“I doubt he is,” Natalie said. She had thought about this before and assumed Jasper was as corrupt as Oliver was, but as she learned of the manner of man Jasper was, she found her opinion changing.
She could not tell whether she had forgiven Jasper for what he had done to her, but her regard for him had softened. He was in her thoughts nearly every moment of the day, and he had awakened her body to desires she never imagined herself capable of feeling. And then there was her heart, that she was desperately trying to shield from him.
“I agree,” George said. “I will not believe he would associate with him knowing that.”
Natalie wondered if her cousins would hold the same opinion if they knew of the role Jasper had played ten years ago, but then she recalled how gentle and caring he had been the night before.He is a good man. He has to be.
The thoughts were disquieting, and after breakfast, Natalie decided to do some sewing in her bedchamber. Hannah followed her, however, and she looked as though she had a hundred questions to ask Natalie.
“You seemed quite distracted at breakfast," Hannah began, sitting on the bed and watching Natalie gather her sewing items and sit by the window. “Is everything well?”
“No,” Natalie sighed. “Everything is not well because of Oliver.”
“My question does not relate to Oliver,” Hannah corrected, and some color crept onto Natalie’s cheeks.
“I do not know what you are asking, then.” It was better to pretend she did not know than to tell her cousin that she was confused by her feelings.
“The Duke, Natalie,” Hannah grinned. “I am asking about him.”
She did not know what to tell her, and to quiet Hannah, she said. “We are going to fence.”
Her cousin’s eyes rounded. “That is on your list?”
“Yes. I want to learn to fence, then play against a gentleman.” Natalie knew how to fence but she had forgotten some things because it had been very long since she last picked up a foil.
Hannah grew excited. She bounced on the bed, and her eyes gleamed as she asked several more questions. “What will you wear? Something seductive?”
“To fence in?” Natalie laughed.
“No, before that.”
The latent heat in her core began to simmer, and she inhaled slowly. “I will wear one of my dresses,” she responded, and her cousin huffed in disappointment. If only she knew that Natalie did not have to wear a special dress to capture Jasper’s attention. As these thoughts flowed in her mind, she discovered that she was growing excited.
She wanted to see Jasper again, and she wanted to spend as much time as she could with him. Onlyhim. It was the simplest the truth had ever been.
Chapter 25
Some said that the Masked Rogue of London is hiding because someone saw the face of the Comtesse De Villepin. We must examine the life of every woman with red hair in London to find this woman. We know a few ladies with flaming hair in the aristocracy. Perhaps we should begin there.
Jasper folded the news sheet and frowned, staring blindly out the window behind his desk. He should have allowed Natalie to keep her wig. Placing masks on ships had been effective, but society was too inquisitive to let the matter rest. They would not stop until they had uncovered his face and Natalie’s.
Jasper stroked his jaw slowly as he thought. There was already interest in Natalie, especially after Miss Gilmore decided that she had something to tell The Londoner. He swiveled his chair and drew a sheet of parchment from a stack before reaching for the quill.
Minerva,
I hope this finds you well. I have a favor to ask of you, and I will visit you tonight. Please ensure that you are alone.
Sincerely,
MR
He folded the note and sealed it, leaving the wax plain. Then he called Smith and handed it to him. The valet needed only to glance at the name on the back of the note to know what to do with it.
“Wait for a response,” Jasper instructed.
“Yes, Your Grace.” When Smith opened the study door to leave, he encountered Wayne, and they exchanged a few words before he turned to Jasper. “The solicitor has arrived, Your Grace.”
“Send him in,” Jasper replied, reaching for the sheets that contained the particulars of his wealth that he only finished reviewing that morning.
