The Heiress Bride (Sherbrooke Brides 3)

“Me? Ugly? I’m a Great Beauty, just like my mama. Everyone says so.”

“Oh? Let me see.” Sinjun then did exactly what Dahling had done to her. She ran her fingers over the little girl’s face, pausing here and there, saying nothing.

Dahling began to fidget. “I am a Great Beauty. If I’m not now, I will be when I’m grown up.”

“You also have the look of your father. He’s very handsome, so that’s all right. You have his eyes. Beautiful dark blue eyes he has, and so do you. Mine are also beautiful, don’t you think so? They’re called Sherbrooke blue. That’s my family name.”

Dahling chewed on her bottom lip. “I suppose so,” she said at last. “But that doesn’t mean you’re not still a little bit ugly.”

“You have your father’s dark hair. That’s also nice. Don’t you like my hair? It’s called Sherbrooke chestnut.”

“Maybe it’s all right. It’s very curly. Mine isn’t. Aunt Arleth just shakes her head and says I must bear with it.”

“But you’re still a Great Beauty?”

“Oh yes, Papa told me so,” Dahling said with complete conviction.

“You believe everything your papa tells you?”

The little girl cocked her head to one side. “He’s my pa. He loves me, but sometimes he doesn’t see me or Philip, now that he’s the laird of the Kinross clan. It’s a very important job. He’s very important and everybody needs him. He doesn’t have much time for bairns—children.”

“You don’t have your father’s nose. Yours is turned up on the end. Is that like your mother’s?”

“I don’t know. I’ll ask Aunt Serena. She’s Mama’s younger sister. She takes care of me when the governesses all leave, but she doesn’t like to. She’d rather be out picking flowers and wearing flowing gowns like a girl waiting for a prince to come.”

• Sinjun felt a sinking at that artless news. “Governesses? You and Philip have had more than one?”

“Oh yes, we never like them, you see. They’re all English—like you—and ugly, and we make them leave. That, or they didn’t like Mama, and she’d make them leave. Mama didn’t like other ladies around.”

“I see,” Sinjun said, but didn’t. “How many governesses have you had since your mama went to heaven?”

The little girl said very proudly, “Two. But mind you, it’s only been seven months. We can make you leave, too, if we want.”

“You think so, do you? No, don’t answer that. Now, my dear, I must attire myself for dinner. Should you like to help me, or would you like me to help you?”

Dahling frowned. “What’s wrong with me?”

“Do you dine in the nursery or with the family?”

“Papa decides. He decides everything now that he’s laird. Aunt Arleth doesn’t like it. I’ve seen her eyes turn red sometimes she’s so angry at him. Papa says that sometimes we’re the very devil and h

e doesn’t want us around when he’s eating his soup.”

“Well, why don’t you dine with us this evening, to celebrate my being here. Do you have another gown?”

“I don’t like you and I don’t want to celebrate. You’re not my mama. I’ll tell Philip that we’ll make you leave.”

“Do you have another gown?”

“Aye, but not new. It’s short, just like this one. Papa says we don’t have any groats for fripteries—”

“Fripperies.”

“Yes, that’s it. Aunt Arleth says I grow too fast and Papa mustn’t waste his groats on me. She says she’s not surprised that we’re poor, since he should never have been the laird in the first place.”

“Hmmm. Your papa now has sufficient groats for new dresses. We’ll ask him.”

“They’re your groats. I heard Cousin MacDuff talking to Aunt Arleth about how you were a great heiress and that’s why Papa married you. She sniffed and said it was proper that he had sacrificed himself. She said it was the first decent thing he’d done in his life.”