A/N: Hello my dears! I'm finally back with a brand new story for you. This has been a labor of love for me for many months now, and I hope you will enjoy it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. It is another historical writing endeavor for me, those this time it is much better researched and far more inspired. I have based the core of the plot on a novel of Marshall Field, the Chicago department store magnate, but what happens in this story will be of my own imagination. I have a few chapters ready to go and will try to update this story often based on the feedback I receive. As always, please leave a comment and subscribe if you are enjoying this new work. Happy reading!
I placed the pearl and tortoise shell comb, a gift from my husband, into my hair before sitting back to admire the finished product. My maid, Bree, has gotten so good at crafting all the latest styles, even with my hair which normally is not happy to cooperate with the hot curler. But tonight I'm thankful that is has, and just know it is going to be perfect for the ball we are to attend this evening.
My absolute dearest friend, the lovely Alice Whitlock, turned 23 this week and her darling husband is throwing the party in her honor. It will be filled with the well to do of the town and will surely be the talk of the social columns in the papers come tomorrow morning. Alice and Jasper's parties always create a wonderful stir amongst society's finest and I am certain tonight will be no different.
When I stand up before the gilt mirror in my dressing room my gown falls perfectly in place. I cannot believe my luck that it was finished in time for this event. After all, the gown had to first come all the way from Paris before it spent ample time with my seamstress to alter and get the fit correct for my measurements. The silk of the gown is like water in both color and texture, clinging perfectly to my corseted form, while the bodice is covered in glittering diamonds and pearls and decorated with flowing lace. It will certainly sparkle brilliantly in the Whitlock's newly electrified ballroom. Mr. Worth sure knows how to design the perfect evening gown.
Without my needing to prompt her, Bree reentered my dressing room with my crushed velvet and brown mink lined cape and my silk evening gloves. I slip the gloves up both of my arms while she secures the cape around my shoulders to ward off the early winter chill. I normally would have worn a bonnet but opted not to for fear of messing up the intricate and well-fought for hairstyle I was sporting.
"Thank you Bree. I expect we will be home sometime near midnight. If you can make sure the fires are stoked until then," I start requesting of her as I walk out of the room and begin my descent down the marble staircase. "And I'm sure Jacob will be up even later in his study. Do see that there is a fresh decanter of his favorite whiskey waiting for him."
I tell her all of these things even whilst knowing that she already knows the deal. Bree has been with us long enough to remember that after a long night of drinking and social interaction, there is nothing my husband wants to do more than to come home for more drinking in isolation.
Of course it suits me just fine, the isolation he gives himself at home when he drinks. He can get mean sometimes when he is drunk and I would rather not get caught in the cross-hairs. I prefer him when he is completely sober. Then he is an absolute doll to me, gentle and caring like before we were married, back when we were just best friends. But give him a few too many glasses of whiskey and it is another story completely.
Tonight though, I really hope he can manage to hold it together during the party. I am not exactly in the mood to babysit and keep him from making a fool of himself in front of his friends.
He is already waiting at the bottom of the stairs for me, dressed to the nines in his three piece tuxedo with his black silky top hat clasped in his hands. He offered me a smile as he donned the hat in time for our butler to open the front door, allowing the brisk chill of late November into the entryway. I clutched my mink closer and offered him my hand before he led the pair of us through the door and down the few steps towards our awaiting carriage.
The ride to the Whitlock's mansion was not too far and definitely a journey we might have made on foot if it were not for the cold weather and the finery we were dressed in. When our carriage came to a stop in front of their home, there were already several other coaches I recognized lined up down the block. Clearly we were not the first to arrive. I reached into Jacob's breast pocket for his watch to ensure the time was correct before quickly exiting the carriage, with some help from our coachman.
Alice was sure to be in a tizzy with me for arriving late to her birthday party. I moved from foot to foot on the threshold, both from cold and impatience while my husband seemed to take his sweet time before joining me and ringing the bell. The door opened almost immediately and we were greeted by their kindly butler, Mr. Randall. The man took the mink from my shoulders before escorting us down a long ornate hallway to the ballroom. It was all a formality of course considering I knew Alice and Jasper's home as well as my own.
My lovely friend was waiting, surrounded by many of our other socialite friends. I hurried into the circle, an apologetic smile on my lips as I rushed to embrace her carefully. Her dress was gorgeous of course, a shimmering vision of dark emerald green silk and black lace accents. Black lace was truly in season this year.
"Happy birthday darling," I told her after kissing both of her cheeks lightly, "I'm so sorry we're late. I had Bree fuss over my hair for longer than I expected…"
Thankfully Alice was quick to forgive my transgression with a playful smile. "Do not even worry about it dear, I am just so glad you are finally here," her eyes darted to the other women beside us before she dropped her voice so only I could hear. "You know how droll I find it to be alone with them all."
