The Wedding Dress (6 page)

He looked remarkably cheerful about this regrettable state of affairs. So Loraine smiled and also tried to look as though she did not in the least mind being hated, so long as she won his approval.

“
Come, then. We have a great deal to do,
”
said Madame Moisant brusquely, as though Loraine were lingering unnecessarily. And once again Loraine was whisked off, divested of her black suit and, when reclothed in her own things, taken down to the salon, where Madame Moisant put her through her paces with regard to the matter of actually appearing in public.

In her sharp, astringent way, the Frenchwoman was not unhelpful, and it became perfectly obvious to Loraine that there was nothing
—
literally nothing
—
which she did not know about the display and sale of beautiful clothes.

Humbly glad to be instructed by such an expert, Loraine paid the utmost attention to all she was told and tried hard to remember her instructions, at the same time making them sufficiently part of herself to avoid either stiffness or anxiety.

“
You have a natural talent,
”
Madame Moisant admitted grudgingly at last.
“
Well
—
we will see.
”

Back in the dressing-room once more, she made the general unequivocal statement that Loraine would wear all Julie’s designs at the afternoon show.

“
What a relief!
”
exclaimed Clotilde characteristically.
“
I shall now at least be able to breathe between appearances.
”
But Lisette
—
equally characteristically
—
cried.

“
She shall not wear Fourteen nor Fifty-one. These are mine! They are
my
models.
”

“
On the contrary, Lisette
—
”
It was Florian himself
who, unexpectedly, spoke from the doorway.
“
They happen to be my models, and I will decide who wears them.’

“
But, monsieur
”
—
Lisette was only mildly abashed
—
“
you promised me
—
”

“
You are mistaken, Lisette. According to my invariable custom, I promised you nothing,
”
Florian assured her courteously.
“
Loraine will wear Julie’s models this afternoon, and I shall be there myself to see the show.
”

From the silence which greeted this last statement, Loraine gathered it was unusual for Florian himself to attend the daily dress show so late in the season. And she
was both alarmed and gratified to realize that she herself must be the reason for his unwonted appearance.

“
Afterwards,
”
went on Florian calmly,
“
I shall need you in my workroom, Lisette. It is possible
—
though by no means certain
—
that I shall use you for the wedding dress in the new Collection. But for this it will be necessary for you to cultivate a less sullen expression.
”

“
Monsieur!
”
Lisette’s sulky face cleared like magic.
“
You say that
I
am to wear the wedding dress?
”

“
No, Lisette. I did not say that, and well you know it,
”
Florian assured her drily.
“
Once more
—
no promises. What I said was that I
might
use you. A very different thing.
”
Then, turning to Madame Moisant, he said,
“
Madame, if I may have a word with you
—
”
And the
two of them went out of the room.

Everyone now crowded round Lisette, with an eagerness which
made
it plain to Loraine that the wearing of the wedding dress in any new Collection ranked as such an important favor that even the suggestion of being the fortunate one chosen conferred a special brilliance upon one.

She herself was left isolated near the door and, as Florian and his directrice paused outside, she distinctly heard Madame Moisant say, as though she could no longer suppress her protest:

“
Surely you would not really allow Lisette to wear the wedding dress?
”

“
No, of course not.
”
The reply was cool, frank and brutal, though delivered in an undertone.
“
There is nothing bridal about Lisette. She is designed by nature for the Other Woman. It is the little Loraine who will make the perfect bride. She has all the qualities.
”

“
You are already so sure?
”
Even Madame Moisant sounded a trifle incredulous.

“
Of course. One does not have a flash of genius in stages,
”
replied Florian, without false modesty.
“
One knows.
”

“
The other one will tear her to pieces,
”
observed the directrice unemotionally.

“
Between now and then she will learn to defend herself.
”
was the careless reply.

Then they both went their separate ways, leaving Loraine divided between rapture and alarm. It seemed that her future path was to be fraught with most disagreeable perils. On the other hand, Florian had said she would probably wear the wedding dress. And already Loraine had absorbed enough of the dress-house atmosphere to assess
—
and covet
—
this signal honor.

