The Bargain (25 page)

Flashing a smile, she took them from him, and concentrated on the target, extending her bow, ready for the command. Just off to her right she saw Elena, who shouted encouragement.

Aleysia extended her bow. "I am out of practice."

"Release!"

She released and a second later applause exploded all around her, for her arrow had hit directly in the center, a perfect shot. Elena gave her a conspiratorial nod, and then she looked at Renaud.

Clapping louder than anyone, he grinned, his pride obvious to everyone watching, which pleased her greatly.

Renaud stepped forward and took the bow from Philip, who relinquished it immediately. Aleysia watched him from the corner of her eye.

Galeran stepped forward. "Ready, release!"

The arrows landed side by side. Adelstan stepped forward, released his bow, and the arrow hit directly between Aleysia's and Renaud's.

The group laughed, and Adelstan smiled. "Let that be a warning, de Wulf. I shall always have my sister's back."

Aleysia kissed her brother's cheek, then turned to Elena, who grabbed her by the hand. "Come, my dear. We will leave you men to your games. I have need to speak to my friend."

"Not so fast," Renaud said, bending his head and kissing Aleysia.

Applause sounded all around them, and she smiled against his lips. Her cheeks heated, but she was immensely pleased. She did not care what others thought. She loved Renaud.

"I shall see you soon," he said, giving her a pat on her bottom.

"Careful, de Wulf," Adelstan said, his smile belying the steely tone of his words.

"I will make an honest woman of her, Adelstan." He turned deadly serious. "I swear it."

Adelstan kept his gaze and nodded. "You had better."

As they headed off, Elena took Aleysia by the hand. "Your brother is almost too pretty for a man."

Aleysia laughed, having heard that very statement a time or two. "Aye."

"What of Galeran?" Aleysia asked, motioning toward the knight who seemed more subdued than normal.

"He has not looked at me since your abduction. I think he partially blames me."

"That is ridiculous. How could either of you be responsible?"

"He is a stubborn soldier. He believes that he should have known. He lost six guards that night. All killed and on his first mission."

"I understand that he mourns his men, but how could he have stopped them when six men were caught unaware?"

Elena picked a thread off her skirts. "We were together the night you were taken."

Aleysia frowned. "Together?"

"We were making love, Aleysia."

Aleysia smiled. "You did?"

"For all the good it did me. He feels that had he been on duty, you would have never been taken, the men would have lived, and he would not have let Renaud down."

Aleysia nodded, understanding the young knights plight. "What if Renaud spoke to him?"

"It is not his business. Plus, he may be angry with Galeran if he knew."

She shrugged as though she didn't care, but Aleysia could see the hurt in Elena's eyes. '"Tis my fault. After all, I seduced him into my bed. I should not have done it. I should have realized that he is still quite young."

"Yet you desire him still?"

"I do. Just as you desire my brother, but I am too old for such games."

Aleysia's cheeks burned bright under Elena's knowing gaze. "I am afraid, Elena. What if I am not given a choice and William marries me to Braemere's new owner?"

"I honestly do not know. It is our lot in life to do what our master says—be that master king, father, or husband."

Aleysia nodded, a sense of unease filling her. She had escaped one man in marriage, only to be possibly forced to take another.

"Why don't you go to Galeran? Ask him to speak with you?"

"I have tried, but he ignores me at every turn. In truth, I think he hates me."

"What if you send him word to meet you somewhere? How about the buttery, somewhere he will not expect to find you."

"You mean trick him?"

Aleysia shrugged. "If need be."

Elena nodded. "How fast you have learned, my dear."

CHAPTER 22

Elena glanced at the buttery door. Every time she heard approaching footsteps, she stood up and held her breath, only to sit back down on a barrel when no one came.

Mayhap Galeran had realized it was she who had sent the message.

Just when she was ready to accept defeat, she peeked out the window and saw him coming her way. Her pulse quickened in anticipation.

A moment later the door opened and Galeran entered, shutting the door behind him.

Seeing her, he frowned. "What are you doing here?"

