“I’m glad you arrived at all,” she said frankly.

He scowled. “Why the devil did you go with him?”

“I could hardly refuse. Not when he was gripping me so tightly and tugging me along with him. He’s bigger than me, in case you hadn’t noticed. And he is an earl.”

“Are you certain he didn’t hurt you?”

“No. He only scared me a little. I’m fine now.”

“Until your next encounter with him.” Captain Blunt’s jaw tightened. “Will there be another?”

Julia shuddered at the thought. She had no desire to see Lord Gresham ever again. But given the circumstances, her own desires counted for very little. Not when they stood against the adamantine will of her parents.

Good gracious. Mama would be coming home in the morning. And then, who knew what would happen?

Julia had hopes that Anne’s return the following day would alleviate some of her anxiety. But even Anne—her dearest friend in all the world—had stated in no uncertain terms that Julia’s best chance of escaping Belgrave Square was to marry. The fact was, despite all her ardent opinions, Anne was, in many ways, as much a prisoner of her family as Julia was of her own.

A dispiriting truth.

“I don’t know,” she said.

“You should refuse to see him again,” Captain Blunt advised.

“You imagine I have a choice?”

“Everyone has a choice.”

“Spoken like a man,” Julia said under her breath. She arranged the voluminous skirts of her ball gown with restless hands. “If you knew anything about ladies of my rank, you’d know our own preferences don’t matter. Not when it comes to marriage.”

Captain Blunt didn’t reply. He only paced and muttered to himself. “I knew he would try something like this. From the moment I saw him with you—”

She raised her brows. “You saw us together tonight?”

“Tonight. And at Lady Clifford’s musicale. And then again at Lady Holland’s dinner. I knew he was the type of man who—”

“I wasn’t aware—”

“Of course not,” he said harshly. “Your opinions of him must be guided by your father. And if your father approves—”

Julia gave Captain Blunt an alert look. “What do you know of that?”

“I know you deserve better.” He paused, adding, “And I know Gresham deserves a good thrashing.”

She smiled in spite of herself. “He can be in no doubt of your opinion of him. I’ve never seen you look so fierce as you did when you stepped into the clearing.”

He gave a humorless laugh. “Consider yourself fortunate.”

“I didn’t know you could look that way. As though you would tear a man limb from limb.”

“I was a soldier, Miss Wychwood. One not known for his pleasant disposition.”

Her expression sobered. “Yes. So I’ve heard.” Her hands dropped to her sides, fingers curling around the edge of the marble bench. “Indeed, only this morning, as I was leaving the park, someone told me the most alarming stories about your time in the Crimea.”