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He turned around, and she found to her relief that he had a lopsided smile on his face "Daisy, do you suppose you’ll try to take over the House of Parliament someday?"

"They should be so lucky!" she retorted "But seriously, James, will you at least listen to my plan?"

"To conquer the world?"

"To conquer Geoffrey, which isenough so that I would be noticed, it would an to escortwhy, and before we knew it, I would findand then I could char my profile and he would be mine" She sat back, triumphant "Isn’t that a brilliant plan?"

Jaes"

"Such as?"

"Father would think I ooing you and leave me alone for a bit"

Theo clapped "Perfect! I’m absolutely certain that Geoffrey will talk to you Wasn’t he head boy in your last year at Eton?"

"Yes, and because of that I can tell you straight out that Trevelyan would make an uncoood And he has a nasty way ofjokes about people"

"That’s what I like about hily as sin," James added

"He isn’t! He’s deliciously tall and his eyes are bronzy-brown colored They make me think of--"

"Do not tell me," James said with an expression of utter revulsion "I don’t want to know"

"Ofhi," Ja a talent for the obvious "You think the love of your life looks like a ten-year-old obese dog?" He assuht! Trevelyan does have a doggy look about hi that she had not spent seventeen years in the Duke of Ashbrook’s household for nothing, Theo threw one of her slippers straight at Jaraceful (and rather juvenile) scene in which he chased her around the bedchaht her, he snatched her around the waist, bent her forward, and rubbed his knuckles into her skull while she howled in protest

It was a scene that Theo’s bedroom, and indeed, many other chambers on various Ashbrook estates, had seen many a time

But even as Theo howled and kicked at his ankles, Jarant bundle of woainst his arainst him and it felt

His hands flew apart without conscious volition, and she fell to the ground with an audible thud There was true annoyance in her voice as she rose, rubbing her knee

"What’s the matter with you?" she scolded "You’ve never let ames We’re-- You’re soon to be a married woman, after all"

Theo narrowed her eyes

"Andhis cheeks war to Daisy

"You look fine to lance "I don’t see an injury that warrants your dropping me on the floor like a teacup"