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Madame Dubois, read the sign’s curly inscription. Jane could see roses and dress forms showcasing exquisite gowns in the large paned bay shop windows. Carriages passed by, and fashionable ladies and gentlemen walked down the street holding pretty boxes and packages, on their way to the next store. Bond Street boasted hat makers, tailors, shops for ribbons and lace, and many others. Of course, Jane would rather go to the bookshop she saw nestled next to the store selling tobacco and snuff boxes.

Jane stared at the paper Richard was holding out for her, and read:

Two hearts of nobility have declared their union. The Honorable Lord Richard Seaton, brother to His Grace, Preston, the Duke of Grandhampton, is to be wedded to Miss Jane Grant, daughter of the late Right Honorable Lord Grant on 24 June 1813.

“Wonderful,” she said.

There was nothing wonderful about this. If anything, yesterday morning had shown her that they needed to move faster to break off the engagement. She didn’t want to waste time getting gowns made and going to soirées.

Richard frowned slightly. Good. Something to wipe the unaffected expression from the infuriating man’s face. Not a care in the world that he’d just betrayed her and broken her trust by sneaking around behind her back. How could she trust him again? She’d made a big mistake allowing him into her chamber. Kissing him…letting him hold her…

“Would you not take it to your brother?” Richard asked. “He shall be pleased.”

But Thorne’s pleasure was not Jane’s primary concern. His scrutinizing gaze had felt like a weight upon her since yesterday morning’s events. The threat of a forced marriage loomed large, even if she and Richard intended to end the engagement.

Giving up her school was out of the question. And marriage to a man she no longer trusted was even more unthinkable. She couldn’t bear it.

Jane snatched the paper from Richard’s hand and passed it to Ruby. “Could you please give this to my brother, Ruby?” Jane asked.

Ruby unfurled the paper, a proud smile blooming on her face as she skimmed over the wedding announcement. “I most certainly will.”

“Is something wrong?” Richard asked cautiously. “I thought you’d be happy. I’m following your brother’s rules, which I loathe. The date is set. The announcement is made. The license is secured. Tonight, we will present ourselves as a betrothed couple to the ton. I’m doing everything your brother asked me to.”

“Yes, Lord Richard,” Jane said through clenched teeth. “I’m ecstatic to miss school for this frivolity.” She gestured dismissively at Madame Dubois’s shop. “My students were finally starting to make progress. We began to learn the letter C.”

Richard’s jaw tightened. “I’m sorry you’re missing your class, Jane.”

Jane scoffed. “You’re sorry? I can’t trust a word that comes out of your mouth.”

His smug expression faltered further. “Because of the note?”

Jane met his penetrating gaze, her voice barely a whisper. “Yes, because of the note. And after what happened two nights ago…”

Heat flared in her cheeks as she remembered their shared vulnerability, her boldness. All, it seemed, had been in vain.

She glanced at Ruby, who was still smiling to herself as she studied the page of wedding announcements. She had to make sure the maid wouldn’t hear her.

“You can never kiss me or touch me again, Lord Richard,” she hissed. He blinked, and she was surprised to see a flash of hurt in the depths of his eyes. His eyebrows furrowed, his mouth straightening into a line. “I was the one to break the rules the other night, to my great chagrin. It will never happen again. Do not dare try anything.”

He rearranged his features into the impassive, polite mask of a well-bred gentleman. “As you wish.”

“What was in that note?” asked Jane even more softly.

“If I tell you, will you promise not to tell Thorne?”

“That depends on what’s in it. If it’s something that may incriminate him, I must make sure my brother is safe.”

“In that case, I cannot tell you.”

Jane shook her head. “Cannot or will not?” she demanded.

He held her gaze without wavering, but any trace of warmth disappeared from his eyes. “If you don’t put off your visit to Madame Dubois’s shop until the next century, you could, perhaps, hold school tomorrow.”

Jane wanted to snarl. “All right. Don’t tell me. Can you at least promise you won’t hurt Thorne?”

Richard’s nostrils flared. “Do you mean like your brother wouldn’t have hurt mine?”

“No,” Jane said. “Despite that. Even though Thorne is a dangerous man, he’s my family. He raised me. And I love him. I’m asking you. Promise me you won’t hurt him.”