Page 49 of Dangerous Games of a Broken Lady
I suppose I shall have to be honest,she mused.I shall have to think of him as an admirer might. Indeed, I must make a list of his most excellent qualities and play upon them.
She did just that, writing a small list of his merits and virtues. Kindness, generosity, warmth, humor, graciousness, strength, propriety, and good-heartedness. It proved rather tricky to think of him in a romantic light, for he had always been her friend and nothing more. Having never experienced love herself, she did not know how she ought to express such feeling.
Pressing the nib of her quill to the paper, she found her instincts took over. Before she knew what was happening, the ink danced across the page, spilling out a series of emotions that did not feel as if they had come from her. Every dream and fantasy she had endured in her life, she poured onto the cream vellum.
From my imagination to yours, dear Jasper,she thought, as she lost herself entirely to the task at hand.
Chapter 18
Wandering through the park in the midst of another gloomy afternoon, Jasper thought about the events of the previous day. He had not realized the strength of Leah’s feelings for him. He could not believe how foolish he had been, keeping his own feelings to himself. All she had wanted was a sign of his affection, and he had let her down. Now, he feared he had lost her for good.
However, a dark thought niggled away at the back of his mind as he strolled down the path, admiring the first of the winter roses that had begun to bloom. He hated to admit it, but her behavior had not put Miss Green in a particularly favorable light. Indeed, part of him had barely recognized the aggressive stranger who had sat opposite.
That haughty tone of voice and cold manner had not suited her. Truthfully, he had begun to wonderjusthow much he knew about Miss Leah Green. It had only been this season that they had become better acquainted. Even so, many questions lingered in his mind. Did that coldness in her run deeper than it first appeared?
Then again, you did dash her hopes by remaining silent. Perhaps, she truly thought you did not care, and sought to punish you for hurting her.He paused on his walk, feeling a touch sorry for himself.I did not intend to hurt you, Miss Green. You may be assured of that. Although, whether you shall ever hear my apology with your own ears… remains to be seen.
He had contemplated seeking her out at her family home, but Adelaide had warned against it. Indeed, she had promised to visit in his stead. Checking his gold pocket-watch, embellished with the Gillett coat of arms, he saw that it was past noon. Adelaide ought to be back by now, if she had kept to her word.
Turning around, he made the return journey to the Belgravia square where their houses stood. Sure enough, hurrying down the front steps at a rather frantic pace was Adelaide herself. She came to a halt as she noticed Jasper coming through the opposite gate and raised a hand in welcome.
“Good afternoon, Adelaide,” he said, approaching her.
“And to you, Jasper. I trust you slept well, as you promised me you would?”
He smiled tightly. “Always the mother hen, clucking over me.”
“I worry.”
“You do not need to trouble yourself with such things, not where I am concerned,” he replied. “I have my own mother to worry for me.”
“Ah yes, but she does not know what you get up to.”
He frowned, a stab of anxiety spiking through his chest. “What are you talking about? I do not ‘get up’ to anything, Adelaide.” After his visit to the House of Parliament the other day, he had been on perpetual watch for Lord Rowntree. They had done as they had been asked, but that did not mean the ordeal was over. Anyone could discover the truth of their endeavors. He feared Adelaide had somehow learned of it.
“Well, my father is still in his rooms, recovering from a rather nasty cold. I wondered if you might be suffering from the same affliction. It would explain the weary look about you.”
“I told you before, your father’s cold cannot be infectious,” he said matter-of-factly. “If it were, you would also be sick. Indeed, you would be sicker than I because you share the same home.”
She tapped the side of her chin. “I suppose you are right.”
He breathed a silent sigh of relief. By the looks of it, Adelaide was none-the-wiser to the events that had taken Jasper and Ephraim to the Speaker’s House. He prayed it remained so. One squeak of it to anyone, and they would all be in dire trouble.
At least you may rest assured, for now, that Lord Rowntree will not exact any sort of revenge upon Adelaide,he told himself.The job is done. He cannot blackmail Ephraim any longer, nor can he use Adelaide as leverage.Somehow, he couldn’t quite bring himself to believe that it was over. Once a villain had held a proverbial axe over a man’s neck, it tended to stay there.
“Anyway, I wanted to see how you were faring after yesterday’s trials and tribulations,” she continued, her tone soft and sympathetic.
He shrugged. “As well as can be, I expect. In truth, I continue to repeat the scene over and over in my mind, wondering what I could have done to make her stay. How could you have allowed me to remain silent?”
A surprised look washed over her face. “You are not serious?”
“Whatever do you mean?”
“You are not seriously attempting to blame me for what happened, are you?”
He sighed and swiped his cane at the bottom step of house. “No… of course not. I am in an ill-humor today, I’m afraid. You cannot listen to a word I say when I am in such a state.”
“I rarely listen to a word you say as it is.” She flashed a mischievous smile that prompted him to frown once more.
