Connie Mason (10 page)

Martin’s words startled Falcon. “ ’Tis too soon to make a judgment.”

“Lady Mariah was devoted to Lord Edmond,” Martin said staunchly.

“Did you know that your lady originally told me Lord Edmond was her father? Why is that, do you suppose?”

Martin shrugged. “You will have to ask my lady.”

“I did, but she was evasive. I intend to learn the truth of the matter before I leave Mildenhall.”

Falcon rose and stretched. “ ’Tis late, I’m for bed.”

John swirled the ale in his tankard and drained it in one gulp. “ ’Tis time I retired, too.”

“Sir Knight, Sir Knight, you must go to Lady Mariah immediately! She needs you.”

Edwina rushed up to Falcon, frantically pulling on his arm.

“Why must I go to her?”

“She is in grave danger.”

Falcon grew immediately alert. “What kind of danger?”

“I saw Walter sneaking up the stairs to the solar. He has no business there; his chamber lies in another direction. I fear he intends my lady harm.”

Falcon raced toward the stairs, taking them two at a time. John sprinted after him. Falcon heard a muffled scream and burst into Mariah’s chamber in time to see Walter pressing her down onto the bed, one heavy hand over her mouth, the other raising her skirts.

Walter must have heard the door open for he called
harshly, “Get out of here! Can’t you see the lady and I want privacy?”

Falcon could tell by Mariah’s struggles that she wasn’t the one wanting privacy. With a roar of outrage, he launched himself at Walter. Grasping Walter’s doublet, he pulled him off of Mariah and flung him across the chamber, where he landed at Sir John’s feet. When he started to rise, John pressed his sword against Walter’s throat.

Falcon was too concerned about Mariah to care what was taking place behind him. She had rolled up into a ball on the bed, her hands covering her face. “It’s all right, Mariah,” he soothed. “Walter won’t hurt you again; I’ll make sure of it.”

Mariah peeked at him through shaking fingers. “Falcon?”

“Aye, Mariah.” He perched on the edge of the bed. “Did he hurt you?”

She turned toward him, clutching frantically at his shirt. “He wanted, he tried . . . Thank you for coming to my aid.”

“Thank Edwina. She alerted me to trouble.”

He noted the bruises on her face, the perfect imprints of Walter’s fingers, and cursed. He touched her cheek, turning her face to the light. “Did he do that to you?”

“He tried to keep me from calling for help.”

Falcon whipped around, turning the full potency of his rage on Walter, who still lay on the floor beneath John’s sword.

“Let him up,” Falcon hissed.

John raised his sword; Walter scrambled to his feet. “This is none of your business, Falcon. This is between Mariah and me.”

“I’m making it my business. But first—” he glanced over his shoulder at Mariah. “Did you invite Walter to your bedchamber?”

“Nay! He entered without my permission and attacked me.”

“Attack is a harsh word,” Walter mumbled, his bravado returning. “I was merely exercising my right as Mariah’s betrothed. She opened her legs for other men besides Edmond. Why should I be denied her favors?”

“I am not your betrothed,” Mariah denied vehemently.

“Be careful what you say, Mariah,” Walter warned. “Your future and that of your son depend on my father’s goodwill.”

Spinning on his heel, Falcon delivered a stunning blow to Walter’s chin. He fell heavily to the floor, holding his jaw and groaning. “Not another word,” Falcon growled. “John, escort Walter to his quarters and station a guard outside his door. I want Osgood and his entourage escorted from Mildenhall at first light. They are no longer welcome here.”

“You cannot do that!” Walter howled, rising unsteadily to his feet. “Mildenhall belongs to us.”

“That’s for me to decide,” Falcon replied. “Rest assured your father will be informed of my decision when my investigation is completed and I have reached a decision. I will inform him about his expulsion from the keep as soon as I am free here.

“John, inform Sir Maynard that he’s to rally Mildenhall’s knights in case Osgood refuses to comply with my orders and tries to make trouble.”

John grinned as he prodded Walter from the chamber. “It will be my pleasure to relay your message.”

Falcon closed the door behind John and Walter and turned back to Mariah. She was sitting on the edge of the bed, watching him closely.

“Thank you,” she whispered. “He threatened to hurt Robbie if I didn’t . . . do as he wished.”

“Neither Walter nor Osgood will harm your son.”

