Page 12

CHAPTER ELEVEN

H e’d left without a word to his father.

Curtis was so angry, so disillusioned, that he’d left the de Lohr encampment with only a word to Westley, who had no idea why his brother was grabbing his saddlebags, his weapon, and heading to the corral for his horse. Curtis told Westley that he’d return in the morning and to make sure Lady Leominster wasn’t there when he came back. As Curtis took off on his fat golden warhorse, Westley had gone running for his father.

Curtis had intended that his father should know that he left, but also that he would return in the morning so Christopher wouldn’t send out search parties. Curtis needed time alone, and Christopher would have to understand that. The town closest to Brython on the English side of the border was Presteigne, and that was exactly where he was heading. He’d find an inn, order a good meal, and sleep in a good bed and not a traveling cot, which was never very comfortable. He’d have a fire and peace and comfort for the night before heading back to the encampment and demanding his father annul the marriage.

As he saw it, that was necessary.

Did he really want the annulment? No, he didn’t. He’d rather been looking forward to a marriage with Elle. She had moments where he could see her warmth, her eagerness to please and willingness to learn, but they were so few and far between. He didn’t really mean all of those things he’d said to her. He’d said them because he was angry and she’d pushed him beyond his limit. He was angry because she seemed to be giving up on them before they even got started.

Perhaps that was what angered him the most.

She couldn’t see past the knight to the man beneath.

Now, all he felt was disappointment.

Presteigne was less than an hour’s ride from Brython. It was still early enough in the evening that people were still out in the street, hovering around open doors from homes or inns as warm light streamed through doorways and onto the darkened street. He could hear laughing and talking as he entered the edge of town because there were three inns on this side of the village alone. One of them seemed particularly popular, but he was looking for something quieter. He wanted peace tonight. He needed it. It was supposed to be his wedding night, but he was going to spend it getting drunk.

Unfortunately, the town’s six inns and three taverns were all busy this evening. It was a cold night, so people were looking for some kind of warmth and shelter for the evening. He ended up going back to the east side of the village and selecting The Earl and the Oak, a two-storied inn that had more of a tavern feel to it because there was drink and entertainment below while the sleeping rooms were upstairs. Curtis stabled his steed in the livery behind the inn before proceeding inside to secure a rented chamber for the night.

The innkeeper, a tall man whose lower half of his left leg was a wooden peg, was more than hospitable to a knight willing to pay well. He took Curtis to the best chamber he had, on the corner of the building overlooking an alley and the livery yard. It was guaranteed to be quiet, away from the street, and Curtis ordered a meal before settling in for the night.

He suspected it was going to be a long one.

The first thing he did after settling in his rented chamber was to simply sit in silence. He had been in a month-long battle where noise filled the air both day and night. Siege engines, men screaming, and the sounds of battle had been part of his life every minute of every day. As the night deepened around him, he lit a fire in the small hearth and sat by the window that overlooked the alley.

The night above was clear, with a brilliant moon hanging in the sky. He could hear nightbirds in the distance, and all around him there were sounds of civilization as people hunkered down for the night. He could smell the evening meals wafting upon the breeze, and occasionally, he could hear a husband and wife speaking. In fact, across the alley was a small cottage with a small yard and a little barn. He watched as a child, a small boy, came out of the barn with a bucket of what was evidently milk. The child shut the barn door and headed into the house, where his mother thanked him for milking the cow.

Somehow, that family had his attention. It was a simple family, and he couldn’t see if they had more than just the one son, but he could hear the mother’s voice as she sweetly spoke to her child and encouraged him to eat all of his bread and vegetables. Meat was very precious to poor families, so the poor would generally eat only vegetables for their meals. But it struck Curtis that the boy didn’t seem to mind that they were poor. In fact, he probably didn’t even know they were poor. All that mattered was that he had a loving mother and a loving father and a warm home to grow up in.

Somehow, that depressed Curtis.

