6. Dinner At The Bridgertons

I could hire a lawyer. But there isn't enough money left in my Masters trust fund to get a good lawyer. And if I asked Anthony to pay, he'd ask why I need a lawyer. I could work while going to school, but my visa won't allow me to work full-time; and any money I'd make would go towards my living expenses- forget about tuition. So I can't work, and hiring a lawyer is out of the question…. Nugh! It's at stupid clause! There's got to be a way around it. There has to be some way for me to start PhD in the fall and remain single. I just… need to figure it out, that's all.

And I need to do it before interviews start.

I hadn't realized how quiet I'd been or how long I'd been picking at my food with my fork. While everyone else was chattering away, I was silent and contemplative, staring down at my plate with my cheek propped up by my fist. Unsurprisingly I wasn't paying attention to whatever they were talking about. I hadn't been able to stop thinking about what Dr. Pillar said since I left the department. It suddenly felt like there was this ticking clock above my head; one which I couldn't ignore. Or so I thought.

I only flinched, coming back down to reality when I suddenly heard my name. It was Francesca, babbling to the whole table about what that damn Lady Whistledown wrote about me on Twitter. "No, it's true! She said Daphne was the most beautiful girl at the social!" "Huh, what?" I perked up out of my daze. "Did she really?" Eloise blinked to me in astonishment. "Didn't she say Daph was ruined by books or something else?" Gregory tacked on puzzled. "Oh yeah, she also said that Daphne's ruined her disposition with books, whatever that means," Francesca popped an olive into her mouth.

Benedict and Colin snickered while Anthony rolled his eyes. "Honestly, I wish you'd stop reading everything she tweets." "Exactly. I think well-educated women are actually rather sexy. See lots of them at school," Colin said, earning a sharp glare from our eldest brother. Then he turned his head back toward me. "Don't worry about what that old gossip writes, Daphne. There's no truth in it. Well, except for the you looking lovely part." "Thanks," I muttered, staring back down at my plate. I'd somehow moved my potatoes to be in the shape of Holland. Fancy that.

My brother blinked at me with concern now. "Baby sis, are you feeling alright? You've been awfully quiet this evening." "Ah, she's just mad that Simon's here," Eloise lacked the common sense not to say. This definitely caught my attention, as it did Simon's. Both our heads shot up, which was a mistake since we were sitting across from each other. As such, our eyes locked for the first time that night and stayed that way for a minute. Anthony, who was sitting between us at the head of the table, was not impressed with our sister's comment.

"Don't be impertinent, Eloise. Course she's happy to see Simon; we all are." "Yeah, Dad liked you. He always thought you were a good friend for Anthony," Benedict chimed in, speaking to Simon directly. We were still looking at one another when his shoulders finally relaxed. This cute little cunning smirk rolled across his lips. Wait… Did I just think it was "cute"? I meant idiotic! Him and is idiotic smirk, which was currently facing me.

"Thank you, Benedict. But Miss Bridgerton does seem to be displeased," this was aimed at me. My eyes widened a little. "Not at all. I was just… thinking." "Hmmmm, about?" That was nosy of him to ask. I frowned. "It's not important. You wouldn't be interested. After all, I'm just the "scholar of the family"." Francesca nearly choked on the juice she was gulping as she started to laugh. Simon's stupid smirk began to fade while my grin returned. I admit, I liked these little spats between us, especially when I win. However our eldest brother was not so amused. He dabbed his lips with his napkin and looked at me.

"Now Daphne, is that any way to speak to a guest?" "I'm not five years old, Anthony. You don't need to scold me." "No, no; please. I enjoy seeing your sister's true colours. She certainly isn't the bore one would expect a Masters of history to be," Simon smirked again, causing me to glance back at him. What did he just say?! Was that a shot? That sounded like a shot. The jerk!

Colin laughed. "Oh please. Daphne is the most boring person in the world. She could have gone to school for anything and what does she choose? Studying Medieval history." "Daddy loved history," I shot back at him. "Dad loved English history. He'd be turning in his grave if he knew you were studying continental history abroad," he said with little restraint. "I study English history as well. I don't neglect any part of Europe- that would be bad research form."

Simon saw his opportunity. He leaned back in his chair a little. "Well Brussels is a hub for European history, culture, and modern-day transportation. I'd like to think you should be happy about that." "Mmmmm well I am happy, but perhaps it would be best if you didn't think of me at all. No good can come from it, I'm sure," I took a sip of my water. Anthony side-eyed me. "Daphne…." But Simon's smirk grew. "You sure about that?" "Absolutely. From what this Lady Whistledown writes of you, I can tell you're a rake through and through." "What's a rake?" Eloise inquired, to which I ignored her.