We both giggled tactfully into our gloved hands before spreading back into the circle and allowing the conversation to flow freely. I looked around and spied a few other groups of people who had cordoned themselves off. My husband was with his usual band of friends, all fellow sons of trust funds. Some worked, and some, like my husband, did not. I sighed inwardly. Jacob would be so much less miserable if he got back to work. What good was a law degree from a prestigious university if one stopped working almost immediately after a large payout?
I try not to think too much about his lack of career ambitions. We will both live at our current level of luxurious comfort until old age between Jacob's trust and my own, as well as the investments that have been made on both our behalves. So it is not that Jacob has to work, but a part of me thinks that there should be some desire in a man to work for his living.
I get pulled out of my train of thought by the ladies whispering about an expected arrival to the party. Apparently Jasper has recently become acquaintances with some new money in town, a local up and coming merchant and his wife. They have been invited tonight and everyone, well the ladies at the very least, seem to be dying for the couple to arrive. Likely to size up the Misses for entry into the inner circle of society women. But also more than likely to see what the merchant magnate looks like. If only money was the solitary requirement to getting on everyone's good side. I am certain the criticisms will be harsh regardless.
Before anymore gossip about the mystery couple can be shared, the orchestra hired for the night play a few notes to get the attendees attention. Once everyone is facing in the same direction, Alice and Jasper float to the middle of the room to speak to the invited guests.
"I would like to start the night by thanking all of our dear family and friends for coming out to celebrate my darling wife's birthday," his eyes were glued to Alice and filled with love and adoration. Even after four years of marriage they were still very much in love like they were when they first met. "It is an honor to have you all with us and I am certain we will all have a very entertaining night," he finished his brief speech by raising the crystal glass of whiskey in his hand to the crowd before taking a brief sip.
This was the orchestra's cue to begin playing their lineup for the evening, starting off with a light waltz. Some couples filtered onto the dance floor to begin the festivities, but I stay attached to the retinue of ladies. A footmen brought over a silver tray of wine glasses to my gaggle of ladies and I took a crystal goblet and began to drink and watch the dancers.
Jacob was not much for dancing and I've grown accustomed to sitting out the couples dances. Though anytime there are group fetes, I'm more than happy to partake. Occasionally a gentleman-sometimes single, sometimes married-will ask for a dance, both cases of which I am happy to oblige. A small part of me always hopes it will inspire some passionate jealousy in my husband and shake him into action. But it usually never does.
I'm shaken from my musings by the sudden increase in chatter from the ladies. My brown eyes dart to the ballroom entrance, where they're all staring and prattling on about who I can only assume must be the Masons. While I'm not typically happy to be an accessory to gossip, I do manage to listen in closely to hear about these additions.
Apparently Mr. Mason bought out a small dry goods store in town but up until recently he has been doing business from afar. Once his shop started making a respectable amount of money, the couple sold everything else and moved into town and have been here for only a few weeks now. Irina, the loudest of the mouths, somehow knows where they live already; a new brownstone in the South Loop's up and coming area. Clearly the couple is doing more than well for themselves since settling their business here. Father always said Chicago would be a city to attract the best and brightest of our generation.
Without my realizing it I have gone on my tiptoes, trying to see about the crowd to get a real peek at the Masons. I am generally curious to know what they will look like, especially considering they have almost certainly not been born into the wealth and refinement that everyone else here is accustomed to. I catch the briefest kint of copper hair capped with a grey top hat, and beside it a fiery shock of red hair, perfectly styled and piled high according to the latest trend. Unfortunately I'm not quite tall enough to see much else. Pity.
It is probably for the best. I'll be one less pair of heavily scrutinizing eyes, looking for faults and shortcomings on the couple.
"Did you see them?" Alice is suddenly at my side and grabs my elbow gently to get my attention.
I quickly shake my head. "I just saw hair. They're both redheads it seems. How novel…" I remark, my eyes betraying me and scanning the area where I thought the couple might have settled.
"Yes, Jasper told me they were a bit odd in that respect. Edward is his name and I think his wife is named Victoria," she offered with a slight shrug of her shoulders.
"And why has Jasper been hiding the Masons from everyone for almost a month?" I raised a brow at her, curious as to the oddity of this sudden grand unveiling of the latest additions to Chicago high society.
It was Alice's turn to shake her head while a soft giggle left her mouth. A quick glance around me told me the other ladies of our group were keyed into our conversation and listening intently to get all the information they could on the Masons.
"Jasper said that Mr. Mason has been trying to keep a low profile while he got some business dealings in order. Jasper has been helping him get registered with city hall and all that since he's such good friends with Mayor Swift and all of his people," she tossed her gloved hand up to dismiss the secrecy of it all.
"Hmm...it still seems rather odd though. Does it not strike you as quite funny that no one has really seen or heard them after being in the city for a whole month?" I countered, becoming painfully curious as the mystery surrounding the Mason's arrival in town. Perhaps we were all being silly for reading so much into it all. Alice simply shrugged her shoulders. She had no more information to give and clearly neither did the other ladies. The best we could all hope for now was to interact with either of them and get the information we all craved straight from the source.
We would only have to wait a bit longer to learn about the Masons.