RulingPassion (18 page)

“I could yet end with far worse than that. In you, at least,
I would know I had a lady whose honor, loyalty, integrity, and intelligence I
could depend on. And we have already an understanding and friendship not be
discounted. You are also quite a beautiful lady as well, and there is
compensation in that.”

She thought about it. “‘Tis true, yet I cannot but believe
that somewhere, sometime you will meet a lady who will feel about you the way I
feel about Jeoffrey. I would not have you constrained in the same way Jeoffrey
is now, tied by obligation to one lady while your heart yearns for another.”

“I share not your confidence in the likelihood of there
being another lady of beauty, honor and accomplishment equal to yours in this
land. And were there, that she should honor the likes of me with her love seems
unlikely.”

“I disagree heartily, Sir Philip. There be many ladies more
virtuous and beautiful than I around, and I should think it the likeliest thing
in the world one would learn to love you.”

He sighed and shook his head. “I say again I cannot share
your confidence in this. Yet I see you have decided in your mind already and I
will honor your wishes. Would you honor me with your plans?”

She wiped fresh soap on the cloth before she started on his
hair. “Lord Michel de Granfel has offered for me, among others, but it is his
suit I shall accept.”

“de Granfel?” Philip almost stood up in the tub but
remembered himself at the last moment and sank back into the soapy water. “He
is old enough to be your grandfather.”

“Aye. But I can be a comfort to his remaining years and find
myself a sedate but reasonably well-portioned widow someday.”

He gave her a troubled frown. “This from the lady who warns
me not to settle for less than one who will love me whole-heartedly.?

“The situations are not comparable. Sir Michel knows what he
can expect to get in any bargain for me, and I shall be clear what I expect
settled on me in return.”

Philip lay back against the side of the tub, relaxing as she
massaged his scalp with soothing strokes. She knew from his frown, he wasn’t
pleased about her course, and knew also he wouldn’t impede her since it was
what she chose. Before she was done with rinsing his hair, the knight was all
but asleep. She finished quickly and left him to dry himself and commit to bed.

The next morning, Philip was up at first light and prepared
to depart. Rosalind thanked him for bringing them the glad news of Lord
Jeoffrey’s victory and requested that he send back word as soon as they knew
when they planned to return to Blaisdell. Philip promised to do so.

Three days passed with no message or indication of what Lord
Jeoffrey did. Though heartened by the knowledge of victory and rejoicing that
the threat of Sir William no longer hung over them, she began to grow anxious
again, awaiting word of Lord Jeoffrey’s return. Though she knew he would come
with his betrothal to Lady Alys accomplished, yet did she long to see him
again. In her heart, her own decision had been made and she was, finally, at
some peace with it.

On the fourth day, the awaited messenger appeared, but came
in a form completely unexpected. A carriage bearing no crest or other device
rumbled up to the gates and entered the courtyard. On learning she was Lady
Rosalind, the driver handed her a message, which proved to be a summons to her
former home, Highwaith. The note was signed by the Earl of Highwaith.

Rosalind was stunned. The king had apparently wasted no time
in appointing a new earl, since no male members of her family survived to claim
the estate. She hoped this new earl would be a man of comparable stature to her
father, one who would do honor to the position and treat fairly with his
vassals and dependents. She speculated on his reasons for summoning her, but
they weren’t difficult to find. No doubt he’d want to verify an accounting of
the estates from whatever paperwork had survived Sir William’s control. And
there were features of the place only she would know: the location of a hidden safe
hold for valuables, among other things.

She hoped he would prove generous in his newfound grandeur.
She cared about the people there and prayed for their peace and safety. And
there were a few personal items still at her former home she would like to be
allowed to keep.

The next morning her trunk was loaded on top of the
carriage, and she rode to Highwaith for the first time since Sir William’s
invasion had destroyed her former life so completely. The conveyance rolled
through fields, woods, and villages on its way. By midmorning she began to
recognize some of the places they passed. They reached Highwaith an hour or so
past midday.

Rosalind couldn’t hold back a tear as the carriage
approached the front entrance of the only home she’d known for her first
eighteen years of life and rolled into its courtyard. Already work had begun to
repair the damage done by Sir William’s troops in taking the place. She
regarded that as a good omen.

It stopped and the door opened. For a moment she couldn’t
move. She dreaded having to enter the manor and face the emptiness left by her
family’s deaths. Then a familiar voice inquired, “Lady Rosalind?”

