“Brogan, I do not know why I feel such attraction to you, but I do,” she whispered. “I’ve known you a scant few hours and already I feel as you do. I feel glory and I do not want to lose this.”
His response was to lower his head and very gently rub his nose against hers. Avalyn sighed raggedly, closing her eyes at the fresh delight of the sensation. She could feel his breath on her face, his lips just a few short inches from her own. She found herself wishing he would claim her with those lips, those wonderful lips that had kissed her cheeks earlier and left an indelible mark. Just as she wished it, he took a deep breath and slanted his mouth over hers, kissing her more tenderly and deeply than a man had a right to. She responded naturally, as if she had been doing it all her life, her arms winding around his massive neck and her slender body pressed up against his.
The gentle suckling turned open-mouthed and his tongue gently demanded entrance. She opened her lips instinctively and he plunged into the sweet pink orifice, licking and suckling her until her knees gave out and he had to support her. Even then, he continued to kiss her until her face was red from the stubble on his cheeks and even then, he did not stop until he forced himself pull away or risk abandoning all self-control. He had, in fact, already lost it.
When the kiss ended and his wits halfway returned, he realized that he had her squeezed tightly against him. He didn’t even know if she was breathing except for the fact that her arms around his neck still held him fast. His face was in her fragrant hair as he spoke.
“Perhaps I should not have done that,” he said hoarsely. “Forgive me if it was too bold. I could not help myself.”
Avalyn heard his word and almost laughed, for she knew that she was in a good deal of trouble. She never wanted to leave the safety or strength of those massive arms, ever, nor leave those lips that had twice branded her.
“You were not too bold,” she murmured, her lips on his ear. “I wanted you to do that.”
His response was to hug her tightly. Avalyn clung to him, savoring the sensation of his massive body in her arms, wishing with all of her heart that it was Brogan she was betrothed to and not the red-faced baron. He felt so good against her, creating a feeling of security and safety and euphoria. And there was a distinct feeling of belonging, feeding an emotional need she never knew she had. He seemed to feed all of her.
But her wits gradually returned and she opened her eyes, seeing the tall structure of the White Tower behind them. It reminded her of where they were, and that at any second they might be discovered. Now, more than ever, she did not want them to be exposed.
“Brogan,” she said softly, and he released her enough to look at her. “It is not safe for us out here. You must return to the barracks and I must return to the feast.”
She could tell by his expression that he did not like that suggestion. “But…but your entertainment…?”
“Not tonight. It is too dangerous.”
“When shall I see you again?”
She sighed sadly. “I do not know. We are leaving on the morrow.”
His deep blue eyes were intense, serious. “I do not want to let you go, Avalyn. I feel as if I am just starting to live again and to take you away would… would surely be the end of me. But I also know that there are many things I have no control over. I am a lowly soldier and you are a powerful lady. Tell me what you would have of me, what you want me to do, and I shall do it.”
She shook her head. “You are speaking before you can think this through. The heat of the moment is causing you to say things you do not mean.”
His expression dimmed. “I am not a wise or educated man, but I know what I am saying. I am not stupid.”
“I did not mean to offend you. But sometimes we say things in passion that we would not normally say. You must listen to what your words. Would you really risk all just to be near me, no matter what the cost?”
He fell silent, his massive hands stroking her back as he often stroked St. Alban’s fat cat. The strokes were gentle, uncannily so, but there was untapped strength to them. “Perhaps,” he suggested, his tone a bit calmer, “we should go see your entertainment and reason things out. We both agree that we do not want to lose whatever is happening between us. Perhaps we can think of a way to keep it.”
She looked at him hesitantly, thinking that perhaps her foolish attraction to the man was getting the better of her. So much had changed since last night, since this morning. She was betrothed now. But gazing into Brogan’s eyes, she knew that her heart would not let her think clearly. Perhaps there was a way they could keep what they had started. But in the same breath, her apprehension was growing at the thought that they might be discovered at any moment. No doubt those missing her at the feast would be looking for her. She could not put Brogan at such risk.
“Return to the barracks and I shall return to the feast,” she told him. “But meet me here around midnight. We will speak more of it then, without the fear of someone coming upon us.”
He pulled her close and rubbed noses with her before depositing a sweet and longing kiss on her lips. Then he let her go.
“I will be here.”
She smiled sadly at him. This wasn’t healthy for either of them, in more ways than one. “I know,” she murmured. “Now go before you are discovered. Hurry!”
He gave her a wink as he faded back into the shadows, hugging the wall of the White Tower before rounding the corner and out of sight. Avalyn watched him go before turning back in the direction of the feasting hall. She hadn’t made it ten feet when Inglesbatch was suddenly in front of her. His simmering blue eyes told her everything she needed to know.
He had seen them together.
CHAPTER FIVE
Avalyn paused to collect herself, gazing steadily into Inglesbatch’s round face. She had known William a long time and until today, they’d had a close and pleasant relationship. She crossed her arms, both defensively and protectively.
“How much have you seen?” she asked with resignation.
He was struggling not to judge. “Enough, my lady.”
“Are you going to tell my uncle?”
