She Hid Under a Table to Escape a Matchmaker — The Duke Was Already There
Chapter 11
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"That was before she was going to be my wife.""I imagine she will continue being Winnie."Osric considered this, then began to laugh at himself. "Yes, I suppose she will."The boot arrived. He put it on, stood, and came back to embrace his brother with such abruptness that Gilbert nearly caught his chin against a shoulder."Thank you for all this.""You are welcome.""And for not giving me advice.""I am acquiring restraint.""Does it hurt?""Considerably. Go away before I recover."In another part of the house, Daphne was pinning a small flower into Winnie's hair. Her sister had been cheerful until their mother began crying; now she was trying not to cry herself because somebody had warned her about her face."You may cry," Daphne said. "We can repair it.""I am happy.""That is sometimes a cause."Winnie looked up at her in the mirror. "Will you miss me?"Daphne adjusted the flower so she could answer without making a performance of it. "Dreadfully. I shall have to find somebody else to borrow things and return the wrong ones."Her sister laughed, then caught her hand. "You can come whenever you like.""I know.""And you needn't bring something useful."Daphne looked down at her. For a moment, she could see every age Winnie had been, and the woman sitting quite steadily beneath them all. "I shall bring myself and be extremely demanding.""That will be a novelty."They embraced carefully around the dress. Their mother cried again. This time, both daughters laughed with her.The church was full of people trying to be quiet while arranging coats, gloves, children, and opinions about the weather. Gilbert waited beside his brother. When Winnie appeared, Osric ceased looking at anyone else.That was the part Gilbert remembered afterwards: not the flowers, which were lovely, or the order of events, which proceeded much as it should. He remembered his brother seeing the woman he wanted to marry and forgetting to be observed.Daphne saw it, too. She looked towards Gilbert without intending to. He was already looking at her. They both turned away rather late.The vows were spoken. Winnie answered clearly. Osric's voice caught once, then steadied. Their hands met with the familiar assurance of people who had spent enough time together to know what the other felt like when nervous.Outside, the guests assembled into groups that immediately became different groups whenever someone tried to find a missing relation. An aunt complained that she had been standing beside the wrong carriage. Nobody could establish what made it wrong, but she moved and became satisfied.By the time they returned to the house, Daphne's cheeks hurt from smiling. The breakfast room looked like a place where people could enjoy a meal. Yellow roses stood low enough to leave faces visible. The great ferns had been stationed beyond the doors, receiving compliments at a safe distance from the plates.