He wasn’t sure what he had expected of his own marriage, but he had expected at least what his father and mother had. Even though he had heard stories, from his own father, no less, as to how much his mother did not want to get married, they were still able to put aside their differences and raise ten children. Curtis only remembered the warmth of his family when he was young and how his older sisters doted on him. He only remembered his parents being loving toward each other, and, quite frankly, that was the example set for him. Of course he should want that for his own marriage.

But it didn’t look like that was going to happen.

As he listened to the mother and the father talk to their young son, he began to sorely regret how he’d spoken to Elle. He wasn’t usually a man to get upset like that, and most definitely not with women, but she had hurt him. The more he thought on it, the more he realized that was why he had lashed out the way he had. He had told her to be gone in the morning, but a large part of him was hoping she was stubborn enough to disobey him. He was also thinking that perhaps he should just go back to the encampment tonight and apologize to her for becoming angry. Perhaps if he did, they might smooth things over.

But he didn’t have high hopes.

His meal came several minutes later. There was an enormous bowl of stewed beef chunks with currants and carrots, plus a custard that was full of onions and baked with cheese. It was delicious. There was also plenty of bread and butter, and a big bowl of stewed apples with cloves and honey. Lastly, there was an enormous pitcher of what turned out to be warmed wine that was full of spices. He sucked down the stewed beef and the onion tart and practically inhaled the bread and butter. He didn’t realize he was so hungry until he took the first bite, and after that, everything on the tray ended up in his mouth in short order. Even the trencher, a flat disk of stale bread, was eaten because it was soaked in the gravy from the stewed beef. Between bites, he drank copious amounts of the spicy wine until there was nothing left.

Stuffed and fairly drunk at that point, he ended up passing out in the chair he was sitting in. The food and the warmth of the room had lulled him to sleep, and considering he had hardly slept in the past month, his body was ready for the rest. Even though he slept deeply, he still had one ear open. It was the trained warrior in him, always listening for danger.

It was the curse of a knight.

Part of his window overlooked the stable yard, and he heard when a horse entered the yard. He could hear the steady clip-clops and the crunching of the earth. It was enough of a noise to wake him, but only because he wanted to make the transition over to the bed and not sleep in the chair. He had paid good money for that bed, and he intended to use it. His resolve to return to the encampment that evening was sliding just a bit, but he was certain he could make it back before sunrise. Before the deadline he had given Elle. But that was until he looked into the stable yard as he got up from his chair.

Elle was down there.

He also recognized Peter’s horse immediately. Peter rode a horse that was as red as a sunset, with a white stripe down its face and four white socks. The horse was very recognizable. Suddenly, Curtis was wide awake as he watched Peter speak to Elle, who was standing next to the horse. Puzzled, Curtis quickly made his way down from his room and out into the livery yard just as Peter was leaving.

His brother caught sight of him.

“Then you really are here,” Peter said. “I saw your horse just inside the livery door, but I wasn’t sure this was where you had found lodgings for the night.”

Curtis’ focus was on Peter for a few moments before shifting to Elle. “Of course this is where I would be,” he said to his brother, even though he wasn’t looking at him. “Why would I leave my horse here and not stay here?”

Peter could see where the man’s attention was, and he turned his horse for the alley. “Because there are two other inns across the street, and I do not think they have liveries,” he said. “You could’ve been over there for all I knew. But now that I have found you, I shall leave your wife here and bid you both a good night.”

With that, he plodded out of the yard, leaving Elle standing there, looking at Curtis with a great deal of uncertainty on her face. It was an unusual expression for her, one Curtis had never seen before. She was full of hesitation. Before he could say a word, she spoke.

“I asked Peter to help me find you,” she said, wringing her hands nervously. “My lord, I am sorry. I have made a mess out of things, and I did not want you to hate me for it. I am sorry I said those things to you, because I should not have. They are my own insecurities, and I must learn to overcome them, but I should not have lashed out at you as I did, and I am very sorry for it. If you still wish to annul the marriage, then I understand, but I could not let you do it without knowing how sorry I am.”

