♦YOU MUST HAVE READ THE PREQUEL, THE GOLDEN DUCHESS, TO READ THIS BOOK!♦
BEWARE--spoilers in this blurb, for those who have not read previous books! YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!
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The world is upside down, and those you thought you knew... you no longer...
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Prudence woke with a frown. As her eyes opened, she spotted her curtains spread apart, a bright winter sun blaring through the washed glass. She yawned, stretched—
And screeched at the vision of someone lurking at the foot of her bed.
"What in the—" Squinting, she realized the someone in question was her lady-in-waiting, hands on her waist, smiling. "Sarah?"
"Good morning, Your Highness!" The lady's voice was too chipper, too high-pitched, too much. "I trust you slept well?"
Prudence pulled her covers up and grunted. "Why are you here?" She yawned, but paused halfway at the sight of other women looming behind Sarah. "And with company?"
The three new intruders dipped their chins and muttered polite greetings under their breaths.
Sarah scoffed. "We are here to help you prepare, of course!"
She clapped, and the other three scurried about—one hurried to the closet to extract outfit choices, one shimmied to the vanity and opened drawers for jewelry and accessories, and the last tiptoed up to Prudence, holding a satin night-robe.
Prudence yanked the blankets up higher and viewed the clock on the opposite end of the suite and groaned. "It is seven-thirty."
"Your mother prefers early starts, Highness," said Sarah, motioning at the girl approaching Prudence, urging her closer. "Normally she would not expect you to enjoy the same, but she and His Majesty requested that you be up and about as soon as feasible."
The lady who had raced to the armoire shuffled up to Prudence's other side and held up three gowns—with difficulty.
"Your choice, Highness?"
Scrunching her nose, Prudence dismissed the overly sparkled number, and the faded cream and purple gown, opting for a demure beige ensemble with a coral stripe down the middle. The girl nodded, then skipped to the changing panel to deposit the dress before returning to the armoire.
"Swell choice." Sarah again gestured at the girl holding the robe, then focused on Prudence. "I have no time to draw you a bath, but you need to emerge from bed, Highness. We have much work to do."
When at last Prudence draped herself in the robe, the women tugged her over to the changing panel where they stripped her, tore at her hair, slipped materials over her head, and pinched her skin while adjusting hoops and tightening corsets over her hips and chest. They tied knots and smoothed out wrinkles while running harsh brushes through her curls and gliding delicate silks up her legs.
Before long, she was dressed, and Sarah drove her to the vanity. She suggested a simple look to match her simple dress, and smeared Prudence's cheeks and forehead with an off-white powder that nearly made Prudence sneeze.
