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I sabella was right not to trust Martin.

He was going to send Adelaide away at the earliest opportunity.

He said it himself. The words pierced her heart like a poison dagger.

She should have defended herself better.

This was what she got for caving into sentimentality.

All along, her mother and Lady Eleanor were right.

Love was weakness. If she wanted to keep her sister safe, she couldn’t afford to be weak.

All those moments when she started to fall for him turned bitter, and a lump of outrage lodged itself in her throat.

How could she have allowed him to addle her head like this?

She should never have let herself to forget who his puppet mistress was.

The thought of the kiss they’d shared made her burn with humiliation.

Well, she would teach him that she wasn’t so easily swayed.

She needed to find Lord James and convince him to accept her offer before she lost the will to follow through.

The man might be loathsome, but at least she knew exactly where she stood with him.

There was no danger of her losing her heart to that snake, and she would have no compunctions about manipulating him to her own ends.

Adelaide would be safe, and she herself would be a woman of power and position, able to shape her life as she desired.

After a few inquiries, she found Lord James in the stable, preparing for a ride. She paused before entering, some deep instinct warning her against proceeding with her plan. But it was only her foolish heart, which she had no use for. Isabella de Martillac was made of sterner stuff.

Preparing to enter, she bit her lips and pinched her cheeks to make herself look fresh and rosy. The man had made no secret of his attraction to her. Perhaps she could use that to hasten his decision, much as the thought of him pawing at her made her skin crawl.

As she entered the barn, breathing in the earthy smells of hay and horse manure, it seemed as if even the horses were giving her disapproving stares. Ridiculous. She was imagining things. But the alarm bells clanging within her only grew louder.

Lord James was about to mount his horse, a black destrier that was bigger than any she’d ever seen, when she stepped into his view. His brow furrowed, and he paused at the sight of her.

“Lady Isabella, I didn’t expect to see you again so soon. Would you care to join me on a ride?”

A ride would the perfect opportunity to get him alone, but would it be safe? The warning in her heart said no . “That might not be wise, my lord. I’m certain you would be perfectly chivalrous, but tongues might wag.”

“Very well, then. What is it you wish to say?”

This was it. There was no going back. Think of Lady Eleanor. She would never back down in such a situation.

“I wondered if you have given my offer further thought, my lord. The arrangement could be highly beneficial to us both.”

The words burned her throat as she spoke them, but she was determined to forge ahead.

Lord James looked around and shooed off the stable hands in earshot. “I have, and I confess I am intrigued. One might even say I am interested. But there is one very short and irritating impediment.”

She kept her face as blank as she could as he insulted Martin.

Though she was furious with her temporary husband, it didn’t sit well to hear Lord James insult him behind his back.

Something in her face must have betrayed her because he narrowed his eyes, watching her expression a little too closely.

“I see that you dislike him as much as I do.”

Fortunately, it appeared he read her wince as agreement rather than outrage on Martin’s behalf.

“You have my sympathies, my lady. It must have been a trial to endure his company on the journey here.”

“He is irrelevant. I’m here to discuss our potential future together.” The words nearly choked her as she spoke them. Think of Adelaide. She needs you to be strong.

“And yet you won’t give me the proof I requested of your purity.”

She fought a shudder. While she might need Lord James to achieve her aims, the very fact that he would demand such a thing proved the depravity of his soul.

“No. Absolutely not.” She took a step back to stay out of his reach in case he made a move.

Instead of reaching for her, he laughed. “Such a prude. If I agree to marry you, you had better not put up such a fight.”

“Once we are married, I will submit to your attentions, and not a moment before.” The thought of sharing his bed made her nauseous, but she knew her wifely duties. He would own her body once they were wed.

“You know, I could bend you over that trough and have you right now. No one here would dare interrupt us.” He took a step toward her with a lascivious grin.

God’s teeth, the man was a monster! How was she going to get out of here unscathed? “You can’t, before the marriage is annulled or the priests will refuse the annulment. And any child that might result would be Lord Martin’s by right.”

That made him pause. Her heart was nearly pounding out of her chest as she waited to see what he would do next.

“Unfortunately, you are correct. Very well, then. I’ll wait.” He held up his hands and stepped back. “But I am not a patient man. How quickly can you get rid of your husband?”

“I can tell him today, and we can start the proceedings. The speed of the annulment will depend on the Church.” The sooner this ugly business was finished, the better. Though a rebellious part of her hoped the Church refused outright.

Lord James waved his hand dismissively. “Don’t bother about them. They’ll do my bidding.”

While she had no doubt that his influence with the Church was substantial, she didn’t believe they would be as compliant as he claimed.

The Church had been clashing more and more with local lords who attempted to issue high-handed orders.

The pope meant to establish his authority firmly even in such outlying regions as England.

Still, she knew better than to argue. “As you say, my lord.”

“Then we have an agreement. As soon as you are free of Lord Martin, I will wed you, and in return, you will make me Henry’s exchequer.”

“Yes.” A lump formed in her throat as she spoke. Her heart rebelled, but it was a useless organ, and she was determined to ignore it.

