Lady in Wanting - Part 1
Lyra grazed the soft white fabric with her fingertips. Pure as silk, smoother then satin. Of all the materials presented thus far, this felt the most fitting. Nothing compared, in all of Renaissance.
Melinda’s wedding gown would be perfect.
“I approve,” Lyra said. “How does it fair for you?”
Melinda copied Lyra’s approach with a nervous hand. Such a beautiful hand. Not a single blemish squandered her skin. Her green eyes gleamed of mixed excitement and caution within a round face. Even her hair matched the fabric well. Her fair complexion had taken root in her hair, making each strand look almost white. She felt the material, nodded, and abruptly excused herself.
Something troubled her. That much was obvious.
“Is something wrong with her?”
Lyra turned to the tailor—or rather Giles, his apprentice. The muscles of his mandible tensed slightly, as if his teeth clenched. Not with anger, but concern. The ends of his yellow hair did not extend long enough to hide this minute detail. Lyra found it rather appealing. “I’ve wondered that myself. She’s hard to keep up with, since she got engaged to Philliam. Now I’m dragging her about!”
“You don’t sound happy for her.”
“She may be the richest girl in town,” Lyra explained, “but she’s my best friend.”
Giles folded the fabric into a square and tucked it under his arm. “She’s lucky, then.”
Lucky? Something about the way he said that made her wonder. Did he just make a subtle pass at me? Even if he did not mean it that way, she did not mind the contemplation. Not one bit.
“I best give this to my master,” said Giles, “so he can start.”
“Would you mind walking me out?”
“Uh,” he stammered. “Sure.”
Lyra slowly seized his extended elbow as soon as he left the counter. Such a gentleman. His shop was much like the others in the small district, differed only by shelves of fabric, sewing tools, and other wears. Lyra never felt his arm before. The long sleeve shirt beneath his tunic did a marvelous job of hiding his firm bicep. He was a mystery. She expected nothing less of a blacksmith or one of the many miners from Heriot’s Pass, but from a tailor in training?
Curious indeed.
“Where do you find your materials?” Lyra asked. “They’re exquisite!”
“Imported, mostly,” Giles answered, “but we find worms in the Assart forest.”
Lyra summoned a quiet laugh. “To think my dress came from the bellies of those creatures.”
“I remember it.” Giles glanced at her. “The seams were devilishly hard to keep from puckering.”
Pausing, Lyra glanced into his light-blue eyes. “You made my dress?”
He gazed back with a nervous smile. “And others . . .”
Though she had a thousand responses, Lyra let her surfacing blush speak for her.
“I, umm,” Giles stammered again. “I’d better go . . .”
“You’ll be at the mask, tomorrow night?”
“For Philliam’s return?” He looked more nervous than ever. “I have no invitation.”
“I’m inviting you.”
“You think it wise?”
“To be my escort? I think it very wise.”
Giles nodded. “Then I will come. Good morning.”
He bowed and parted. Lyra watched him move behind the counter to the back of the shop. She could not believe her forwardness. For a moment, she did not care. She knew Giles for a long time, ever since the establishment of Renaissance. Her heart and mind finally agreed.
She truly longed for him.
His hands caressed her satin dress once. If only the fabric on her body were his hands now.
Saving the thought, Lyra turned to look for Melinda.
(600 words: Someone might fall in love)
* * *
Friends and fellows, you've just read the first of more parts to come in The Rule of 3 Blogfest! A recent comment from Rachel's Platform Building Campaign suggested that maybe I should give Romance a try?
Why not? Couldn't hurt, right?
While strictly Romance is about as foreign to me as imported sea urchins, and I'm sure the results will be cheesier than a cheese factory floor, I'm game for challenging myself. So. Am I off to a good start?
This is an October-long deal, so if you want to find out what's eating Melinda, or want to know what will go down at the mask, click back every Wednesday!
I'm David, and I have a sudden urge to buy flowers ...
Click back tomorrow for a new website announcement!
I think you're off to a great start! I really felt the Chemistry coming through. I don't know how good I am writing loving scenes, but I generally gag every time I read I've created. But I do like to read romance and I think you did great!
