Free The Bride Raffle by Lisa Plumley

Thomas’s flustered help—had ushered her upstairs and into bed “for some much-needed rest and recuperation.”
    “This is fairly intrusive—”
    “Nonsense!” Mrs. Archer had interrupted. “He’ll love it!”
    “He’ll be grateful,” Mrs. Sunley had added. “What man doesn’t like to come home to find a woman in his bed?”
    Thomas, blushing, had pretended not to hear that remark. So had Miss Reardon, who’d busied herself with brewing a pot of coffee and offering a cup to “enliven” Daisy after her “ordeal.”
    Only Élodie had answered Daisy’s question with candor.
    “Papa won’t mind. He’s as even-keeled as the day is long.” The little girl had nodded, absently hugging a rag doll. Her gaze had traveled over Daisy’s face with avid curiosity. “Papa doesn’t get riled up, not ever. But he does swear sometimes.”
    On that note, improbably, Daisy had relaxed an inch or two. Of all the people she’d met today—excepting her brother, of course—she liked little Élodie the most. Any man who could single-handedly raise such a lovely daughter simply had to have positive qualities, Daisy reasoned. That made her feel immensely reassured about Owen Cooper.
    After all, little Élodie was lively and smart, polite and out-spoken and very sweet. She was also disarmingly keen to be near Daisy at all times, even to the point of carrying her coffee cup to her…and mimicking, with her own small tin cup of water, the precise way Daisy sipped the recuperative brew.
    “I’m feeling much better now, thank you.” Daisy set downher coffee cup and saucer with a rattle. “I honestly don’t think I need to stay abed this way!” she told all the assembled women for what must be the tenth time in a row. “Surely there are things I could be doing to prepare for the first lesson. I did make a promise to Thomas, after all. The winner will surely be counting on me! The sooner I start working—”
    “Don’t be silly!” Mrs. Sunley bustled over, casting a hasty glance at the bedroom’s open doorway. “The first lesson can wait! You’ve been through quite a shock, arriving here to such a fuss. Of course it overwhelmed you!” Firmly, Mrs. Sunley tucked her in more securely. “You should stay right there in bed until Mr. Cooper arrives. Then he’s guaranteed to take to this idea instantly! I reckon, of all the men in town, Owen Cooper ought to be the most persuaded by finding a woman in his bed!”
    At that scandalous statement, everyone stilled. Then…
    “What Viola means, of course,” Mrs. Archer hastened to say, giving her cohort a glowering glance, “is that Mr. Cooper is a generous man who would be happy to assist a lady in need. Any lady, any time, for whatever reason. Isn’t that right, Abbey?”
    “Oh, yes!” Miss O’Neill bobbed her head up and down. “Yes!”
    Everyone else averred the same thing, even Thomas. Daisy knew she should have felt comforted. Yet something still niggled at her. Something Mrs. Sunley had said a moment ago…
    “Is Mr. Cooper entirely amenable to being my student?” Daisy asked. She peered at Mrs. Sunley. “You said he’d be ‘guaranteed’ to take to this idea…but why would he need to be persuaded?” With the sight of a woman in his bed, no less! “Mr. Cooper did enter his name in the raffle, didn’t he?”
    To Daisy, entering the raffle would seem proof enough of his willingness to learn—no further persuasion necessary. Butat her question, all the women went as still as statues in a city museum. Then Mrs. Archer put one hand to the brooch at her neck, sucked in a breath and gave a choked little chuckle. “Why, how else would he have won?” she asked.
    “Yes!” Miss O’Neill parroted. “How else would he have won?”
    Something about their odd demeanor put Daisy on guard. She squinted at the women, trying to figure out why their behavior bothered her…then gave up. Conrad had always told her she was an awful judge of character. She guessed he