Chapter Text
Georgia Devonshire had spent the majority of her life unloved. As an only child, all of her family’s fortunes were up to her. With her father always busy with work, she was left to the devices of her mother. Lady Devonshire was a beautiful woman. Her skin was almost porcelain white, with jet black hair and blue eyes. She relished in her beauty and was so excited when little Georgia came out as a perfect mix between her and her husband. The blue eyes were striking against her darker skin, and the black hair had the texture of her father’s.
It only took a year and a half for Georgia to start gaining unseemly weight. Lady Devonshire refused to pick up such a heavy baby and tried many times to get the staff to feed her less. Alas, no matter what she did, Georgia was heavy set. It broke her heart. This resulted in a childhood full of withheld meals, direct and indirect insults, and the assumption that no man would ever marry her for love or attraction.
In the summer after Georgia’s sixteenth birthday, she was preparing to come out. Both she and her mother were full of dread at the prospect, but there was nothing else to be done. Lady Devonshire had been unable to produce any more children, much to the dismay of her Lord, and so all of her eggs were in this basket. She did not hold out much hope. There was, however, a sliver of hope which still existed in Georgia’s heart. Despite the lack of attention she’d received, she still held onto her dream of walking into her first ball and getting swept off her feet by a handsome suitor. At her first ball, she was sorely disappointed.
She watched from the sidelines as almost every single other young lady got asked to dance. Their dresses twirled so prettily, and laughter rang out. Some of it was probably exaggerated, but Georgia didn’t care. Even if she was going to be miserable and pretending to be happy on the dance floor, that would be better than not being a part of the fray at all.
Two balls later, Georgia began to think she would never get the opportunity to pretend to laugh at the joke of a suitor. She would die old and alone, a disgrace to her family. The thought was almost too much to bear. She left that ball early, with a tutting mother in tow.
Most of the season passed uneventfully for her. One by one, the girls she would talk to at events got engaged, leaving Georgia alone to wonder about her future. Of course, she was happy for the other girls, but she was also jealous. Every time someone proposed, it was one less eligible man out there. Not that Georgia really thought any of those men would be interested in her. She wasn’t holding out hope but giving up wasn’t an option. Even if she knew without a doubt that her efforts would be fruitless, she had to try. For her parents, because in their eyes this was her only purpose. This was her one chance to redeem how disappointing she’d been her entire life. She had to try for herself, because this was her chance to get out. To possibly be appreciated for her skills and personality which her parents continually ignored. Most people did, in fact. It was as if her fat was some kind of shield, and it prevented people from actually seeing her at all. Despite her beauty, people’s eyes always glossed right over her. Bigger was most certainly not better, and no one in the ton seemed keen to let her forget that.
So, at a late season picnic, Georgia was quite surprised when a young man kept glancing her way. She promenaded with her only friend who was still single, Cora. She thought him much too attractive to be paying her any mind.
“Is it my imagination, or is that young man looking at me?” Georgia asked.
Cora followed her gaze and gasped in excitement. “That young man is Colin Bridgerton, and he most certainly is looking at you!”
Georgia’s breath escaped her when she heard his name. Everyone knew of the Bridgertons, of course, but Georgia hadn’t met them. Her family’s social status wasn’t quite high enough to interact with Bridgertons. She’d seen him at a couple of balls during the summer but hadn’t known his name. While most of the other girls memorized names and faces of gentlemen, Georgia had chosen to focus on bettering herself. If she couldn’t be attractive, she would become the best mother there was. A good wife, too, if any man would allow her the opportunity. The best she’d hoped for was an older gentleman without other prospects who would give her children. But Colin could give her so much more. He looked away, and Georgia’s hope fell just as quickly as his gaze.
“I’m sure he was looking at you, Cora,” Georgia said, her voice as plain and unemotional as she could manage to make it. “You’re so beautiful. You’ve had two proposals already.”
Cara blushed and said, “Not from the one that matters.”
She looked across the vast lawn toward a group of men. She’d been in love with the same man since she was a young girl, Elliot Abberton. The two of them had long been friends, but he didn’t seem to see that she wanted more. It frustrated Cara to no end, and consequently Georgia as well, having to hear about it so often.
“He’ll come around someday, Cara,” Georgia reassured her, and she believed it. Cara was kind and beautiful and loved him with her whole heart. If Georgia herself couldn’t have a happy ending, she found comfort in knowing her friend would. She would simply have to.
“I think we should walk over by the Bridgerton boys,” Cara suggested, already steering them in that direction.
“We cannot!” Georgia protested.
But she was being pulled along, and as they got closer it became more apparent that Colin was indeed looking at her. She was convinced it couldn’t possibly be because he found her attractive. She was just too large to be considered seriously romantically, or so everyone had always said.
He strolled a bit away from his family’s tent to be closer to the path, a bounce to his step. Colin was a mixture of boyish charm and impassioned intent as he walked. It was all Georgia could do to not gasp when she saw him up close. He was beautiful. A warm and inviting smile, a sparkle in his brown eyes, and hair she wanted to run her fingers through. She shook those thoughts out of her head.
“I must have an introduction,” He proclaimed when they reached each other.
“Oh, you must?” Georgia asked him with just a hint of attitude.
Cara nudged her but Colin just laughed.
“My name is Colin Bridgerton. I would be delighted to find out yours.” His smile became a bit shy, but he didn’t back down. He waited expectantly for Georgia to make her way out of shock and respond to him. That didn’t happen.
It was Cara who said, “This is Miss Georgia Devonshire.”
Hearing her name snapped her back to reality and she gave a small curtsy. Colin quickly returned it with a bow.
“A pleasure, Miss Devonshire,” he said, taking her hand to kiss.
She blushed as he did so, and then his mother was calling him away, and he bounded back to his tent.
After this encounter, Georgia couldn’t sleep for days. She wandered about her house with her head firmly in the clouds, replaying the brief conversation over and over again.