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JASPER ALMOST DREW back.
He’d considered Miss Carberry to be given to formality, as so many of those studious were prone to do. The unfortunate truth was that knowing society rules and being sufficiently deferential in the presence of one’s elders was unlikely to suffice in endearing one to the ton, even if following rules strictly was the sort of thing that would get one top mark’s from one’s tutor. He doubted governesses’ grading systems varied widely.
Miss Carberry’s cheeks had pinkened becomingly, and Jasper found himself beaming back.
He did have good friends.
“Now tell me, which duke caught your eye? Was it Ainsworth? Or Hammett? It so often is Hammett. That man is quite the boxer. Sonnets have been written on his upper body strength.”
Miss Carberry widened her gaze for a moment, then shook her head. “Oh, no.”
“You find them lacking?”
“They’re fine,” she said hastily. “But not appropriate for me.”
“They’re not good enough for you?” Jasper pondered this. Miss Carberry was very good.
“I am certain they are quite good,” she amended. “Truly.”
“Yet you have reservations?”
She nodded miserably. “I know it’s important for you that I find a husband.”
He furrowed his brow. It had been important, but it had been because he’d desired to help her.
“So, you should be relieved to learn that I have found a potential prospect.”
“Oh.”
Jasper scrutinized her. Surely most women wouldn’t have such glazed expressions when contemplating spending the rest of one’s life with someone who wasn’t a duke. Besides, Jasper knew the guest list. He’d chosen an intimate house party. Large house parties might have considerable advantages, but he’d suspected Miss Carberry’s quiet nature might be overwhelmed by the incessant laughter and passionate discussions that his house parties seemed to so inevitably inspire.
Good Lord. Had she fallen for someone inappropriate? The point of having her find a husband was for her to marry someone lofty, someone who would make her happy. And of course, the last thing Jasper required was for Mrs. Carberry to be upset at him. The woman acted sufficiently unpredictable without having reason to be angry at him. He was certain if Miss Carberry decided to run off with one of Jasper’s staff, Mrs. Carberry would feel entitled to expressing that emotion.
“My footmen do tend to have regular features,” Jasper said.
“Your footmen?” Miss Carberry jerked her head toward him.
“And my gardeners,” Jasper acknowledged. In truth, his gardeners did possess that healthy gleam people liked. Their attire might be less formal, but no doubt that had advantages.
He only hoped none of the gardeners had practiced this with Miss Carberry.
“I am not referring to one of your staff,” Miss Carberry said sternly. “That would be—” She shook her head. “Well, it wouldn’t be right.”
“Then who exactly are you referring to?”
“Mr. Octavius Owens, of course,” Miss Carberry said.
Jasper furrowed his brow.
Miss Carberry sighed. “He works with your friend, the Duke of Ainsworth.”
“Oh.” Jasper blinked. “I suppose I need to make his acquaintanceship.”
“You’ll see more of him,” Miss Carberry said confidently. “He enjoys a close friendship with the duke.”
“Ah.” Jasper frowned.
Perhaps his thoughts truly had been elsewhere when his friends had arrived. He’d been distracted thinking of his plans for the house party, and he must have neglected to hear Hammett talk about his friend.
“And how did you speak with him?” he queried.
For some reason the question seemed to make Miss Carberry’s delectable cheeks pinken.
“It’s—er—not important.”
He raised an eyebrow, and she inhaled.
“There may have been an—er—tripping incident in the library.”
“He tripped? How clumsy.”
“Er—” Her cheeks pinkened. “Mr. Owens did not trip.”
Guilt swerved through Jasper, and he cursed himself.
“Not that it’s bad to trip,” he said awkwardly.
“It is clumsy,” she admitted.
“I hope you’re not hurt.”
“I’m entirely fine,” she reassured him hastily. “And it was entirely my fault.”
There was that customary niceness again.
“I assume this Mr. Owens was not responsible for your incident?” Jasper asked.
“N-No,” Miss Carberry said. “But he witnessed it. And then he came and helped me up.”
Well.
It was scarcely knight in shining armor material, but Jasper supposed that not everyone could act with his remarkable gallantry.
If Miss Carberry had fallen, he would have rushed toward her. He would have pulled her into his arms so she would not need to rise inelegantly from the floor, and he would have carried her to the nearest chaise-longue. He envisioned the scene happily, until he remembered Miss Carberry had fallen earlier this month, and no one had been there to assist her.
Miss Carberry deserved better.
“What did you talk about with him?” Jasper asked.
She shrugged. “Books.”
Well. That shouldn’t be a surprise. Most people might discuss books in libraries. It was the sort of topic that would occur one to speak about with higher frequency.
“He suggested another book for me to read,” he continued. “He noticed I was carrying a copy of Gulliver’s Travels. He was concerned the subject matter might be...unsuitable.”
“He warned you about reading?” Jasper’s brows soared upward, with the speed of bullets.
