Decorated in blue and gold, designed to flatter, the ballroom did have a lustre of elegance, but the tall ceiling only served to allow the noise to echo around and become somehow louder.Vincent’s arm had tightened the moment they entered the room.By contrast, Melody was in a state of rapture. She clung to Jane’s arm and exclaimed as they crossed the threshold. “Oh, Jane! Look at that ivory gown. The ruffle at the bottom is elegance embodied. And there! Oh, the gentleman with the blue jacket.”“Everyone has blue jackets,” Vincent muttered. “Including me.”“And I must say, it suits you handsomely,” Jane said. Vincent’s grumbles ought not amuse her, but they always did.It was Vincent’s habit to play the artist and pay indifferent attention to his dress, so it always took Jane by surprise when he turned himself out in fashionable attire. She had married a very handsome man.She could admire his broad shoulders and fine profile, regardless of what he wore. However, there was something about a blue coat of superfine to make those shoulders seem broader and his waist narrower.
