Prisoner of My Desire

by Johanna Lindsey

  in full charge.

  ?I ought to take a stick to ye, girl,? were her first words as she pulled Rowena

  into the stores room, away from other ears.

  ?Where the devil have ye been? The whole castle was searched. They even sent out

  patrols.?

  ?Diddid aught happen yestereve that I should be concerned about??

  ?Ah, so that be why ye hid,? Mary replied, only to frown.

  ?But ye were hiding long before then. I looked for ye all afternoon, as it

  happens, butwell, I told no one ye was missing. Ye earned the respite, was the

  way I saw it, as hard as Lord Warrick had been working ye. Then when Lady

  Beatrix made such a ruckus over her missing pearlsit be no wonder ye did not

  come out of hiding.?

  So that was why Beatrix had gone ahead with her plan. She had not known that

  Rowena had left the castle, because Mary felt she had needed a rest. ?Twas worth

  laughing over, but Rowena had turned cold with dread at Mary?s confirmation that

  she had a good reason to hide.

  ?Were the pearls found??

  ?Aye, in Lord Warrick?s solar. It be strange, that. The guard Thomas said Lady

  Beatrix seemed to know right where those pearls would be, as if she had put them

  there herself. Yet Lady Beatrix claims ye be the one took them, since her sister

  says she saw you outside their chamber just before ?twas time to change for

  dinner.?

  Rowena gasped.

  ?When??

  ?Before dinner,? Mary replied.

  ?That was when they could not find the pearls, yet do they claim to have seen

  them just an hour earlier.?

  ?That wouldst be late afternoon when last they saw them?? Rowena asked excitedly.

  ?Aye, so they say.?

  Rowena laughed. She almost hugged Mary Blouet; then her relief overcame her and

  she did hug her.

  ?Here now,? Mary grumbled, though not really displeased.

  ?What was that for??

  ?For letting me have a lazy day and not telling anyone about it, which is going

  to prove me innocent of Beatrix?s charge.?

  ?I do not see how, but I am right glad to hear it, for the guards are still

  looking for ye, girl. It be a wonder ye made it down here without being stopped.?

  ?Mayhap with Warrick at my side, they felt he would handle the matter now.?

  ?He be back??

  ?Aye.?

  Rowena grinned.

  ?And he has ordered me to eat, so I had best get to it. God?s mercy, I think I

  have my appetite back. I also need to order a bath and a bottle of Tures wine.?

  ?Go eat, then. I will see to the bath and get the wine for ye.?

  ?Thank you, Mistress?

  ?Mary,? the older woman said, grinning herself.

  ?Aye, I think ye can call me Mary now.?

  When Rowena entered the hall not long after, she cradled the bottle of wine in

  her arms like a babe. Her step was not the least hesitant, and she was grinning

  at Warrick by the time she reached him.

  He did not look very pleased himself. He had heard the accusations. Verily,

  Beatrix had not even waited for him to come to the table, but had followed him

  into his solar to give him a full rendering of the facts whilst he changed his

  wet tunic and dried his hair.

  Now his flaxen haired wench looked as if she had a very pleasant secret to tell.

  He hoped so, for the case against her was damning.

  He had moved to the hearth, the lord?s table already being cleared of the meal.

  Beatrix sat in one of the chairs, Melisant beside her on a stool. Warrick nodded

  Rowena into the other chair.

  Beatrix gasped at this, though she said naught a word. Her father had been

  frowning at her ever since she had charged his leman with theft. That delighted

  her. She hoped he was furious. She would have preferred he come back to find the

  wench scarred and no longer desirable, but mayhap he would scar her himself when

  he passed judgment. At any rate, he would not take her back to his bed after he

  adjudged her guilty. Beatrix had at least accomplished that.

  ?My daughter,? Warrick began in disgust, addressing Rowena ?has made a serious

  charge against you, wench. How do you answer to the theft of a pearl necklace??

  ?Did she say when it was taken??

  ?When, Beatrix??

  ?Just before the dinner hour,? Beatrix supplied.

  ?Ask her, my lord, how she is certain of this,? Rowena suggested.

  ?How, Beatrix??

  Beatrix just barely managed to keep a frown from her brow. She could not see

  what difference it made. The necklace was taken, then found in Warrick?s solar.

  Surely the wench was not going to suggest he took it.

  ? Twas late afternoon when I last saw it and decided I would wear it to dinner.

  Not an hour later ?twas missing, and she?she stabbed a finger toward Rowena?was

  seen outside my chamber during that time. Twas Melisant who saw her.?

