A Family Affair (14 page)

Her
brothers
were
still
arguing
over
the
best
way
to
stack
chairs,
which
didn’t
surprise
her in
the
least,
knowing
how
stubborn
they
both
were.
She
made
a
little
wager
with
herself that
they
would
continue
at
least
until
next
Saturday,
seven
days
away,
before
they
found
something
else
to
dissect.

She
loved
all
twelve
of
these people
so
much,
even
her
petty-minded
Aunt
Diana,
and
she
knew
they
all
adored
her
right
back.
She
was
surrounded
with
love,
and
yet
somehow
she
suddenly
felt
as if there
was
a
small
piece
missing.
Like
there was
one
more
chair
needing
to
be
occupied
for
her
to
be
complete.

The
thought
disturbed
her
a
little,
because
she
could
easily
guess
from
whence
it
originated.

It amazed her how important Devlin had become to her in the last two days. Now all she wanted was to
get
to
know
him,
the
real
him.
What
were
his
dreams,
his
plans
for
life?
Where
had
he
been,
and
how
had
it
made
him
into
the
unbelievably
charismatic
person
he
was
today?
And, more importantly, what
were
his
thoughts
about
stacking
chairs...

“Fanny
dear,
did
you
see
all
the
beautiful
flowers
that
were
delivered
to
you?”
Aunt
Diana
asked,
interrupting
her
thoughts.

“N-
no,”
she
stuttered. She had been daydreaming about Devlin as she passed the foyer and hadn’t noticed anything out of the ordinary.

“How
could
you
miss
them?
They
were
all
over
the
hallway—I
hardly
found
my
way
here!”

“Oh,
come
on,
Sebastian,
they
were
not
everywhere,”
Sin
mocked,
and
gave
Fanny
a
what-an-ass
look,
which
only
garnered
him
a
bread
roll
in
the
head,
thrown
by
his
devoted
brother.

“They
were
too,”
Sebastian
growled,
while
his
brother
rubbed
the
side
of
his
head.
“I
felt
like
an
adventurer exploring
an unknown
jungle
when
I
came
down
for
breakfast.
You,
sister
dear,
must
have
crushed
a
lot
of
hearts
yesterday
when
you
kept
ignoring
all
your
beaus
for
your
one
and
only.”

“I
did
not,”
Fanny
gasped.

“Did
too.”

“Did
not!”

“Children,
children,”
Caroline
called out
with
despair.
“Please
behave. We
are
trying
to
enjoy our
breakfast.”

Sebastian
gave
Fanny
a
superior
grin,
and
she
almost
growled
at
him
for
being
such
a
tease.
This
was
the
bad
side
of
having
siblings
who
were
close
to
you: they
knew
exactly
what
buttons
to
push.

Caroline
seemed
to
feel
she
had
to
excuse
her
youngest
son,
and
she
turned
to
her
daughter
with
a
shining
smile.
“There
isn’t
a
jungle,
Fanny,
but
it’s quite
a
lot
of
flowers.
There were also
a stack of
calling
cards
left
for
us,
including
some
invitations
to
some
especially pleasant
assemblies,
suitable for
a
young
lady.
Tonight
we
are
going
to
dine with
my
parents,
as
you
well
know,
but
tomorrow
we
are
invited
to
a
small
party
where
there
will
be
mostly
other
debutantes
and
their
families,
which
is
an agreeable
way
to
meet
new
friends.”

“Or
a
subtle
way
to
be
able
to
view
your
competition,”
Sebastian
inserted,
bringing
him
a
harsh
glare
from
his
loving
mother.

“Oh,
come
on,
Mother,”
he
admonished with a
laugh.
“You
should
be
the
first
to
admit
how
the
social
season
is
nothing
more
than
a
matrimonial
market.”

“I
do
not
admit
to
such
a
thing.”
Caroline
sniffed.
“And
you
shouldn’t
be
so
rude.
There
is
more
to
the Season
than
matrimony.”

“There
is?”
Sebastian
said,
with
his
green
eyes
wide.
His
mother,
not
so
loving
this
time,
mimicked
his
earlier
move
and
threw
a
bread
roll
at
him.
His quick hand
caught
it
in
the
air,
and
he
bit
off
a
large
chunk
with
his
strong
white
teeth.

“Pig,”
Caroline
hissed.

“Oh,
don’t
I
know
it,”
he
answered
with
his
mouth
full.

His
mother
gave up the argument with a deep sigh.
Fanny bit back a smile, as she knew all too well t
here
was
no
way
their mother
ever
would
win
a
verbal
duel
with
her
sons,
especially
the
younger
one.
He
never
seemed
to
take
anything
anyone
said
seriously.

Butler
came
in
through
the
door
and,
in
a
voice
as
solemn
and
formal
as
his
person,
announced:
“His
Grace,
the
Duke
of
Hereford.”

They
all
went
quiet
for
a
second,
and
then
the
racket
continued. Fanny’s heart skipped a beat, and the only thing she could think was how poorly she was dressed. What on earth had possessed her to come downstairs dressed in one of her oldest morning gowns? This was not how she had planned to look the next time she and Devlin met. She had meant to dazzle him with her finest dress, but instead…