“Thomas!” She jumped up and out of the carriage, throwing
herself into the arms of a very surprised steward. “Thomas, you survived. I am
so glad to see you again.”

“And I you, my lady,” the steward said. “We despaired of you
along with the others. Are you well? You look lovelier than ever.” He moved
back and she saw tears shining in her eyes. “Come, now, my lady, no need for
sadness. Come in and meet the new earl.”

She hesitated. “What think you of him, Thomas? Does he seem
a fair and honorable man?”

“My lady, the new earl arrived no more than three days
hence. We have had little time to form an opinion. But from the little we have
seen… Aye, I believe he will do. Not that anyone could replace your father, or
the lord your brother should have been had he survived. But his lordship…the
impression of most so far is favorable.”

She walked with him inside. Her heart stung as she noted the
damage done to her erstwhile home by the invasion. Some of her mother’s
beautiful tapestries had been slashed, others torn down completely. Walls bore
holes and bare spots they hadn’t before and much of the loveliest furniture was
missing. Many pieces had been smashed in the fighting. Others had likely been
carried off. At least the place had been cleaned up and the wreckage removed.
With work and expense, it could be restored to something of what it was.

“This way, my lady,” Thomas said, waking her from the
reverie of memories.

He knocked on the door of the room that had served as her
father’s place of business, then pushed it open, and said, “My lord, the Lady
Rosalind.”

Since the desk was in a far corner, she couldn’t see the
person within until she’d stepped inside. She stopped there, held motionless by
shock.

“My lord… Jeoffrey!”

He stood and gave her a careful smile. “Aye, Rosalind. Sir
William’s ambitions were becoming a concern to the crown. The king was grateful
for his removal and inclined to acknowledge himself indebted for it. I was
surprised, I admit, when he named me Earl of Highwaith. I sought no such honor,
and particularly not this one. Yet one says not “nay” to the king when he
offers such a thing.”

“Jeoffrey. Surprise alone made me exclaim as I did.” She
took a few steps into the room until she could see him better. “It would be a
shock to confront any man in the title my father once held. Yet of all the men
it might have been disposed upon, I can think of no better choice.”

“My gratitude,” he said. “There be a great many matters I
have yet to sort out.” He walked toward her and stopped a few steps away.

He looked wonderful, a dark swelling on his temple the only
obvious sign of his recent battle. She wanted to touch him, to reassure herself
he was real, but she dared not.

“I shall give whatever assistance is in my power,” she
offered.

“My thanks, my lady,” he said. “I shall avail myself of your
help immediately.”

She couldn’t bear to look at him without tears forming, so
she turned and took a step toward the window.

“There is much to do here to restore it to its former
grander and many things to be sorted. Yet there is one matter I would have
settled forthwith,” he continued. “As a new earl, I am in need of a countess.”

At his last words, she froze in place, unwilling to believe
she’d heard him correctly. “My lord? Did you not have an arrangement with the
Duke of Barnston?”

“We encountered an insurmountable difficulty in the
negotiations for the betrothal.”

“An insurmountable difficulty? What could that be, my lord?”

“After seeing how I run my household, particularly the
manner in which discipline is imposed, the Lady Alys wished to insert a
provision into the betrothal agreement, exempting her completely and entirely
from being subject to that discipline. I could not, of course, allow such an
exemption. It became a point of controversy, and in the end we could reach no
agreement.”

In her heart, the dormant spark of hope flared into life.
She tried to tamp it down, unwilling to risk the crushing disappointment should
she let it flame only to find it abruptly doused. “Did the duke not protest the
failure? He had already committed his forces to your effort. He made no demand
you accept the provision in repayment?”

“The duke stood with my position and agreed such an
exemption would not only be unprecedented in tradition, but unwise in this
case. When we failed to convince the Lady Alys to drop her demand, we agreed
the betrothal could not go forward. The duke was understandably disappointed,
but he acknowledged no fault should accrue to me for the failure. He would not
defy his daughter’s will and enforce a betrothal agreement not to her liking. I
cannot say I admire his reasoning. Nor yet can I regret the betrothal was not
to be.”

“Which leaves the question of a betrothal open,” she said.

“Aye, but I find the last few months have shown me a void in
my life that can be filled only by a very special lady of honor and dignity,
courage and intelligence, sweetness, joy, humility, and boldness in defense of
what she believes right. Know you where I might find such a one, Lady
Rosalind?”

