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CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Brython Castle

I t was a gown of blue and gold satin.

Glorious de Lohr colors that were spectacularly presented. Standing in front of a tall mirror of polished bronze, Elle could see herself quite clearly in the magnificent dress. She could also feel every pin and every stitch that Dustin, Lady Hereford, was putting in the side of the garment. Her left arm was up as her husband’s mother tried to alter a dress that wasn’t quite fitting in the bustline.

A woman she had only just met earlier in the day, in fact.

But a woman she was already fond of.

“Try that now,” Dustin said, helping her carefully lower her left arm. She began pulling at the top of the dress, which was formfitting and lovely. “How does it feel now? Still too tight?”

Standing around Dustin were Curtis’ younger sisters, Rebecca and Olivia Charlotte. Rebecca was tall and willowy, with red hair, while Olivia Charlotte was short and blonde in the image of her mother. They were helping Lady Hereford with the exquisite garment that was simply too tight. So tight that Elle felt as if her breasts were about to spill over the top. Curtis thought it was a lovely problem to have, but Elle didn’t. She’d barely met Dustin and Curtis’ sisters when they arrived before Curtis was asking his mother to help with the dress. Dustin didn’t need any prompting—she grabbed her younger daughters and jumped right in.

And that was where they found themselves as the sun began to set.

“It feels better,” Elle admitted, trying to adjust her breasts so they weren’t bulging over the top of the bodice. “Does it look better?”

Dustin stood back and inspected her work. Rebecca knelt in front of Elle and tugged at the bottom of the garment to help straighten out the fabric.

“It looks a little better,” Dustin said. “But I fear with this fabric that if I try to alter it too much, you will be able to see the needle marks. Do you think you can stand it like this?”

Elle was still adjusting herself, now looking in the mirror. “I think so,” she said. “But I feel that when I meet our guests, all they’ll see are big white breasts right in their faces.”

To emphasize the point, she turned around and made gestures over the tops of her breasts as Rebecca and Olivia Charlotte giggled. Even Dustin grinned.

“I must say that the dress is magnificent,” Dustin said. “But I am surprised a seamstress with such skill was unable to measure correctly. That seems like a foolish mistake.”

Elle looked down at herself. “She had the measurements correct when she first measured me, but that was a few weeks ago,” she said. “I seem to have… grown since then.”

Dustin was still grinning as she went to her and tried to tug at the fabric a little. “I would say you have,” she said. “Curtis must be feeding you well.”

Elle eyed her mother-in-law. She didn’t know the woman at all, but she knew her through Curtis’ eyes. He adored his mother and spoke so fondly of her. Elle hoped she could adore her, too, and would be adored in return, but her history with women was sketchy. She didn’t have high hopes. But the reason for her full breasts was a very big secret she and Curtis were sitting on, a secret that not only made her nauseated on a daily basis, but fairly emotional as well. She didn’t like that her beautiful dress wasn’t fitting well because her breasts were becoming larger. She didn’t want to look like an exhibitionist with them bursting out all over the place. Worse still, she didn’t want to look fat and untidy. Unsure what to say to Dustin’s comment, she felt tears begin to pool in her eyes as she quickly tried to blink them away, but Olivia Charlotte saw that she was growing red in the face. A sweet girl, she went to Elle and took her hand.

“Mama,” she said softly. “Elle is weeping.”

Betrayed, Elle tried to turn her face away, but Dustin wouldn’t let her. She took her other hand, greatly concerned.

“I promise this is nothing to weep over,” she assured her gently. “I will fix it and no one will know.”

Elle’s lower lip trembled. “But everyone is arriving,” she said, sniffling. “I should be down with Curt greeting our guests, but instead I am here because I’m too fat for my dress.”

She broke down in soft tears, and Dustin put her arm around her, hugging her gently. “Not to worry, my lady,” she said soothingly. “I told you I will fix it. I promise I will.”

As Rebecca ran to find a kerchief for the tears, Elle struggled to wipe them away. “I was so excited for this garment,” she said. “I’ve never had anything so beautiful.”

“It is still beautiful, and so are you,” Dustin said, waving quickly to Olivia Charlotte. “Watch, now—Liv is fetching my thread. See? I will fix it right now. Please do not weep.”

