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CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

NEAH

D espite the fact that she’d been expecting it, the knock at the door to her chambers still made Neah tense.

Zennon and Sonnet had come back to Neah’s rooms in the morning at her request, both looking much more healthy than when Neah had seen them last night.

Colour had returned to their cheeks and Zennon seemed to have nearly her normal amount of energy, but she didn’t protest when Neah glared at her sister to remain seated and instead answered the door herself.

The woman waiting on the other side was full-figured with creamy white skin and red hair that gleamed brightly in the early morning light.

She’d come highly recommended, despite that Neah had never really heard of her before, and Neah stepped back to invite her and her three assistants into the parlour.

“Who is it?” Zennon, apparently done with Neah’s heightened caution, strolled around the corner with a swish of her skirts before halting, eyes widening. “What’s all this?” she said, pulling her eyes away from the woman at Neah’s side.

“This is Romi. She’s a dressmaker.”

The woman smiled, shrewd blue eyes running over Zennon’s form with a keen eye, no doubt already conjuring up designs. “Just the two of you?”

“Actually,” Neah said, glancing at Sonnet who had approached with something like curiosity and resignation on her face. “Three. If that’s okay?”

“Of course!”

Neah winced at the perky tone but the surprise on Sonnet’s face made up for it.

“For me, too?” she murmured as Neah led Romi and the assistants into the adjacent bed chamber. “Are you sure? I don’t have much in the way of money?—”

“Sonnet.” Neah rolled her eyes. “Shut up.” The witch still looked unsure and Neah sighed. “It’s a gift. Okay?”

The soft smile that hesitantly bloomed made Neah’s heart clench. “Okay,” Sonnet said, the words quiet.

“I’ve been meaning to ask,” Romi said as she helped a barely-clothed Neah up and onto a box to take her measurements. “Where did you hear about me?”

Neah shrugged and received a stink-eye for moving. “Your name was floated about at a few parties and…” She hesitated before clearing her throat and continuing, “My mother.”

Romi leaned back, her cornflower blue eyes narrowing before they widened. “That’s why you look so familiar. You’re Winny’s daughter. You know, she’s the one who encouraged me to leave my job to design.”

Neah nodded. “I know.” In truth, she’d been a little hesitant about Romi’s inexperience.

While it was true she’d heard Romi’s name at the gatherings the ladies frequently held, it had mostly been with a tone of derision for a keeper trying to rise above their station.

But when she’d answered the door and seen the, clearly custom, dress Romi was wearing, her worries had dissipated.

She had been right to trust her mother, who’d got to know many of the serving girls while she’d spent some time in their quarters.

Romi’s dress was tailored beautifully, even if the all-over floral print wasn’t to Neah’s taste, with a sage-green corset falling over the wide skirt and off-the shoulder straps that perfectly accentuated the woman’s curves.

The real selling point had been when Romi had taken a tape measure out of the side of the dress and Neah had realised it had pockets .

The possibility for hidden weapons alone was enough to excite her.

Neah stepped down from the box after Romi made her notes and Zennon stepped up clad in her thin nightdress.

She looked uncomfortable, which was surprising given how many times Zennon’s attendants had seen her in states of undress for measurements and then like.

What was different now? Neah’s brow furrowed as she watched Zennon swallow hard when Romi drew closer to measure around her bust.

“You’re an idiot,” Sonnet muttered and Neah snorted, glad the witch had recovered from her bout of sentimental mushiness. “I can see you watching them like you’re faced with a particularly difficult puzzle. When in reality, it’s very simple.”

Neah glanced at Sonnet and huffed a breath at the smirk on her face. She looked back to Zennon who was doing her best to avoid eye contact with Romi, something that appeared to be irritating the seamstress.

“Lady,” the other woman said, none so gently despite the respectful term, “if you object to my presence so strongly, I can leave.”

Zennon’s head jerked toward Romi, her eyes flying wide. “No! That is, not at all. I just—” Her cheeks pinked and Neah chuckled as it all fell into place in her mind. “I, ah, can see down your corset and, well, I just–I mean, I wanted to?—”

“Is it my turn now?” Sonnet asked, apparently taking mercy on Zennon who was now quite red in the face while Romi watched with dawning realisation and more than a little smugness.

Zennon stepped down from the box with enough haste that her feet tangled in her long nightdress and Romi caught her, steadying her by the shoulders, and Zennon turned impossibly redder.

Romi took Sonnet’s measurements without comment but the small smile on her face made Neah smirk. Zennon had excused herself to the bathroom and emerged looking nearly normal again, elbowing Neah in the side when she laughed under her breath.

The seamstress helped Sonnet down and then began to sort through the reams of fabric she’d brought with her, muttering to herself about complimentary colours and silhouettes.

“Are you sure you’ll have time to get these done before tonight?” Sonnet had wandered closer and fingered a bolt of shimmery silver fabric with interest.

“I mean, it’s not my preferred timeline,” Romi said dryly. “But we’ll get it done,” she added, nodding to her assistants. “You’ll have them back by tonight.”

