Pru was delighted to hear that Dillon's ocean trip had been fun and healing. If Edward took in his men, he would welcome her. "What of his wife? I have heard that Gabriella is a talented woman. Does Dillon intend to send a message as to our arrival?"

"They're close friends. He needs no invitation. Edward was once part of Parliament before he married Gabby, and Dillon knew him then. We are also considered his family. Gabby is friendly and thrives on activities.

"She will teach you defense if you are willing. You can learn as she instructs her daughters, who are now eight and six years old. If your brother had confronted her, he wouldn't have walked away. Part of her skill is wielding a sword. She's fast and lethal. He laughed at her shock. "Close your mouth, M'dear. You will enjoy yourself greatly.

"Why don't you go upstairs and choose a room, Pru? You'll probably want to sort your clothes for the trip. You can leave one of those trunks here in town. Lady Gabriella is about your size." A humorous grin crinkled his eyes. "Dillon packed your clothes in a hurry."

"He stuffed them in there, didn't he?"

"Well, we were in a bit of a hurry, so we wrapped that sheet around them, the one you had on the bed. Dillon carried it down to the wagon since we failed to find a trunk in the house. Daniel sought out the attic that held nothing but dust. That's why Dillon stopped by his house to get these. I'm sure the maids at Greystone will press them."

Since they had seen how she had been living, she refused to worry about wrinkled clothing. "I am far from worried over what was necessary to help me escape. Your kindness has saved my life. We both know what my future would have been if Dillon hadn't been there." She rose and set her empty brandy glass on a side-table.

Jasper knew her statement was accurate. "Everyone needs help upon occasion. You above most should know that." He stood and went to hoist the trunk on his shoulder, but she stopped him.

"I will repack down here and take what I need for the night upstairs." He nodded and went to finish his drink while she went upstairs.

Pru admired the beautiful gold wallpaper and brass sconces as she climbed to the second floor. The first bedroom had been designed for a woman. A paramour Daniel either planned to hire or had dismissed. She couldn't help but think how horrible that would be. Not being a mistress to a handsome man like Daniel, but being his and then being discarded as if her usefulness had been displeasing.

Some men found another protector for them. Yet, a beautiful woman would quickly have another offer. She wondered what Maxwell had intended to do with her—if that was even his name. The event this afternoon still caused her knees to buckle at the fear of what could have happened.

Dillon's arrival, had he been five minutes later... The fear of that took the strength from her legs, and she slid down the wall. Her arms came around her body to hug herself as tears rolled down her cheeks. Until now, she had managed to keep up the pretense of being strong, but her future looked bleak.

Hearing that Dillon had been checking up on her was encouraging. The only person that had cared about her, since her father died, was Doctor Burton. The thought of Dillon thinking of her since leaving the hospital was very encouraging. If she had known, perhaps she would have sent him a note to come to the hospital to see her.

It was a nice fantasy, but it wasn't true. She wouldn't have wanted to burden him. At the time, how was she to know Robert would stoop so low as to sell her?

Pru hated feeling sorry for herself. It never did any good. What had gone on before could not be changed. Her future hadn't been decided. That was the mantra she had lived with for years now.

She stood up and wiped her face with the hanky she kept in her sleeve. She stepped to the door of the first bedroom. It wasn't overly feminine. A simple four-poster bed with a gold bedspread took up a lot of the room. There was a dresser and wardrobes against the walls. The carpet had blues, green, and gold in it. Remove the carved filigree chair with a blue cushion and the ruffled pillows on the bed, and a man would be comfortable.

She loved this house. It was the best place she had been in since she was a young girl. It was a gift to be offered such a safe place to stay.

It was odd how a mistress could have a home such as this for turning sexual favors, yet as a nurse, who saved people from dying, she could never afford it.

A mistress only needed to please a man's sexual needs. It would not appear to be difficult, especially for a man like Daniel. She hadn't seen any cruelty and he laughed easily. It would appear he would be playful in bed. Perhaps, he preferred many women and this house provided a private place for such activity.

Those thoughts were most improper. However, being in the house knowing what it was used for had brought her curiosity forward. She left the room and went to see the other bedroom. A lamp on a chest of drawers lit the room antiquity enough to see it had a masculine appeal of dark blues and heavy drapery. It had obviously been decorated with Daniel in mind.

She understood the pleasure it could bring—or the horror. As a nurse, she had learned more than the facts of life. She had heard stories while treating women who had been abused by men in hideous ways. Most had been prostitutes—some had been the wives of men who drank or took out their anger on anyone weaker.

More often than not, she heard their cry as they begged for death when life offered nothing more. Many burned patients felt the same way. Hearing Jasper say that Dillon tortured himself regarding his scars and the reaction of how a woman would see him stirred her emotions.

Dillon hadn't seemed overly conscious about his scars with her. He had laughed. But perhaps her opinion of scars was to be expected. She was a nurse and had seen the worst cases. To her, he had always been an extremely appealing man.

Nevertheless, a young débutante would react differently to seeing scars she had never been exposed to before. Some girls would be appalled and perhaps mention something hurtful. That was not something she could stop. He could test reactions best by not hiding his scars.

She used the bathroom before going downstairs. Jasper had placed the trunks against a wall with the lids opened and had a sheet spread over the floor.

"This was kind of you, Jasper." She stepped close to look inside the trunks and giggled at the mess she found. Dillon would have been hurrying to get to his sisters, and see that she met Daniel and Jasper at the hospital.

She picked one up and saw it had been folded, as in trying to make the item smaller. Not as one would fold something for a trip. Her eyes glanced at Jasper, who was watching her, so she dare not laugh. It had been a kindness to bother at all with her personal belongings.

She took them out one by one and separated them. The winter clothes would go in one trunk and the summer into the other one. "Jasper, may I ask how you met Dillon? I can see you're the best of friends. Did you two grow up together?"

"We met at Cambridge years before his accident."

He didn't offer any further information. He wouldn't share anything about his personal life. Pru didn't need to know he was born a bastard with a titled Father, who had behaved like Robert. He had spent money without any accountability.

Such was not something Jasper talked about. He had made his own way with the advice given by Dillon and Daniel. They helped him accumulate his own wealth over a period of years. But soon after, his titled father died and Jasper gained the title he never wanted, sisters who resented him, and debts from this family's foolishness.

The situation made him think that his birth was a mistake and the inheritance was his punishment. He and his friends straightened up the mess, sold off much of the estate, and he kept only the farmland with an estate. It fed people, so he conceded to that.

He tried to ignore his title, though others used it. Upon the introduction to the doctor, Prudence had given his title, being a proper introduction. She didn't know him well enough yet.

Prudence looked over at Jasper because he had grown quiet. What she noticed was his stiff posture. His shoulders had grown tight. She assumed he had his own problems or was considering hers.

She held up a serviceable traveling suit and thought it would be best for her trip and save the pretty borrowed gown. It was set aside to take upstairs and began with the second trunk.

Jasper caught her attention when he suddenly stood as if it was torture sitting there. "I'm going outside to check the perimeter. Stay inside."

His discomfort was obvious. She understood that most people had a history of things that ghosted them. Her desire to make them perceive what they were dealing with, concerning Robert, had ugly details. She hadn't shared those with Dillon. Though, he has seen Robert right before he had raised his fist. It was possible those facts bothered Jasper.

By the time Pru finished repacking, Jasper's lengthy absence had become noticeable. She set what would be taken upstairs on the steps, gathered those dirty glasses, and went into the kitchen to wash them. When she finished, she heard voices on the porch and knew Daniel had returned. With no desire to disturb them, she took her things upstairs to the bedroom.