Rebecca returned with the kerchief, and Elle took it gratefully, wiping at her eyes. Dustin had her stand up tall so she could see where she could let the seam out just a little more, and Elle lifted her arms again.

“I think I can let the fabric out just a little right here,” Dustin said, looking at a spot under the arms. “But not too terribly much or it will ruin the sleeve.”

Elle sniffled, wiping her nose with the kerchief before raising her arm again. “It will not show?”

“Nay,” Dustin said, concentrating on removing some thread from the seam. “No one will be able to see it.”

“And you’ll be able to take it in again when my breasts are not so large?”

Dustin shook her head. “It will be taken in easily,” she said. “But do not think you must reduce. You have a lovely figure, Elle.”

There was that secret again. She and Curtis had planned to tell his parents that she was expecting, though he wanted to do it when they were all together. Elle supposed that Dustin had a right to know why she was asking about taking the dress in. Any further talk of reducing and body shape and Elle might end up lying to cover up the reason, and she didn’t want to do that. Dustin was going to find out anyway.

“I did not mean when I reduce,” she said quietly. “Forgive me, Lady Hereford, but my breasts are full because… Curt and I were going to tell you and Lord Hereford tonight… But the dress does not fit because I am with child.”

Dustin nearly stabbed Elle in the armpit. She gasped, her eyes wide, as she looked at the woman in shock.

“You are pregnant?” she asked.

Elle nodded, a weary twinkle in her eye. “I am,” she said. “Please do not tell Curt that I told you before he had a chance to. He will be very disappointed if he knows I have.”

Dustin threw her arms around Elle, a woman she had only met hours earlier, but now there was something to link them. Not only had the woman married her son and, by all accounts, seemed to have made him very happy, but now she was pregnant with what could presumably be the heir to the de Lohr empire.

She was overcome with joy.

“Of course I will not tell him,” she said, kissing Elle on the cheek. “I cannot tell you how happy I am, my lady. So very, very happy.”

Elle smiled weakly. “Then you will understand why I weep because my garment does not fit,” she said. “I seem to be weeping at every little thing.”

Dustin laughed softly as she cupped Elle’s face. “Well do I remember those days,” she said. “I have been through it many times, so if anyone can sympathize, it is me. But I am so delighted. I know my husband will be as well.”

She kissed Elle on the cheek again, happily, before returning to work, but not before she looked to her daughters, who had heard everything.

“Not a word to anyone,” she said sternly. “Not to Papa, not to Curt. You do not know anything.”

Rebecca nodded solemnly, but Olivia Charlotte went to Elle and took her hand again. She was a lovely girl, clearly affectionate, and she had no problem demonstrating that with a woman she had only just met.

“I hope to have many babies,” she said. “What does it feel like?”

Elle wasn’t quite used to a lass who was so overly friendly. “It feels like my clothing is getting tighter every day,” she said. “It feels like I am hungry all the time.”

Olivia Charlotte grinned. “Is he moving in your belly yet?”

Elle shook her head. “Not yet.”

“When he does, will you let me feel him?”

Dustin chuckled at her curious daughter as Elle smiled timidly. “Of course,” she said. “But I will be here and you will be at Lioncross. That is a long way to come just to feel him move.”

Olivia Charlotte wouldn’t give up. “Can I live here when he is born?” she said. “I can help you tend to him. I can play with him and feed him.”

Dustin waved off her eager twelve-year-old, on the cusp of womanhood and so very intrigued with anything that had to do with babies. “Do not pester Elle,” she said. “She has a long time to go yet, and decisions like that cannot be made now.”

Olivia Charlotte might have stopped asking questions, but she still held Elle’s hand, smiling at her in a way that should have made Elle uncomfortable, but it didn’t. She could sense that the lass was simply a sweet, rather innocent child, curious about things that most girls were curious about. Or should be curious about. But Elle had never even considered babies or children until she became pregnant.

Now, it was all she could think of.

“I would like for you to stay with us, of course,” Elle said. “But as your mother says, we will speak on it when the time draws closer. He still has a long time before he’s ready to be born.”

“He is baking in your lady oven?”

