Barbara Bradford - The Cavendon Women

When Daphne had asked her what had gone awry, Olive had fallen silent, glumly shaking her head, and had changed the subject.

‘We’re not intruding on your privacy, are we?’ Miles asked from the doorway, where he had suddenly appeared with Cecily.

‘You are,’ Daphne answered. ‘But come in anyway.’ She smiled at them and went on, ‘Cecily, you do look lovely. What a smart dress. But then you know that. You designed it. I’m wearing one of yours this evening, that lovely turquoise and green chiffon you made for me in May.’

‘It really suits you, Lady Daphne, and the colours are wonderful for you.’

‘Thank you, Cecily, that’s what my husband says.’

‘Can I look at the guest list?’ Miles asked, businesslike as he usually was.

‘Of course.’ Daphne held it out to him and spoke to Cecily again. ‘Tell me, how do you manage to stay cool and calm with so much going on around you? Cavendon has been in an uproar all day.’

Cecily, who had seated herself in a chair, smiled at Daphne. ‘I ignore it. Concentrate on whatever project I’m working on. I won’t allow anything to distract me.’

‘That’s probably one of the secrets of your great success in business,’ Daphne remarked, meaning this.

‘You can be sure of it,’ Miles interjected. ‘Focus, determination and desire to do it right. That’s always been Ceci’s rule, even when she was little.’

There was such admiration in his voice, Cecily was taken by surprise at this unexpected praise, and looked across at him. How weary he was, and depleted. Her heart went out to him. She had begun to understand how much he had suffered in the last few years. Harry had told her a lot last night, and she knew her brother spoke the truth.

Miles walked over to Daphne and sat down in a chair next to her, studying the list. ‘Who’s this Richard Bowers chap? His name rings a bell.’

A wry smile touched Daphne’s mouth. ‘He’s Aunt Vanessa’s current boyfriend. It’s serious. She told Papa they will be announcing their engagement soon. Apparently she had been intending to tell Papa about him this weekend, and so she asked if she could invite him to the wedding, to meet Papa before he went on his honeymoon. Our father agreed. What else could he do?’

‘So there’s going to be another wedding?’ Miles said.

‘Seemingly so, but listen, the two of you, what I’ve just told you is confidential. Vanessa doesn’t want to announce the engagement yet. He’s from the Barnard family, or rather his mother is, and Great-Aunt Gwendolyn knows her.’

‘I think I know him,’ Miles said. ‘He’s with the Foreign Office, a diplomat.’

‘No, that’s his brother, Clive. Dulcie told me that Richard is in the arts. I’m not sure what he does.’

Miles nodded, then murmured, ‘Ah, I see Mark Stanton is coming, and also Paul Drummond. I’m glad there are a few extra chaps. We can dance.’

‘Dance? What do you mean?’ Daphne asked, her voice rising in alarm.

‘I’ve booked a quartet to play after dinner.’

‘Miles, you didn’t! That’s so expensive,’ Daphne protested.

‘It’s all right, Daphers, I’m footing the bill. It’s … well, sort of my wedding present to Papa and Charlotte, and Cecily has offered to pay for the fireworks display.’

Daphne gaped at her brother. ‘You can’t be serious,’ she spluttered. Sudden anxiety echoed in her voice. ‘Papa and Charlotte wanted a small, very quiet wedding, no fuss. I’m sure this news will upset them.’

‘No, it won’t, you’ll see,’ Miles reassured her, sounding confident. ‘I have been inspired by Aunt Lavinia’s mean-spirited attitude. Cecily and I decided we needed to give the engagement dinner a little bit of a boost.’

‘It will give Aunt Lavinia a bit of a shock,’ Daphne exclaimed, and then laughed when she saw the look on her brother’s face. ‘She will certainly think that a fireworks display is vulgar.’

‘But it’s nicer than having a cream bun pushed in your mouth, don’t you think?’ Dulcie said as she walked into the conservatory.

Miles said, ‘She will be apoplectic when the fireworks start.’ As he looked from his sisters to Cecily, there was a wicked glint in his blue eyes.

Later that afternoon, when Daphne told Hugo about the quartet and the fireworks, he burst out laughing. She was so taken aback by his hilarity, she could only stare at him nonplussed.

Once he had stopped, she asked, ‘Why are you laughing? Papa and Charlotte won’t like it: dancing and fireworks and all the fuss. They wanted a quiet wedding.’

‘Yes, I know. Don’t worry, darling, I do believe your father is aware of Miles’s plans.’

Daphne frowned. ‘You think Miles has told Papa?’

Hugo nodded. ‘The other day Charles made an odd remark to me, about being a bit rusty for the dance floor. He then went on to say something about the villagers coming to the park on Saturday night. Before I could question him, we were interrupted by a very important call from New York. And then I forgot all about it. You know how I am when business intrudes.’

Daphne shook her head. ‘I wonder why Papa didn’t mention it to me? He usually consults with me on everything.’

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.