The Irresistible Rogue (Playful Brides #4)(24)

“Thank you, Lucy, for your help … and your discretion. I greatly appreciate it.”

Lucy stood. “Don’t mention it, dear.” She glanced around. “Now, I came in here to fetch a book for Jane. She said she left it on the desk.” She wandered over to the desk and picked up a tome. “Ah, here it is. The Long History of Ancient Greece. That’s Jane for you. Always reading something that would surely put the rest of us to sleep immediately.”

Daphne smiled at that. “I suppose I should be grateful that you found me instead of Jane.”

“Don’t be too certain about that. Before Jane and Garrett were married, they engaged in some antics in libraries that would make you blush.”

And with that astonishing pronouncement, Lucy turned and sauntered from the room.

Daphne counted ten, stood, smoothed her skirts, patted the pins in her coiffure, then straightened her shoulders and made her way to the door. Surely the fact that she’d returned to the festivities so long after Rafe’s reappearance would cause any suspicions about them leaving together to be overlooked.

She hoped.

*

The door closed behind Daphne and Delilah popped up from behind the settee and rested her chin on the back of the furniture. “Oh, this was all très intéressant,” she announced to the empty room. “Quite interesting, indeed.”





CHAPTER FOURTEEN




The next morning, Daphne’s maid had no sooner finished pulling up her hair and pinning it in a soft knot on the top of her head than Delilah came strolling into the room. Daphne had chosen a lavender gown with white ribbons at the top and silver cording along the hem. Delilah was wearing a pretty light green day dress with an emerald-green bow on the top of her head. The girl balanced a plate of teacakes in her dainty hand and wore an irrepressible smile on her face.

“Bonjour, Cousin Daphne.”

“Good morning, Dee. Looks as if you’ve been downstairs already.”

“Indeed I have. The breakfast display is particularly impressive. Though I must admit I had a bit of a tussle with Mrs. Upton to get these teacakes. They were the last on a platter. And j’adore teacakes.”

Daphne turned in her seat to look at her cousin. “You won in a fight over teacakes with Jane?”

“I sniffed a little and allowed my upper lip to quiver. I believe she thought I intended to cry. No one likes to see a little girl cry.”

Daphne shook her head, but couldn’t suppress her smile. “You are an irrepressible scamp, Mademoiselle Montbank.”

Still balancing the plate, Delilah took a bow. “Thank you. I consider that a great compliment. There is something much more interesting downstairs than the teacakes, however,” Delilah added.

Daphne widened her eyes. “What’s that?”

“Capitaine Cavendish.”

The brush that had been in Daphne’s hand clattered to the carpet. “Captain Cavendish is still here?”

“Yes,” came Delilah’s swift reply. She popped a bit of teacake into her mouth. “Isn’t that interesting?”

Daphne dismissed her maid and quickly bent and retrieved the brush. There was something in her cousin’s demeanor that told her she knew more than she was letting on. She eyed her cousin warily. “Delilah Montbank, what do you know?”

Daphne set her plate of cakes on the nearby writing desk and did a perfect pirouette in front of the looking glass. “Not much. Only that Capitaine Cavendish kissed you last night in the library and then her grace came in and—”

Daphne gasped. “You were hiding in the library, you little elf?”

Delilah sighed. “Hiding and wishing to Hades that I was you.”

Daphne’s mouth dropped open. “Delilah! I cannot believe you said that.”

Delilah fell to her knees in front of the stool upon which Daphne sat. “Oh, tell me, Cousin Daphne, tell me. What did it feel like? Did your legs turn to jam? Did your heart pitter-patter?” She put the back of her hand to her forehead. “Did you nearly swoon?”

Daphne struggled to keep the smile off her face. “I did nothing of the sort. You are being quite ridiculous.” But Delilah had been right. About the legs turning to jam, and the heart pitter-pattering, too. And there may have been a moment where she’d considered swooning.

Delilah’s brow furrowed. “Well, that is très disappointing.”

“Tell me, you little urchin, what do you want in order to keep silent about this? I cannot allow anyone to find out.”

Delilah’s catlike smile returned to her face. “Don’t worry, Cousin Daphne. I have no intention of telling anyone. Well, Aunt Willie suspects something but—”

“You mustn’t tell Aunt Willie!”

“Aunt Willie is quite clever. She may not make an attractive fichu but she certainly knows more than she lets on.” Delilah hopped to her feet and paced back and forth in front of the windows. “Now, I should think you might give me a bit of your pin money for the next month.”

“Done.”

“And allow me to dress up in your prettiest ball gowns at least once a month for the next year.”

“Done.”

“And let me come with you on Sunday night.”

Daphne gasped again. “How do you know about that?”