“I should.”
“Please don’t.”
He sighed heavily. The knight she had known for ten years relaxed and the man she had personally known came through, with the concern a brother would have shown. “May I ask a question, my lady?”
“Aye.”
“Candidly?”
“Aye.”
His jaw flexed. “Knowing the events of this morning, knowing that your aunt and uncle have forbid you to have any further contact with d’Aurilliac, still you steal out here in the dark of night to rendezvous with him? What are you thinking?”
She tried not to appear too defensive. “I do not want to marry Aubrey. I cannot.”
William wasn’t trying to be cruel; he was truly trying to help her. “That has nothing to do with your… your clandestine meeting with d’Aurilliac. Do you know anything about that man? Well, do you?”
“I know something of him.”
“Aye, from a sanitized view,” he continued when she opened her mouth to protest. “Do you know that d’Aurilliac is a man so feared that even the knights are hesitant to tangle with him? They call him ‘The Monster’. He’s a killing machine, my lady, pure and simple. He has been with Edward for at least twenty-five years. He’s seen service in battle with your uncle’s armies and against them, ripping men apart with his bare hands and creating more carnage than I will mention in the presence of a lady.”
Avalyn gazed back at him, doubt in her expression, perhaps a little fear. “Have you ever seen evidence of this?”
William nodded. “At the Battle of Wakefield when your great-uncle was killed. He fought with us that time, lest you forget that there was a time when de Neville sided with Edward. We supported the king back then.”
She was somewhat surprised. “He never told me he was at Wakefield.”
“He was indeed.”
“And?”
William just shook his head slowly; he did not want to say what he was truly thinking. “I saw him rip heads off with my own eyes. Something about d’Aurilliac when he enters into battle… it is as if the smell of blood seeps into his veins and turns him into an animal. He becomes something not-human. That is why I did not engage him today when we found you on the edges of the Tower arena; had we been the first to draw blood, d’Aurilliac could have quite possibly turned into that maniac we all fear. Moreover, he had you by the arm. I did not want you injured in his hysteria.”
Avalyn began to think hard. She believed William; that much was certain. He had never lied to her. Yet she was having difficulty fathoming Brogan’s beast-like tendencies. The man was so gentle when he held her that surely William must be mistaken somehow.
“Then would it not stand to reason that it would be advantageous to have someone like that as our ally?” she asked.
William bobbed his head. “For certain. ’Tis better to serve with the Devil than be in his path.”
“Then how can my interest in him be detrimental to our cause?”
“Because he is unpredictable. I do not know if unpredictability like that, no matter how strong the man is, would be advantageous.”
“But you would rather have him as an ally than an enemy.”
“That is something you must discuss with your uncle.”
She drew in a long breath, her shrewd mind working. She didn’t want William to think she was scheming, so she simply took his elbow and turned him around for the distant feasting hall.
“Not a word, please?” she asked softly. “I will discuss this with my uncle in my own way.”
“Be sure that you do. And I do not want to catch you with d’Aurilliac again. Please, my lady. For your own sake.”
“Do not follow me and you’ll not see anything you do not want to.”
He lifted an eyebrow at her. “If I find you with him again, I will have no choice but to tell your uncle.”
She looked up at him, a sort of threatening glare, but did not reply. She did not want to lie, or force him into a promise that would compromise his relationship with her uncle. Inglesbatch had always been very kind and fair to her, and she had a better relationship with him than her aunt and uncle. Still, she respected him enough not to push him. She wanted him to work with her, not against her, and she knew for a fact that she would see Brogan again.
*
Aubrey was more than glad to see her returned. The moment she entered the hall on Inglesbatch’s arm, he bolted up from his chair and practically ran to meet her. He was breathing heavily, red-faced and sweating, and Avalyn passed a long look at William as he turned her over to her future husband. William could do nothing more but gaze back at her. Whatever happened, no matter how he felt about it, was out of his hands.
“Your uncle has gracious given permission for me to escort you on a short walk so that we may talk and become better acquainted with each other,” he said eagerly. “Will you consent?”
Avalyn felt sick just looking at him. She had to keep reminding herself that it wasn’t his fault that Uncle Richard had betrothed them. Charles was as much a pawn as any of them.
“A… a short walk, if you don’t mind, my lord,” she said. “I am feeling rather tired this evening.”
“Of course,” he said, his manner switching from eager to greatly concerned in a matter of seconds. “Is there something I can do? More wine, perhaps?”
She shook her head strongly. “Nay, no more wine.”
For lack of a better response, Charles took her hand and led her out the way she had come. Avalyn made sure to make eye contact with Inglesbatch, silently pleading that he follow. William remained at his post until they quit the door and then silently followed, if only to protect Charles from a fairly unstable Avalyn. If he laid an unwelcome hand on her, the baron might come away missing fingers.
At the head of the table, both Anne and Richard saw Avalyn’s departure with Aubrey and Inglesbatch’s subsequent disappearance. Anne casually turned back to her wine.
“She’s not happy in the least,” she murmured to her husband.
