***
DEAR MISS SUDBURY,
You were correct, it is too cold to let you sit upon horseback. I would fear you’d catch a chill. Instead, will you come to my home for dinner tomorrow night? To be clear, there are no other guests. I hope we can speak plainly.
Regards,
Marshfield
If Sarah ever saw this, she would fly into a temper and probably lock Julia in her room if possible. The man was ignoring their last encounter and even pretending he hadn’t been the central figure in a ballroom drama.
Go to dinner? Alone? Was he a lunatic?
She paced her room, holding the letter against her chest, alternately sniffing it to catch the scent of his fragrance.
It had been only a few days since last she’d seen him, but it felt like an eternity.
Would she accept his insane invitation?
Of course she would!
The following evening, at seven o’clock, she alighted from a hackney, deciding not to ask if Sarah’s carriage was available, nor have to explain her destination. She hadn’t even pretended to ask permission.
When the earl’s butler admitted her, Jasper was standing in the front hall waiting. It was sweet of him, lacking all pretention. Moreover, he looked as if he’d spent extra care with his toilet and dressing. Every hair was in place, his cravat perfectly tied, his waistcoat smooth, and his jacket pressed to perfection.
She couldn’t help smiling when he immediately stepped forward and took her hand. He grinned in return, and her insides melted.
“How can you possibly look lovelier than usual, when your usual loveliness is beyond compare?”
Julia let herself blush. There was nothing she could do about her obvious emotions. Besides, she had dressed with him in mind, wearing her favorite blue gown.
The butler coughed.
“We shall go into the salon, Mr. Greer,” Jasper told him, “before the dining room.”
Thus, Julia found herself in a room more intimate than the drawing room, and yet, perfectly respectable, except for the fact she shouldn’t be there at all.
“I’m grateful you came,” he said, leading her to sit on the sofa before taking the chair opposite.
Distracted by his distance, by how he hadn’t drawn her into his arms already and kissed her, she nearly patted the sofa cushion beside her before stopping herself. If he could behave, she could, too.
“I wasn’t certain you would accept my invitation,” Jasper said, leaning forward to pour her a glass of wine from the carafe. “In fact, I would have wagered you would not.”
“I will be leaving soon. I suppose that convinced me to come, albeit against my better judgement.”
“Leaving?” Jasper echoed. “I thought you liked living in London.”
“I do. Parts of it, at any rate. The city has much to recommend it,” Julia agreed. “However, I am only here due to my sister’s kindness. When she leaves, I shall, too. We’ll be going to our family home in Chislehurst, and Sarah said she thinks we might stay with my father for a while.”
“I see.” He didn’t sound happy at all, matching the way she felt about not seeing him possibly for months.
“Chislehurst will be strangely quiet after the excitement of living in Town,” she added.
“I’m sure it’s a far cry from what goes on here,” he agreed. “Especially recently.”
She nodded.Would he say more about the scene with Lady Arabella?
“You’ve been busy,” she prompted, imagining what must have ensued to warrant the young lady’s outrageous public display. She’d guessed they’d been making the two-backed beast, and Lady Arabella, someone befitting Jasper’s station, someone who had wanted to be his countess, had made assumptions.
