A Little Bit Sinful by Adrienne Basso

pay for their father’s excesses, that her happiness and future would be sacrificed to keep him in the style that he felt he deserved.
    She sighed, then shook off her gloomy thoughts. The reason she had journeyed to Town was to protect Bianca from their father’s plans. If she remained vigilant and determined, it did not have to turn out so badly.
    Chin up,
Eleanor told herself sternly as she strode down the hallway to the sitting room. She settled herself in a worn, yet comfortable armchair before the roaring fire, her needlework in her lap. She always thought better when moving her hands and the pile of garments that needed mending was never ending.
    Eleanor knew the earl would be annoyed if he saw her engaged in such a menial task.
Servants
mended,
ladies
embroidered. But old habits died hard and the familiarity of this task calmed her nerves.
    For a moment she longed for the peace of the country, the quiet, dull life where her biggest worry had been how to stretch the meager household budget to ensure the servants were paid each month.
    “There you are!” Bianca exclaimed as she barged into the room. “I’ve been looking all over the house for you. The rest of my gowns were just delivered and I can’t decide what to wear to Lady Atwood’s dinner party tonight. Please, Eleanor, help me.”
    “Such drama, Bianca,” Eleanor said with a smile as she glanced up from her sewing. “What has gotten into you? ‘Tis not such a dastardly fate, my dear, having too many dresses from which to choose.”
    “Don’t tease, Eleanor. I am truly in a quandary.”
    “Goodness, we can’t have that, now can we?” Eleanor replied, repressing a smile. Obligingly, she put down her sewing and allowed herself to be dragged off to Bianca’s bedchamber.
    As she crossed the threshold of her sister’s room, Eleanor could not contain her gasp of surprise. Never before had she seen such a large assortment of elegant garments. The normally neat chamber was totally transformed, nearly bursting with everything a fashionable lady could ever need, from dancing slippers to bonnets. In the center of it all was a sea of color, with gowns too numerous to count, placed carefully, almost reverently, upon the high four-poster bed.
    Bianca fairly danced into the room, headingdirectly for the bed. She lifted a gown from the top of the pile and turned toward Eleanor.
    “What do you think of this one?” Bianca held up a pale green satin gown with a square-cut bodice that was heavily embroidered in gold thread. The color set off the green in her eyes and the gold brought out the lighter highlights in her amber hair.
    “It’s lovely.” Eleanor stepped forward and lifted the hem. It felt soft and silky between her fingers. “Will you wear it tonight?”
    “Should I? I mean, it’s very pretty, but I thought it might make me look too young. How about the yellow?”
    Bianca lifted another dress. It had a similar shape, but a round neckline and less embroidery. “That’s also very pretty. But I like the green better. It reflects the color of your eyes.”
    Bianca bit her bottom lip. “You are certain?”
    “I am. You will look ravishing.”
    Bianca smiled, but the smile seemed forced.
    “Why are you so worried about your appearance tonight?” Eleanor asked, fearing she already knew the answer. “Lady Dorothea assured us it was going to be a casual dinner party.”
    “Oh, Eleanor, you know why.” Bianca glanced away.
    “Viscount Benton?”
    Bianca nodded enthusiastically. “I’m a bundle of nerves thinking I might see him again. He’s already singled me out. At the Duke of Warren’s ball and again at the park the other day. I shiver thinking about what might happen the next time we are together.”
    Inwardly Eleanor cringed. She too had thought agreat deal about her sister and the viscount, and it never once had a happy ending. “Bianca, dearest, you must not get your hopes raised too high. For a man like Benton, flirtation comes as