It was quite a speech, as remorseful as he’d ever heard her. That was surprising. Curtis’ eyes glimmered with mirth and perhaps even warmth.

“There is something you must do for me,” he said.

Elle nodded eagerly. “I will, whatever it is.”

“Never again address me as ‘my lord,’” he said. “You are my wife, and that is far too formal, even for me.”

She blinked in surprise. “As you wish,” she said. “What… what should I call you?”

“My name is Curtis,” he said softly. “I will answer to Curtis or Curt. Whatever you wish to use, I will answer.”

He sounded… calm. Calm and unlike the enraged man who had left the encampment those hours ago. Elle was unsure how to proceed at that point, because he seemed kind again, but she knew she’d upset him gravely.

“I… I said what I came to say,” she said, looking uncertain. “Sir Peter has probably already started back for the encampment, so I will sleep in the stable for tonight, but mayhap you will let me travel back with you tomorrow morning.”

He grinned and shook his head, glancing at his feet as he pondered her statement. “Do you honestly think I would let you sleep in a stable?” he said, lifting his head to look at her. “Ever again? Your days of smelly clothes and sleeping in anything other than the finest bed I can provide are over, Elle.”

He seemed almost jovial, and her bafflement grew. “I do not understand,” she said. “I came to apologize to you, and I meant it, but you’ve not said a word about the situation other than to pretend it never happened.”

“It didn’t.”

“But it did,” she said firmly, moving toward him. “I was horrible to you, but all I can tell you is that this entire situation has been contrary to everything I have ever been taught about the English. As I told your father, I should not be mourning my life as if it meant something before yesterday. When the only people who ever showed me kindness are the men who defeated me in battle, that should tell any sane person that my life of coldness and harshness was not a life worth living. Realizing that you are going to annul the marriage has made me understand something for the very first time.”

She was close to him now, and he gazed down at her. “What is that?”

She lifted her slender shoulders. “That you have given me a glimpse of another life I never knew existed,” she said. “A life where people care for one another. Your family loves one another. You have friends and warmth and understanding. All I ever knew of the English were that they were wicked and cold and greedy, but that is certainly not what I have experienced. I’ve never seen this side of things.”

He cocked his head. “If you have come to realize that, then mayhap this incident was not wasted,” he said. “All I need is for you to be fair about things. Stop relying on the lies from the past. Open your eyes to the world around you, and I promise you will not regret it.”

“I will, I promise,” she said quickly. “I will try very hard.”

He smiled at her. “I will, also,” he said. “I will never again lose my temper as I did. That was wrong of me, and if I hurt you, then I am very sorry.”

The sounds of his apology were like music to her ears. “You had every right to,” she said. “There was nothing else you could have done. I behaved terribly.”

He waggled his eyebrows. “I would say this has been a trying situation for the both of us,” he said. “When we first met, you were trying to kill me. Now, we are married. I do not know of any other married couples who have had the rough beginning we have.”

“Other than your father and mother,” she said.

He chuckled. “Aye, other than them,” he said. “But there is hope in that. They cannot live without one another, so hopefully, we will grow to be fond of one another, too.”

That made her heart flutter, just a little. “You said I should look beyond the English knight and see the man beneath,” she said. “I am willing to do that as long as you are willing to look beyond the Welsh rebel and see the woman beneath.”

He grinned, flashing a smile that was much like his father’s. “You are not a rebel,” he said. “You are a princess fighting for your countrymen. That is admirable. But now you have me, and short of saying your fight is my fight, know that I will never forsake or betray you, Elle. I want the same consideration.”

“You have it, Curtis.”

“Good,” he said, his eyes twinkling at her. But then he seemed to notice what she was wearing for the first time, and he pointed. “That is my tunic. I recognize it.”