The Duke of Hastings eyes intensified onto mine. "So you do read Lady Whistledown's tweets?" "Not at all. My sisters read them to me." "They're informative! It's important to know what's what in today's high society," one of them said, making me roll my eyes. "It can't be all that important, considering our eldest sister's trying her best to leave high society," Colin held back no venom in his tone this time. This caused everyone to look at him, including me and Simon. No one was smiling anymore; my eyes narrowed in onto him.

"What?" "That's why you went to Brussels, isn't it? To escape this "way of life"?" "I went to Brussels because they have a great university well-known for its research in history. It has nothing to do with you," my own tone was tart. "Mmmmmm, I see. So you go abroad with your trust fund while the five of us stay here in London?" "I mean, he's kinda got a point. Not all of us have the luxury of taking something we actually enjoy. Most of us will have to work for a living after we graduate," Eloise tacked on to Colin's point.

You could have heard a pin drop in the room. Anthony had this look of horror on his face, Simon seemed very uncomfortable, and I just gawked at them appalled. See, this is why I don't like coming home much anymore. We all used to be so close and like each other… Then Daddy died and his will had to be read out to the entire family.

Coming back to his senses, Anthony cleared his throat. "Now this is not appropriate dinner conversation. We have a guest," he admonished the two. Colin was not to be deterred, also leaning back in his seat. "If he's your friend, then he might as well know all about the family drama." "Enough, Colin," Benny chimed in. Colin gave him a look. "You can't say anything. Dad let you enrol in Oxford before he passed away. The rest of us don't have that opportunity," he meant that Anthony wouldn't let any of them go to Oxford or to any school outside of London. "You're still going to a good school- all of you will be. You don't have to go to Oxford for a decent education." "Easy for you to say. You, Anthony, and Daphne all have education trust funds," Colin spat. "Yes, while we're at the mercy of Anthony's generosity," Eloise added sourly.

Anthony slammed his hands down onto the table. "Of course you're going to university! That's coming out of my own inheritance. You don't have to worry about money until you're twenty-five. By then, you'll have graduated." "Money… What money? You and Daphne get everything. You're the ones with the real power in this family; you get to make all the decisions for the rest of us," Colin fired back. This made me mad. Course he would say something like that. He thought money automatically meant freedom, and here I was trying to find a way to get free.

I gave him an upset glare. "You know something, Colin? Just because I'm an heiress doesn't mean I can do whatever I want. I was in your exact same position went it came to undergrad, don't forget." "So you had to stay in London for three more years? Big deal. You're sitting on a huge trust fund for PhD. Even if any of us wanted to go to grad school, we don't have the nest egg you do," Eloise declared. Benedict ran his hand over his face. "Anthony already told you, Eloise; your education will be taken care of." "That's not the point," she retorted. "Then what is the point? That money means nothing to me if I can't access it," my hand smacked on my chest. "At least it's there for you!" She countered upset. "Yes, it's there for me, but that doesn't make me free to do as I please. I'm still under Daddy's late thumb too!"

Colin and Eloise both glared at me like I was so privileged- which I was! They just didn't realize what a difficult position I was in at the moment. Colin's lips parted a sliver. "You don't like the conditions your inheritance comes with. Well guess what? We live with the same conditions and we aren't getting anything." "Come on, you guys. Stop it," Anthony tried to put an end to everything. Even the kids were looking scared by now. My eyes sharpened onto him. "You don't get it, Colin. I know what you're going through." "You don't have a clue what the six of us going through," he swiftly countered. "Yes, I do. I wanted to move for undergrad too, but that wasn't on the table for me." "Oh yes, you inherit everything, and yet you can't choose the school you like," he leaned in a bit closer; his eyes razor sharp onto mine. "It's a shame too.

You would have done well at Cambridge."

No one dared make a sound. I simple ogled him for what felt like an entirely, though it was only a second in reality. Then, without warning, I slid my chair out and begun marching towards the door. Anthony stood up out of his chair in a panic. "Baby sis!" He called out, to no reply. I could only imagine the look he was giving Colin right now. "What's the matter with you?!" "What's the matter with me?! She started it!" He defended himself. "How could you say that to her?!" Then, as if to remember Simon was still in the room, Anthony's tone of voice quickly altered. "I'm so sorry, dear friend." That was the last thing I heard before I reached my room, slamming the door shut.

I did my best not to cry, I was that emotional. That little jerk! The worst part was that I knew he was right- he and Eloise were both entirely right. Daddy was a staunch traditionalist, just like his father, and his father before him. He genuinely believed that it was best if the man of the house be the metaphorical "head of the house". The only one who held all the cards was him, and after he died Anthony. Anthony controlled the purse strings, which meant he had the final say in where everyone lived and went to school. I only got to move to Europe because Daddy set up a Masters trust fund for me without any conditions. I think he expected me to be married by the time I was done Masters, or at least be engaged. That's why he put that damn clause on my PhD trust fund. More than anything he wanted to see me get married. That's what he wants and that's what he told Anthony to make happen, even though my eldest brother was in no hurry to do so. Ugh, I hated it! I hated the fact that I had to submit and obey to these powerful men- even if I did love them.

