Page 75 of Her Ruse with the Rakish Duke

“I think we have to intervene in their love story or the two of them will lead very miserable lives in the future.”

“I do not know why I have to do all that on my wedding day of all days,” he said eyeing her with mock despair. Amelia’s lips curved in amusement.

“But you will do it for me, right?” she said fluttering her lashes in a way that had guaranteed her his full attention in the past

“All right,” he said with a resigned sigh. “I will talk to Victor. You talk to your sister.”

Amelia squealed with joy pecking him sweetly on the cheeks.

“You know you can be very manipulative, right?” he said with an amused smile.

“Yes,” she replied a mischievous smile appearing on her lips, “But you love that about me, do you not?”

“What do you intend to do about Farton though?” He asked. “I doubt he’d let her go so easily considering how long he’s waited to have her.”

Amelia gave him a decidedly mischievous smile. He would do well to stay in her good books because she could prove very vindictive when she needed to be.

“Just leave him to me.”

* * *

A look around the wedding hall told Victor that Daphne was noticeably absent. He could swear on his last penny that it definitely had something to do withFart-tonif he were to borrow Melanie’s words.

He’d just arrived and looked less than stellar but he didn’t care. He’d ridden in as fast as he could to fix the horrible mistake of letting her go.

If only he could find her.

He spied her cousin, Melanie, and approached her. Surely she’d know where her cousin was.

The girl spied him approaching and sniffed, turning her nose up at him, and rather than feel insulted, he took it in stride. He knew she was one of the staunchest supporters of his relationship with Daphne and she would have been greatly hurt when he’d let her get engaged to Percy.

“Miss Keats, I—” he began but was halted by Melanie’s deathly glare.

“What do you want, Your Grace?” she asked rudely.

“Would you happen to know where your dear cousin is?” he asked, still looking around.

“What have you got there?” Melanie nodded towards the bundle tucked under his arms.

He stiffened. “Nothing, just something I need to give Harry.”

“Oh.”

“So, where is Lady Daphne?” he asked again, glancing around him.

Eyes were on him, sniffing at his appearance but he paid them no mind. He had only one goal in mind and that was to find Daphne and fix the stupid mess he’d made.

“I do not know,” she answered. “I didn’t even see her at breakfast.”

Panic filled him as he wondered if anything had happened to her.

“Do you have any idea where she might have gone?”

The girl shook her head.

He thanked her and racked his brain trying to think of all the possible places she could have gone. Not being able to think of the most likely place, he settled on checking all of them until he found her.

* * *