Page 2 of The Replacement Duchess

“You are wrong, Sister. It matters a great deal to me. I want you to be happy.”

“Then go to the ball without me, find love, and make a life of your own. It is all I have ever wanted. Besides, if I am gone, who will take care ofhim?”

“I can take care of myself,” their father spat, and the two girls sighed.

“Oh, no, is that him?” their maid, Elizabeth, asked, rushing to their aid. “This is the third time this week, and it is Wednesday!”

“Believe me, we know,” Diana sighed. “Now, perhaps I am right and it would be better to loft.”

“It would certainly be better for his clothing.” Elizabeth nodded. “As the person responsible for cleaning those grass stains out of his shirts, it is certainly my preference.”

“Wonderful.” Diana nodded. “Then it is settled. Samantha, you take his arms, I shall take his legs, and Elizabeth if you could support the middle.”

“Is that… appropriate?”

“If it is between that and cleaning a green shirt that was once white, which would you prefer?”

The maid’s preference, as it turned out, was the former.

They propped the Earl up on the sofa, with him still grumbling that he was fine, that there was no need for such fuss, that he required a drink, and then left the room, locking the door behind them.

“He shall be furious later,” Samantha said quietly.

“He shall be asleep within ten minutes, more like,” Diana replied. “And he will not remember a thing. He never does.”

“I know, but I worry that one day he will, and then what will he do?”

“In an ideal world, he might learn something, but I will not hold my breath for that.”

“Nor will I, but there is one thing that I can count on, is there not?”

“Please do not tell me anything more about this ball.” Diana grimaced. “I do not wish to attend. I do not charm like you do.”

“If I charmed even half as much as you claim I do, I would not be twenty and unmarried.”

“You are unmarried simply because you choose to be. I know that if you tried, you would be perfectly fine. Father may have squandered a lot of money on his… indulgences, but at least he has not touched our dowries, so you at least have that. You might as well have mine, too.”

“I will pretend not to have heard that last part, Di, for you will find a husband of your own one day. Besides, I do not want a husband because it means that I would have to leave you. I do not wish to do that, it is not right. Not after everything that you did for me.”

“I hardly did much for you.”

“You taught me everything!”

By now, their maid was at least out of earshot.

“You are the reason that I can read and write, and the reason that I can speak French and that I can do some mathematics and play the violin without it sounding like a very unfortunate cat. Should I end up a wife, it shall be all thanks to you for preparing me so well.”

“And it will have been an honor to do so, I assure you. Samantha, I did not do all of those things just to have you wait for me. I did it so that you would shine. I want that for you, and so I need you to at least try.”

“And I will, just as soon as you do the same. If I must find a husband, then so should you. I have to play the part of the perfect lady, and so it is only fair that you do the same.”

Samantha rarely won a battle of wits, but Diana had to admit defeat. There was nothing that she could say to refute her words; she had expectations, and so she had to meet them herself in order to be fair.

“One ball,” she sighed. “One. I will endure a single night of the looks and the comments just for you, and nothing more, simply because I do not think my heart could take anything more than that.”

“You are being dramatic.”

“Only slightly.”

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