Her confidence plummeted. "I sent you the note. I wanted to speak with you."

He opened the door to leave, but she moved faster and closed it, blocking the way. "Nay, hear me out."

Galeran shook his head. "There is nothing to say."

"You have not spoken to me for days. Not since we made love."

"'Twas a mistake, Elena."

He may as well have slapped her. "A mistake?"

He nodded. "Aye."

"Well, I do not consider it a mistake. Not at all, and I thought more of you. You did not act as though it was a mistake then."

His brows drew together. "What do you mean?"

"Your groans and moans told me you enjoyed every second. Now you are behaving like a child."

He looked affronted. "I am no child."

"Aye, you are a man, but you have ignored me as though Aleysia's abduction was my fault, and such is the behavior of a child."

He blushed. "I should have been on duty. I was not, and because of that, six men have lost their lives."

"You did not kill them. MacMillan and his men did. Do you think my brother blames himself for each soldier he has lost in battle?" She shook her head. "He would make himself insane if he did. And what if you had been sleeping instead of making love to me? Would you still be so hard on yourself?"

His jaw tightened. She reached out to him, but he pulled away, and she felt the rejection all the way to her soul. "I was wrong about you."

He looked at her then, and she could see the warring emotions.

"I thought you were a man of honor, not a man who sulks. You are acting no better than a woman."

His throat convulsed as he swallowed hard. "First you compare me to a child and now a woman?"

She lifted her chin. "Aye, I do."

His nostrils flared as he stared at her, and to her shock he pulled her into his arms and kissed her, at first his lips gentle, but growing more aggressive by the second.

"I have wanted you from the moment you stepped foot at Braemere," he said against her lips. "And by God, I will have you again."

Elena's blood coursed through her veins, her anger diminishing.

His cock was hard against his braies, rising toward his navel, struggling to be free of the confines.

Her nipples tightened and she grew wet with need.

He set a barrel before the door, before pulling her into his arms and kissing her hard, his hands jerking her gown up about her hips. He turned her around, to where she bent over the table.

His cock probed her molten core, his hands on her breasts, his fingers teasing her already-sensitive nipples into hardened peaks. She arched her back, her ass high in the air, urging him to take her.

Galeran slid in slowly, sighing as her heat enveloped him, squeezing him tightly. She gasped as he filled her to the womb. He stayed like that for a moment, and then thrust, his movements slow and fluid.

Elena rocked against him, amazed at the size of his cock, and how full she was in that position. His fingers stroked her nipples, pulling them, pinching them, flooding her channel with honeyed warmth.

"You're so wet," he whispered, leaning over her, his lips brushing against her ear, while his fingers brushed over her clit.

"Aye," she said, her breaths coming fast as her body worked toward climax. "My body craves you, and only you."

He eased out of her, almost all the way, and she cried out, her hips following him, wanting him back inside her.

Galeran trembled with the need to come. He held back, just keeping the head of his cock within her dewy folds. She shifted, rotating her hips in a way that had him gritting his teeth as he sank into her.

She cried out again, her sheath squeezing his cock tighter, pulling from him the greatest orgasm of his life.

Galeran held her for a long time, content to hold the woman he had not been able to get from his thoughts. Unfortunately, the silence ended too soon. A loud knock brought him back to the present.

He helped to straighten her skirts, and pulled up his braies before stepping outside, leaving Elena inside.

"The scouts have returned and MacMillan's army comes this way," a soldier said, rushing toward the armory. "They are within an hour's ride. Maldor says at least two hundred strong, and they are being led by Duncan's brother, who is wanting Renaud's head. They must have rallied troops along the way."

Adrenaline rushed through his veins and he stepped back into the buttery and pulled Elena into his arms. "Come, let's get you to safety."

The sounds of swords clashing resonated throughout the chamber.

When would the madness end? All Aleysia wanted was simplicity in her life. She had her brother. She had Renaud. Now all she wanted was to live in peace and, God willing, at Braemere, but she was prepared to move anywhere, as long as she had Renaud and her brother safely with her.