If one were to be torn to pieces by the dangerous Lisette, as Madame Moisant had so confidently prophesied, at least it would be in a splendid cause.

By the time the afternoon show began, Loraine was icy with fear and burning with enthusiasm. She was not aware that what she was experiencing was a form of stage-fright. She only knew that, terrifyingly and miraculously, she was to play a part before strangers, and that on the way she played that part would depend her future with Florian.

The other
mannequins
, of course, had already shown these particular models so many times that they were without nerves and also without that first keen interest which spells adventure instead of routine. In contrast, Loraine was keyed up to the finest edge of competitive zeal. And perhaps this helped to highlight her performance.

At any rate, from the first moment she stepped out on the small stage and moved forward along the raised platform in the little black suit
—
her heart thumping, her eyes starry and her lips faintly smiling
—
until the final retreat in her last number
—
a miracle of rose and lavender tulle which seemed to embody the dreams of every girl choosing her first evening dress
—
she was an unqualified success.

In some subtle, exciting way, she knew it herself. She heard the murmur of it in the admiring, indulgent comments of those who watched her. She saw the gleam of it in Florian’s smiling but watchful eyes. And somewhere, deep down inside her, there was the inner conviction that this was her natural and inevitable form of self-expression. She was doing this thing well because it was as natural to her as breathing.

At the end, Madame Moisant said,
“
It was well done.
”
Clotilde said,
“
You were superb,
chérie
.
Where were you trained?
”
L
isette said,
“
She was amateur.
”
And Florian merely said:

“
Thank you, mademoiselle.
”

But she knew that those three words were her passport to the fashion world of Paris.

When the end of her first long, long day came at last, Loraine felt both elated and exhausted. Never before had she gone through so many conflicting emotions in a matter of hours. And certainly never before had she so fully tasted the sweet, heady wine of success.

She walked home, through the shimmering evening light, intoxicated with the beauty of Paris, the triumph of her happy achievement, and the exquisite relief of having accepted a challenge and won. And when she finally came to the tall house which she now called home, she scorned the lift and rushed up the stairs to her guardian’s apartment on the second floor.

The moment Mimi admitted her, she ran across the hall and into the drawing-room, where Paul was lounging comfortably in an armchair, reading the evening paper.

“
Hallo!
”
He put down the paper and smiled across at her, as she stood, pink-cheeked and with shining eyes, in the doorway.
“
How did the first day go?
”

“
Wonderfully!’ She came forward into the room, as though she still walked on air.
“
I was a success.
”

“
Already?
”
He looked amused, but faintly indulgent too.
“
How did you manage that?
”

“
It was like being in a book!
”
She pulled up a low stool and sat down in front of him, hugging her knees ecstatically like a little girl. She was so full of it all that she simply had to tell someone, and even her rather forbidding guardian seemed the ideal audience at the moment.
“
I didn’t think I’d be allowed to show any dresses the very first day. But I was. Another girl, called Julie, had deser
—
I mean,
”
her voice dropped impressively,
“
she’d left Florian rather in the lurch by getting married and going to Australia.
”

“
You appal me,
”
murmured her guardian, and at that she laughed and leant her arm upon his knee, in an
i
ntimate little gesture which would have been utterly impossible twenty-four hours ago.

“
It was so exciting
—
you can’t imagine! Madame Moisant was doubtful if I should be allowed to show even one of Julie’s dresses. But Florian tried me out in one outfit and then said, 'Let her have them all, and see what she can make of them.’ And Madame Moisant was quite shocked and said, 'All of them?’ And he said, 'All of
them
—
’ just like that. Like
—
like
—
”

“
An Eastern potentate ordering his harem about,
”
suggested her guardian obligingly.

“
Well
—
not quite like that. But with a sort of careless authority which was frightfully impressive.
”

“
Don’t lose your heart to Florian, dear child. He’s very happily married,
”
Paul reminded her.