Richard was into his fourth cup of fine ruby port. “That is her misfortune,” he said flatly. “We should have wed her off long ago. The older she gets, the more headstrong she becomes. She must know that with disobedience comes swift punishment.”
“And you think Aubrey will keep her in check?” Anne snorted, very unladylike. “You’re mad. More than likely, she’ll dominate him within an inch of his life. The man will be lucky if he survives this marriage into old age.”
“Aubrey will hold his own with her,” Richard didn’t look at his wife as he spoke. “But if he cannot handle a strong wife, then that is his misfortune. What I am more concerned with is the fact that Avalyn will marry into the massive fortress of Guerdley Cross and a husband who controls the water rights for all of Merseyside. This is where we need her to be. We need this alliance.”
Anne sighed, having second thoughts about the entire thing. “We really should have asked her if this was acceptable. We should not have treated it as a punishment.”
“I cannot afford a rebel so close to me, not even my own niece. If she disobeyed me once with something as insignificant as d’Aurilliac, who is to say that she will not do it again with something of more significance. And I need Avalyn; I need her wisdom and obedience. She must understand that.”
Anne didn’t say anymore. But she wasn’t so sure betrothal to Aubrey was the right answer any longer.
Nor was Avalyn. The more she walked beside Charles out into the chill night, the more nauseous she became. The man reeked of foul odor, she was sure, as a result of his profuse sweating. He hadn’t said a word to her yet, but he kept her hand tucked against his meaty elbow. She could feel his sweat soaking through his tunic.
“You… you’re uncle says that you enjoy horses,” he finally broke the ice. “I have several fine warmbloods in my stable. I do not ride them too often, however; I leave that to my grooms. They are much more agile than I am.”
“Do you breed the horses for sale or for your own pleasure?” Avalyn forced herself to continue the conversation.
“For sale,” he seemed thrilled that she had responded. “They bring about a tidy sum. And I have three stallions that command a high price for breeding.”
Avalyn nodded, not sure what else to say. He seemed so genuinely nervous around her that it was almost touching. “It sounds as if you have good business sense, my lord,” she finally offered.
Aubrey nodded humbly; by his expression, it was apparent that he was wracking his mind for more things to say. “Do you hunt, my lady?” Even as the question left his mouth, he quickly corrected himself. “I am sorry; that was a silly question. Ladies do not hunt.”
“On the contrary,” she replied. “I have and I do. I like it.”
“You do?” his fat face lit up. “’Tis my favorite past time. What is your beast of choice?”
Fat, foolish barons who talk too much. “Wild boar, I think, for the simple fact that they tend to be cunning. It is almost as if they can reason.”
“Oh, I agree,” he said enthusiastically. “Last year, we hunted a boar for three days before finally killing it. It was an amazing creature. I was almost sorry I had to destroy it.”
Avalyn didn’t have anything to say to that. Somehow, they had wandered over near the White Tower and Avalyn instinctively looked around, wondering if Brogan was still lingering nearby. Charles studied her face in the moonlight, thinking her to be the most heavenly creature he had ever seen. He had never hoped to achieve such loveliness or prestige in a marriage, but here it was, in front of him. It was too much for him to believe. Yet he wasn’t so overcome that he could not see that she didn’t feel the same way.
“My lady,” he brought them to a stop, facing her. “If I may speak plainly?”
“Of course.”
He smiled feebly, summoning the threads of courage. “I reali
ze that you were surprised by this betrothal and I further realize that I am probably not the kind of man you would see yourself marrying. But I assure you that you will never want for respect or affection. I will be your most devoted servant, always, and any wish you have, no matter how small, shall be unquestionably fulfilled.”
It was a heart-felt statement. Avalyn felt her irritation wane as she looked into small brown eyes, knowing that it was hard for a man to admit that he probably wasn’t up to her standard. In a way, it was very sad. She tried to muster the will to be kind to him in reply. She couldn’t tell him how much she was coming to hate her uncle and the politics that had forced her into this unwanted betrothal.
“You are most considerate, my lord,” she said. “I have no doubt that you will be everything you say you will. But in truth, this betrothal is still something of a shock. I fear I shall need time to become accustomed to it.”
“I understand. I should like to help if I can.”
“How, my lord?”
He shrugged uncomfortably. “Perhaps… perhaps you will allow more time such as this, where we can talk and become better acquainted.”
It was not an unreasonable request. But her heart was screaming with reluctance; the only man she wanted to spend time with was Brogan, not this sweaty-faced stranger. His mere presence sickened her. Still, until she could figure out a better solution, she had little choice.
“Of course, my lord,” she sounded resigned. “Whatever you wish.”
His fat face lit up with a bright smile. Taking her hand again, he turned them around and led them back in the direction of the bright, stuffy hall.
*
It was an hour before midnight by the time everyone left the feast and retired to sleep. The events of the evening had sparked enough excitement so that Isobel could barely sleep at all, but eventually she faded off into a fitful doze. When Avalyn felt her go limp and her breathing grew strong and steady, she knew her cousin would not awaken again until morning. Isobel tended to sleep soundly that way.
England's Greatest Knights: A Medieval Romance Collection Page 213
