Courting Miss Lancaster by Sarah M Eden EPUB & PDF – eBook Details
- Author: Sarah M Eden
- Language: English
- Formats: PDF / EPUB
- Status: Available For Free Download
- Series: None
- Price: Free
- File Size: 1 MB
London
August 1806
“First thing in the morning, I am throwing her in the Thames.”
Harry Windover grinned, though he was certain the dire pronouncement
from the Duke of Kielder was meant to inspire anxious concern. While the
rest of England trembled at the slightest hint of a threat from the infamous
duke, Harry’s friendship with the notorious nobleman was of long-enough
standing to allow him greater insight into the gentleman’s character. Adam
Boyce, Duke of Kielder, was more than capable of and, if truth be told,
entirely willing to follow through with the most drastic of threats. But,
though he growled regularly, he acted rationally.
“And what has this doomed female done to deserve such an unenviable
fate?” Harry asked, smiling still.
“She requires a Season,” Adam declared, his tone clearly
communicating his utter disapproval as well as his complete disbelief.
“Most young ladies do,” Harry answered. “How else are the poor dears’
parents to see them married to the highest bidder, er, most suitable
gentleman?”
He almost laughed at the black look Adam gave him. Adam had
redefined “highest bidder” in his courtship. If one were being picky,
courtship would not be the word to describe Adam’s successful acquiring of
a bride. He’d written a letter, offered the equivalent of several small fortunes,
and had been married—all within a few short weeks. Those gentlemen, like
Harry, who did not possess one small fortune, let alone several entirely
disposable ones, found themselves perpetually unsought-after, ineligible, and
very, very single.
“Dare I ask why this particular young lady’s very commonplace
requirement has warranted the ending of her no-doubt short life?”
“If she is dead, she will not need a Season.”
“True, but she would need a wake and a funeral. Those, too, can be
tedious.”
“But far shorter in duration.”
A young gentleman, probably having no more than twenty years in his
dish, passed near the chairs in the back of White’s, where Harry and Adam
were spending the afternoon. With one look, Adam sent the young cub
scurrying in the opposite direction, a look of pale-faced fear crossing his
features.
Harry chuckled. “Must you torture the infantry?”
Adam ignored him. Which made Harry laugh more. It was their pattern,
had been since their days at Harrow. Adam put on his “Fearsome Duke”
façade. Harry laughed at the absurdity of it—he knowing that Adam was a
good-hearted person beneath it—and that made Adam grumpy. Adam, Harry
knew very well, realized he was a different person beneath his ironclad mask,
and it unsettled him to think that his armor could be pierced. Adam hadn’t yet
tossed Harry over, nor run him through, though he had many times threatened
to do so.
Harry returned to the subject at hand. “Countless young ladies have their
Seasons each year, Adam. Why should this particular case upset you so
entirely?”
“In this particular case, I have the dubious distinction of being the
debutante’s guardian.”
For a fraction of a second, Harry’s breath caught. He was certain he
knew the identity of the soon-to-be victim of Adam’s distemper. Athena
Lancaster. “You did apply for legal guardianship of your wife’s sisters and
brother,” Harry reminded him. “When one acquires sisters-in-law, and when
one has provided them with the kingdom’s most enviable dowries, such
things as Seasons must be assumed.”
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