Yes, only the three of them knew.Wait!"There was no scandal ten years ago," he said. “You were the only other person in the room.”
"There could have been a scandal had I not stepped in and salvaged the situation," Oliver responded, sounding boastful.
Jasper glanced down at the gossip sheet still in his hands, wondering how the information had gotten out there. The only way would have been if Oliver, their only witness, had given it to them.It cannot possibly be.Oliver was more a brother than a friend to him. He would not betray him nor strive to ruin an innocent lady’s reputation in such a manner.
"If you ask me, the price I demanded was too little for the work I did to protect Natalie's reputation," Oliver continued, his tone proud. He seemed a different man altogether.
"The price you demanded?" Jasper questioned slowly.
"Well, the coal business was nothing, really. Late Clifford was a stubborn old man, but it was that or his daughter's reputation. At least he had the wisdom to choose the latter."
"Did you blackmail Natalie's father with that stupid prank?" Jasper was in utter disbelief.
Oliver regarded him with surprise. In fact, his friend looked as though he was only just realizing that he confessed.
"Tell me what you did!" Jasper’s gut clenched with dread. "Did you give this to the press?” He raised the sheet.
Oliver blanched, but then disdain gleamed in his eyes. "I needed the money then, Amsthorne. I saw an opportunity, and I took it." There was no remorse about him.
"Good Lord, Oliver!" Jasper let out in shock.
Was the man before him at this very moment truly Oliver Bargrave? His dearest friend?Mayhap I never knew him, and he is only revealing himself.
"Was the coal business the only thing you got from the late Earl?" Jasper asked, but he got the sense that there was more.
"I kept that scandal behind the curtain. What is a petty coal business? Of course it wasn’t enough! I needed more," Oliver replied.
It all was becoming clear now. Oliver was the reason George was in heavy debt. The reason society lost good regard for him. And Natalie...Dear God, Natalie!He understood her grudge against him. She must have thought him responsible for the blackmail, too. Not only had the prank he thought innocent robbed her family of their prosperity, it made her a spinster. He braced a hand on his desk as a wave of guilt and torment hit him.
He may not have known about Oliver's plans, but it was no excuse. He should never have taken part in such a despicable act. He had been remorseful after the incident, but he could not remember who the girl was, much less make amends, and since no one knew, he decided to forget about it altogether.
Natalie had every right to go after his reputation. Hell, he deserved more than a ruined reputation for what he had, and still was, putting her and her family through.
"You are a devil, Oliver," Jasper spat, moving toward the door. He needed to find Natalie. Immediately. "I want you out of my house, and I do not ever want to set eyes upon you again. And you will do well to return every single thing you stole from the Reeves, or else—"
"You will exile me?" Oliver put in insolently.
The anger Jasper had been trying to keep at bay exploded, and in one swift movement, he had Oliver pinned on his desk and gasping for breath. “Or else I will make you wish you were never born,” he corrected. “And you will also publish another paper, countering all the lies you wrote about Natalie in this one. You will formally apologize to her, too. Do I make myself clear?"
A choking Oliver nodded. Barely. Jasper dragged him out and threw him down the hallway before stepping around him and walking away. He found Wayne and asked him to ensure Oliver was out of his manor.
How would he begin apologizing to Natalie? He needed to find her as soon as possible, and he dashed out of the room.
He met Phoebe near the entrance to the ballroom, but the guests swarmed them before he could speak to her, everyone asking questions about the fight. Fresh rage gripped him.
"Be quiet!” he bellowed. “You ask me about the fight you all stood by and watched? Yet you accuse others of inaction. It was a spot of fun for you, was it not? One you would waste no time in reporting to the press."
A dead silence fell over them, and some even had the grace to look away in embarrassment.
"I will tell you this," he carried on as Phoebe's hand came onto his shoulder. "Do what you will with this story. Life means much more than jabbing fingers and looking accusingly upon innocent people. Hypocrites built this society, and I will not be a part of it any longer," he finished and turned to Phoebe, whispering, “Where is she?”
“She left with her family.”
Jasper retrieved his cloak and marched to the stables. He found a mount and rode toward Clifford House.
About fifteen minutes later, it began to snow, and he lost some visibility, which forced him to slow down. Very quickly, the snowfall became so heavy that it almost completely obscured his view. Still, he pushed on. Jasper was chasing his heart, and he would walk through the pits of Hell to get to her if he had to.Nothingwas going to stop him.
He might already be a dead man, but he refused to go before making amends with the woman he loved more than anything in existence.