And now, Adelstan, Renaud, Galeran, and the rest of the men were fighting, and all because of her.

If something happened to any of them she would be devastated. She pressed a hand to her stomach, wondering if a child grew in her womb. The chances were great that she carried Renaud's babe, considering all the times they had made love.

She caught Elena's sidelong glance and turned.

"Are you with child?" she asked, unable to hide the smile that came to her lips.

"I do not know."

"Have you had your menses?"

Aleysia shook her head. "Nay, I am late."

"And your breasts? Are they sore?"

They indeed had been sore of late, and when Renaud had touched them last, they seemed more sensitive. "A bit."

Elena clapped her hands together in joy. "I believe you are with child. Does that not please you?"

Aleysia bit her bottom lip. "I do not know. What if I am to marry another? What if I leave Braemere and never return? What of my son or daughter then?"

"You should tell Renaud."

"But I do not know for certain."

"Our bodies do not lie, Aleysia. Also, if King William knew you carried Renaud's babe, mayhap he would not be so quick to marry you to another."

Hope flared within Aleysia. "Do you think so?"

"Aye, I do."

"I shall tell Renaud the first chance I get."

Elena squeezed her hand. "He will be thrilled. My brother has always wanted a child of his own."

"And I have always wanted a child. I just did not think it would be so soon."

A loud scream sent them once again into companionable silence. She could not bring herself to look out the window for fear of what she might see. To hear it was bad enough.

"Come, let me brush out your hair," Elena said, motioning for Aleysia to take a seat before the fire.

She did as asked, sitting before the hearth, while Elena pulled up a stool behind her and began to brush. Aleysia's eyes began to close with each stroke. She smiled to herself, remembering the times her mother had done the same.

Time passed and they waited—until silence fell over Braemere. An eerie silence. Elena grew sullen as well, pacing the floor of the chamber, no doubt just as anxious to hear any news.

She heard footsteps on the stairs outside the door and she stood. "Aleysia, open the door!"

It was Adelstan. "Thank God," she cried, racing to the door just as he pushed it open. He no longer wore chain mail, but his hair was matted to his head, and blood splattered his face, neck, and hands. She ran into his arms and he held her tight. "Are you all right? Are you hurt?"

He shook his head. "I am fine, but you must come."

She put him at arm's length. "What is it?"

Fear consumed her seeing his worried expression. "Renaud has been wounded."

"Sweet Jesus," Elena said behind her, grabbing hold of Aleysia for support. "Where is he?"

"The men have taken him to the great hall, along with the rest of the wounded. I am afraid it is not good. He asks for you."

Sick with fear, Aleysia followed Adelstan down the steps, and into the hall where men lay on cots, all wounded—perhaps some were even dead, for they moved not at all. In the far corner she saw Galeran and knew that's where Renaud was. The younger man glanced at Aleysia and she saw concern in his eyes.

She released Adelstan's hand and raced to Renaud. Her heart gave a hard jolt. His face was a deathly white, almost gray. His eyes were closed, and his breathing shallow. His thigh had a huge gash in it, and blood flowed freely, soaking the blanket beneath him. "Renaud?" she said softly.

"He sleeps deeply." Galeran took Elena's hand within his own, kissed it. "He's said not a word since asking for you, Aleysia."

"Where's the healer?" she asked.

Adelstan looked equally nervous. "On her way."

Her hand moved to Renaud's forehead. He was so warm. Too warm. Sweat beaded his brow, and drenched the front of his tunic.

He opened his eyes and his gray gaze settled on her. Slowly, the sides of his mouth curved a little before his eyes closed again.

She had never been so afraid. She could not lose him. Surely, God would not be so cruel.

Aleysia bent down and kissed him tenderly. "You will be right as rain soon enough. Even now the healer comes."

"I am so tired." Even his voice sounded weary.

Her heart lurched. "Do not sleep, Renaud. We need you awake."

Renaud blinked time and again, as though his lids were too heavy, and finally they closed.

"Who did this?" Aleysia asked, full of murderous rage toward the man who had wounded her beloved.