Falcon crossed to the pitcher, poured water into the basin and wet a cloth. Then he returned to the bed and sat down beside her, turning her face toward him and carefully pressing the cloth to her bruises.

“Are you sure he didn’t . . . ?”

“Nay, he did not.”

Relief swept over Falcon. As they stared at one another, something stirred between them, something hot and potent and immediate. Memories he preferred not to address flooded his mind and body. Were her kisses still wildly tantalizing? he wondered. Would her body melt into his if he pulled her into his arms and kissed her? Would her passion be as stunning as he remembered?

He lowered his head, unable to resist the lure of her soft lips. She raised hers, stretching to meet his mouth. Their lips touched briefly, parted. He tasted her breath, knew he should leave but couldn’t bring himself to move. He urged her into his arms and drew her against him. Mariah’s gaze met his, as if asking for something he wasn’t prepared to give.

“We cannot become lovers again, Mariah,” he warned. “I am here to make an impartial decision.”

“Aye,” Mariah whispered.

But Falcon failed to heed his own warning as his lips moved over hers, tasting, savoring. He felt her breasts swell against his chest, felt the thudding of her heart, and
felt his cock respond in a predictable manner. He had promised himself that this wouldn’t happen again, had been confident that his attraction to Mariah had waned with the passage of time.

There was a great deal about Mariah and Edmond that Falcon didn’t understand, and Mariah had been no help in explaining the lies she had fed him. How could he want a woman he neither understood nor trusted?

“I am sorry, Falcon,” Mariah murmured, as if reading his thoughts.

“So am I,” Falcon replied. He drew back slightly. “I must go. I need to inform Osgood that he is leaving at first light.” But he didn’t move.

“You won’t let them hurt Robbie, will you?”

“Your son is safe, Mariah.” They were sitting so close together he could feel her heat surround him; his own heat pulsed hotly in his groin. His cock stirred restlessly, wanting, needing.

Mariah tried to draw away but his arms refused to release her. They tightened around her. Then he did what he had wanted to do since he’d set eyes on her again. He kissed her, hard, sweeping his tongue inside her mouth and probing roughly. It was a fiercely wild kiss, a kiss meant to punish as well as please. Falcon’s feelings were so confused where Mariah was concerned that he couldn’t control the emotions pummeling him.

He brought his hand around to fondle her breast, heard her moan and knew that the only thing preventing him from pushing her back into the mattress, flinging up her skirts and thrusting himself inside her heated core, was his duty to the king.

The king!
Honor demanded that he do Henry’s bidding.

Groaning, Falcon broke off the kiss and set Mariah away from him. “I won’t let you do this to me again.”

Mariah thought his words unfairly harsh. Aye, their coming together five years ago had been seduction, but Falcon had wanted her, too. Their loving had been mutual, something they had both wanted and both needed. Aye, she had lied to Falcon, but he had left her for Rosamond without a backward glance. He hadn’t returned to Mildenhall because he wanted to see her again—nay, he was here on the king’s behalf. If Henry hadn’t promised Falcon an heiress once this duty was completed, he wouldn’t be here now. She meant naught to him and never would.

Anger fueled her resolve. She would not let Falcon into her heart again. He was not Sir Knight. She rose and gave him her back. “Go, Falcon, I am fine. Complete your investigation as soon as possible and leave Mildenhall. If you choose to give my husband’s holding to Osgood my son and I will leave immediately. You care naught for me; you never have.”

Falcon stood and reached for her, dragging her back into his arms. “We are not strangers, Mariah.”

She gazed into his eyes. “Aye, we are. I do not know you, Sir Falcon. The man I knew as Sir Knight, the man I took as a lover, was naught like you.” She touched his face. “He was sweet and kind, a man I . . . grew to admire.”

“That was a long time ago. Sir Knight would not have bedded you had he known you were married, and neither would I. I respected Lord Edmond. Naught you can say will convince me that he encouraged you to bed me.”

Mariah refused to speak ill of Edmond. She had loved him dearly. He had been her closest friend. If she had her
way, Falcon would never learn that bedding him had been Edmond’s suggestion.

“I told you my reasons, and they have naught to do with Edmond. I wanted to be loved by a young man, and you showed up at the right time. ’Tis as simple as that.”

“Why turn to me and not one of Mildenhall’s knights?”

“I did not want any of Edmond’s men in that way.”

“But you wanted me? I’m trying to understand, Mariah, but you are making it difficult.”