“That’s it? We don’t get to see the designs?”

Romi smirked and reached out to pat Sonnet’s hand. “That’s not how I work, sweetie. Especially on this kind of timeline.”

Neah ignored Sonnet’s needling and instead strode to the locked chest at the end of her bed, opening it easily and pulling a purple velvet bag of coin out. She handed it to Romi who frowned.

“Unless you’re paying me in coppers, this bag is much too heavy for the fee we agreed.”

Honestly, Neah would have paid thrice just to see the look on Sonnet’s face when she realised Neah was getting her a new dress and Zennon’s reaction to the admittedly beautiful red-headed woman.

But more than that, she had a good feeling about Romi, especially if her mother’s opinion was anything to go off.

“Half now, half later when you deliver the dresses.”

Romi’s eyes widened. “That’s—No, it’s too much, Lady.”

“Neah,” she corrected. “And you’re starting a business from scratch, talent should always be invested in—plus, if you’re as good as I think you are then I want to snap you up early so that all my outfits can have pockets.

” Neah grinned and pressed the bag firmly into Romi’s hands when she attempted to hand it back. “Don’t you have dresses to make?”

The risk might have been minimal, but Neah wasn’t ready to sit with half the court at the feast after a poisoning attempt less than forty-eight hours ago.

So, instead, they had dinner sent to Neah’s room where she carefully sniffed at it and then passed it to Sonnet to test magically.

Only when they determined it was safe to eat did they dive in.

They were still waiting on Romi to arrive with their dresses, which was a good thing because it allowed some time for the enormous amount of food they’d indulged in to digest before they were stuffed into a corset.

Zennon was mid-stretch when the knock at the door came and Neah snickered when her sister began smoothing down her hair.

Romi strode in, her assistants each carrying a garment bag, and Neah found that she was actually excited to see what the seamstress had dreamed up for each of them. Each assistant approached one of them, helping them out of their night dresses and into three resplendent gowns.

“Wait, don’t we need a corset?” Neah raised a brow and was confused when Romi laughed.

“Only if you want one. The boning is built in for some shaping, but I prefer to let my curves breathe.”

Zennon looked like she was about to choke at the mention of Romi’s curves, but Neah just ran an eye over the seamstress’ dress and nodded. It was the same one that she’d been wearing earlier and it worked with the swell of her hips, the softness of her belly, and full chest.

Romi insisted they close their eyes while they put their dresses on, so as not to ruin the effect supposedly, but Neah was the only one who didn’t cooperate. She was sure Romi and her assistants weren’t assassins in disguise, but one couldn’t be too careful.

Still, Neah dutifully attempted to keep her eyes averted from the dress as she stepped into it and was baffled by the lack of fastening.

Instead, the material draped along her slim form, pooling across and over her breasts in a wide scoop that gave the illusion that more skin was on show than was reality.

What shocked her more, though, was that it was absolutely weightless.

If she hadn’t felt the material when she’d slipped it on, she might have thought she was naked.

Gasps rang out and Neah immediately looked to Zennon and Sonnet, relieved that they were okay and instead found them admiring the dresses they’d been given. Though, dresses felt a little trivial—these gowns were works of art.

Zennon’s was a blue so dark it was nearly black, the skirt full without being puffy, flaring out over her hips, and the top was a sweetheart framed corset in a contrasting gold that brought out the warmth in her eyes. She was stunning and, when Neah told her so, she beamed.

Sonnet did a twirl of her own, as if to say what about me?

Neah laughed and catcalled the witch, her dress only moderately more scandalous than Neah’s.

The material was a pale pink dusted with a silvery overlay that was nearly translucent.

The neckline slashed across the tops of Sonnet’s collarbones and rested on her shoulders, long strands of the material fluttering down against her bare back where the dress ebbed and came back together at the base of her spine.

They were stunning, and Neah was very glad she’d taken her mother’s recommendation.

“Skye’s going to swallow his tongue,” Sonnet said, laughing, and Zen grinned. “Thank you, Romi. This is the loveliest thing I’ve ever owned. And thank you, Neah.”

“Anytime,” she said, and meant it.

They’d waited to do their hair and make-up until they saw the dresses, so they put the finishing touches in place and allowed Romi to do a few last minute tweaks before she nodded and declared them ready.

“Aren’t you coming too?” Zennon asked Romi after Neah paid her more coin while ignoring her protests.

The seamstress’ smile was a touch bitter as she shook her head. “I’m no one. People like me don’t get invited to balls with the king.”

Zennon lifted her chin, jaw straining, and Neah knew her sister’s stubborn streak had reared its head.

“They do now.” She held out her hand and, hesitantly, like she expected it to be ripped away at the last second, Romi took it.

“You too,” Zennon added, nodding at the assistants who seemed surprised to be included.

“I mean, if you want. It’s not mandatory. ”

They smiled and trailed them as Neah ushered everyone out of the door. It was time to dance.