Chapter 68

"How?" Nettie pointed to her bound arm. A bath sounded wonderful, but she wasn't sure how to manage one-armed
"Ta-da!" The first item Diana pulled from her shopping bag was an oiled cotton tablecloth, the kind you could simply wipe down with a damp rag and use again."
"Trust me, darling. You know I always have a plan. No frogs this time, though."
They both chuckled over the shared memory. Nettie sighed. "I missed you, when your family moved to Chicago for the school year. Still, I'm glad they kept their summer home here."
"Me too. I understand why Eli stays. If Randolph's office wasn't in Chicago, I'd have him move to Carstairs in a minute. There's something much more I don't know - real about being here than circulating among the bored snobs on The Golden Mile."
She put her arm around Nettie and helped her out of the bed and into the bathroom. The perfume of jasmine filled the air from the bubbles in the bath water. Nettie found herself stripped of her nightgown and seated on a small vanity stool, while Diana wrapped her arm first in a towel, then in the oilcloth, before tying it up with twine like a butcher's roast.
"Now, I'll turn my head while you drop your drawers, but hold onto my shoulder with your good arm while you step into the tub. Did I ever tell you I helped nurse Randolph's mother when she was ill? You can relax, Net. I know what I'm about."
Nettie did as she was told, cautiously using her uninjured foot to step into the shallow but frothy water. "You have gobs of money. Why not hire a nurse?"
"Oh we did, but I was fond of the old harridan you see. So when the nurse took her day off, I stepped in. It was nice to feel truly useful for a change." Diana turned to help Nettie ease down in the water, holding her cast out over the rim of the tub. Then she slid over the vanity stool so Nettie could prop her arm on that as she relaxed back into the bubbles.
"My God, this is heavenly." Nettie closed her eyes. "I hated to complain but I was feeling a bit rank. Thanks, Di. You're a good nurse, as well as a good frog-hunter."
"Just you wait, Nettie Price. I'm nowhere near done with you yet." Diana produced a bar of jasmine soap and a bottle of actual hair shampoo. "Now let's get that braid out, shall we? The doc said there were no cuts or stitches to worry about on your scalp, so we can give everything a good washing - except the arm, I'm afraid."
"As long as we can do my hand and fingers around the cast, I'll be fine." Nettie relaxed, allowing someone to pamper her for the first time since her mother's death. "I've never used shampoo before. Soap has always worked fine."
"Well, it's supposed to make your hair shinier and softer. We'll rinse it with a little jasmine water, though, so it will smell like the rest of you."
"Good lord. I don't even want to know what you spent. It makes me feel like a charity case." Which, Nettie supposed, was the truth, after all.
Diana made a tsking sound as she massaged the shampoo into Nettie's long hair. "No. You're a friend - of my brother's and mine. And I'm having fun spoiling you. Consider it a trial run for being a mum, if you like."
"I make an awfully big infant. And I'm not sure I like that notion any better." Nettie should object further, but in all honesty, it felt too wonderful. She obediently tipped her head when Diana reached for a silver pitcher filled with scented hot water that had been set aside.
After washing herself - with a little help where her one arm wouldn't reach, Nettie lay in the tub until the water began to cool. Meanwhile, Diana carefully washed Nettie's hand where it extended from the cast, even cleaning under her fingernails and filing off some ragged edges. "Other hand." While Nettie soaked, Diana gave her a similar manicure on her right side, and rubbed jasmine lotion into both. Once again, Nettie felt like a princess - or an imposter.
Mrs. VanCleve was brought in to help towel Nettie dry, apply talc under her arms, and get her dressed in a new nightgown. The older woman goggled at the garment as much as Nettie did.
"Di, this is indecent!" The silk gown was nearly transparent and had no sleeves, so it went on easily over the cast. The neckline was lower than anything Nettie had ever worn.
"Relax. The bed jacket that goes over it is perfectly modest. No one will see this part unless you want them to."
The housekeeper sniffed, but didn't argue.
Diana hadn't lied. The quilted velvet bed jacket was lovely and modest, with mother of pearl buttons up to the lace-trimmed Peter Pan collar, and bell-shaped sleeves that would go right over the cast. Best of all, the blue would match Nettie's eyes, which was maybe the sweetest touch of all. Matching slippers waited beside the bed, and her hair was towel-dried, braided again, and tied with a matching ribbon.
"Now for the final touches," Diana said after an exhausted Nettie had been deposited back in bed. She plucked a gold tube from the dressing table, which seemed much fuller than it had been the night before. "Pucker your lips, like this." She made the shape of a kiss.
Nettie was too tired to argue, so she allowed Diana to apply lipstick and use a soft brush to apply a faint coat of powder on her battered face.
"Here you go." Diana handed over a silver-plated mirror. "I told you pink would be perfect."
Nettie blinked at the sight of herself. It was still her, obviously, and she'd worn blue before, but nothing so fine. She looked - cared for - aside from the black and blue, of course. Maybe even almost pretty. Her eyes misted.
"Now one last thing." Diana took away the mirror and replaced it in Nettie's hand with a small glass bottle. "Jasmin, by the house of Chanel. Just put the tiniest touch on each wrist, for daytime. You can be a bit more liberal if you're going out at night."