The White Lord of Wellesbourne (21 page)

“You can take this one.” She
slammed the lid of the case and Luke immediately moved forward to pick it up. 
She watched him heave it onto his broad shoulders. “Be careful with that one,
Luke. The stays on the lid sometimes come undone. I do not want my pretty
things all over the dirt.”

“Aye, my lady.”

He shuffled out of the door and
Alixandrea turned to her husband, smiling brightly. Matthew returned her smile,
feeling like an idiot. It was hard to become annoyed with her when she was so
sweet and lovely.

“We really must go,” he said. “Is
that the last case?”

She looked at the smaller one
next to her. “Aye,” she said. “I just want to make sure I have everything.”

He stepped over a sleeping dog
and closed the lid of the case. “You
have
everything,” he told her. When
she opened her mouth to object, he spoke quickly to drown out her words. “I
told you that we can buy anything that you may have forgotten or may need.”

“But.…”

“No ‘buts’. We are leaving
now
.”

She stuck her lips out in a pout,
more for show than real distress. He kissed her swiftly once, twice, before
taking the case on his shoulder and her in his other hand. As they quit the
chamber, the dogs stretched, stood up, and followed.

In the ward, he tossed the case
onto the wagon that also contained a myriad of other necessities, food and
materials to repair the weapons included.  The massive gates of Wellesbourne
were open and the army was already moving through them, kicking up clouds of
dust. In the carriage that was now being driven by a Wellesbourne soldier and
not Strode, Caroline sat waiting for her. Matthew escorted her over to the
waiting cab.

“You shall have a contingent of
men with the carriage,” he said. “In my stead, you will do what they tell you.
Understood?”

She nodded. “Where will you be?”

“At the head of the column.”

The thought of not seeing him did
not sit particularly well, but she did not say anything. He was a busy man and
his attention was required on more important things.  She had Caroline to keep
her company whilst they traveled.

“Then be safe, husband,” she said
softly. “Caroline and I will ride quite happily together.”

He gazed into her lovely face and
completely forgot himself.  He took her in his arms and kissed her, only to be
rewarded with hoots of approval and whistles from the men around them.  He
looked at their smiling faces, realizing they still had no knowledge that he
had actually married the lady. For all they knew, he was taking liberties that
he should not have been. And, shockingly, she was letting him. 

“Can a man not kiss his wife?” he
boomed.

The men whistled and shouted
congratulations, then dutifully quieted. Their liege was a fair man who showed
them a good amount of camaraderie, but they were as always respectful of him.
If he wanted to kiss the lady he called his wife, so be it.

Matthew loaded her up into the
cab and secured the door himself. He chased the dogs off that seemed to intent
to follow Alixandrea’s every move. His last vision of her was a radiant smile
that seared deep into his heart, and of the dogs that sat in the ward looking
dejected as she rolled away.

As he collected his charger from
a nervous groom, he began to think that never in his life had he known such
happiness.  Aye, he’d been content his entire life, with the satisfaction of a
spotless reputation, power and talent.  He’d always taken pride in the fact
that he served with his father and brothers, a family unit that enjoyed status
among the nobility.

But never had he known true
happiness, like the giddy sensations he had known over the past few days. He
never knew such things had existed, but exist they did. And it all centered
around the beautiful young woman he had been so reluctant to marry.

***

The trip from Wellesbourne to the
outskirts of London hadn’t been nearly so long as the trip from York to
Wellesbourne. Even so, by the second day, Alixandrea remembered why she hated
the infamous carriage so much. She might as well have taken a ship that
traveled upon the open sea. Even though she was used to the rolling somewhat,
it still made her nauseous, and Caroline was even sicker than she was.

Still, they’d never once
complained to their husbands. Matthew made sure they found shelter each night
and saw to it that his wife had a bed to sleep in, and she never let on just
how awful she felt.  In all, the trip to London had been a miserable affair and
the ladies had been very glad to reach their destination.

Caroline perked up on the fifth
day when they reached the perimeter of the city. Her father was lord mayor of a
town just to the east of the road they traveled upon, but Mark would not allow
the time for a visit. He promised her that he would consider it once the army
reached London, but for now, they were eager to reach their destination.
Caroline was disappointed but understood. 

As Alixandrea watched Mark and
Caroline interact, she was coming to think that Mark did not harbor a great
deal of affection or respect for his wife, which was truly a pity considering
how Caroline felt about him.  She had noticed it before but it was more evident
even now.

London seemed to start long
before they reached the heart of the great city. They passed through miles of
villages, most of them a very short distance each other, and the children would
run out to watch the army pass.  Alixandrea found herself watching the children
just as they were watching her, each curious about the other. Most of them were
dirty little urchins, but surprisingly well fed. She saw no evidence of blatant
poverty and starvation. At one point, she smiled and waved at one of the little
boys standing on the side of the road. He was a cute child. He responded by
throwing a rock at her.

The action made her laugh. She
sat back in her seat and chuckled. She was about to venture another look from
the window when a massive dappled charger suddenly pulled alongside the cab.
She recognized her husband’s steed and stuck her head out of the window.

“Well?” she asked him. “What is it?
I am busy charming the locals peasants, so be quick about it.”

Inside the cab, Caroline burst
into laughter but Matthew had no idea what she meant. He flipped up his visor
and looked at her.

“What mischief is this?” he
demanded.

She just grinned at him, a
playful gesture. “Nothing, my lord. Just a joke.”

He lifted an eyebrow. “A joke?”

“Aye,” she explained. “I smiled
at a little boy back there and he threw a rock at me.”