She looked down at herself. “You told me that I could wear what was in your chest.”

“Where is the blue dress?”

“You told me to take it off so my stench would not be on it.”

His smile faded. “I should not have said that,” he said with regret. “I am sorry, Elle. I did not mean it.”

She smiled timidly to let him know that she wasn’t upset. “You were right,” she said. “I’m not sure one bath could clean up all of the stench I had on me. I may need another soon.”

He laughed softly. “I think that can be arranged,” he said. Then he held out a hand to her. “Shall we go inside, Lady Leominster?”

She looked at his big hand, hesitating. “You’re not going to annul the marriage?”

“Nay,” he said softly. “I did not even mean it when I said it.”

With a grateful smile, she put her hand in his, and he held it tightly, gently leading her toward the rear door of the inn.

“Would it be possible for me to have something to eat with my bath?” she asked.

His eyebrows rose. “You want a bath tonight?”

“I like baths.”

“Then you shall have one every night if you wish.”

“But I do not have any soap.”

“Not to worry,” he said, pushing open the door. “I will make sure you have what you need, Elle. Always.”

She believed him.

*

The bath came with more food than Elle had ever seen in one sitting.

Curtis seemed to have some kind of magic when it came to getting people to do what he wanted them to do, and that included the staff at the inn. Food and drink came, and as Elle stuffed herself on the onion tart, a rather large copper tub was brought in and filled about halfway with steaming water.

She could hear Curtis outside in the corridor, speaking to the innkeeper and his wife, and very shortly, Elle had soap and combs and a scrub brush. The innkeeper’s wife, a stout woman with faded red hair, also brought in a shift, well worn but clean, and a surcoat that went over the shift and tied on the sides. It was green in color, and Elle heard the woman tell Curtis that it had belonged to their daughter, who had died the previous winter of a fever. She was happy to give Elle her dead daughter’s things, but Curtis insisted on paying the woman handsomely for them.

Elle found herself inheriting a wardrobe that was meant for a girl about her same size. The innkeeper’s wife seemed quite happy to see the clothing put to use, and considering Elle had nothing to her name, she was thrilled to have it. There were two more shifts and three more dresses that were given to her, along with two pairs of leather slippers that were worn but serviceable. The innkeeper’s wife even offered to help her bathe, something she said she used to do with her daughter, and Elle didn’t have the heart to refuse her. She seemed eager to do it. As Curtis went out into the common room to allow her some privacy, Elle climbed into that big tub, both hands full of food, and ate to her heart’s content while the innkeeper’s wife scrubbed her down.

More kindness from the hated English.

In fact, the woman, whose name was Bess, was quite lovely to her. Elle sat in the tub until the water cooled, and then Bess helped her out and dried her off in front of the fire, combing out her hair so it could dry. Since Elle had never had a mother tend her, only a bitter grandmother in that capacity, it was strange but also weirdly wonderful to have the kind attentions of an older woman gently brushing her hair. Odd how a bath, in an enemy country, brought about some awareness. She was coming to see what she might have been missing.

Open your eyes to the world around you, and I promise you will not regret it.

She was starting to realize what he had meant.

So, Elle sat while the woman combed and combed, food in both hands and gobbling it up as if she hadn’t eaten in days. Never in her life had she been exposed to so much food. She had no idea that such a thing was possible. She’d spent her entire life scraping by with the bare minimum, sleeping on the ground and eating things that other men killed or procured, and she’d truly had no idea that there was a world where food was plentiful. When she finished with everything on the tray, the innkeeper’s wife sent for more.

When Elle’s hair was mostly dry, the innkeeper’s wife neatly braided it and helped her into one of the shifts. Since Elle knew that the woman was missing a daughter, she let her fuss. Bess had been so genuinely kind that Elle didn’t have the heart to tell her to go away or that she no longer needed her. She let the woman neatly hang her clothing, touch her hair again, and then warm her bed with an old copper bed warmer. When Elle was finally finished with the additional food, she burped in gluttonous misery, which only seemed to please the woman. When Elle showed an interest toward getting into bed, Bess practically threw her into bed and tightly tucked her in.