“
Oh, I
know
he is. And I’m not at all likely to lose my heart to him. It’s just that he’s so
—
so clever and unusual. But one wouldn’t fall in love with him. He’s quite old, isn’t he?
”

Her guardian made a face.

“
About six years older than I am, I suppose.
”

“
Oh,
”
said Loraine, and looked reflectively at Paul, because she had really never thought about his age before.

“
Well, anyway,
”
he seemed slightly anxious to break that scrutiny,
“
you then showed all the erring Julie’s dresses very successfully?
”

“
Yes, indeed! It was quite a triumph.
”

“
What did Florian say at the end?
”

“
He said,
‘
Thank you, mademoiselle,’
”
Loraine explained reverently, at which her guardian laughed insensitively and said that seemed meagre praise in the circumstances.

“
Oh, but it was the way he said it,
”
Loraine assured him.
“
As though I’d done him a great favor and lifted a weight off his mind.
”

“
Yes
—
they say Florian is very good at that sort of thing,
”
agreed Paul, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
“
But of course you had done him a favor and got him out of an awkward spot, if he really had lost one of his mannequins in the middle of the season.
”

“
Not the middle of it. Almost the end of it,
”
said Loraine, who could not let that inaccuracy pass, now that she was beginning to know her fashion world.
“
Everything is already beginning to lead up to the new Collection, and everyone is mad with excitement and
—
”
She
pressed her hand against her lips and looked as though she had difficulty in holding back the next words.

“
Come on
—
you’d better tell me the whole story.
”
He smiled and looked amusedly curious.

“
It’s terribly secret
—
and I only overheard it, really. You will
keep
it secret, won’t you?
”

“
I’ll call on all my diplomatic training and do my best,
”
he promised.

“
Well, I overheard Florian say to Madame Moisant that he intended to have me model the wedding dress in the new Collection.
”

“
The wedding dress? But isn’t that the high-spot of the show?
”

“
Yes.
”
She nodded vigorously.
“
That’s why it’s terribly exciting
—
and secret. Isn’t it wonderful?
”

“
Wonderful,
”
he agreed.
“
Can you bring yourself to eat some dinner now, do you think?
”

“
Oh, yes, please! I’m ravenous,
”
Loraine declared.
“
I was too nervous to eat much at lunch. And anyway, there didn’t seem to be much time.
”

“
Well, don’t let them starve you,
”
said her guardian good-humoredly.
“
How did you get on with the other girls
?
”

“
Very well. Except for one.
”
Her face shadowed a little as she remembered the nasty brush with Lisette.

“
You must tell me about her over dinner,
”
Paul suggested.

And so, over their excellent dinner, Loraine told him about Lisette’s jealous outburst when Julie’s dresses had been assigned to Loraine, after all. But she said nothing about the disagreeable way Lisette had catechised her with regard to the night of the Opera Gala. There was nothing she
could
tell her guardian about that.

The next day lacked the drama and thrills of the first day, of course. On the other hand, it was considerably less harrowing, and Loraine found herself quite naturally settling into the routine of the great dress house.

In the morning she was called on to display two of her models for a private customer, and as the afternoon hour approached for the beginning of the dress show, the now familiar tide of excitement began to rise within her.

She was not so nervous this time. After all, nothing like so much hung on this afternoon’s
performance
. But, even so, she stood trembling slightly with excitement and eagerness, as she awaited her turn.

Lisette, indescribably provocative in a sea-green
tailleur,
drifted off the stage and Clotilde stepped through the curtains, to display the number which came before Loraine’s black suit. And then, as Lisette passed, she said carelessly:

“
Your beau is out front there.’

“
My
—
What beau?
”
Loraine felt her throat tighten.

“
The one who came in and kissed you at the Opera.
”

“
Philip!
”
exclaimed Loraine, and then could have bitten her tongue, for it was not part of her intention to give away the smallest bit of information about her affairs to Lisette.

“
So he’s Philip, is he?
”
Lisette smiled thoughtfully.
“
Yes, I remember now. I thought I’d seen him before. He’s Philip Otway, the artist, isn’t he?
”

“
Number Fourteen,
”
hissed Madame Moisant warningly, and she shot an angry glance in Loraine’s direction, to let her know that she was not showing the proper degree of readiness.

