princess georgiana, the granddaughter of queen charlotte, makes her third annual trip to london for the season since her unhappy marriage to a future european king. they despise each other yet everyone wants their marriage to work except the husband...
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in the high society of london, where duty and desire collided, a tempest brewed, threatening to shatter the rigid conventions imposed upon the aristocracy since their birth.
being born into one of the ton's esteemed families carried immense expectations. sons were tasked with upholding ancient lineages and overseeing vast estates, whilst daughters were expected to provide sons and epitomise charity, chastity, and grace, regardless of their own personal circumstances.
within the gilded walls of buckingham palace, where duty and honour reigned supreme, secrets hid amidst the opulence and an issue that required an intervention of royal proportions was to arrive promptly.
early that spring morning, as sunlight dared to stream through heavy satin curtains hiding the ornate floor-to-ceiling windows, the palace awoke in meticulous grandeur.
queen charlotte, having received compelling letters from france earlier that week, demanded the preparation of a certain royal apartment left untouched for a year. brimsley was summoned and an army of maids and servants embarked on transforming rooms near the queen's own apartment to meet the royal standard, leaving no speck of dust unattended.
exquisitely fluffed feather-filled cushions were carefully arranged within the room and the adjoining hallway with pink and white roses placed in their many vases. the modiste received a prompt command to halt all other work and fashion a new wardrobe of the chicest ballgowns, luxurious pelisses, and morning gowns made from the finest imported velvets, silks and lace. no expense was spared for queen charlotte's beloved grandchild and the dauphine of france, princess georgiana. though georgiana would undoubtedly arrive with a lavish wardrobe, countless dresses were deemed essential; after all, no lady, especially a princess, could possess too many.
since georgiana's birth, queen charlotte adored her, and bidding farewell to the child married off at seventeen to the future king of france had pained her greatly. reminiscing about georgiana's pleas for her dear grandmama to intervene and prevent the marriage, the queen had firmly urged composure and the embracing of new responsibilities. witnessing concerning reports about her granddaughter's turbulent marriage, regret gnawed at the queen as she pondered whether her intervention could have led to a happier twenty-year-old georgiana.
following yet another timely disagreement between the dauphin and dauphine, the preparations were hastened and the cases were packed a week earlier than planned. reports from versailles indicated that this particular argument took place in the dazzling hall of mirrors. allegedly it was one of the worst, with raised voices echoing from the war room in front of a sculpture of apollo carved into the wall.
therefore, the timing couldn't have been more ideal for the dauphine's annual visit to london. conveying her demands, queen charlotte glanced at the room with quickness, her tone bristling with determination as she commanded, "no lilies or irises on the palace landscape this summer, brimsley! she claims there is already an abundance at versailles. bring more freesias! roses!"
