Cassandra pursed her lips and looked away.
“Oh,God, hedid.” Jasmine squeezed her eyes closed, fighting the knot in her stomach and the crushing pressure on her chest. Something so small shouldn’t hurt this much. She held Cassandra’s hands and fought with her internal image of Lady Ravenshaw sitting at the breakfast table, as part of the family. She took the seat that Jasmine should have had all along—had she not been sonaïve!
Now it was Jasmine takingLady Ravenshaw’s seat.
The worst decision she ever made was leaving London. Curse it all! But she hadtried,and he had pushed her away! After his trial, Jasmine knocked on his door every day, and he never answered. One day hedidanswer, only to tell her to stop.
Then he never answered the door again.
She ran away to an entirely different country, and he opened the door for someone else.
Cassandra’s somber expression only deepened her heartache. “I’ll admit I liked her, at first. She was charming, she knew just what to say at just the right time. But, there was always something not quite right. You know when your instinct bristles? From what I understand, she was cruel to him.” She lowered her voice to a whisper. “They werecruel to each other.”
“Why did he tolerate it?”
“He’s lonely, Jasmine.”
“She looks like me,” Jasmine whispered.
Cassandra sighed. “An observation that has escaped no one.”
“Youmusttell me—“
“No, I won’t,” Cassandra interrupted sternly. “You’re my friend, and he’s my brother. Now I finally understand how he must have felt about Seth.” Cassandra gave her a hug. “If you have a question about his feelings, ask him. I’ll support either of you with whatever you wish to do, but I won’t interfere. I won’t betray your feelings, and I won’t betray his.” Cassandra leaned back and gave her a rueful smile. “And to be fair, he seldom shares them with me these days.”
Mr. Davis gently knocked on the doorframe. “The carriage is ready, Lady Jasmine.”
Her heart sank, but Jasmine gave Cassandra another crushing hug. “Thank you for being such a wonderful friend. I know I’m putting you in a tough position with your brother.”
“You aren’t. I’m onyourside.” Cassandra’s eyes lit up with a mischievous twinkle. “Talk to him tonight. And if he hurts you again, you come to me straight away. I’ll wallop him for you.”
Jasmine smiled. “You’re too good to me, Cassandra.”
Cassandra shrugged.
“I’ve always liked you more.”
Chapter Eight
If there was one thing Valentine Sinclair, the Marchioness of Dorchester, didnotallow, it was pouting. She had lived through plenty of scandals, scrapes, and setbacks with her head held high. Over a bottle of wine or three, she would talk about them all. At length. But by morning, she would have forgotten she had said anything at all.
The soirée hadn’t started and Mother was already drinking her third glass of wine. She took a sip from a crystal glass, careful not to ruin her rouge.
Cassandra’s entire dining room could have fit in Jasmine’s bedchamber with room to spare. Even covered with needlepoint rugs, the floor was cold under her silk slippers. The richest burgundy silk draped her four-poster bed and framed floor-to-ceiling windows. Golden hues from the sunset bounced off pure white walls, filling the room with the last-ditch effort of the day before nightfall. The decorative pillars gave the room the feel of a gilded cage.
Perfect for a pretty bird to sit in and be preened.
Jasmine held onto her bedpost, hissing as her lady’s maid, Minnie, tightened her corset. Jasmine was to wear a white dress with gold trim tonight, like a young debutante. Every accessory on her body sparkled, from her heavy diamond drop earrings to the two-strand pearl choker necklace that strangled her whenever she swallowed, and a silver tiara with amethysts to top it all off.
Like a perfect princess, ready to walk down the aisle.
It would be a nightmare to keep everything clean all night.
“I’ve been back two days and you’ve stuffed me in a gown for both of them—carajo!” Jasmine hissed as Minnie pulled the laces of her corset so tight the bones dug into her ribs.
“Watch your language! And donotcause a scene tonight,” Mother warned her. “It’s bad enough that I had to make excuses for your whereabouts all day. You could have sent word, or left a note at the very least.”
“I told you where I was going last night,” Jasmine reminded her.