Mariah shrugged and stepped away from him. He dropped his arms and let her go. “You were a stranger, that’s why I chose you for my lover. I knew you would regain your memory and leave, and so you did. No one knows about us but Edwina. That’s the way I want to keep it.”

“Your child—”

“Is mine,” Mariah said fiercely. “Mine and Edmond’s. He acknowledged Robbie before he died.”

A burning began in Falcon’s gut. “Who did you sleep with after I left, Mariah?”

“No one but Edmond,” Mariah maintained.

The burning burst into flame. “Are you sure the lad is not mine?” The notion that he had sired Mariah’s son had been in the back of his mind since he’d arrived at Mildenhall, but he had kept it imprisoned within his brain. The question had come spewing forth before he could stop it.

“How dare you suggest such a thing? Robbie is Edmond’s, and that’s all I’m going to say on the subject. Leave me alone, Falcon of Gaveston. I’ve had enough aggravation tonight to last a lifetime.”

“Aye, you have,” Falcon agreed softly, “and I’m sorry for it.”

Falcon bowed, turned and walked away. It wasn’t what he wanted to do, but what he had to do. If he had a choice, he would throw caution to the wind and make love to Mariah all night and into the morning. But he was a knight who took duty and honor seriously.

Falcon strode through the great hall and climbed the stairs to the wing where Osgood and his son were quartered. A guard, one of Falcon’s knights, guarded Walter’s door.

“All is quiet, Falcon. I don’t think we will hear any more from Walter tonight.”

“What of his father, Sir Dennis?”

“I have heard naught from Osgood. He must be sleeping.”

“Stay alert, Dennis. I’m going to wake Osgood and inform him that he will be leaving Mildenhall at first light.”

Dennis drew his sword. “You can count on me.”

Falcon walked past Walter’s door and stopped before the next. Dragging in a deep breath, he clenched his fist and pounded on the thick panel. He heard a rustling inside, and then Osgood flung open the door.

“What do you want? What must a man do to enjoy a good night’s sleep in this keep?” He was naked, his thick body showing signs of going to fat.

“I’m here to inform you that you and your entourage will be leaving at first light tomorrow.”

“What in the hell is that supposed to mean? You can’t tell me to leave. I belong here.”

Falcon drew himself up to his impressive height, towering over Osgood. “If you don’t leave of your own accord,
you will be forcibly escorted from Lord Edmond’s land.”

Osgood reached for his sword, frowning when he realized he was naked. “I demand to know the reason behind your sudden decision to ban me from Mildenhall. Did that bitch Mariah get to you? Did she offer her body in exchange for a decision in her favor?”

“You’ve got it all wrong, Osgood. Your son attacked Mariah tonight in her chamber. If Edwina hadn’t alerted me, he would have brutally raped her.”

Osgood had the temerity to laugh. “Mariah is Walter’s betrothed. No harm done if they want to anticipate the wedding.”

“Mariah wasn’t willing,” Falcon growled.

Osgood shrugged. “She would have been if you hadn’t interfered. There’s no need for all this fuss. Leave them to hash out their differences and everything will work out to our mutual satisfaction. I’m sure the king will be pleased to know that Mariah will be looked after when you declare me Edmond’s heir.”

“Nay, Osgood Fitzhugh. I’ve considered this from every angle and decided that you and your entourage must leave Mildenhall. From what I’ve heard, you came here and took over without an invitation.”

“Mildenhall is mine, I needed no invitation!” Osgood snarled. “Mariah’s brat has no legal right to the earldom.”

Falcon ignored Osgood’s protestations. “You will be escorted from the keep at first light tomorrow.” He turned to leave, then spun around to face Osgood. “By the way, there’s a guard at Walter’s door. I want no more trouble tonight.”

The door slammed in his face.

“He did not take it well,” Dennis said.

Falcon shrugged. “It matters not. He has disrupted the household with his overbearing presence.”

“Have you decided in Lady Mariah’s favor, then?”

“I have decided naught. I haven’t been here long enough to reach a decision. Good night, Sir Dennis.”

Falcon found his chamber, stripped, washed and climbed into bed. He fell asleep almost instantly. He awoke before dawn to the pounding of footsteps and clatter of weapons. Leaping from bed, Falcon pulled on his hose and boots, grabbed a shirt and had one arm in the sleeve when there came a frantic knocking on his door.