After that, Elle was in bed to stay.

She only realized she had fallen asleep when she heard something in the chamber and startled herself awake to see Curtis moving around in the darkness. When he saw that he had awakened her, he paused regretfully in removing the daggers he’d been pulling from his belt.

“It’s me,” he whispered. “I’m sorry to have awoken you. I was trying to be quiet.”

Elle yawned and rubbed her eyes. “You did not wake me,” she said. “I have always been a light sleeper.”

He grunted softly as he continued to remove his things. “That is the life of a warrior,” he said. “I do not think I have had a solid night’s sleep since I was a lad.”

Lying on her side, Elle watched him as he proceeded to undress. “Having a bed this comfortable is rare,” she said. “It is like a warm embrace.”

He smiled faintly. “I know what you mean.”

He continued to undress, and it occurred to Elle why. The man was her husband, and this was their wedding night. At some point, he was going to get into bed with her, nude, and he was going to expect husbandly relations. Her stomach began to twist in knots at the mere thought of it, because the last man who had touched her intimately was Cadwalader. She could still feel his wrinkled, old hands on her body, disgusting her to the point of feeling ill.

But then something odd happened.

Curtis removed his tunic, and Elle could see his magnificent torso illuminated in the firelight. He had a beautifully muscular chest and arms, a trim torso, and broad shoulders. That was no wrinkly body. She watched him untie his breeches, but when he slid them off his hips and she got a look at his tight, bare buttocks, she quickly pulled the covers over her face. She was both embarrassed and titillated, a strange combination. She wanted to peek at him, but was too shy to do it. He continued to move around the chamber, presumably nude, but she heard him come to a halt.

“Am I that appalling?” he asked.

She knew what he meant and could feel her face grow hot. “Why… why do you ask?”

“Because you have the coverlet pulled over your head.”

In the new spirit of honesty between them, she forced herself to answer truthfully. “I am unused to seeing a nude man,” she said. “Surely you can understand that.”

She heard his joints pop as he moved to the bed. Then he was pulling on the coverlet until her eyes were exposed. They popped open, and she found herself looking into his smiling face.

“You will never become accustomed to it if you refuse to look,” he said. “I am your husband. It is your right to look.”

He wouldn’t let her pull the coverlet up again, so she slapped a hand over her eyes, listening to him laugh low in his throat.

“Very well,” he said. “If I am so horrific that you do not wish to look at me, then I will not force you.”

She peeped through her fingers. “You are not horrific to look at,” she said. “It is simply… I am not used to this!”

He chuckled again and turned away from her. “Very well, you coward,” he said. “Now that you’ve hurt my feelings, I’m going to climb into bed next to you and weep.”

Her hands came away from her face, and she sat up, watching him as he walked around the bed and got in on the other side. “Do not be offended,” she said. “My only experience with this was long ago and quite unhappy.”

He knew that. He pulled the coverlet over himself, settling down as he looked at her. “I can only change your mind if you let me,” he said, folding a big arm behind his head. “You were barely a woman back then. Now you are fully grown and fully lovely. And you belong to me.”

She looked at him seriously, thinking he looked awfully handsome lying there on the linens. It was enough to flutter her heart again, something he seemed to be able to do with little effort.

“Have you done this before?” she asked.

The warmth in his eyes flickered. “I have,” he said honestly. “Does that surprise you?”

She shook her head. “Nay,” she said. “Men do not go to their marriage bed a virgin.”

“There is a reason for that.”

“Why?”

“Because someone has to know what to do, or the entire situation will be a disaster.”

He was trying not to smile as he said it, and that made her grin. “That is very naughty, you know.”

