perhaps more than that. The business of Newport was society, and there was an endless succession of balls and dinner parties and polo matches.
Though the two of them had behaved impeccably in public, on two magical occasions they had had a moment's privacy, and he had kissed her with a passion that made her blood sing through her veins. At night, as she lay in her chaste bed, she remembered those kisses and yearned for more.
His courtship had culminated this morning, in the few minutes when the two of them had cycled ahead of the rest of their party. After declaring his love, he had asked her to marry him. Dizzy with delight, she had accepted instantly.
As Sunny stepped into the cool marble vestibule of The Tides, she tried to calm her expression, for she knew that she was beaming like a fool. It was going to be hard to keep her lovely secret, but she must until the next day, when Paul would ask her mother's permission. It was not to be expected that her mother would be enthralled by the match. However, Sunny was sure that she would come around, for Paul came from a fine family and he had a distinguished career in front of him.
She handed the butler her hat, saying gaily, 'It's a beautiful day, Graves.'
'Indeed it is, Miss Sarah.' Taking the hat, he added, 'Your mother has asked that you see her as soon as you return home. I believe that she is in her private salon.'
Such summons were not uncommon, so Sunny went upstairs with no premonition of disaster. She knocked on her mother's door and was invited in.
When she entered, Augusta looked up from her desk with triumph in her eyes. 'I have splendid news, Sarah. I'll admit I was tempted by some of the offers I received for your hand, but it was right to wait.' After a portentous pause, she said, 'You, my dear, are going to become the Duchess of Thornborough.'
The shock was so stunning that at first Sunny could only my stupidly, 'What on earth do you mean?'
'You're going to marry Thornborough, of course,' her mother said briskly. 'For the last several days cables have been flying back and forth between Newport and England. The essentials have been settled, and Thornborough is on his way to Newport to make you a formal offer.'
'But… but I thought the Duke of Thornborough was going to marry Mrs. Russell.'
'That was Gavin, the eighth duke. Unfortunately he was killed in a train wreck several weeks ago, two days before he was to marry May.' Augusta smiled maliciously. 'I would wager that May tried her luck with his successor, but clearly the ninth duke has better taste than his brother.'
Feeling ice-cold, Sunny sank into a chair. 'How can I marry a man whom I've never even met?' she said weakly.
'Katie Westron said that you did meet him. In fact, you spent a rather indecent amount of time strolling through the Swindon gardens together,' her mother said tartly. 'He was Lord Justin Aubrey then, younger brother to the duke who just died.'
The fete at Swindon was when Sunny had met Paul. Beside that, other events of the day had paled. Dazedly she tried to remember more. The gardens had been superb, and she vaguely recalled being escorted through them by someone. Had that been Lord Justin? She supposed so, though she could remember nothing about him except that he was dark, and quiet, and… unmemorable.
But it didn't matter what he was like, because she wasn't going to marry him. Steeling herself for battle, Sunny said, 'I can't marry Thornborough, because I'm betrothed to Paul Curzon.'
There was an instant of ominous silence. Then her mother exploded. 'I considered putting a stop to that earlier, but I thought it was a harmless flirtation. I couldn't believe that you would be so foolish as to entertain thoughts of marrying such a man.' Her eyes narrowed. 'I trust that at least you've had the sense not to tell anyone about this so-called engagement?'
Sunny shook her head. 'Paul only asked me this morning.'
'I shall send him a note saying that he is never to call on you, or speak to you, again. That will put an end to this nonsense.' Augusta drummed her fingers on the elaborate desk as she thought. 'Thornborough will be here in nine days. I shall give a ball in his honor a week later, and we can announce the betrothal then. The wedding should take place in October, I think. It will take that long to make suitable arrangements.'
Knowing that she faced the fight of her life, Sunny wiped her damp palms on her skirt, then said evenly, 'You must cable the duke and stop him from coming, Mother. Paul Curzon and I love each other, and I am going to marry him.'
It was the first time she had ever defied her mother, and Augusta 's jaw dropped in shock. Recovering quickly, she said in a low, furious voice, 'You are a Vangelder, my girl, and I've devoted my life to training you to be worthy of the highest station. I will never permit you to throw yourself away on a worthless, fortune- hunting younger son.'
'' Paul is no fortune hunter! He said that if you refused per mission, we could live on his income,' Sunny said hotly. 'And he isn't worthless! He's a British aristocrat, exactly what you wanted for me, and he has a great future in British politics. He was recently made a junior minister, and he says that with me by his side he'll soon be in the cabinet.'
'Your money would certainly help his career,' Augusta said grimly, 'but he'll have to find himself another heiress, because I will never give my consent.'
'I don't need your consent!' Sunny said fiercely. 'I'm of legal age and can marry whomever I wish. And I will!'
'How dare you speak to your mother this way!' Augusta grabbed Sunny's elbow, then marched her down the hall to her bedroom and shoved her inside. 'If you think a humble life is so splendid, you can stay locked in here and live on bread and water until you change your mind.'
As the key turned in the lock, Sunny collapsed, shaking, on the bed. She had never dreamed how painful defiance could be. Yet she could not surrender, not when her whole life's happiness was at stake.