Matthew’s head snapped sharply to
the rear, his blue eyes narrowing. “Which child?”

She shook her head. “I am not
going to tell you because he was probably three years old and terrified. You
have better things to do than punish a three year old.”

He looked at her, not entirely
pleased with her answer but allowing it to go unchallenged.  He held out his
hand, an invitation for her to place her fingers in his palm, which she did so
gladly. The mailed glove was cold as he clasped her warm flesh.

“We are an hour outside of
Windsor,” he told her. “We will be staying at Rosehill, my aunt’s residence
near the castle. My father has already gone ahead to announce our arrival.”

“Which side of your family is
your aunt from?” she asked.

“She is my father’s sister. The
Lady Livia Wellesbourne St. James married a man of some wealth and has chosen
to live near the city all of these years. She will be very happy to meet you
and, I warn you, will try to stuff you with all manner of treats. If you get
too fat to shove through the door while we stay here, I swear I shall divorce
you and leave you in London.”

She giggled. “I promise, I shall
not eat too many.”

He winked at her. “I really would
not divorce you.”

“I know.”

They smiled at each other a
moment, the easy warmth settling between them.  Matthew finally brought her
hand to his lips, kissing it softly.

“I only came back to tell you
this,” he said. “I must return.”

“So soon? You only just arrived.”

“Believe me that I would stay if
I could, but duty calls. And Aunt Livia will expect to see me at the very first
or she might try to box my ears.”

He left her with a smile on her
face, watching him ride all the way back to the front of the column.  He sat so
strong and tall in the saddle, like the legend she had heard tale of. Only now
the legend was reality, more than she would have ever dreamed it could have
been. When he was out of sight, she settled back in her seat, not realizing
that Caroline was watching her closely.

“I have known Matthew for two
years,” Caroline said quietly. “I have never seen him like this.”

Alixandrea looked at her. “Like
what?”

Caroline shrugged lightly.
“Smitten,” she said. “Anyone can see that he is absolutely enamored with you.”

Alixandrea’s smile broadened. 
Though it was only Caroline’s opinion, she dared herself to hope. “As I am with
him.”

Caroline gazed steadily at her. A
weak smile finally creased her face. “It was always my hope that Mark would
feel towards me the way Matthew feels towards you. You are most fortunate.”

So the woman wasn’t oblivious to
the way Mark responded to her.  Somehow it hurt Alixandrea’s feelings to know
that.  She put her hand out, taking Caroline’s tiny cold fingers in her palm.

“Perhaps he will,” she said
encouragingly. “’Tis not too late.”

Caroline laughed bitterly. “He
does not hold any affection for me, my lady. He never has. We’ve not had any children
because.…”

She trailed off, her cheeks
suddenly flame-colored.  Alixandrea could not let it go; it was apparent the
woman needed someone to talk to. Two years in a house full of men with no one
to confide in must have left her horribly lonely and in need of companionship. 
She had sensed it the first day she arrived.

“Because why?” she asked gently.
“You may tell me, Caroline. I would never tell anyone.”

Caroline met her gaze. There was
pain in her eyes. “He… he has stopped performing his husbandly duties,” she
whispered. “He stopped nearly a year ago. Oh, I know he goes to the
Head
O’Bucket
and I know why. I am not as stupid as everyone would think and I
further know why he does not want me to come to London. Did you think I did not
know that? I do, you know.”

Alixandrea did not know what to
say. “Oh… Caroline,” she murmured. “How can you be sure of this? He is your
husband, after all. Surely he would not shame you.”

Her expression was unnaturally
hard. “There was a baby born to one of the servants a few months ago,” she
said. “Mark and his brothers happened to be back from London at the time. If
there is a birth at Wellesbourne, I am the one to tend it. It is my duty. But
Matthew would not let me tend this one. I did not even know about it until the child
had been delivered and then Matthew tried his best to keep me from seeing the
child. But I did. A delightful little girl with nearly black eyes and hair. She
is the spitting image of my husband.”

Alixandrea felt sick inside. She
could only sit there, holding Caroline’s hand. With the warmth of the
comforting touch, Caroline’s confession came tumbling out.

“Matthew was only trying to
protect me, I know that,” she continued. “He has always shown me such regard.
But there are some things that even he cannot protect me from.”

Alixandrea listened to her,
thought on it a moment, and finally shook her head. “I do not know what to say
that would bring you comfort. Anything that comes to mind sounds trite or
naïve.  Have… have you ever spoken to your husband about this?”

“Nay. But I know that he would
tell me that it is none of my affair.”

“And the others know? All of the
brothers, I mean, and Adam as well?”

“Of course. But they do not
involve themselves in what does not concern them.”

The cab lurched and rolled over
the particularly bumpy road. Alixandrea continued to hold Caroline’s hand in
silence, glancing out the window now and again, lost in thought. She tried not
to hate Mark Wellesbourne for his behavior, but it was difficult. She also knew
that it was not considered outlandish behavior for a man to take a mistress, or
several, even though he was married. It was shameful. She could only pray that
Matthew would never do such a thing to her.  The mere thought of it was to make
her feel sicker than she already did.

“Well,” she tried to sound
positive without sounding unsympathetic. “Perhaps we can change things. Perhaps
we can get you some new clothes in London, things so beautiful that Mark will
not want to look anywhere other than at you. And perhaps we can do your hair
differently, and add a little jewelry. We can certainly try, can’t we?”

Caroline was torn between
resignation and the inclination to agree.  She’d never confessed such things to
anyone and it was a new experience to have a woman’s advice on the subject.
“Perhaps.”