weren't enough her large amber colored eyes always looked doe-y and made her seem much younger than her nineteen years. Her eyes flicked down to her small button like nose, the tip tilted slightly upwards, her nose wrinkled as her gaze finally fell on the feature she loathed most. Her mouth was odd, to describe it best. It had been an oddity that everyone had latched onto, and teased her relentlessly for it.

Her upper lip was full, larger than most girls she knew, the LaGrange sisters used to ask her if she had been sucking honeycomb with the bees still inside. Her lower lip was the exact opposite, small and pouty, tucked into its upper companion. Lopsided and ugly, was how she had always heard them described. She often tried to hold the upper lip between her teeth to minimize its size but many times that had only lead to more teasing. Though her mother had always tried to convince her the other girls were just jealous of her beauty, Penelope learned that boys often seemed put off by her odd looks as well. That was why at her age she still remained unmarried without even so much as a speck of courtship. Few men had flirted with her, but those men always seemed to be fortune hunters, for despite her fathers proclivity to gamble, she did have a rather tidy sum for her dowry that he was unable to touch. That is unfortunately why he had used her to pay his debts for gambling, he may not be able to give away her dowry money but he could give her away in marriage.

The sound of a cleared throat brought her from her musings and she looked up to see the finished product of her maid's ministrations. The style was of the current fashion but Penelope felt it was too high for her features. She stood and slipped her robe from her shoulders as Gilda lifted the deep purple gown from the bed. She stood silently as Gilda slid the dress over her head and started tying the fastening at the back. When she was finished, Gilda stepped back and took in her hard work with a smile.

“Oh Milady, you do look so beautiful in purple.”

“Thank you Gilda.” Penelope said with a small smile, “Tonight is your night off, what are your plans?”

“Mr. Hyford is taking me to the theatre Milady,” Gilda exclaimed excitedly. Mr. Hyford was the Stalwort driver, he and Gilda had been courting for months now.

“Do you think he may finally ask you to marry him?”

“Oh Miss, I do hope so! I have never been so in love with a man in all my life.” Penelope chuckled at this, Gilda was only a year older than herself, but the way she spoke made her seem much older. The two women gossiped while Gilda finished getting Penelope ready for the ball that evening and before she knew it, it was time for Penelope to leave for the LaGrange's home. With one last hug and a wish good luck to Gilda, Penelope was handed up into the carriage with her parents and they were off for the evening. Penelope dreading every moment.