Page 20 of A Temporary Bride for the Duke

“I want to thank you all for agreeing to attend my dinner. I know people say I’m a bit eccentric, and mayhap I am, but nevertheless, you all decide to spend your time dining at my table, so I cannot be so very odd, especially when I am surrounded by such lovely company!” She raised her glass. Daisy, as well as the others, chuckled heartily before taking small sips from their goblets.

With the toast complete, the Dowager continued, “I would like to announce that this Season, I will be hosting several competitive events for couples. The winning couple will receive a generous endowment from me, a means to start a life together in relative ease. To that end, I mean to reward the sum of ten thousand pounds to the winning pair.”

There was an uproar around the table as everyone began talking at once. Daisy could only stare, dumbfounded by the Dowager Marchioness. Ten thousand pounds sounded like the answer to all her prayers.

It would enable me to pay off my father’s debts and start life anew, beholden to no one…except my partner in the games.

Her eyes met Lydia’s, and she widened her own in excitement. Lydia clapped loudly, which urged others in her vicinity to do the same.

While the others showed their jubilation and began planning for the events, the Duke leaned toward Daisy and asked, “You mean to enter these ridiculous games?”

She turned to face him. “Perhaps.”

Immediately, it occurred to Daisy that the lightness she had seen in his eyes before was gone. The bright sparks were extinguished and had been replaced by darkness that spoke of melancholy or maybe even resentment.

Flustered by this change, Daisy could not help but add, “Is there any reason I should not participate?”

The Duke hunched both shoulders up around his ears, giving an enormous sign of indifference. Then, he swiveled in his seat so that they were looking at each other squarely. Daisy felt as if he were trying to tell her something, but she could not fathom what he meant to say.

She was on the verge of asking him to answer her question plainly when he breathed, “You may do as you please, my lady.”

Daisy nodded curtly, then turned away from his intense stare. “So, I shall.”

Chapter Five

Once dinner was finished, they moved back to the parlor. Guests were still discussing the Dowager Marchioness’s announcement with some fervor. Daisy was rather astonished. She’d assumed she would be the only one who would be salivating at the thought of winning such a large sum, but from what she could see, she was far from alone.

She drifted over to a smiling Lydia who was standing with her father and brother and joined their pleasant conversation. Daisy felt a moment’s regret that Lydia’s brother was already betrothed. He would have made an excellent partner, as he was skilled at most games and competitions, but would have no interest in the money at all.

Who could I possibly ask?

She looked around for her father and tensed when she couldn’t find him anywhere in the room.

“Excuse me a moment,” she murmured to Lydia before embarking on a walk around the room to look for him. “Lord, where could he be?”

She walked by the large bay windows that opened out into the garden and spotted him on the veranda, his head in a flowerpot. With an aggrieved sigh, she slipped out the door and went over to him.

“Papa?” she whispered. “What’s wrong?”

Just then, she registered the retching sounds he was making and realized that he was vomiting into the huge vase of peonies. She looked around, worried that someone would see, before standing behind him and rubbing his back helpfully.

“There, there. Let it all out.” She whispered soft, soothing words as he retched miserably.

Finally, he straightened up, using his kerchief to wipe his mouth.

She resisted the urge to wag her finger at him, but could not stop herself from formulating a light rebuke. “You really shouldn’t drink so much, Papa. At least not in other people’s houses.”

“Oh, enough, Daisy. You do not tell me what to do. I am still your father,” he snapped.

Daisy’s shoulders hunched defensively as she took a step back. She was no stranger to being yelled at by her father, but usuallyhe waited until they were in the confines of their own home to turn on her. His eyes widened as if he also recognized that he had gone too far. He mumbled something that could be an apology and hurried back inside.

Daisy watched him go, shaking her head slowly. She could not wait to be married and out from under her father’s thumb. Much as she loved him, he was exhausting and recalcitrant.

I shall make sure my husband is a teetotaler who abhors gambling and loves children.

She took a long breath and meant to return to the parlor, but her way was blocked by a familiar figure. She stopped short with a tired sigh. Daisy was not certain when Lord Dulforth joined the soiree. She had not noticed him sulking in a corner when she first entered the house, nor had he been in her line of sight at dinner. Yet here he stood, with his mustache quivering, glowering at her.

“You were supposed to give me some time, not hounding me everywhere I go.”