  Rowena grinned at Warrick.

  ?Did I tell you, my lord,? she asked casually ?what time I escaped yesterday??

  ?Escaped?!? Beatrix exclaimed.

  ?Do you mean to say you were not hiding in the castle since yestereve??

  ?Nay, my lady. I could not trust a mere hiding place for what you had planned

  for me.?

  Hot color stole into Beatrix?s cheeks before her eyes glittered with malice.

  ?You admit you ran away? Do you know what the punishment is for a runaway serf??

  ?Aye, Lady Beatrix. I have my own lands, my own serfs, and attended my father?s

  court quite often ere he died. I should know?

  ?Liar!? Beatrix hissed.

  ?Are you going to stand there and let her lie like that, Father??

  ?I doubt she lies,? he replied.

  ? Twas I who made her a serf, not her birth. But we digress. What time did you

  leave here, Rowena??

  ? Twas noontide.?

  ?Again she lies!? Beatrix fairly shrieked this time.

  ?How can you listen??

  ?Not another word, Beatrix,? Warrick warned, his tone pure ice.

  ?The time of my leaving can be verified, my lord,? Rowena offered.

  ?Mistress Blouet will tell you that she looked for me, but could not find me the

  entire afternoon. And the guard at your postern gate can tell you exactly what

  time Mildred engaged him in conversation so I could slip past him unnoticed. Tis

  my hope you will not reprimand him for his carelessness, for had he been more

  diligent, you would have found me not at your gates, but in your dungeonat least,

  you would have found what was left of me,? she ended, giving Beatrix a look of

  undisguised contempt.

  ?What say you, Beatrix?? Warrick asked.

  ?She lies,? Beatrix said disdainfully.

  ?Bring in those she claims will support her lies. Let them say so to my face.?

  ?So you think to intimidate them into silence?? he replied, the smile on his

  lips that Rowena hated.

  ?I think not. But answer me this. If she stole your pearls, why did she not take

  them with her when she escaped??

  ?How should I know how a whore thinks??

  That remark brought his blackest scowl into place. Beatrix stared back at him

  stonily, too angry to be afraid. But when that scowl came to bear on Melisant,

  his youngest daughter promptly burst into tears.

  ?She made me say it!? Melisant wailed frantically.

  ?I did not want to, but she slapped me and said that she would say /
stole her

  necklace if I did not say your leman did it! I am sorry, Father! I did not want

  to hurt her, but Beatrix was so angry with you?

  ?Aye, with me,? Warrick growled low.

  ?All this for my benefit. Well, what you have earned, Beatrix, is for your

  benefit, and long overdue.?

  Chapter 39

  Warrick whipped his daughter right there in the hall for all to see, and he used

  the thick leather of his sword belt. Rowena leaned back in the chair she had

  been allowed to use and closed her eyes to it, but she could not close out the

  sound. And it was a brutal walloping. Beatrix?s screams became hoarse, her

  pleadings pitiful to listen to. Rowena had to bite her lip to keep from trying

  to end it sooner than Warrick deemed sufficient. But by the time he was through,

  his daughter was utterly repentant, and utterly cowed.

  After she was assisted from the hall by her ladies, Warrick dropped into the

  chair next to Rowena.

  ?That should have appeased my anger, but it did not.?

  ?It certainly took care of mine,? Rowena assured him dryly.

  The sound he made was choked laughter.

  ?Wench?

  ?Nay, I am sorry/? she said seriously.

  ? ?Tis no time for levity. And your continued anger is certainly understandable.

  It can only be heartsickening to know that your own child wouldst do you harm.

  But try to remember that she z?s still just a child, with childish reactions,

  which was what her attempt at revenge was.?

  He cocked a brow at her.

  ?Are you trying to console me, wench??

  ?God?s mercy, I would not dream of it.?

  He could not choke back his laughter this time.

  ?I am glad you are still here.?

  Rowena stopped breathing at those words.

  ?Are you?? she asked softly.

  ?Aye. I would hate to have to go out to hunt you down in that rain.?

  She glared at him for that answer, until she noticed the slight curl of his lips.

  Was the feared dragon actually teasing her?

  ?Twas amazing how relaxed she felt with him now. Verily, he seemed no longer her

  captor, nor she his prisoner. Had that night of mutual passion they had shared

  really put an end to his need for vengeance against her? The thought was too

  tempting not to explore further.

  ?The question of my stealing,? she began carefully.

  ?Has it been settled to your satisfaction??

  ?Ayein this case.?