All three women burst out laughing. “Where on earth did you hear that?” Dustin asked, shaking her head. “Enough, Liv. Take Rebecca and find Papa. Tell him that we are almost ready and will be done soon. And if you mention lady ovens, I will blister your backside. Do you understand me?”

Olivia Charlotte’s eyes widened. “Aye, Mama.”

Dustin smiled brightly. “Excellent,” she said. “Hurry, now. We will not be far behind.”

The girls fled, leaving Elle quite appreciative of Lady Hereford’s parenting skills. When their eyes met, Elle snorted.

“Is that how I should parent our son?” she asked. “Through intimidation and adoration?”

Dustin chuckled. “If it works,” she said, but quickly sobered. “I would say you parent your son with a good deal of love and encouragement. That is what children want—your love. But if you have a lass like Olivia Charlotte who likes to run off at the mouth, then sometimes, you must put fear into her so she will learn restraint.”

Elle turned to watch her in the mirror as she finished with the stitch. “Olivia Charlotte,” she murmured. “Why does she have two names?”

Dustin finished and cut the loose ends of the thread from the dress. “Because her father and I could not agree,” she said. “I wanted to name her Olivia and he wanted to name her Charlotte. Therefore, we gave her both.”

Elle grinned at the stubborn nature of her husband’s parents. “I suppose if you feel strongly enough, you must take a stand.”

“Precisely,” Dustin said. Then she stood up and pulled Elle’s arm down before tugging at the bodice again. “There. How does that feel?”

Elle tugged at it, too. “Better,” she said, pulling on the skirt to loosen everything. “Much better. I cannot thank you enough, my lady.”

Dustin stepped in front of her, putting herself between the mirror and Elle. Elle was an inch or two taller, but she would swear that Dustin was the biggest person in that chamber. Probably in any chamber she entered. The woman had an air about her that was positively fearsome.

“Elle,” Dustin said softly. “I hope that I may call you Elle.”

Elle nodded. “Of course, my lady. I would be honored.”

Dustin smiled faintly. “Good,” she said. “I am glad that Rebecca and Liv are not here because it gives me the opportunity to speak with you alone. I want to let you know that Christopher has told me everything about the first day or so after Brython fell, after the siege. He has told me about his conversations with you and what transpired.”

Elle couldn’t look the woman in the eye any longer. She lowered her gaze. “It was a difficult time, my lady,” she said. “I had—”

“I know,” Dustin cut her off, but not unkindly. “I know that you were called the Wraith. I further know that you held the castle against my husband for an entire month, and I must say that you have my great respect for that. Greater warlords have fallen much more quickly against him than you did. You are to be commended.”

Elle smiled wanly. “But the castle still fell in the end,” she said. “I did not hold out forever.”

“Nay, you did not,” Dustin said. “But do you know what you did?”

“What?”

“You proved your worth to my husband,” Dustin said, a twinkle in her eye. “You proved yourself strong and capable in Christopher de Lohr’s eyes. Why do you think he was so determined for you to marry Curtis? He knew that such a strong and capable woman would make a magnificent Countess of Leominster and a magnificent wife to our firstborn son. I know the first few days of your acquaintance must not have been a pleasant one, but I have heard that Curtis is very happy with this marriage. I’ve not yet spoken to him, but from the brief moment that I did when I first arrived, he looks happy and content. That is your doing, my dear. I want to thank you.”

Elle could lift her eyes again, feeling touched at the woman’s praise. “He has made me happy also,” she said softly. “I… I do not know how much you have been told about my life, Lady Hereford, but before I met Curt, it was a dark and terrible thing. The Wraith… That woman no longer exists. Curt has shown me another life I never imagined.”

Dustin touched her arm gently. “I was told about your upbringing,” she said. “I know this has been a drastic change for you, but I hope Curt has been helpful.”

Elle grinned. “He is the greatest teacher I could have hoped for,” she said. “And Myles is a wonderful teacher, too. Douglas and Westley… Well, they are young, but they are good in their hearts. You have raised fine sons, my lady.”

