The night before the dance, Richard Harper brought home a surprise. Not gifts, which would have been nice, but a trio of guests. They were not any of his associates either, but consisted of an elegant older woman and her grown-up son and daughter.
"Lilith," her father introduced, his gaze intent. "This is Regina Black from Litrio. Regina, my eldest daughter, Lilith."
"Please to meet you," Lilith greeted, as the twins came rushing up.
"Sorry, Father," Emma gushed, tucking her hair behind her ears in an effort to look presentable. Viola didn't really bother, and Lilith did her best to pat down the girl's flyaway locks.
"And the twins," Regina Black guessed. She was quite a sight, with her pale hair woven into ringlets, stones on her ears and neck, and a slender figure dressed in vivid shades of scarlet. Yet, looking closer, it all seemed an attempt to add glamor to features that were really quite plain. "Which one of you is Viola and which one is Emma?"
"Guess," Viola couldn't help herself, grinning.
"That would be Viola," their father stated, a little sternly. At least he'd gotten it right this time.
Viola smiled sheepishly.
Regina Black twisted slightly, gesturing at the pair behind her. "This is my son, Tyler, and my daughter, Olivia."
"They will be guests in this house and you are to make them feel welcome," their father made clear.
Lilith looked between the brother and sister. Olivia was a near-replica of her mother, sharing her pale skin, brown eyes and overly angular face. Tyler, on the other hand, seemed to take after a father of good looks and striking blue eyes. Pretty boy, the words popped into Lilith's head. Not usually her type, but she did approve of his appearance - tailored suit, hair neat and not too long, shoes spotless.
"A pleasure," Olivia said simply, doing a curtsy before the girls.
Beside her, Tyler did a chuckle over the twins. "I'll have to tell you now that I am probably going to mix the two of you up very often, so apologies in advance."
"It's alright," Emma said warmly. "We forgive you."
He smiled as he shook their hands, then came to stand in front of Lilith. He thumbed the fringe of his dirty blonde hair for a moment, studying her. "Lilith," he said her name, and that was all, just her name in a soft, husky tone. He held his palm out to her. She glanced at her father, then rested her hand in Tyler's. He raised her hand, pressing full, cool lips to the back. She noticed that he lingered them a moment too long.
"Come, let me show you around the house," her father offered, leading Regina away. Olivia followed, but Tyler lingered a moment.
"I'll speak to you girls later, I hope?" His gaze danced in her direction as he ended the question.
Lilith didn't respond, but her sisters nodded. They watched as the group took off down the hall, her father personally talking about the furnishings and the capacity of the main hall and how the guest rooms overlooked the lake. This was so unlike him, to actually welcome guests to stay, guests she had never even met before. She was acquainted with most of his friends and partners but she'd never heard of this Black family.
"I like him," Emma piped up, drawing her attention.
"What?"
"Tyler. I like him."
"Oh. Yes, he seems nice."
"They're going to be staying here?" Viola asked.
"Apparently," she said, still puzzled. "It's so strange. I thought Father hated sharing the house with people."
"I wonder how long they'll be staying."
"So do I. Oh no! Three extra guests for tomorrow. I'd better go tell the kitchen." She hurried off to inform Mrs. Etheridge. "You girls get back upstairs. You're supposed to be in bed soon. I'll be in to check in on you later."
"What about the Blacks?"
"The Blacks can stay up if they wish. You cannot."
Emma made a face of disappointment, and Lilith wondered if it had anything to do with Tyler Black. She decided not to press it, turning away and trusting the girls to do as they'd been told.
"What do you know about this, Mrs. Etheridge?" she found herself asking a short while later, as she stood in the kitchen with the servants. The hour was late, and they had just been ready to clean up, but now that there were guests, they were preparing wine and light refreshments.
"Nothing, Miss Lilith," the barrel-chested old woman answered. With her size and coarse features, she'd seemed intimidating to Lilith when she'd been a child, but she now knew her to be as gentle and kind-hearted as her own mother.
"Did you see Regina Black's dress?" one of the young servants commented. "Gorgeous, wasn't it?"
Lilith said nothing, and Mrs. Etheridge leaned towards her. "She's nothing compared to your mother, dear."
She smiled faintly. "I'm sure it's nothing like that." But the words tingled on her tongue, like the sting of a lie.
"Why don't you go on up to bed? It's late."
"I just thought Father might need me."
"I'm sure if anything comes up, it can wait till morning. Now, go. Tomorrow's an important day, remember? You need your rest."
"Alright then. Goodnight, everyone." She left them to it, heading upstairs. A short while later, having scrubbed, washed and changed, she lay in her canopy bed in the dark, listening to the gentle bumps and murmurs that were always part of the house at night. She couldn't help thinking of her father and Regina Black roaming around, arm in arm probably, walking where her mother used to walk, touching her mother's furniture and things, acting as if she had never existed ....
Stop. You're torturing yourself, and besides, he has every right to do what he wants.
She tried to sleep, but it kept far away, probably laughing at her from a corner of the room. When she finally did doze off, it was fitful and seemed plagued by bad dreams of Regina Black insisting that Lilith call her 'Mother'.
Lilith felt terrible in the morning, but was looking forward to the dance at least. She trotted out to join the others for breakfast, hoping she was not late. Her father was particular about punctuality.
