Page 17 of To Wager with Love

Jasper Cadogan was every childish romantic dream she’d ever had, but she’d not be made a fool of again. She would not open up her heart the way she had once before, only to be forgotten the moment she was out of his sight. As a young woman of sixteen she’d been shattered, but resilient enough to brush herself off and start over. As his wife, though, and the mother of his children….

What then would she feel when he was away from her?

What then would she feel when she heard the stories of his conquests?

No.

Jasper had never understood her in any case. He had no interest in her pursuits, no interest in learning of any kind, indeed he scorned it, and that she could not tolerate. Inigo did not love her, nor did she love him, but they both held a deep admiration and respect for the other’s intellect, and that was a good basis for a happy marriage. Not only that, he would be loyal to her and never bring her misery with his affairs. What more could she ask for?

As if to answer her question, the door opened, and Temple appeared once more.

“Mr Inigo de Beauvoir,” he said, before bowing and closing the door behind the new arrival.

Harriet let out a breath of relief at the sight of him. He was tall and lean, with a rather hawk-like profile. His hair was black, unfashionably long, and his eyes were an odd grey-green, cool and impassive under thick eyebrows. At thirty years of age, he looked older, mostly because he took very poor care of himself, sleeping little and working long hours, hence his decision to find a wife. In all, he had a rather sinister appearance, though Harriet knew better than to judge him by his looks. They had been corresponding in secret for some years now, and they had become friends and colleagues of a sort. He had encouraged her learning at every turn and was a firm believer that women ought to be educated in just the same way as men. Women were equals in his eyes, and only appeared stupid in comparison because they were taught that this was what was wanted from them.

“Thank you for coming,” she said, moving to greet him.

He gave a formal bow, eyeing the rest of the room with his cool grey-green gaze. “Miss Stanhope, how may I be of service?”

Harriet flushed, realising she must explain exactly what had happened last night and wondering just how he would react. They did not love each other, but still, she had agreed to marry him and….

She swallowed.

“I… I’m in the most dreadful fix,” she said, keeping her voice low and her back to the rest of the room. “Perhaps we could speak alone and… in private.”

“There’s no need for that, darling.”

Harriet jumped as Jasper’s voice came from close behind her.

“Mr de Beauvoir,” Jasper continued smoothly, giving him a measuring look. “I’m St Clair. I’m afraid that Harriet and I were caught in a very compromising situation this morning. The news will be all over the village by now. We’ll marry, at once.” He paused, staring at Inigo. “You are at liberty to call me out, naturally.”

“Jasper!” his mother exclaimed, putting a hand to her heart. “Oh, no!”

Inigo remained expressionless, save for the slightest quirk of one eyebrow. “Calm yourself, madam,” he said, not looking away from Jasper. “I see no need for bloodshed, unless….” He looked to Harriet. “Were you forced?”

“No!” she exclaimed as Jasper stiffened in outrage. “No… I… I was drunk… at least, I didn’t realise I was drunk. Someone put alcohol in the fruit punch, and it was such a hot night, and I was so dreadfully thirsty, and I drank a great deal and… and….” She trailed off as she realised she was babbling, before adding desperately, “I’m still a virgin.”

Harriet had lived through many mortifying moments in her life. As a young woman who wore spectacles and was considered an oddity more often than not, it was inevitable, but never in her life had she experienced anything that made her want to curl up and die with quite such longing.

“I see,” Inigo said slowly, pursing his lips. He regarded Jasper, who still looked as if he wanted to kill something, before turning back to her. “Well, Miss Stanhope, I see no reason for a great deal of fuss. It is clear you were inebriated, and I have no intention of punishing you for a silly mistake. My offer stands if you still wish to marry.”

“What?” Jasper exploded, his outrage so fierce that Harriet leapt from her skin. “No reason?” he thundered. “We were naked together… all night! The only reason she’s still a virgin and only just at that, is because I realised she was inebriated and called a halt, and I’m damn well going to marry her.”

“Jasper!” Harriet and his mother exclaimed in horrified unison.

Aunt Nell made a groaning sound and collapsed into an armchair. Everyone ignored her.

“Well, can you deny it?” Jasper demanded, turning on Harriet. “Can you deny you wanted me, begged me?”

Harriet stared at him, furious and humiliated, again. How could he say such shocking things about her in front of everyone? The urge to cry made her chest tight and her throat ache but instead she turned and regarded Mr de Beauvoir, who had been watching proceedings with the detached interest of a scientist watching the behaviour of some unknown species.

“If you can forgive my shocking lapse of propriety, I will be happy to continue our engagement, Mr de Beauvoir, though I should be grateful if we could speed up the proceedings.”

“I think that might be wise,” he said, one side of his mouth twitching a little in the first show of emotion she’d seen from him since he arrived.

“Harry, no!”

She gasped as Jasper caught her arm and swung her around, panic in his eyes. “Harry, for God’s sake, enough. Enough of this ridiculous charade. You don’t love him, and he sure as hell doesn’t love you. Can you really marry a man who doesn’t give a damn what we did together last night?”