Revenge of the Duchess

Chapter 9

A/N: I own nothing but plot. Enjoy!

The appearance of the future Duchess Jackson at her engagement party was the talk of society, though the future Duchess did not know of it herself. The elegance and beauty of the lady was much to be revered as well as envied.

The Duke, always dashing, looked even more handsome tonight as both unmarried and married women gossiped about his broad shoulders hidden underneath his coat. His smile was confident as his green eyes looked at the attendees. Tucked into the outer pocket of his dark blue coat was his fiancee's handkerchief and a blue rose. Underneath was a crisp white shirt, and many imagined the lean muscles hidden underneath.

His fiancee wore a blue silk dress embroidered with gold thread on the upper part of the bodice, highlighting her curves and waist. Towards the bottom of the dress, the silk was skillfully dyed in such a manner that the blue color slowly faded to white. Long sleeves hinted at the slender arms, and the off-the-shoulder portion emphasized the glowing skin of the shoulders.

The owner of the dress far outshone the dress. Her grey eyes sparkled as she laughed at something the Duke said. Lady Annabeth's blonde hair glistened like bright sunlight, with rare blue roses and pearls interlaced in the curls. With the memory of red roses at the Autumn Harvest Festival and now the blue roses at her engagement party, the future Duchess would soon be known as the Rose of Society. Whatever she wore would be the trend, and after tonight, it would be pearls in the hair and on the neck.

Many noblemen looked in awe at the lady, wishing that they were able the one at the side of the both wealthy and beautiful daughter of Baron Chase. The more malicious attendees only spoke that were it not for her beauty and wealth, the baron's daughter could not have flown so high up the ladder of nobility. Others mourned that the position of the official wife of the Duke had been taken. But there were plenty of other members of the Black Knights Order, albeit less handsome, whom they could flirt with. So all was not lost for the unmarried single women, so they strove to enjoy the food and splendor of the engagement party for now.

Percy himself was not immune to Annabeth's beauty. It was the reason why he had stared at Annabeth when she was finished prepping for tonight's party. In the end, he could not muster a single compliment other than to gift her the pearl necklace. He had been jokingly flirting with Annabeth from the beginning, but for tonight he had been quite taken back by her appearance.

Both Percy and Annabeth kept up their smiles for the party. It was not that they disliked each other's company but that there were many people who came to pay their respects to the new couple. In Percy's eye, they were more like annoying flies that were buzzing around a rose, waiting for an opportunity to make connections.

His father and birth mother, the Archduke and his first consort, greeted the new couple. To Percy's relief, they seemed to quite like Annabeth.

It was then that Percy noted Annabeth's demeanor slightly stiffened at his side. He followed her line of sight where her former fiancee had just walked in, escorting two women. In honestly, Percy had not wanted to invite Luke to his engagement party, but it would have been impolite to not invite the head of the White Knights Order. Annabeth had invited her family to come, so it would also have been impolite to not invite her cousin.

Luke escorted Lady Kelli on his right arm. Contrary to Lady Kelli's more demure appearance at previous societal events, Kelli was now decked in silks and jewels. In Percy's opinion, her appearance was highly overdone. Too much can detract from the overall harmonious appearance. Judging by Kelli's smile, she felt like she was the star of the engagement party, an act that could be seen as highly disrespectful. Society was already spreading the gossip about Lady Kelli's appearance. It seemed that now that Annabeth was not Luke's fiancee, he was still determined to marry into the Chase family one way or another.