“Excellent. Then you had best go find your husband and deliver the news. I look forward to his impending humiliation. Good day to you, Lady Isabella.”

She nodded curtly, turned on her heel, and nearly ran, tears welling and starting to drip down her cheeks as soon as she was out of sight.

Desperately, she searched for someplace she could be alone and give in to the tumult of emotions that overwhelmed her after sealing her fate.

Her eyes fell upon the dovecote at the far end of the bailey. Surely no one would be in there.

She entered the small, round, stone building with a pointed roof and found herself alone at last, but for the company of warbling birds. Several peered out of their neatly stacked pigeonholes, which checkered the walls all the way to the ceiling, to examine the intruder.

“I mean you no harm. I just need a quiet place to cry,” she said softly, tears flowing unchecked.

Shudders overtook her, and she sobbed aloud.

Her future stretched out before her as an unending feast of misery.

For the first time in her life, she felt that she truly understood her mother.

The woman had sacrificed herself to a miserable marriage with a man she didn’t respect for the sake of power and position.

As Isabella stood weeping in the dovecote, she could understand all too well how that might warp a woman’s soul and make her deeply bitter.

But Isabella had done what was necessary.

Despite her tears and deep misgivings, the conversation had been a success.

She’d just achieved what she’d been striving for ever since her mother broke the news that she was to marry.

Her sister was safe, and her own future position was assured.

With Lord James by her side, she would be as safe from her mother and Lady Eleanor as anyone could be.

All she had to do was leave a man who had won her heart for a man she detested.

How could she have let herself fall so fast and so hard for Lord Martin?

She knew all along he was under Lady Eleanor’s thumb.

And yet his insidious good humor, cheeky wit, undeniable courage, and dogged courtship had made her let her guard down.

She could have been happy with Lord Martin if only it wasn’t for his determination to send away Adelaide.

Certainly, he would have made a more tolerable husband than Lord James.

But it would be folly to follow her heart.

If she balked now, Adelaide would pay the price, and she would far rather sacrifice her own happiness than her sister’s.

After all, Lord Martin had just confirmed her worst fears in relation to Adelaide.

How could she risk everything for a man who would tear her away from the person she loved most in this world?

She had to steel herself against his insidious influence and harden her heart. No one could ever know that she had one or that Lord Martin had very nearly won it. She would follow the example of her mother and Lady Eleanor and marry for position rather than for love.

There had been times with Lady Eleanor when Isabella had suspected the woman had a heart underneath all her cold practicality.

After all, didn’t Her Grace patronize troubadours who sang of nothing but love all day long?

And some of the matches she made between courtiers appeared to be inspired by a desire for their happiness rather than strictly practical considerations.

But every time Lady Eleanor seemed to reveal her softer side, she immediately destroyed the illusion by doing something so cold-hearted that no one could doubt her cruel pragmatism and cold calculation.

A pair of doves flew in through an opening in the roof and settled into the cozy nest within a shared pigeonhole. They cooed softly and nestled against each other.

Isabella tried to imagine such simple affection with Lord James and shuddered at the thought.

With Martin, on the other hand, she could imagine it easily—curling into his warmth and basking in his devotion.

But she couldn’t trust Lord Martin, however much she might want to.

The time had come to end her wallowing and find Lord Martin to break the news.

But first, she had to check on Adelaide.

Wiping her eyes and squaring her shoulders, she strode back into the castle, heading straight for the room she shared with her sister.

Never had triumph tasted so bitter. Tears threatened once again as she climbed the stairs, and she blinked them back.

This was for the best. She just needed to collect herself and calm down.

Hopefully, Adelaide would be asleep. She wasn’t sure she was fit company even for her sister in the mood she was in.

As she approached the door, she heard the strains of music coming from within. But how was that possible? Adelaide was too ill to play her lute. And then an all-too-familiar tenor began to sing.

No. She wasn’t ready to face Martin yet. She needed a moment to collect herself first. But Lord James wanted her to act swiftly, so perhaps it was for the best that she spoke to him now. It was pointless to delay.

Tentatively, she pushed open the door. The scene before her made her heart ache.

Adelaide, wan and feverish as she was, beamed at Martin as he sang to her.

The tune was familiar, and when she realized what it was, a lump formed in her throat.

Somehow, he’d learned the lullaby their nursemaid used to sing to them in Bordeaux when they were children.

His accent was atrocious, but the words were unmistakable.

Had Adelaide taught it to him during their journey?

As she closed the door behind her, her husband paused and set aside the citole. His smile dropped as he looked her in the eye. “What happened?” he asked, his voice suddenly gruff.

The words were on the tip of her tongue, but she couldn’t force herself to form them. “I—I…”

“Yes?” The hurt in his gaze made her want to run from the room.

Glancing at her sister, Isabella made herself straighten and face him. This was all for Adelaide. With Lord James she would be safe.

“Lord James has offered for my hand. I’d like to request an annulment.”

As she spoke the words, everything within her broke. But it was done. Her future was sealed.