Dustin shook her head in resignation. “You mean that Douglas and Westley are foolish and pesky,” she said. “I know they are. They have always been like that when they are thrown together, and I did not want Douglas to come to Brython, but my husband insisted. He said that they boys are growing up and must learn to work together, as men. I suppose he is right, but that means they have been your burden, and for that, I am sorry.”

Elle laughed softly. “I am not,” she said. “They are eager and fast learners, or at least Douglas mostly is when he is not pining away for women. He is so excited about this feast that he and Myles went into the village of Presteigne and purchased perfume to attract women. I think they smell like a rubbish fire, but they are convinced the scent will attract women.”

Dustin rolled her eyes and turned back to her sewing kit. “God help us,” she said. “I suppose I should see my sons and assess the damage of the rubbish fire perfume. I do not want them shaming the entire family.”

“Nay, do not,” Elle said, turning back for the mirror to check her careful hairstyle, which was simply a braid that had been intertwined with blue ribbon and pinned in a circle around the back of her head. “They will know I have told you, and I do not want them to think I am gossiping about them. If you must see to them, then do not tell them I mentioned it. I do not want to embarrass them.”

Dustin looked at her. “You have a kind heart, lass,” she said. “From what Chris told me, I had wondered. And worried. But I can see now that there’s no hate in your heart for my lads.”

Elle turned away from the mirror, looking at her. “There was, once,” she said honestly. “I was taught to hate your sons and men like them. But a strange thing happened when I married Curt—I discovered a world where hate wasn’t the usual thing. A world where there was laughter and affection. A world where I was not scrambling to find my next meal or wondering if I’d have enough wood for the fire. I am not saying that I no longer feel strongly for my people, because I do, but I understand that hate will only bring hate. It does not help the Welsh for me to hate the English or my husband. And I do not hate him at all. I couldn’t if I tried.”

Dustin smiled as she shut her sewing kit. “I am happy to hear that,” she said. “I know from experience how difficult it is to marry someone you do not know, someone you’d rather not marry, and suddenly, you find yourself in his world, for better or for worse.”

“Curt told me about your introduction to Lord Hereford,” Elle said. “I was told you fell out of a tree right in front of him.”

Dustin chuckled. “I did,” she said. “Right onto my back. I thought I was dying. Then I looked up to see the biggest man I’d ever seen standing over me. I think I tried to strike him or kick him. I do not exactly remember, but I do remember seeing his face for the first time. It was like looking at the face of God.”

Elle lifted an eyebrow. “Did you hear how Curt and I first met?”

“You charged him from the top of the wall?”

Elle nodded, sighing with some embarrassment. “It was… memorable.”

Dustin laughed, going to her and taking her hand. “And look at you now,” she said. “The Countess of Leominster, the future Countess of Hereford and Worcester. What a grand position you have now, my lady. I think you are going to do great things for your new family as well as for your people.”

Elle wasn’t used to such female encouragement, especially that of kindness and positive thinking. Considering her grandmother had only spouted poison, this kind of reinforcement from Curtis’ mother was something quite new.

But something she knew she could come to like.

“Like what?” she said. “Both Curt and Lord Hereford have said I can do more for my people in this position, but I do not know what. Or how.”

Dustin patted her hand as she led her toward the door. “Do what all fine ladies do,” she said. “Go to the local church and become a patron. The priests will tell you where you can help. Mayhap it is feeding the poor or providing clothing. Mayhap it is helping school the children of your lands, helping them learn to read and write. I know that is not usual for poor families, but if children learn a skill, they can grow up to use it. They can become better than their parents and live a better life.”

Elle liked that idea a great deal. “I already give alms to the poor when I can,” she said. “I have given money to the church, but I wanted to do more than that. Do you think that’s what they meant about helping my people? By making sure they have a better life?”

Dustin opened the chamber door. “I am certain of it,” she said. “Your position is only limited by your imagination, Elle. Think great thoughts and make a name for yourself. We will all be quite proud of you.”

She was smiling as she said it, leading Elle onto the landing so they could take the stairs down to the keep entry. But Elle was still thinking on what Lady Hereford had said— we will all be quite proud of you . God’s Bones, was that really true? Was there someone out there who would actually be proud of something she accomplished, even if it wasn’t killing Englishmen or hating them to their very guts?

A novel concept, indeed.

And a good one.