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‘I didn’t knoas an earl when I hed and pulled her up the steps and into the vast kitchen diner that dominated the back of the house

‘There you are, darling Three weeks! That’s no tiht no many people can you seat? There will be rooms at the castle for the family, I suppose? Colour scheme yellow and white, of course’

‘Great!’ Violet scowled ‘So I get luets almost any colour she wants’

‘I could have called you Marigold, just think about that,’ her ht away, Daisy And discuss menus, and cakes and do you think Grandpa will come?’

‘The thing is, Mum’ Daisy took a deep breath ‘I don’t need any of those things It’s going to be very small Just us, and Rose, of course, if she can coh’

‘No!’ Daisy jumped at the autocratic note in her mother’s voice It wasn’t a note she heard often; her parents were indulgent to the point of spoiling their girls Rose always said that hy they had sent the school, so that someone else would do the hard parts and they could just enjoy their daughters

‘No, Daisy Not this time’

This time? Daisy stared at her mother in confusion ‘I’

She didn’t get a chance to continue Sherry’s voice rose higher ‘You wanted to leave home in your teens? Your father and I respected that We were both working at eighteen after all You won’t allow us to pay your rent or buy you a car or help you in any way? I don’t like it but I accept it You visit once in a blue moon? I tell myself that at least you text us and I can follow you on Twitter’

The heat burned high on Daisy’s cheeks It hadn’t really occurred to her that her parents would interpret her need to go it alone as rejection She held up a hand, whether in defence or supplication she didn’t know

It made no difference; her et et married away fro I know you, you’ve drea since you were tiny and that,to letlady, nobody—’ the blue eyes flashed ‘—nobody is going to stopit for you’