In her daze, she didn't notice someone coming out of a guest room and bumped right into them. Hands slipped down to her waist to steady her, and she stopped to focus, peering into bright blue eyes flecked with gold. "Watch yourself," Tyler said, the edges of his mouth upturned.
Instinctively, she drew away. That had woken her up. She couldn't believe she had just stood so close to him! All she'd had to do was raise her arms and bend them, and that would have become a hug. "Forgive me," she said, flustered.
"There's nothing to forgive. Shall we walk together?"
Silently, she nodded. As he fell into step beside her, she walked with her hands clasped in front of her as if afraid of ... what? She took a sideways peek, gazing at his profile. Here, by a turn of fate, Tyler Black had come into her life after she had made a bet with Kendall Moore. She needed to make the most of it. "So, Mr. Black - "
"Tyler, please. I can't stand formalities."
"Alright. Tyler. You live in Litrio? That's not very far."
"We're practically neighbors."
"Yes, I suppose. How long have you known my father, if I may ask?"
"Oh, well, not that long. We met him at the opera a few weeks ago. He and my mother went on and on about the show after that."
"Opera, right."
"Do you enjoy it too?"
She hesitated. "No."
"No? Thank goodness."
She turned to him in surprise, and he raised his hands. "All it does is put me to sleep."
"I don't know why Father loves it so much."
"I know what you mean. I could think of far more exciting ways to spend my time. Wouldn't you agree?"
Lilith realized he was watching her. "I suppose so," she answered quietly. They came to the staircase, and his hand found the small of her back as if to guide her. Surprised, she thought to say something or pull away, but she didn't want to seem rude so she kept quiet. His touch only left her when they entered the dining room, and Lilith hoped no one had noticed anything.
"Good morning," Richard Harper greeted, looking curiously between them.
Well, so much for that.
Lilith went to sit down, forgetting about Tyler for a moment as she realized something. Regina, who was in black and gold today, was seated in her mother's chair. She looked over the woman's outfit, catching the glimmer of teardrop earrings and bracelets clutching her wrists. At breakfast? Lilith enjoyed dressing up herself, but this seemed excessive.
Unless she's trying to impress someone? She must have started frowning, because her father raised a brow at her. "Are you alright, Lilith? You look unwell."
"I just didn't get much sleep, that's all."
Tyler lowered himself into the seat adjacent to hers, leaning back and watching her. He seemed to be waiting for something from her, but she didn't know what. Unnerved, she ducked her head and began reaching for food.
"The toast is burnt," Regina said in disappointment. To Lilith, she added, "You really should have a word with the kitchen about it."
"Oh, um, it looks perfectly fine to me."
"It's not good to let the help get complacent. If you like, I'd be happy to speak to them for you."
"No," Lilith returned quickly. "That's alright. I'll ... take care of it."
Regina smiled in approval, and Lilith felt oddly like a dog being praised. She found the matter trivial, but she did not have the courage to say so to this woman. At times like these, she admired people who could speak their minds - people like Kendall Moore.
"You'll want to pay careful attention to all the arrangements for tonight," Regina advised her.
"Of course. I'm keeping a close eye on things."
"You must be very excited," her father tried to make conversation.
"I'm more worried than anything else."
"Come now, it's a dance," Tyler reminded her. "You're meant to enjoy yourself, which is exactly what I plan to do." He gestured at Viola and Emma. "I intend to start the night by dancing your lovely sisters, but after that, I'm going to come and find you and take you onto the floor, whether you like it or not."
She stared at him, too surprised to even answer. Most men she knew approached her with something like reverence, as if she were royalty and not just another human being. Apparently, Tyler wasn't like that.
"Tyler?" Emma piped up. "Do you want to play some cards with us after breakfast?"
"You can't," his sister spoke before he had a chance. "Mr. Harper will be taking us on a tour around Coser."
"You'll have to do without us for the day," Regina added. "But don't worry, Lilith. We'll definitely be back in time so we can be all ready for the event."
"It pains me to disappoint you girls," Tyler told the twins, yet his smile was gleeful.
After breakfast, Lilith and her sisters waved goodbye to the carriage, though she was more interested in her sister Emma's expression. She crept up behind her sister, dropping both hands on the girl's thin shoulders. "You've taken quite a fancy to Tyler, haven't you?"
She felt the way her sister stiffened. "No."
"It's alright. There's nothing wrong with it."
Viola scoffed at her twin. "Please. He likes Lilith."
"What??" Lilith exclaimed, her voice rising. "I do not want to hear such things."
"Didn't you see the way he looks you? Then again, every boy looks at you that way."
Emma tilted her face up to her older sister. "You have to hurry up and get married, or no one will ever take notice of us."
"Girls, I'll marry when I marry, and as for you two, you're a little young to be worrying about such things."
"Father seems to like Tyler," Viola commented.
Does he? The thought jumped into Lilith's mind, making her wonder. Really, that was the most important thing she needed to consider if she wanted to win the bet. What Kendall Moore didn't understand was that it didn't matter if a thousand men fell in love with Lilith. If her father didn't approve of them, she would stay unmarried. She remembered the glimpse of Logan she had gotten in the street yesterday, growing nervous. She wished she could apologize to him, but she was afraid to face him. She wouldn't blame him for being angry at her, for hating her. She could still remember his parting words to her the night she had broken things off: "Love is not meant for people like you, Lilith. You don't even know what love is."