Jane stepped a touch closer to Jasper. She’d wrangled him into marrying her. It made her wonder whether he offered wanton kisses, suggestions and compliments because he really wanted to or because, having made his decision after yesterday’s doubts, he must now convince them both it was the right one.
‘Thank you, Mr Stilton, for everything.’ Jasper shook the cheesemonger’s hand, then guided Jane towards the entrance of the shop, his arm solid on hers.
She placed her hand over his as they stepped outside on to the pavement. She was no longer a helpless child, she was a grown woman who would not be a burden to him; she would be a partner in their success. It was how much of a partner he intended to be that she still worried about.
They left the shop and were not three feet from the entrance when Chester Stilton staggered out of a hack, his usually pristine clothes as rumpled as the skin beneath his eyes. With her doubts trailing her, he was one of the last people she wished to encounter and she tugged on Jasper’s arm, hoping to hurry past before he noticed them. They were not fast enough.
‘Miss Rathbone, here to change your mind about my offer?’ Chester called out, forcing her and Jasper to face the man.
‘I see your credit with your tailor has run out.’ She motioned to the patched tear on his lapel.
He reddened with shame at being caught looking less than impeccable. Then he leaned in close to her, his eyes as bloodshot as his breath was foul. ‘Come to sneer at me, spinster?’
‘Mind how you address her,’ Jasper warned from beside her.
Mr Stilton curled one lip at him, revealing his yellow teeth. ‘Who are you?’
‘Jasper Charton.’ Jasper took Jane’s hand. ‘Her fiancé.’
‘Picking up your brother’s leftovers, I see,’ Mr Stilton sneered before turning to Jane. ‘What did you do to get him? Purchase him like you couldn’t purchase his brother?’
Jasper slid in between Jane and the cheesemonger’s son. He stood a good head taller than Chester and leaned so close to him, he was forced to bend back to avoid being nose to nose with Jasper. ‘Speak to her like that again and I’ll see to it your debts are called in. I don’t mean your debt at the tailor, I mean the gambling ones you’ve run up at the Company Gaming Room.’
Jane stifled a squeak of surprise while struggling to hold her look of disdain. Mr Stilton gambles at Jasper’s hell.
Mr Stilton’s lips dropped down over his teeth and the blood drained out of his flushed face. ‘How do you know about those? I’ve never seen you there.’
‘I’m a well-connected man. If you don’t wish to be strung up by your debts, or have your father inadvertently learn of them, you’ll keep your opinions about Miss Rathbone to yourself. Do I make myself clear?’
Mr Stilton flicked a nervous glance at Jane before nodding in agreement.
‘Good, then we’ve settled the matter.’ Jasper straightened, turned to Jane and offered her his arm. She took it, jutting her chin out in defiance of Mr Stilton when they stepped around him. ‘Good day, Mr Stilton.’
Jane didn’t dare speak until they were down the street and well away from the cheesemonger. ‘Why did you threaten him with his club debts?’
His arm beneath her hand stiffened. ‘Because he deserved it for insulting you.’
‘But you risked him finding out about your involvement in the hell. If he had, he’s weasel enough to have used it against you.’
‘I’ve seen him gamble. He isn’t smart enough to make the connection.’ Jasper stopped and faced her. ‘Besides, you’re worth the risk.’
Jane’s back stiffened. She’d waited years for someone to value her like this, someone not related to her by blood or marriage. The fact it was Jasper seemed right, but the old doubts refused to be silenced. ‘No, I’m not.’
He brushed her cheek with his fingers. ‘Despite what you believe, you’re an exceptional woman worthy of respect and admiration. I’m the one who doesn’t deserve you.’
‘Of course you do.’ People shuffled by on the narrow pavement, silently scolding them for blocking traffic. Jane was barely conscious of their censure as Jasper caressed her cheek with his thumb. He’d been willing to risk having his respectability challenged to defend her, and it was obvious he didn’t regret it. This more than his words—his offer to turn over his affairs at once, or his kisses, spoke to how much he valued her and their coming union.
Mrs Fairley was right. Jane hadn’t made a mistake.
‘In case you’re unfamiliar with what will take place tonight, allow me to explain,’ Mrs Hale offered while Laura did up the buttons on the back of Jane’s wedding dress. With her straight nose and auburn hair tinged with grey, Mrs Hale resembled Laura, except her eyes were pale brown while Laura’s were hazel. ‘When a gentleman and a lady are alone together...’
‘Yes, I’m well aware of what will transpire.’ Jane had eavesdropped on Jasper’s sister enough times when she was younger to learn the full extent of things. However, having an understanding of how the deed worked and experiencing it were two very different things. Jane took such a deep breath, she feared the buttons might pop off their threads. If what was to come with Jasper was anything like his kisses, she wasn’t sure how she’d make it through tonight without melting into a puddle.
‘Too bad, I was looking forward to describing it in more flowery language than I usually hear in Dr Hale’s practice.’ Mrs Hale laughed from her place on the sofa. It was the first time the three women had been together in months and her presence helped calm Jane. She’d been like a mother to her, helping her grow from a young girl to a woman and calming her on more than one occasion when Jane had been fuming over some slight or one of Philip’s decisions. In Mrs Hale’s smile and the delighted way she spun her cane as she held it in front of her, Jane could almost imagine her own mother here.
She would be here if it hadn’t been for me. Jane tried to smile while the other ladies continued to joke and tease, but her lips were as tight as her nerves.
‘If you have any questions after the deed, you know where to find me.’ Mrs Hale clapped with the same restrained exuberance she’d shown when Laura had made her a grandmother. Then she rose and came to stand beside her, fingering the fine embroidered lace cascading from the shoulders of the dress to brush the hem of the skirt. ‘I’m glad you’ll finally be able to attach a good memory to this bit of silk. You deserve to be happy.’
Her eyes misted with tears as she took Jane by the shoulders and turned her to face the mirror. Any reservations Jane might have had about the dress vanished as the thirteen-year-old girl who’d spent days in this room mourning the departure of her friend, and praying he might some day return, rose up inside her. He had come back to her. He was the first.
Philip rapped on the door and then entered. He wore his best morning suit, as handsome today as when he’d married Laura. He stopped at the sight of his sister, and his eyes shone with pride. ‘You’re lovely.’
He came forward and pressed a tender kiss to her forehead. Tears blurred her vision, but she brushed them off with her gloved fingertips, not wanting to meet Jasper with red eyes. Philip was