Finding Emilie by Laurel Corona

Author:Laurel Corona [Corona, Laurel]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster, Inc.
Published: 2011-04-12T07:00:00+00:00

1765

THE MUDDY tracks on the road from Versailles to Paris had frozen as solid as rock, causing the carriage in which Lili and Delphine returned with Maman to Paris to lurch so badly that Lili had trouble focusing on the words in front of her.

“From the sky, Meadowlark picked out the Great Wall of China and guided Comète down to a palace nearby,” she began.

Though Lili’s story about two men dueling for the hand of a princess momentarily lifted the gloom of their return to Paris, by the end Delphine was wiping her eyes again.

“The princess stamped her foot,” Lili read. “‘Rules are rules!’ she said.

“‘Rules are rules,’ Tom said. ‘I suppose so,’ Meadowlark replied. ‘Even as far away as China.’”

“I didn’t like that at all,” Delphine said.

“Why?” Lili put down her notebook, grabbing it to keep it from slipping to the floor as the carriage wheels slid into another rut.

“I hate the rules. They say Anne-Mathilde will marry Ambroise.” Delphine buried her face in Julie’s shoulder. “I really like him, Maman.”

“I can tell,” Julie said, passing her handkerchief to Delphine. “Be careful not to muss my dress with your sniffles, ma petite. This velvet spots so easily.” Delphine gave her nose a dainty blow and roused herself just enough to settle in a limp heap next to her mother.

“And I wouldn’t be so sure about the rules when it comes to what a young man might do in his situation,” Julie went on. “No one has said anything about a formal engagement to Anne-Mathilde—”

“Do you think he might break off with her?” Delphine sat up so straight her back was no longer resting against the seat.

“Break off? I saw no evidence that Ambroise thinks anything is on. But it is a good match, and quite openly talked of, so I imagine the families may be viewing it favorably even if he is not. The Praslin family is not as wealthy as it once was, and though they make gestures like acquiring Vaux-le-Vicomte to make it look otherwise, I’ve heard rumors that their fortune is not terribly secure.”

She took back her handkerchief from Delphine and tucked it in her bodice. “Ambroise’s grandfather was much appreciated by Louis XIV for his discretion as the accoucheur who delivered the king’s seven illegitimate children by Madame de Montespan. He was made a member of the noblesse de robe at that time, and it was only a few years ago that the family received the king’s approval to purchase the château and lands around Étoges, and to use the title of count. So the Clément de Feuillet family will make a leap in status by marrying Ambroise to Anne-Mathilde, and the Duc and Duchesse de Praslin will place a daughter in a family with profitable lands in Champagne and the wealth to support her.” Julie looked at Delphine with an apologetic grimace. “It is a very favorable match.”

“Except that the bride is a dragon,” Lili growled.

Delphine slumped dejectedly against Maman. “I might as well become a nun right now.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.