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T hey were married.

Walking back to the Black Cock after having just been married at the door leading into St. James’ church, Astria could hardly believe they’d done it. They’d actually done it.

She had a husband.

Again.

By the time they reached the Black Cock, Maude and her men headed to the pirate encampment, and that included Payne’s brothers.

Astria was glad to see them go, or at least Declan, because he had made the entire ceremony awkward.

From the moment they’d headed over to St. James’ church, Declan had kept up a running commentary on how he felt about the entire situation.

The marriage was stupid, in his opinion, and they would have done better had they ransomed their prize.

They could have shared the money. That was the general gist of his complaint, and he had made it directly to Maude, who basically ignored him.

That only made him turn his chatter toward the group as a whole.

He spoke to his younger brother about his concerns, which weren’t concerns as much as they were insults toward his oldest brother.

When Francis didn’t respond, Declan turned to the two other men who had come with them, pirates who had served their grandfather, and whispered his complaints to them.

Maude and Payne and Francis could hear the whispers until Maude finally turned around and told Declan to shut his mouth or she would stitch it shut.

Given the fact that Maude had done things like that during the course of her pirate career, Declan took the threat seriously.

At the very least, he did shut his mouth.

But that set the tone for the mass. It wasn’t so much a mass as it was simply a blessing, made at the entry to the small stone Church of St. James, but it was enough for a marriage.

The truth was that hardly anyone showed up to mass at St. James as it was, being a remote location, so the priest was more than happy to perform the blessing.

At least it gave the man something to do.

But it all seemed so informal and abrupt to Asteria, whose first marriage had been a gigantic affair.

There had been a big mass followed by three days of feasting.

It was during the feast that Astria’s stepson had first made advances toward her, hoping to seduce his father’s young bride, but that was the first of many rejections.

Austria had a complicated relationship with Arnaldo, something that continued to this day.

She tried not to think about it.

On the street outside the Black Cock, it was just the two of them now, facing one another after the group departed. Payne smiled weakly when their eyes met.

“I suppose we’ve got a day of duty ahead of us,” he said.

She knew what he meant. The last time she’d done something like that had been on her previous wedding night, so it was a struggle for her to not feel embarrassed or apprehensive.

“I suppose so,” she said. “Where will we go?”

He glanced northward, where Blackchurch was located. “I have my own domicile at Blackchurch,” he said. “There is a small village where the trainers and their families live and I have a cottage there, but I’m afraid it’s not fit for female habitation.”

“What does that mean?”

“It means pigs would be comfortable there. Not a lady.”

She fought off a grin. “That is where we’ll be living, is it not?” she said. “At least for now?”

He nodded. “Aye,” he said. “But I’ll have tae have someone clean it so that it’s fit for a woman. I dunna think ye want tae go there.”

“If I am going to live there, then mayhap I should clean it,” she said. “I can do it with help. Do you have servants at Blackchurch?”

Payne nodded. “We do,” he said. “But we can just as easily clean the cottage later. We can retreat tae yer rented room for now.”

She looked at the Black Cock, the wattle-and-daub walls, the vines growing up over the western side of it. It had a rather charming appearance, one she hadn’t noticed when she first arrived. That had been a turbulent moment, but not surprisingly, she was seeing things a little differently today.

“It is simply a little room with a little bed,” she said. “If we are going to live at your cottage, then why not simply go there?”

“Ye dunna mind?”

“If you find someone to help me clean it, then I do not.”

A smile crept over his lips. “As ye wish, m’lady,” he said. “Let me get yer things and we’ll go tae Blackchurch.”

They headed back into the tavern, where they were met by a common room that was just starting to awaken at this hour.

There was a good deal of stretching and yawning and farting going on as patrons who’d spent the night in the common room began to rise for the day.

Astria’s rented chamber was toward the back, so Payne headed into the corridor, entering the room where Margit was still sleeping.

The woman hadn’t moved a muscle. Payne glanced at Astria, both of them grinning at the sight, before Payne reached out to gently shake Margit awake.

It took the old woman a moment to come around, and when she did, she looked at the pair in surprise.

Payne explained that everything was well and that he was only there to collect the possessions that Margit had packed for Astria.

Margit lurched to her feet, still yawning, to make sure that Astria knew exactly what was in the small satchel.

She pulled out the shifts, the comb, and even shoes.

Since the shoes Astria was wearing were rather worn after all of the wear and tear she had brought down on them on her journey over the past five months, she took them off and replaced them with a pair of well-made slippers that had belonged to Margit’s daughter.

The shoes were a little big, but they would do.

Astria was very grateful.

Payne explained to Margit that they had been married an hour earlier and were returning to live at Blackchurch, something that seemed to please Margit immensely.

Marriage always pleased a woman with many daughters, even if this particular daughter wasn’t hers.

Payne collected the satchel and, with Astria in tow, headed into the common room once again.

Margit was right behind them, however, and she insisted they take food with them for their morning meal.

Into a woven basket, she put bread that had been baked that morning, stewed fruit, a large chunk of white cheese, pickled onions, and turnips.

It was a veritable feast, and Payne was very grateful.

He even kissed Margit on the cheek, which both thrilled and embarrassed her.

He and Astria headed off to Blackchurch.

Since Astria had never been to Blackchurch, she wasn’t sure what to expect of this nearly mythical place.

There was a large main road that led through the village and continued northward, and that was the road they found themselves on.

It was lined by heavy trees and, at this time in the morning, the birds were very active.

Birdsong rang throughout the air as they walked along the road on this cold but clear morning.

It occurred to Astria that this was the first morning in five months that she hadn’t woken up as a captive. So much of the past five months had been full of discomfort and uncertainty and even fear, so as she walked along the road this morning, she felt a good deal of relief.

Relief that her circumstances had become marginally better.

Only time would tell if that sentiment was her permanent one.

The cause of that freedom, of course, was the very big man walking next to her.

Payne seemed rather quiet this morning, perhaps for the same reason she was, and that was the fact that they suddenly found themselves married to strangers.

What did one say to someone they hardly knew, yet were going to be spending the rest of their life with?

Astria remembered from her first marriage that there hadn’t been a lot of conversation.

Armand liked to speak to his friends and advisors, but not to his wife.

Truthfully, it wasn’t that they’d had a lot in common or could speak on a great many subjects—although Astria had been quite educated and could therefore converse on many things—but simply the fact that Armand had no real desire to speak to a woman who was young enough to be his granddaughter.

That had made their wedding night uncomfortable and awkward.

She rather hoped this wedding night wasn’t going to be the same.

The difference, in this case, was the fact that she was marrying a man of the appropriate age and, in fact, found him quite handsome.

She was attracted to him, which was a strange sensation because she’d never really had an attraction to anyone in her life.

All the time growing up, she had been kept well away from the opposite sex, and until she married her husband, she’d hardly had any interaction with a man outside of members of her own family.

That was usual in royal households, but the fact that she found herself married to a stranger who was incredibly handsome had her heart racing.

That was the truth of it. Her heart had been racing all morning and she simply thought it was apprehension at the marriage itself.

Now, she realized it was for something else.

That was going to make this day… interesting.

“How long have you lived at Blackchurch?” she asked, breaking the silence between them.

He smiled at her. “Ten years,” he said. “Ever since I came here.”

“Why did you come?”