Page 48 of Duke of Diamonds
The veins in his neck bulged, his cheeks mottled with rage.Not shaming myself or propriety. No, only him. Always him.
Fiona held her ground, though her heart pounded painfully in her chest.
“I still have every right to make my social calls, Father.” She met his furious glare.
“Is this how you repay me for raising you in comfort? For giving you every luxury life could offer?”
Fiona kept her spine straight, her hands folded neatly before her.
“You merely did what any father ought to do,” she said.
Her father’s face flushed an ugly red, the vein at his temple pulsing.
“Ungrateful child! There is not a sensible bone of gratitude in your body.”
Fiona allowed herself a small, cool smile.
“I must have inherited it from somewhere,” she said. “Do you not think so, Father?”
His mouth opened and closed, his fists clenching at his sides, his chest heaving with suppressed fury.
Without granting him the satisfaction of a further scene, Fiona turned on her heel and walked away.
You will never be pleased with me, Father. And I shall no longer waste my breath trying.
CHAPTER 17
“You would not have honored the invitation without a litany of complaints had it come from me,” Elaine said, tilting her glass with a pointed look.
Isaac accepted his glass of port with a faint smile as he settled into the comfort of the drawing room chair. He was in the company of his brother-in-law, the Marquess of Darlington, who had—supposedly—insisted on a small, private dinner to celebrate Isaac’s newly announced engagement.
The evening carried a rare softness, and laughter drifted easily through the air.
Isaac tipped his head, a quiet amusement stirring in his chest.
“Perhaps because Samuel exercises a measure of subtlety,” he said. “You might learn a thing or two from him, Elaine.”
Elaine sniffed and flicked open her fan with a dramatic flourish.
“Last I checked, I was your sister, not Samuel.”
Isaac lifted his glass in lazy salute.
“Are you jealous of your own husband, Elaine?”
Samuel, lounging beside her, chuckled and tapped his glass lightly against hers.
“Be kind to me, Elaine,” Samuel said, “and perhaps I shall reveal the secret that coaxed your brother here.”
Isaac gave a short laugh, setting his glass down on the side table with a muted clink.
“You speak as if I were some reluctant rodent, tempted from my hole with promises of cheese.”
Elaine laughed, her hand fluttering to her throat as if to contain it.
“I am practically overflowing with kindness, Samuel darling. Now, do tell me your secret,” she said, leaning toward him with a mock-pleading glance.
Isaac stretched out his legs, crossing them at the ankle.