Can you blame me for not wanting to get married?

I was sitting on the floor, still doing my best not to cry when there was this gentle tapping at my door. I wiped my eyes with the back of my hand. "Please, Anthony; I just need to be alone right now." More tapping. Nugh! Didn't he get the point?! I needed some alone time. Growing frustrated, I got up and began to open the door. "Didn't you hear me? I said…."

All words froze in my mouth at the sight of-definitely-not-my-brother. Simon was standing there with a cup of water in his hand. He wore a mildly surprised and concerned expression; I think he half expected to find me crying in here. I hid a bit timidly behind the door, peeking only my head and arm out now. Simon also seemed a tiny bit awkward.

"Um, I'm sorry. I heard you come down this way." "What do you want?" I didn't hold back any emotion. He eyed me for a second before extending the full glass out my way. I blinked at it bewildered. "You… came to bring me water?" "Well, I didn't know if you had any in here," he shrugged. My eyebrow raised a bit suspiciously. "Why did you bring me that? Did Anthony send you?"

Simon's head shook. "You were worked up, and I remember your brother telling me of your condition. Drinking water's good for you, isn't that right?" I came out from the door a tad, still dumbfounded at what was happening. "You…. remember that?" "How could I forget? Your brother used to worry about your father all the time back in college. He's even more concerned for your welfare. That and…. I know stress can make your situation worse. So I thought I might… I might…." The words stopped falling from Simon's lips and his eyes wandered down a bit. I watched him, not immediately saying anything- though my hand did loosen its tense grip on the doorknob.

"Anyway, here; take the water. It can't hurt." "T-Thank you!" I took the glass, kind of dumbstruck. Wait, was he being… nice to me? Did he care about my condition? It's so hard to tell with him. Sensing that he wanted me to do something, I took a few gulps of water, not taking my eyes off him the whole time. When he seemed satisfied with that, I lowered the cup and smacked my lips.

"Well, thank you. I….. appreciate your concern." "Oh, I wasn't concerned. You needn't worry about any of that. I have no interest you or any of your effects, Miss Bridgerton." This made me smile. "Good, cause I have zero interest in you either. Even if you are a devilishly handsome rouge." He chuckled. "Nor I you: the immeasurably beautiful heiress who's so full of personality…." And for the first time since we met, we actually smiled at each other. A soft, gentle, organic smile….

"You better get back. They'll be wondering where you ran off to." Simon turned on his heels at this and began making his way down the hall. His hands were clasped behind his back. "Be sure to drink all of it," he told me over his shoulder. I grinned back at him. "I will." With one last look my way, Simon spun his head back forward and turned the corner at the end of the hall. I shut the door, staring off into space. Eventually I glanced down at the glass in my hand when I felt it against my palm and fingers again.

Huh, that was weird. No one's ever brought me a glass of water but Daddy and Anthony- and they had to cause we're related. But Simon… He had no legitimate reason to bring me anything. We barely even knew one another. So then why did he….? I'm honestly surprised he remembered my condition; Anthony mentioned it in passing to him yesterday. Yet he went to the kitchen, filled a glass of water, and followed me all the way upstairs to my room. He didn't even want to come inside my room…. He just wanted to give this to me.

Why? Why would a man do something so menial for a woman he's not related or married to? Why would he even remember something so trivial about me? I don't understand. Then again, I have no experience with men except for the ones in my family, which is purely non-romantic.

My eyes widened at the thought. Wait, romantic? No, course not; that's not what's going on here. Simon said himself he's not interested in me. And I'm certainly not interested in him. I can't allow myself to be interested in anyone…. Not with PhD in the wings. I sighed, leaning up against the wood of the door. I polished off the rest of the water and stared into the empty cup, twirling it slightly in front of my face.

"Oh, who am I kidding? I'm destined to be wedded. That's my future… Might as well kiss PhD goodbye," I groaned out loud to myself. Then I paused to inspect the glass again. I don't want to get married because all I've ever known is controlling men. Sure, they do it out of love, but it's still control… And don't get me wrong, I loved Daddy with all my heart and utterly love Anthony. It's just that…. marriage means even more loss of freedom. I mean, it's not like I can marry someone like Simon….

My eyes lowered onto the glimmer of the glass. This genuine smile drew across my lips again. No, I can't let myself have a crush on someone like Simon, no matter how incredibly handsome he is. I've never pictured myself with a husband like him because that kind of thing just doesn't happen in reality. This is real life, and I'm not so lucky so to be a heroine in a classic romance novel or tv show. My lips parted a sliver; my thumb ran up alongside the cup's wall. But still… But still, I can't help but wish….

Whoever my future husband may be, I hope he brings me cups of water too.