She turned to him, eyes burning with tears that threatened
to spill over. “Is the absence of a dower or powerful alliances yet an issue,
my lord?”

“My circumstances are much changed now, my lady. I believe I
no longer need look to my bride to enhance my resources.”

“Then I do believe—” She could contain the tears no longer.
“Jeoffrey?” she asked, the name a plea and a promise together.

He was there at her side, wrapping her in strong arms,
pulling her against his body. “Rosalind.” He breathed the word into her hair.
“My heart, my soul, my life. Can you bear to be the Countess of Highwaith?”

“My lord, Earl of Highwaith, Lord Jeoffrey Blaisdell, or
just Jeoffrey—you alone are all I will ever want. The title mattered only for
providing us the means to be together. I believe my father, could he be here
today, would entirely approve of you as his successor.”

He kissed her, starting at the top of her head, working down
across temple and cheek until he fastened on her mouth. He kissed her until
they both grew wobbly with desire. He pulled back with difficulty. “Will your
family’s staff be entirely shocked should we retreat to the lord’s solar
together and not emerge until sometime tomorrow?”

“Entirely shocked, my lord,” she admitted. “And quite
overjoyed, I should imagine.”

“Then let us, by all means, give them joy,” he said.

Epilogue

The wedding feast had been organized somewhat hastily, but
was sumptuous nonetheless. Long tables groaned under the weight of roasts of
fowl, pork, and beef accompanied by bowls of fresh greens, fruits, and
vegetables, along with fragrant breads, custards, and cakes. Wine, ale, and
fruit beverages flowed freely.

Few guests remarked on the speed of the preparations. Most
were overjoyed that such an event—hoped for, but doubted—would come to pass.
Lord and Lady were both radiant. Some did notice that the new countess’s waist
seemed not so slender as it had been, while others professed to see the omens
of increase in her face. Yet none doubted the marriage owed more to the deep
love of the two for each other than to any sort of expediency.

Two households mingled and quarreled in the chaos of
preparation, yet in the end more friendships were born than adversaries.
Jeoffrey had already announced his intention to settle at Highwaith. The
inhabitants of Blaisdell voiced some disappointment, yet they understood his
reasons. Their lord had already appointed a man to serve as overseer for him in
his absence.

Following a moving ceremony in the church—music, dancing,
eating and drinking went on until the early hours of the morning. At that late
hour, a merry party accompanied the earl and his new countess to their solar to
prepare them for bed.

On the way, the countess found herself beside Sir Philip. He
took her hand and smiled down at her.

“Sometimes our prayers are answered and miracles truly do
occur,” he remarked.

“Aye,” she answered. “For a long time I dreamed not this
could be possible.”

“I truly rejoice to see you both so happy,” he said.

“I thank you, Sir Philip. Or should I say Lord Philip now?
When leave you for your new manor?”

“In the morning. I’ll miss your company. And Jeoffrey’s.”

“And we, yours, my lord. But you know we wish you all the
best. And still do I believe the lady exists somewhere, perhaps even in your
new manor, who will give you her heart and take yours into her keeping. She
will be a very fortunate lady, indeed.”

“You flatter me, Lady Rosalind,” Philip said. “Yet shall I
hope you are as prescient in this as you have been in the matter of your
alliance with Jeoffrey.”

“It will be my wish and my prayer for you.”

They arrived at the solar and had no time for further
conversation. The ladies helped Rosalind change to a specially prepared and
embroidered nightrail, then accompanied her to meet her new lord. He, too, wore
a fresh nightrail of bleached muslin.

Fragrant petals of rose, lavender, and daisy lay in drifts
over the quilted bedcover. Many floated to the floor when the covers were
turned back and the lord and lady tucked into their bed. Bawdy jokes and
laughter flew nearly as freely, and a cheer broke out when the lord, without
waiting for his guests to depart, drew his lady into his embrace and kissed her
deeply.

“Out!” he ordered when a few well-wishers seemed inclined to
linger.

They departed and closed the door behind them. None dared
remain nearby, so none were there to hear the prolonged squeals and moans that
emanated from behind the door, nor the final exultant and joyous scream that
came almost simultaneously with a deeper roar of satisfaction.

When roused the next morning to attend on Lord Philip’s
departure, both lord and lady appeared tired, as though sleep had been little
part of the night’s activities, yet were they radiant in their newfound joy and
the promise of the future.