Page 56 of Ten Lords for the Holidays

Daphne looked out the window to hide her smile, for she knew that Eurydice could not win this argument, at least not whileGrandmamandrew breath. After that, if Daphne succeeded, her very clever sister would be able to make her own choices, however unconventional they might be.

She had to wed a duke.

A rich duke.

Surely her wish on the Christmas pudding could only help?

“Surely not!”Grandmamansaid to Eurydice. “You will desire what you are told to desire, which can only be an affluent husband. After that, you may appeal to him to decide what you are permitted to desire. The matter will be out of my hands.”

Eurydice looked as if she might argue that, but Daphne kicked her, hiding the move beneath her skirts. She couldn’t bear if they argued all the way to Cornwall. Eurydice’s lips tightened but she fell silent.

Grandmamanshook her head. “Though all this racing about may end my days.” She appealed to Nelson. “We only just returned to North Barrows and caught our breath, and now it’s back to Castle Keyvnor again.”

“Indeed, my lady,” agreed the maid.

Jenny nodded, though she had not been with them on the last journey.

“And not to celebrate Christmas at home.”Grandmamansighed. “It does test one’s patience.”

“But it might be quite lovely and festive, my lady,” Nelson dared to suggest.

“A Christmas wedding issoromantic, never mind a double wedding,” Daphne agreed. “What do you think the brides will wear?”

“Does it matter?” Eurydice asked.

“Of course, it matters! When I marry my duke, I will wear a dress the color of champagne,” Daphne said. She closed her eyes, perfectly able to see herself in the dress in question. It greatly resembled one she had seen amongst the fashion plates at her grandmother’s dressmaker, a confection of silk and lace that had haunted her imagination ever since.

“You’ll be all yellow then with your blonde hair,” Eurydice said. “I will wear red when I marry.”

“You will not!”Grandmamandeclared. “If it’s not the rushing about that finishes me, it will be the pair of you!”

“You will survive us all,Grandmaman,” Daphne said soothingly.

Her grandmother harrumphed and rapped her umbrella on the floor of the carriage. “I will see you both married at the very least, though it may be the last deed I do.”

“Let us not hope for that, my lady,” Nelson said with vigor. “I’m certain you would like to see each of the girls deliver their first son.”

“You are right, of course, Nelson.”Grandmamannodded with resolve. “Clearly, I shall have to live a good deal longer.” Her eyes flashed. “But I will faint with hunger if we don’t reach the next tavern soon.” She tapped her umbrella on the roof and roared with a vigor that indicated her demise could not be imminent. “Thompson! Why do we proceed so slowly?”

Daphne wondered whether the driver would pretend that he hadn’t heard her grandmother. He would have to have been deaf to have missed that shout. She wiped the condensation from the inside of the window and peered out into the rain. The carriage leaned as they took a corner, and she caught a glimpse of the road ahead.

She gasped, then polished the window a little more to get a better look. “There’s a coach and four ahead of us, with an insignia on the door.” All of the occupants of the carriage straightened a little at the prospect of a diversion. Even Eurydice looked up from her book. Unfortunately, the road had straightened and they had completed the turn, so one glimpse was all Daphne would have.

“Who is it?” Eurydice asked.

“I don’t know, but there are six black horses pulling the carriage!”

“Six. And the coach?”Grandmamandemanded.

“Very large. Black, as well, with gold trim. It seemed to have flourishes of gold upon the doors.”

Her grandmother inhaled. “How many footmen?”

“Two on the back,Grandmaman, plus the driver and one other.”

The dowager nodded and narrowed her eyes as she peered through the glass. “I know that coach. There cannot be another so fine as far north as this.”

“Whose is it?” Daphne demanded.

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