She must see Paul; he would know what to do.
The thought steadied her churning emotions, and she began to consider what to do. Her bedroom opened onto the roof of one of the porches, and her older brother Charlie had showed her how to climb to the ground. Her mother had never dreamed that her well-bred daughter would behave in such a hoydenish fashion.
Paul was staying at Windfall, which was only a mile away. Would he be there this evening? Yes, he had mentioned that the Astors were giving a dinner party. She would wait until her mother retired, then escape and walk to Windfall. With a veil over her face, no one would recognize her even if she was seen. She'd go to the servants' entrance and ask for the butler. He knew her, and she thought that for a suitable consideration he would sumon Paul and let them have a few minutes of privacy. Once they were together, everything would be all right.
Sunny's plan went smoothly, and by ten o'clock that evening she was pacing nervously around the Windfall servants' sitting room. She hoped that Paul would be able to slip away quietly when the butler delivered her message. But what if the butler betrayed her to Mrs. Astor? Or if Mrs. Astor suspected that something was amiss and decided to investigate?
The door opened and she whirled around, ready to jump from her skin. With a wave of relief, she saw that it was Paul, devastatingly attractive in his evening dress. Coming toward her with concern on his face, he said, 'Darling, you shouldn't risk your reputation like this-but if s wonderful to see you.'
He opened his arms, and she went into them eagerly. She loved his height, which made her feel small and feminine. It was the first time they had real privacy, and his kiss far surpassed what they had shared before. Her resolve strengthened. She would never give up his love for the dubious pleasure of marrying a nondescript duke. Never.
Remembering the reason for her visit, she reluctantly ended the kiss. 'Oh, Paul, something dreadful has happened!' she said miserably. 'Today my mother told me that she has arranged for me to marry someone else. I told her about our betrothal, but she won't hear of it. She locked me in my room and swore I'd stay there on bread and water until I changed my mind.'
'How dare she treat you in such a way!' Paul exclaimed. 'I won't permit it.'
'I refused to agree to her wishes, of course, but it was no difficult. I… I think we should elope. Tonight.'
'Right now?' he said, startled. 'That's not what I want for you, darling. You deserve the grandest wedding of the century, not a furtive, hole-in-corner affair.'
'What does that matter?' she said impatiently. 'I'm trying to be strong, but my mother is… is not easy to resist.'
'Who does she want you to marry?'
'The new Duke of Thornborough, Justin Aubrey. His brother, Gavin, just died, and Justin needs a rich wife.'
Before she could say more, Paul said in a stunned voice, 'The Duke of Thornborough! You would be one of the most influential women in England.'
'And one of the unhappiest.' Tears welled in her eyes, and she blinked them back angrily. 'I need to be with you, Paul.'
'We must reason this out.' He stroked her back soothingly. 'Your mother flatly refused to consider me as a suitor?'
'She said that it was unthinkable that I should marry a nobody.' Sunny relaxed again, comforted by his touch. 'Such nonsense! Titles mean nothing. What matters is being a gentleman, and no one is more gentlemanly than you.'
There was a long pause. Then Paul said gravely, 'Sunny, I can't marry you against your mother's wishes. Though I knew that she would not be enthusiastic about my suit, I thought I would be able to persuade her. But to be Duchess of Thornborough! With that in prospect, she will never accept me.'
A tendril of fear curled through Sunny. 'It is not my mother's place to choose my husband,' she said sharply.
'It's mine, and you are my choice. That's all that matters.'
'If only it were that simple!' He sighed. 'But it's not, my dear. You are not simply my own sweet love, but a national treasure-one of America 's princesses. What kind of cad would I be to take advantage of your innocence to keep you from a glorious future?'
Sunny stared at him, thinking that this scene couldn't be real. Perhaps she had fallen off her bicycle and injured her head, and everything that had happened since was only a bad dream. Very carefully she said, 'You're saying that you don't want to marry me?'
'Of course I do, but clearly that is impossible. If you marry me, you will become estranged from your family. I don't want to be the cause of that.' He gazed lovingly into her eyes. 'This won't be so bad, darling. In fact, one could see it as a piece of good fortune. With your influence to further my career, I'll be in the Cabinet in no time.'
'Is that what matters most-your career?' she said brittlely.
'Of course not!' He pulled her close again. 'The most important thing is our love, and your mother can't take that away from us. After you've given Thornborough an heir and a spare, we'll be free to love each other as we were meant to.'
She went rigid, unable to believe what he was saying.
Feeling her withdrawal, he said tenderly, 'I don't want to wait, either. If we're discreet, we can be together as soon as you're back from your honeymoon. Believe me, I would like nothing better! We'll have to be careful, of course-it wouldn't do to foist a bastard on Thornborough.' He gave a wicked chuckle. 'Though if the Gargoyle is unable to perform his duty, I'll be happy to help him. I look more like an Aubrey than he does.'
'In other words, I make you a Cabinet minister, and my a-ward is adultery in the afternoon,' she said numbly. 'No, thank you, Mr. Curzon.' Knowing that she would
