“I could hardly call Lord Dalton a particular friend!” Miss Minkerton said. “And as for any other person, well, he is to be nothing I’m afraid. He will bide his time, surely, you must know it.”
Daisy was entirely confused. She had meant Lord Burke as Miss Minkerton’s friend. How on earth had the lady thought she meant Lord Dalton?
She paused, the confusion beginning to clear. “Miss Minkerton,” she said slowly, “I had presumed, and I am sorry if I have been wrong, that you were developing some feelings of attachment for Lord Dalton.”
Miss Minkerton nearly staggered at the suggestion. “Lord Dalton? Why ever would you think it?”
“Well, the two of you were ever so engaged with one another at the dinner at your house. I had never seen him so engaged. Over nautical maps, of all things. It did seem quite obvious.”
Miss Minkerton touched her palms to her cheeks as if to cool them. “I was only trying to pretend I did not care about…”
“About what?”
“Not about what, about who!” Miss Minkerton said, rather vehemently. “I can see very well that Lord Burke is in love with you. Oh, I know you are retired from society, but he will wait. He is a loyal fellow, so there is no doubt of that.”
“Lord Burke?” Daisy said, incredulous. “That is preposterous. We are brother and sister, if we are anything at all.”
“No, you see,” Miss Minkerton said, “it isIwho am viewed as the sister.”
NowDaisy began to understand the real case.
“I think I do see,” she said. “You are in love with Lord Burke and had somehow convinced yourself that he and I had developed an attachment. AndIhad supposed you had developed an attachment to Lord Dalton.”
Miss Minkerton shook her head. “I am only a sister to Harry, though, so it is entirely unrequited.”
“But that might change, might it not?”
Miss Minkerton gazed at the sea. “I did wonder, I hoped, but then when I supposed he was in love with you…”
“Which is a bit of nonsense,” Daisy said.
“If I have been that mixed up,” Miss Minkerton said, “does that mean you have an attachment to Lord Dalton?”
“Certainly not!” Daisy said. “You must dismiss that idea at once. Instead, you must think of how you might subtly communicate that you are no sister to Lord Burke.”
Miss Minkerton sighed, long and deep. “That is a difficulty. You see, we have gone on so many years one way, and now to go another way…”
“But when did you realize your feelings had changed?” Daisy asked. “What was the moment that made you think you’d rathernotbe as a sister?”
“Oh, my feelings have never changed a jot,” Miss Minkerton said. “I loved him the moment I set eyes on him. I was only thirteen and he was a dashing older boy and well, now, I’ll have to go and marry somebody else!”
“Do not give up so easily,” Daisy counseled.
“Daisy? Miss Minkerton?” Mrs. Jellops called in the distance. “Stop a moment, you leave us quite behind.”
Daisy and Miss Minkerton stopped to allow the other two ladies to catch up to them. It had been a remarkable conversation, so rarely did one ever hear of real feelings or candor from another lady.
As well, she could not help but feel remarkably cheerful over Miss Minkerton’s apparent distaste over the idea of Lord Dalton. As for the lord’s own feelings, that of course was another matter. It was a mystery, really.
Chapter Nine
When Daisy had returned to the house, she’d thought she would rest and then change her clothes for a quiet dinner with only Mrs. Jellops as her company. As it turned out, Lord Dalton had been as highhanded as ever and arranged for guests. He’d left her a note that said there were things to discuss regarding discoveries in her father’s rooms and the most sensible thing to do was to put all heads together. He had taken the liberty of speaking to Flanagan in the kitchens and Lord Burke would inform Miss Minkerton that they were to come to supper. Mrs. Jellops would act as chaperone and so there could be no impropriety.
She had, for a moment, thought to charge over to the cottage and demand that he undo his invitations immediately. She changed her mind when she considered that she might as well hear what had been found, and she would be most interested to observe Lord Burke and Miss Minkerton, and Lord Dalton for that matter, through the glass of the information she now knew.
She put on one of her best dresses, a pale lavender that hinted even the modiste knew she was not too broken up over her father’s demise, and descended the stairs.
Daisy had not much to say to Lord Dalton as they awaited their guests in the drawing room. The only subject that came to mind was decidedly off-limits—are you swooning over Miss Minkerton, and have you noticed that she is swooning over Lord Burke?
