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Jo eased herself away from her friend and grimaced. She didn’t want to remember it. It was painful and humiliating. “He said that he doesn’t get emotionally involved. And that he should have ended our affair before I started having feelings for him.”

Selena’s mouth opened, and her face was a grimace of confusion. “Does he actually want you to believe that he wasn’t emotionally involved? Because I’ve seen the way he looks at you when he thinks no one is looking and—”

“Please, Selena,” Jo begged as her heart leaped against her ribcage. “Please, don’t give me false hope. He told me he has no feelings for me and that he wants me to leave. I shan’t look for a deeper meaning than that.”

Selena nodded. “Very well. But you’re not leaving. We shall not let a couple of boorish men drive us away. You shall wear your finest gown and stretch a smile onto your lips as you flirt with all the other gentlemen of the house party right before his eyes. Because if he truly doesn’t care for you, you shouldn’t care what he thinks either.”

Jo grimaced. She didn’t want to play this game anymore. She didn’t want to pretend and flirt with others while watching Richard do the same. But the house party would end in two days anyway. It would take her a day to collect her belongings and say her goodbyes. She couldn’t just leave without a word.

Besides, she was going to spend tomorrow with Millicent. She had promised Lady Vane she would occupy Millie’s time now that her favorite aunts had left for the funeral. She couldn’t just rush away in the middle of the night like a coward because the infuriating viscount had told her to.

Because he had broken her heart.

It wasn’t his house party. And Lady Vane would not forgive Jo for leaving without a word.

Jo would just have to harden her heart and avoid the viscount until the end of the party. She would collect her belongings, arrange for the vehicle, and leave right after the closing ball of the party.

Jo took her nightly ablutions and then she and Selena climbed into bed and shared stories of their past loves and laughed at the instances when they thought that the sky was falling and the end was nigh just because a gentleman didn’t return their love.

Jo started feeling gradually better.

This too shall pass.

She was glad to have Selena by her side this time. The last time she’d had no one, and the situation was ten times worse. She wouldn’t let Richard and his thoughtless actions defeat her. She would cry into her pillow for a few more days, of course. The heart didn’t heal so easily.

Perhaps she would be in a melancholy mood for a few weeks. And looking out into the crowd as she performed, she would be seeing his face everywhere, thinking of the days they’d spent together, but eventually, the pain would cease.

Her heart squeezed and bled a little, wishing for time to speed up to a moment when it didn’t hurt so.

She looked at the solitary moon, partially covered by a fluffy cloud that was outlined with a silver glow.

Would she ever look at a cloud without thinking of him? She squeezed her eyes shut, willing the thoughts away.

The house party would be over in a few days, and she would go back to her normal life and all those feelings that Richard had awakened within her would just… fall back to sleep.

* * *

Richard hadn’t talked to Jo for over two days.

She didn’t leave the house party as he’d expected—as he’d hoped. Instead, she turned her attention toward flirting with every other man in the vicinity with renewed vigor.

And it would’ve been one thing if she’d ignored Richard, or cut him, showing him her ire, but she hadn’t. She simply smiled politely every time she saw him then turned toward the person who interested her more at that particular moment.

It was as if she hadn’t cared about him at all.

Richard realized how hypocritical he was being. He’d told her that he had no feelings toward her, and yet he’d expected her to walk around with her heart on her sleeve.

No. His little actress had more pride than that. That was one of the reasons she enchanted him so. She was stubborn, she was strong, and she didn’t take orders from anyone. Even a viscount.

But as much as he loved her rebellious spirit, he was also annoyed at her for staying until the end of the house party.

His annoyance didn’t have anything to do with her, per se. But everything to do with him. Because today was the closing ball of the house party. Which meant that today was the day he was going to announce his betrothal to another woman.

And as much as he tried to tell himself that he had to, his heart just pulled back and screamed at him not to. And seeing Jo’s eyes as he made the announcement would probably kill him on the spot.

It would be easier if she’d left the party earlier. It’d be easier if he didn’t have to see her vulnerable eyes as he made the announcement.

It would be easier if he’d just been upfront with her from the start.