He laughed softly. “Not as naughty as I can be.”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

He could see she hadn’t a clue what he meant. Reaching up a big hand, he cupped her head and pulled her down to his lips.

“Let me show you,” he whispered.

Gently, he kissed her cheek, so sweetly that Elle felt lightheaded. That kiss was followed by another kiss to the cheek, to the ear, to the jaw, to the neck. Each successive kiss made her feel giddier and giddier. When he finally turned her head slightly and kissed her soft mouth, Elle thought she might faint. This was no wrinkly old man with foul breath. This was a powerful, handsome, virile knight. An English knight. Could a man’s touch truly be this wonderful?

She quickly decided that she would let him show her.

This was all part of opening her eyes and letting the world in. It was part of understanding that there were people out there who were kind and gentle. Once Curtis touched her with his big, warm hands, she wanted more. It was a glimpse into something she’d never had, but something she was coming to want. She wanted to experience it all. For once, she wanted to be touched and loved. She wanted Curtis’ hands upon her.

It felt like the most natural thing in the world.

The fighting was over. The hatred was gone. Curtis was kissing her now, taking the dominant position and forcing her back onto the mattress as he unfastened the ties on her shift. She could feel his hands on her waist, yanking loose the ties as his kisses grew feverish. She was breathing so heavily, trying to catch her breath between heated kisses, but instinctively, she moved to help him. All she knew was that there was a fire building in her body that she had no control over. It was a shocking realization.

Every time Curtis kissed her, the fire grew.

Her shift went over her head and she was nude against his naked flesh. This wasn’t anything like her time spent with Cadwalader. She’d shuddered with disgust at every touch, but Curtis ignited a roaring blaze. Once her shift came free, his mouth left hers, seeking her neck and points farther south. He was kissing the swell of her bosom with heated lips.

The wildfire raged.

This was something she could learn to crave. He left her bosom and moved to her belly, kissing and suckling the flesh, and Elle heard herself groan in delight. He dragged his tongue over her rib cage, under her breasts, before finally capturing a tender nipple in his mouth.

Lightning struck.

Elle came alive in his arms, gasping and bucking beneath him, hardly realizing he had pulled her legs apart to settle some of his weight between them. She had her hands on his blond head, experiencing his mouth on her breasts with the utmost delight. Nothing Cadwalader had done to her came close to this, and she began to see what the excitement was about. Soldiers and servants seemed to speak freely of coupling, and she’d never understood the allure. Now, she did. Legs spread wide, she gave herself over to Curtis completely.

His fingers moved to the junction between her legs. When Cadwalader had touched her there, however briefly, she recoiled. But she wasn’t recoiling from Curtis. His fingers were stroking her, touching her in a way that made her entire body quiver. Curtis suckled strongly on her right breast as he plunged a finger into her, acquainting her with his intimate touch. But Elle didn’t want to simply be acquainted with it—she wanted to know all of it. If this were coupling as it was meant to be, she realized what she’d been missing out on.

Her nubile body was prepared for him, her woman’s center swollen and primed for his entry. The next thing Elle realized, his weight came down on her and he was thrusting into her gently, full and hot and hard. With a gasp, she rose to meet him, winding her legs around his hips and pulling him in deeper. Curtis’ mouth covered hers, suckling her, kissing her deeply, as he tightened his buttocks and thrust into her again and again, a steady rhythm building. When their loins came together, that fire burning inside of Elle sparked brilliantly every time.

“Oh… God,” she breathed. “Naughty… Is this naughty?”

Curtis laughed low in his throat, nearly fracturing his concentration. But not quite. He was on fire also.

“I told you that I would show you,” he said, biting gently at her lower lip.

She gasped again as he ground his pelvis against hers. “Swear to me,” she whispered. “This—you—is only for me. This belongs to me.”

That seemed to feed his lust. “Until I die,” he murmured in her ear. “I shall belong to you and only you. And you shall belong to me.”