Guiltily, Loraine moved forward and, as Madame Moisant announced,
“
Number Fourteen
”
—
this time in honeyed accents
—
she parted the curtains and stepped out on to the small stage.

Here she paused for a moment, as she had been instructed, before slowly and gracefully walking the length of the centre platform. And, as she did so, she saw that not only Philip, but Mrs. Otway too, sat at the end of the room, smiling approvingly at her.

Loraine was not at all sure how much one was supposed to show that one was aware of anyone in the audience, so that the smile of recognition which she gave them was shy and brief. But because Philip
w
as watching her, she walked indeed like a princess, and she told herself she had been right, hadn’t she? when she had pretended that anything could happen when one wore the black suit.

Even when she turned and was on her way back, she knew that his smiling glance followed her, and she thought that no girl could ask more than to appear before the man she loved in one Florian model after another. He could hardly think her a retiring schoolgirl now!

If the previous afternoon had been wildly exciting, this one was heartwarming, and Loraine enjoyed every moment of it. Towards the end of the show, Florian came in, and she saw him speak to Mrs. Otway, with the particular air which meant that she was a well-liked customer.

She must have said something to him about knowing Loraine, for Florian smiled when Loraine next appeared and, as she turned at the end of the room, she heard him say:

“
Yes, she is very promising. You must have a word with her afterwards.
”

Philip leaned forward then, and she thought she heard him say something about
“
more than a word
”
. She dared not linger, but she returned to the dressing-room fairly confident that he would find a way of arranging things the way he wanted them.

Sure enough, almost as soon as the show was over, Loraine was summoned back to the salon, now empty except for the Otways and Madame Moisant, who said with the graciousness she reserved for favored customers:

“
Here is the little Loraine, madame.
Petite,
you have visitors from England, it seems.
”

“
Darling child!
”
Mrs. Otway, who was still a very beautiful woman indeed, enveloped Loraine in an expensively scented but genuinely tender embrace.
“
I simply couldn’t believe it when Philip told me you were working here as a mannequin.
”

“
A very new one,
”
Loraine said, smiling, as she kissed Mrs. Otway and then turned to give her hand to Philip.

“
We all have to be new once,
”
observed Madame Moisant academically. But Philip said immediately:

“
The amazing thing is that Loraine seems so completely professional and at ease.
”

“
Monsieur Florian would not have taken her otherwise,
”
Madame Moisant smiled thinly.
“
We have no room for the amateur here. Loraine will do very well if she works hard. And now, madame, which were the models that you wanted to see again?
”

“
The last two coats which Odette wore. And perhaps the one with the wide mink cuffs,
”
replied Mrs. Otway promptly.

Then, as Madame Moisant went away to fetch Odette and the coats, she turned to her son and said:

“
If you’ve had enough of feminine clothes for one afternoon, Philip, we will excuse you.
”

“
I’m afraid I have to go.
”
He smiled down apologetically at Loraine, but in his handsome eyes there was a faintly puzzled look, as though, even now, he could not quite reconcile his recollections of the lonely schoolgirl with the apparently poised and lovely creature who seemed so much at home in Florian’s salon.

“
Oh
—
I’m sorry.
”
She was as naively frank about that as if she were still a schoolgirl.

“
So am I.
”
He sounded genuinely regretful too.
“
But let me take you to lunch tomorrow, Loraine.
”

“
I’d love that! But it has to be rather a short one.
”

“
Very well. I’ll fetch you from here at
—
when?
”

“
A quarter to one?
”

“
Without fail,
”
he promised. Then he bade his mother goodbye, just touched Loraine’s smooth cheek with a caressing finger, and went away.

Mrs. Otway looked after him. Then, as the silver-grey curtains over the doorway fell to behind him, she said, flatly and bitterly:

“
He’s gone to meet that girl, of course.
”

“
Oh
—
’ Loraine was so astounded at this unexpected
reaction that for a moment she could only stare wordlessly at the older woman.