ReplyDeleteI really liked it, although I admit I had to reread the beginning. When Giles says, "Is something wrong with her?" I was confused because I didn't register that Melinda had left. The dialogue between Giles and Lyra flows really well, though.
ReplyDeleteSounds like an interesting contest. I wish I had known about it sooner so I could enter. Best of luck to you!
By the way, where did the art come from?
ReplyDeleteI like this little thing that's blossoming between these two, but I'm more interested in what's eating Melinda. Just pre-wedding jitters? Or something else? :-)
ReplyDeleteJeanie - You jumped headlong into my experiment? Awesome! Thanks for reading! :)
ReplyDeleteTsira - I totally forgot to tag the source. Tagged now. Click the picture. And thank you for your feedback! I'll avoid that confusion next time.
Sarah - *grins* you're in for a surprise! :)
I love it, and I love it even more that it is being written by a guy! Bravo!
ReplyDeleteHard to write through a woman's perspective, David, but you pulled it off flawlessly, Roland
ReplyDeleteNice start to your Romance career! Glad you're giving it a shot. The fun part about writing Romance is that it can also be almost any other genre, too.
ReplyDeleteI'm like you, one of those urchin guys when it comes to romance. BUT, you ensnared me with this, David. The scene was beautifully portrayed and I was actually THERE. Great job!
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks for your kind comment on my blog. Please consider me a follower. Can't wait to see what you do from here.
You make good cheese! I really liked your story. The scene is vivid and I can see it in my head while I read. I am aching for Lyra and Giles to see what happens next! My fave line: Her heart and mind finally agreed.
ReplyDeleteWell done!
very nice. Very brave of you as well. kudos!
ReplyDeleteI loved this, could make a good period romance.....its often the minions whose lives have more spice to it. Maybe Melinda's marriage is a business alliance and nothing more. Romance is difficult to write in the sense it often comes off cheesy or contrived, not here. I will be back for more.
ReplyDeleteThis is a note to say that I’ve been by to read your entry. As one of the judges, I don’t want to make any specific comments that could betray my judgement — keeps you guys in suspense for longer! :) Suffice it to say that I’m truly enjoying all the different and creative takes on Renaissance and the Rule of 3!
ReplyDeleteJ.C.
Way to break out of the box! Do we get Giles or Melinda next week?
ReplyDeleteLike TSira I had to re-read the beginning. However your descriptions are spot on and the dialogue flows well.
ReplyDeleteI liked the chemistry. Lyra the aggressor and Giles evasive yet somewhat interested. Nice tension.
I'm not into too much of the gushy romance thing either, but I have to say you did a fantastic job for the first time.
I love how you tied in the fabric of the dress, it added a sensual feel to the whole thing. :) I really liked this - great entry!
ReplyDeleteI think it's a great start. I like the build and the tension between the characters. Good descriptions and imagery using the fabric! =) I'm definitely going to stick around to hear more.
ReplyDelete"The muscles of his mandible" totally made me wonder for half a second if he was part insect. I know the term refers correctly to humans as well, but, well, you generally don't see it used in fiction to refer to humans. ;)
ReplyDelete“The seams were devilishly hard to keep from puckering.”
Sounds like you know something about satin!
I liked this very much. The chemistry between Lyra and Giles was good - and who wouldn't love a character named Giles? ;) I was a bit confused about why Lyra has to drag Melinda around if she's been hard to keep up with since her engagement, though. Has something changed more recently than the engagement??
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming to Renaissance with us, and hurrah for trying out an unfamiliar genre! Best of luck!!
Looking forward to seeing what happens between these two!
ReplyDeleteSteamy but not cheesy at all :) You set the chemistry between these two characters very well!
ReplyDeleteI admired her forwardness. I like her very much as well as the dress maker. You set it up quite nicely in a way that was natural. I can't wait until next week and see what happens next.
ReplyDeleteWith a setup like that, there better be sex in the near future. ;^)
ReplyDeleteWow David! I'm really interested. And, you did a great job at setting up the world. I really want to know what happens. Now I'll go back and read the next installment.
ReplyDeleteWhy do I have a feeling there'll be a love triangle somewhere in there? Brave of you to step into the romantic waters, I should try that sometimes :)
ReplyDelete