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couldn’t help be grateful. Had she been on her own, she wasn’t sure what she would have done. Likely remained until they returned to London and begun her journey all over again. Perhaps she would thank him for his help later.
    That was, as long as he didn’t expect a thank you kiss. She certainly had no intentions of kissing him again.
    None at all. Never, ever again. Ever.

Chapter Seven
    “Nice hat.”
    Hettie put a hand to the feathered, lacy accessory. “I don’t like it.”
    Jasper considered the wide-brimmed, pale pink hat. “It’s much better than that brown thing,” he told her firmly. “You look very pretty in it.”
    Colour appeared on her cheeks, making him want to grin. He probably would if he wasn’t carrying both of their travel bags and her hat box. He looked to the spire of the church in the distance. The village was hardly far away but it felt it while he was carrying such unwieldy burdens.
    “About another two miles,” he muttered, more to himself than anything.
    “Would you like me to take—”
    “Certainly not,” he snapped. He could hardly claim to be a gentleman, but he wasn’t very well going to let a woman carry her luggage.
    “I should, um, thank you for your help, my lord.”
    “Jasper,” he reminded her through gritted teeth.
    She must have picked up on his annoyance. “Yes. Jasper.”
    He shouldn’t feel annoyed. In fact, he wasn’t even sure why he was annoyed. He’d offered to come with her and he had an interest in finding Emma—as soon as possible. Hettie really had no idea the trouble her sister could be in.
    Jasper supposed concern for her sister was beginning to eat into him. When they were on the train he could at least be assured they would be on the hunt for her in a few short days. Now they had quite a journey ahead of them. If they didn’t get to Emma and something happened to her, he would never forgive himself.
    He should have done more for her, offered more. She was a frightened, vulnerable young woman who had been taken advantage of.
    And, in some ways, he’d been quite looking forward to helping her. It would have been a challenge to be sure.
    Why had she not come to him if she needed more aid?
    “You really did not need to help me, and I am grateful,” Hettie continued and he suspected she’d been rattling on for some time while he’d been pondering his idiocy and concentrating on not dropping her hat box.
    Of course, Hettie had no idea quite how involved in her family he was going to become in future. And if Emma had stayed put, no one would have had any idea. Emma could have gone back to enjoying her youth and Jasper...well, he would have endured all the gossip and speculation and embarked on a new challenge in life. Hopefully he still would if they caught up with Emma.
    “Well, I have little else to occupy my time,” he said blithely.
    “I suppose not, though you seem to keep yourself occupied well enough.”
    He swung a glance her way. “You talk of my antics that take up much print in the papers, I suppose.”
    Hettie looked at the ground for a moment. “Well, I know little else of you.”
    “I hardly read the ladies’ pages, so I cannot comment on what you might find there. Some is likely true and some is most likely exaggerated.”
    “You do not care that people find your behaviour scandalous?”
    “I learned long ago not to care for what others thought.”
    “It seems a selfish way to live,” she said quietly.
    Jasper hefted the hat box back under his arm. “Why should I answer to anyone but myself?”
    “Well...what of all the women? I should imagine you have broken many hearts.”
    “What if they have broken mine?”
    She shot a surprised look his way before lifting her chin and eyeing the long, winding lane. “I don’t think any woman has ever touched your heart.”
    “You might be right. But these women know full well what they are getting into. I have those rags that pass for newspapers to thank for that. I make no