“Well, it was Jonathan Swift,” Miss Carberry explained.
Jasper inhaled. “How horrendous.”
“You enjoy Jonathan Swift?” Surprise sounded in Miss Carberry’s voice, and he wanted to tell her that he did. He wanted to tell her he had multiple intellectual passions that equaled hers.
Unfortunately, that would not be true.
“In truth, I rather avoid reading in general,” Jasper admitted. “But that doesn’t mean some person should go about warning people against reading. Anyone should read what they desire to read.”
“Oh.” Miss Carberry stared at him. “That’s an unusual sentiment.”
He shrugged. He had a similar generous philosophy on merrymaking, and though Jasper did not understand why someone would want to sit still for hours while holding up some leather-bound pages, he did know it made some people happy.
Miss Carberry, no doubt, belonged to that category of people who took pleasure in such an odd activity.
Well, let her read.
This Mr. Owens should not be discouraging her from it.
“You should read the book,” Jasper said firmly.
“I will,” Miss Carberry said. “Despite the man’s recommendations on books on botany.”
Jasper shuddered. “That sounds even more tiresome than a novel.”
Miss Carberry exhaled. “I’m afraid I’ve given you the wrong impression on the man. He’s really quite nice.”
“Be careful.”
“But you wanted me to marry.”
Jasper’s eyes widened. He’d never even met this man. Why was Miss Carberry speaking of marrying him? He was vaguely aware this was probably his fault, though he did not like to linger on the subject. Perhaps he shouldn’t have so enthusiastically declared this was her weekend to find a husband. It was the sort of statement bound to put romantic notions in a person’s head. But then, he’d hardly thought to vet his friends’ guests. Miss Carberry was supposed to choose a husband from one of his friends.
“He was simply making conversation,” Miss Carberry said, her voice trembling.
Jasper sighed. “I hope so.”
Women could be far too nice, and he thought Miss Carberry might succumb to that quality. After all, she exuded pleasantness. She’d been so nice she’d sneaked from his room when she’d had the chance to claim him for a husband, and she’d been so nice she’d evidently forgiven her mother’s actions.
“Perhaps you needn’t always be nice,” he said.
She raised her eyebrows. “You don’t want me to be nice?”
“I want you to be happy.”
“Your Grace!” A voice shouted, and Jasper groaned.
“Your Grace!” A different loud, bellowing cry sounded. It was unmistakable to hear the slight tinge of accent.
He’d forgotten about his new hires.
He’d been enjoying his stroll with Miss Carberry and he braced himself for the moment to end.
Murmurings sounded, then Lily began to bark.
Blast.
“Who is that?” Miss Carberry asked.
“Those would be my bodyguards,” Jasper said.
“They are most intimidating.”
Jasper nodded proudly. He’d made good hires.
She giggled. “You needed two bodyguards to protect yourself from my mother?”
“It’s not so absurd,” he said. “Besides, who knows which other of my servants she might be bribing. Those trunks were quite large. It could be filled with a great deal of coin.”
She laughed again, and his heart sang.
Unfortunately, the sound also acted as a beacon for more things than joy, for in the next moment, the two guards rushed toward them, their pace unhampered even by the darkness.
“Your Grace!” One of the men shouted, and his bald head glinted in the moonlight. He turned to his companion. “He’s with that woman!”
His new hires sprinted toward Jasper and Miss Carberry, then pulled Jasper away.
Clearly, their athleticism was not confined to strength. These men excelled at speed as well.
Lily began to bark, but even though any man in possession of any sense may have been wary of approaching her, these men experienced no such qualms. Evidently, they were either sufficiently well-trained or sufficiently conscious of Jasper’s generous paychecks, that they did not let a dog frighten them.
“We’re here for you now,” one of the men said in a soothing tone a doctor may have envied.
“Good,” Jasper said. “But it’s truly not necessary—”
In the next moment, Jasper’s words were swallowed. Strong arms swept around his waist, and he was turned upside down and placed over the man’s shoulders.
This would not do.
Nobody put Jasper over his shoulder.
He cleared his throat. “Put me down!”
The man did not put him down. “Don’t worry, Your Grace!”
Jasper gritted his teeth. “This is embarrassing and unnecessary.”
“We’re just protecting you,” the man said reassuringly.
Lily lunged at the man, and in the next moment the man took off, displaying the same speed as he and his companion had shown before.
The world bobbed curiously. In vain, he attempted to loosen himself from his bodyguard’s grasp.
Lily continued to bark, and Miss Carberry reassured her.
Jasper groaned.
Hiring bodyguards had seemed like an excellent idea.
Perhaps he’d acted too hastily, just as everyone said he did, and he’d only succeeded in being ridiculous.
“Jasper?” Ainsworth’s startled voice drifted toward him.
Evidently, not everyone had returned to the house yet.
He pointed in the direction of Miss Carberry, but when Ainsworth turned, Jasper wondered why he didn’t feel as relieved as he should.