She nodded her head, wrapping her arms around his neck as he plunged deeply into her, causing sparks to fly. After a few such deep thrusts, she felt an explosion in her loins the likes of which she had never experienced before. Nothing Cadwalader had ever done to her could come close. Tremors radiated throughout her body, and she cried out, clutching at Curtis and driving her nails into his flesh.

Dazed, she lay there gasping as Curtis continued thrusting until he took one hard, final push and she heard him grunt. She could feel his male member inside her twitching as he released his seed. Elle continued to lie there, in a stupor, her arms around his neck, holding on to him so tightly that she was afraid to let him go. Afraid this moment was only a dream and she would awaken alone in a world that was as cold and sorrowful as she was.

Was .

She wasn’t any longer.

All wrapped up around Curtis’ heated body, Elle began to weep. She didn’t know why, but silent tears came and wouldn’t stop. They flowed down her face, touching his flesh as he lay there and held her. She was weeping because never in her life had she ever known such closeness, such warmth, or such care.

Curtis had opened that world up for her.

“What is the matter?” he asked softly, shifting so he could look at her. “Why do you weep? Did I hurt you?”

She hadn’t been as discreet as she thought she had. Wiping at her face, she shook her head. “Nay,” she said hoarsely. “You were quite gentle.”

“Then why are you weeping?”

She almost shut him down, avoiding the question, but she thought better of it. Other than Melusine, she’d never had anyone to confide in, fearful of opening herself up. But with Curtis, she’d already established a pattern of honesty.

She wanted to keep it.

“I do not know, really,” she said. “I suppose because I have spent so much time trying to push you away and keep you at arm’s length that I’m fearful now that I’ve let you in.”

He shifted so his head was on the pillow beside hers. “Am I in?”

“You’ve come through the door I had closed.”

A smile tugged at his lips. “You mean I’ve managed to breach the gatehouse?”

She couldn’t help but laugh. “Exactly.”

It was a language they could both understand as they learned to communicate with one another. Curtis was quickly coming to be aware of that. “So I am standing at your gatehouse, yet I have no weapons,” he said softly. “What are you afraid of?”

Her smile faded. “I am afraid that this is all a dream and you will leave me.”

He leaned in and kissed her on the forehead. “I will not leave you,” he said huskily. “That is a promise. But you must stop trying to keep me out of the gatehouse. I want to come in, Elle. All the way in, if you’ll allow.”

She nodded. “I know,” she said. “And I want you to come in, but you must understand that pushing people away has become innate with me. If there is no one for me to depend on, then I cannot get hurt.”

“I understand,” he said, reaching up to wipe an errant tear from her right cheek. “But your days of being alone are ended. You have me now, and about twenty close family members who simply want the opportunity to love you. Give them that chance, Elle. Please.”

She forced a brave smile. “I will, if it is what you wish,” she said. “But I fear I have a great deal to learn about families and this life I now find myself in.”

“Like what?”

She shrugged. “I was not raised in a fine household,” she said. “I do not know how to manage kitchens or feasts or food or chambers. I do not know how to talk to English lords so they will not think I am foolish. I do not even know how to dance.”

He grinned. “I can see that I have a good deal of teaching in my future.”

“Do you mind terribly?”

He laughed softly and pulled her close. “Of course not,” he said. “I am delighted to do it. But I do not know everything, so I think you will have a few teachers to ensure you are the finest countess England has ever seen.”

“Do you really think so?”

“I know so.”

The conversation ended, but not uncomfortably so. In fact, he pulled her close and held her in warm silence as they became acquainted with the feel of one another. Flesh against flesh, heart against heart. Elle was soft and pliable in his arms, and Curtis enveloped her in his strength. It was a defining moment of what their future together would be.

Breached gatehouse and all.

When sleep came for them both, it was deep and undisturbed.

It was a solid night’s sleep for both of them.