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‘Vi said I had to call you right now Where have you been? Not cool to go offline with no warning, little sis, not cool at all’

It hat, four o’clock in the afternoon? It felt later, as if several days, not just a few hours, had passed since she had woken up in her own bed, in her own flat for the last ti in New York She pictured her sister, feet on the desk, a coffee by her hand, an incorrigible mixture of efficiency, impatience and effortless style

‘Things have been a bit crazy’ Daisy knew she sounded breathless, welcoirlish excitement not a mixture of frustration and eed!’

There was a long silence at the end of the phone Then: ‘But you’re not even dating anyone It’s not Edwin, is it? I thought you said he was dull’

‘No, of course it’s not Edwin!’ Daisy could feel her cheeks heating ‘We split up o, and he’s not dull exactly,’ she added loyally ‘Just a little precise It’s Seb, Sebastian Beresford, you know, Rose, he wrote that book on Charles II’s illegitimate children you loved so much’

‘The hot professor? England’s answer to Indiana Jones?’ The shriek was so loud that Daisy was convinced Seb could hear it through the phone ‘How on earth did youto nowadays? Dinner parties? Acadehed

There it was, unspoken but insinuated How could silly little Daisy with barely a qualification to her na in common with a lauded academic?

‘Through work,’ she said a little stiffly ‘He owns Hawksley Castle’

‘Of course,’ her sister breathed ‘Didn’t he just inherit a title? What is he, a baron?’

‘An earl’ It sounded ludicrous just saying the words She could feel Seb’s sardonic gaze on her and turned around so her back was entirely towards hione outside to have this aard conversation

‘An earl?’ Rose went off into another peal of laughter Daisy held the phone away fro for her sister to cal me up?’

Was it that implausible? Daisy didn’t want to hear the answer