  Rowena almost stopped there, for that taunt did not bode well for what she hoped

  to hear. But it had not brought annoyance to his expression, so she braved on.

  ?What of mytemporary sojourn in yonder woods??

  He snorted at her mild terms for what would have been a successful escape if her

  brother had not been in the area seeking vengeance.

  ?What is it you ask, wench??

  ?Am I to be punished for it??

  ?Am I a monster that I would do so, when I am aware of the harm that could have

  been done you had you not left the castle when you did??

  She grinned.

  ?Actually?

  ?Do not say it,? he warned.

  ?What?? she asked innocently.

  His frown was not the least bit intimidating.

  ?As we have dealt with your theft and your escape, would you now like to discuss

  your audacity??

  Rowena rolled her eyes, wishing he had not so fine a memory.

  ?I would as soon that discussion be saved for some future timesome far future

  time. But there is another thing??

  Now that she had reached the point of asking, she was losing her nerve. His mood

  was mellow, despite the unpleasantness of dealing with his daughter. She hated

  to change that, to see again the cruel visage that bespoke his darkest rages.

  But she had to know if his new attitude toward her ran deeper than what she saw

  on the surface.

  Finally she just blurted it out.

  ?Do you still mean to take my child from me, Warrick??

  What she was afraid of happenedthe cruel mask coming so quickly to the fore, the

  slant of his mouth, the narrowing of his eyes, and the icy menace in his tone.

  ?What would make you think I no longer want it??

  ?II did not think thatonly?

  ?So you would raise it as a serf??

  ?I am not a serf!? she snapped.

  ?I do have properties in my own right.?

  ?You have no rights other than those I give you,? he growled.

  ?What will you do with the babe?? she demanded.

  ?Who will see to it whilst you are off fighting your damn wars? Another serf?

  Your wife??

  He did not seem to note the sneering tone she ended with.

  ?Do you give me a son, I will see to him myself. I want a son. A daughter?? He

  shrugged.

  ?Bastard daughters have their uses, I have only just learned.?

  She was so angry over that answer she could have screamed. But losing her temper,

  as she had just done, was not how to reason with a man, particularly this one.

  So she schooled her features to express mere annoyance, and dropped her tone to

  a moderate level to ask ?What of nurturing and love and proper guidance??

  He cocked a brow.

  ?Think you I am incapable of supplying those things??

  ?Aye. Beatrix is a fine example.?

  That was a harsh blow, and one that struck true. His expression changed to that

  of a man in deepest pain.

  Incredibly, Rowena felt it, too, a tightening in her chest that hurt for him and

  sent her from her chair to his.

  ?I am sorry!? she cried as she wrapped her arms around his neck and squeezed in

  measure to her regret.

  ?I did not mean that, I swear I did not! Tis not your fault that the land is run

  so rife with lawlessness that you must be forever gone to protect what is yours,

  instead of at home with your family. That damn Stephen is to blame for that.

  Because of him, my own father took off to fight again and again, and you can see

  how unruly that has made me, even though I had my mother to guide me. You can

  only be faulted for not frightening me anymore, so that my cursed tongue now

  runs away with?

  ?Be? quiet.?

  He was shaking, and his arms were squeezing her. She tried to lean back to see

  his face, but he was holding her too tight. He was also making the most awful

  noise.

  ?Warrick?? she asked with dread.

  ?Youyou are not crying, are you??

  He shook harder. Rowena?s brows narrowed suspiciously. His head finally came up

  off her shoulder, but one look at her and his silent laughter turned to loud

  guffaws. Rowena screeched in exasperation and hit his chest. He clasped her face

  in both hands and kissed her, only he was still chuckling, so ?twas a ticklish

  kissat least at first. But she was annoyed enough at him for such a rotten trick

  that she slid her hands up into his hair and pressed her breasts tight into his

  chest. And that took care of his amusement. After a few moments, it took care of

  her annoyance, too.

  They were both out of breath when they separated. Rowena was too comfortable to

  move, though she had not been invited to his lap and ought to make some effort

  to get up. He settled the matter by pressing her cheek to his chest and holding

  it there, whilst his other hand caressed her hip.

  ?You are so
silly, wench. You cannot even have a good argument, because you

  worry too much that you will hurt your opponent?s feelings.?

  They were not alone in the hall, but for the most part, they were being ignored.

  Rowena did not particularly care either way, and that surprised her. Just a few

  nights ago, she had been mortified to be held like this in front of everyone And

  just a few nights ago, Warrick would not have said something like that to her.

  She grinned to herself.

  ?Most women do happen to be burdened with compassion. Are you scolding me for