My Fair Lily Read Online Free PDF Page A

insisted, was to blame.
    She could see clearly when squinting, but that wouldn’t do. One could not go about in society looking like a mole just come out of its burrow.
    Drat. She had to find her spectacles.
    “Mother said something about an E.C.”
    Lily shook her head. “Doesn’t sound familiar.”
    “Aha! Here’s my riding habit. Wait for me. We can march downstairs together.”
    She watched as Dillie quickly changed into her riding attire. The two sisters then turned to each other with matching sardonic grins, for they were mirror images, both dressed in black velvet skirt and jacket, and polished black boots.
    “You look nice, Miss Lily. The black velvet brings out the shine in your dark hair and deepens the blue of your eyes. Why, they almost look violet. And I like how you’ve styled your hair.”
    “Thank you, Gladys.” She’d pulled it back in a fashionable French braid. Nothing too fancy or complicated. She peered into the mirror once more while she pinched some pink into her cheeks and lightly nipped at her lips to add a little flush and fullness to them.
    Dillie nudged her out of the way. “My turn. Are you sure you don’t know what an E.C. is?”
    “I’m certain. Why do you keep asking?”
    “Because the envelope is addressed to Miss Lily Farthingale from E.C.”
    “Not a what, but a who ,” Lily corrected her sister. A thought crossed her mind, but she quickly shook it off. No, it couldn’t be Mr. Cameron. Surely, he had no money. And what was his name? Alexander? Malcolm? Angus? Perhaps, James? “An E.C. with a duke’s crest?”
    Dillie and Gladys nodded.
    “Right, time to solve the mystery.” She descended the stairs, ready to face the horde of aunts, uncles, and cousins, ranging in age from six to sixty, who were gathered in the entry hall for the sole purpose of finding out why the duke had sent her those boxes.
    It was to be expected. Farthingales were notorious for prying into everyone’s business but their own, which they tended to leave in shocking disarray. Though the Farthingale townhouse was a large, gray stone affair with equally large and impressive rooms, right now it felt quite small and oppressive.
    Her mother stepped forward. “Here they are… er, Lily?”
    “Yes, Mother. It’s me.”
    “Good. Are you certain you’re not Dillie?”
    “I ought to know myself.” She breezed past her relatives, scooped up the boxes, and made for the stairs.
    Dillie blocked her path. “We do not keep secrets in this family.”
    More precisely, one tried to keep secrets but never succeeded in this household.
    She heard the word “duke” whispered several times. Finally, her uncle George folded his arms across his chest and said, “You’re not going to win this battle, Lily.”
    “Even you, Uncle George?” All was lost if her most reliable ally had deserted to the enemy. Not that her family was that…no, she loved them all dearly…most days.
    Sighing, Lily opened the smallest box. “My spectacles! Wherever did he find them? You see, I lost them yesterday,” she started to explain, but quickly saw that no one cared.
    A collective rumble of disappointment resounded through the entry hall. Had they expected diamonds?
    “Open the other box,” her mother urged.
    Lily smothered a smile. Having established three daughters in brilliant matches, the matriarch of the Farthingale family obviously believed a fourth was at hand. “I’ve never met the duke, and he’s only aware of my existence because he wishes to keep me out of the Royal Society,” Lily said while unwrapping the second, a slightly bigger and heavier box. “The MacLaurin book!”
    “A book!” Her mother turned away in disgust. The other relatives soon lost interest, too, leaving only Dillie and her uncle George at her side.
    “Open the letter,” Dillie urged. “Is it from the duke?”
    “No, it’s from Mr. Cameron. Ewan Cameron.”
    “Of course! I saw you with him… the man with the overly friendly dog.”