Lady Arabella wrenched her arm free. “I am most definitely not going anywhereprivatewith you. Not ever again! Unless you are making me an offer of marriage, sir.”
Silence and the collective holding of breath by everyone around them. While the musicians played on, even some of the dancers had stopped to listen, ruining the perfect formation of the quadrille. The rest had to grind to a halt as well including Sarah, who came to stand beside Julia.
Lady Arabella had thrown down the gauntlet in front of Mayfair’s elite. If Julia had ever thought she’d done anything embarrassing or improper at a party, it paled in comparison. She had never witnessed such a scene, and surely, most of the other guests hadn’t either. It was simply not done.
For Lady Arabella to imply she’dalreadybeen alone with him.
For her to demand a public proposal.
Sweet Mother!
Yet Jasper raised an eyebrow, looking decidedly unperturbed. And Julia wondered if she were greatly mistaken. Perhaps some of the guests had witnessed the like, and maybe this was a common occurrence in the life of a rake. He might be used to dealing with wronged women confronting him in front of others, but it made her want to cringe as fans opened and heads leaned together. Then the whispers started.
Chapter Twenty-One
“Grosvenor Square was a bustle at Lord M’s home last night. A certain Miss S__ was there, as was an angry Lord N__. From the look of Lord M__’s face today, fisticuffs ensued, but over which woman?”
-The Sun
“And that is why youshould stay far away from men like Marshfield,” Sarah said from the safety of their carriage’s interior on the short jaunt home to Hanover Square. “Dear God! That woman must have been out of her mind to have lost all sense of decency and behave in such a manner. I cannot think but she will never recover her place in society. What man will ever offer for her after that?”
“Maybe Lord Marshfield will,” Julia put forth from the darkness of her side of the carriage, clasping her mantle around her for warmth. Jasper had always treated her with kindness and even behaved as her champion. She could imagine him offering Lady Arabella his name and his protection after what she’d just witnessed.
The poor woman had finally burst into tears and fled the ballroom, leaving stunned guests to glance awkwardly at one another. The musicians hadn’t stopped, which was a blessing as it gave people a way to quickly return to normalcy. While some were positively gleeful at the juicy disaster that had befallen Lady Arabella, most were simply shocked or saddened. Each and every one wanted to avoid Jasper’s gaze as they ducked to the side or turned away when he followed her from the room.
Julia was only glad he hadn’t looked at her again, for she most certainly didn’t want to be associated with Lady Arabella’s humiliation.
“Marshfield,” Sarah spat out. “He will never offer for her. Hasn’t it been made plain to you? He uses women for his pleasure. We are a sport to him, like his horses. I would feel sorry for Lady Arabella except she knew as well as any of us, including you, what he is like.”
When had her sister become so harsh and jaded?
Julia said nothing more despite having seen a better side of the earl. He could have taken her in Sarah’s own home, and he hadn’t. Moreover, he’d saved her from LordandLady Chandron. And he’d let her walk away from him after a kiss.
There was more to Lord Marshfield than merely being a libertine. Of that, she was sure. If he married Lady Arabella, it would prove him to be a good sort after all, and Julia should almost wish he would do it.
Yet if he married the lady, it would break Julia’s heart. She could deny it no longer. She loved him.
