In 1775, New York City is a land of golden opportunity. Evangeline Shelby is a determined 18 year-old socialite, fleeing the turmoil of her family's history in Britain and hoping to make a fresh start.
She has no idea what fate has in store, howeve...
A few days later, our house was in a frenzy. Uncle Philip had decided to throw a ball, and had invited just about the entire city. The morning of the ball, my cousins and I worked right along with the household staff to prepare for the event.
Every bottle of wine that Uncle had stored away was brought up from the cellar into the kitchen, tables covered in wine glasses and food platters were lined up against the walls of the ballroom - save for the stage area where the orchestra would perform, and lanterns had been hung up in every hallway as well as the backyard, where even more food and drink tables were set up.
"Remind me again why we're throwing a party in the middle of a war?!" Peggy complained.
"It's for the sake of keeping spirits high," Uncle chuckled. "Nearly the entire army will be attending!"
"Great," she grumbled, "There goes a year's supply of food..." Eliza and I just laughed.
About half an hour before the party was to start, I was adding the finishing touches to my outfit. I'd settled on one of Angelica's old dresses. As I put on a pair of silk gloves, the door swung open and my cousins marched in.
"Evieeeeee," Peggy sang, "We've come to help you finish getting ready!'
"Oh, there's no need for that," I replied, searching for some nice shoes. "I'm quite ready."
"Ummm, no you're not," she responded flatly. "You haven't even done your makeup."
"But you know I'm not overly fond of makeup!" I protested.
"No one said you had to apply a heavy amount!" Eliza laughed, sitting next to me at my vanity. "We'll just add some light blush and some nice rosy pink lipstick!"
"Fine..." I muttered. Eliza immediately pulled out my small makeup bag out of one of the drawers and got to work.
"Oh, by the way," Peggy began, "We found these while we were digging through my closet earlier, and I thought they would go nicely with your dress!" She held up a pair of pink-gold heels that glittered in the light.
"You're absolutely right; that's perfect," I mused. "Thanks, Pegs."
Eliza finished my cheeks, then insisted on doing my lipstick too. I laughed and just let her have her way. At last, she deemed me "absolute perfection," and younger sister agreed.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
"And for the finishing touch~" she cooed. She plucked a pink rose off my nightstand and tucked it behind my ear. "All done!"
Arm in arm, we made our way down to the ballroom, where the party had already begun. The sound of music and joyous laughter could be heard from the stairwell. The servants at the doors smiled and nodded at us as we approached, and swiftly opened the doors for us.
Eliza entered the room first, followed by Peggy and I. Cheers rang out at the sight of the sisters. Eliza immediately dispersed into the crowd, leaving the two of us hovering in the doorway.
"Just look at it all!" she gushed. "Isn't this fabulous, Evie?!"
"It is amazing," I agreed. "Though I must admit, I do feel rather out of place here..."
"Oh, hush!" she shushed me. "You're going to have an amazing time. Besides, you know if you need anything, you can come find one of us, right?"
"Yes, I know."
"Good! Now, you'll have to excuse me for a moment. The food tables are calling my name, ha ha!" Peggy dashed away towards the back of the room, laughing as she went. Standing by myself, I felt incredibly exposed. "Now what?" I thought. I scanned the crowd, hoping to spot a familiar or at least friendly face. Found one.
"Well, if it isn't Aaron Burr!" I sang, approaching the man as he turned away from the conversation in which he'd been engaged. "Good sir, it's been so long!"
"Ah, Ms. Shelby," he replied gleefully. "How lovely to see you!'
"Likewise; and please, call me Evie!"
"Very well, Evie." Burr plucked a glass of champagne from the tray of a passing waiter and took a small sip. "I must say, your uncle truly knows how to throw a party," he commented.
"And to think, it's only just began!" I laughed.
"Indeed!" he chuckled in agreement.
"Good evening, Evie; and to you, Burr, sir!" another voice exclaimed. We turned to see Alexander approaching us.
"Alex!" I gasped. "I didn't realize you were coming! You are enjoying yourself, I hope?"
"Very much so!" he mused, glancing around and taking in the sights of the party. "This is quite an exciting experience for me!" Glancing back at Bur and myself, he inquired, "Pardon me, I wasn't interrupting anything was I?"
"No!" Burr and I responded in unison.
"Good!" Alex chuckled. He turned to Burr. "Would you mind if I borrowed Evie for a moment?" he asked.
"Not at all," Burr replied, taking a bow. "Until next time, Evie," he said to me.
"Until next time," I agreed, curtsying. He disappeared into the crowd, and Alex suddenly linked his arm with mine.
"Shall we?" he drawled, leading me away.
"Alexander, where are you taking me?" I questioned as we made our way through the crowd. For a moment, I worried that he didn't hear me, as we had passed by the band which was playing at top volume at the same time I'd spoken.
"I'm about to change your life," he answered mysteriously. I rolled my eyes playfully.
"Well, by all means; lead the way!" I giggled.
"Mademoiselle Evangeline! It's a pleasure to see you again." a new voice rang out.
"Huh?" We had arrived at the punch table at the far left side of the room. The music was fainter there, and hardly anyone was close enough to be heard clearly. I didn't really notice any of that however, as my focus was placed entirely on the vision before me dressed in white, gold, and navy.
The last time I had seen this man was four years ago in a bar, where he'd been at least half-way drunk. Now he stood before me, a poised officer of the army. For a brief moment, I almost didn't recognize him; mainly because he'd powdered his hair so that it looked like it was naturally silver-white. It looked good.
"Evie, you remember the Marquis de Lafayette?" Alex asked me. The said man gazed at me with an angelic smile as he bowed deeply. I felt heat begin to rise in my cheeks.
"Of course!" I replied immediately, breaking free from Alex's grip and curtsying. "The pleasure is all mine, Monsieur Lafayette." He took a step towards me, and we exchanged quick kisses on the cheeks. "Merci pour tout votre service," I said sincerely. His face lit up.
"Si cela prend du temps pour nous de nous rencontrer, cela en aura valu la peine," he gushed, taking my hand in his and placing a light kiss upon it. That did it; I felt my entire face heat up like an oven. I was speechless. Somewhere seemingly far away, I heard Alex laugh.
"I'll leave you to it!" he called as he left to join John at the bar, leaving me alone with the dashing Frenchman.
