One Knight Enchanted: A Medieval Romance (Rogues & Angels Book 1)

by Claire Delacroix

  “But why do you have a palace here?” that knight asked. “So far from the main road and your home estate?”

  “Who would abide beside the main road, given a choice?” Rolfe asked, then turned to Annelise. “Do not tell me that we have civet of hare this night?”

  “We do, my lord,” she said with a smile. She fetched the dish for him, acting as his squire. He was glad to have her close by his side, for this Enguerrand struck him as a serpent. “It is most fine, but I confess I am glad that you brought more hares.”

  “Do you have a taste of it yourself, my lady? I know how you like to ensure that your guests are sated first, but it smells wondrous. Did you give the cook access to the spices again?” Rolfe smiled at her and she sat at his left, letting him put stew on her side of the trencher.

  “I did, my lord.”

  Rolfe fed her a morsel, enjoying Enguerrand’s growing impatience. He stole a quick kiss, making the excuse that there was sauce upon her lip, and she flushed prettily.

  “But your name is Rolfe,” a squire said and Rolfe did not have to feign astonishment that the boy was so outspoken. “And you have a palace in the forest, one that appears to be magical, just like the one in the tale. Were you cursed by a djinn? Did you win this palace from her?”

  Rolfe stared coldly at the boy, who flushed and dropped his gaze, then sat down as if he wished he could shrink to invisibility. “What is this?” he demanded, letting anger touch his tone.

  Enguerrand was either an audacious man or a fool, for he did not retreat. “I heard a tale at Beauvoir of a knight cursed by a djinn, given her palace but compelled to be a wolf. That knight was said to be named Rolfe and was returning from crusade.”

  “Do I look like a wolf?” Rolfe asked, biting off the words.

  “No, but you must admit that it is an extraordinary coincidence...” Enguerrand protested.

  “I feel compelled to admit no such thing.”

  “Sir, you would deceive us all!” the other knight cried. “Explain to us how this palace can be, why it is located in this place, and why the weather is so fine within its walls. Annelise refuses to explain any of it.”

  Rolfe let there be a long moment of silence. He washed his hands and wiped them with care, then stood, liking that he was taller and broader than his guest. “And so my wife has shown more discretion than you.” Enguerrand would have protested, but Rolfe continued, easily speaking over the other man’s objections. “You are a guest in my abode, and unless the world has changed a great deal while I was on crusade, that situation calls you to a measure of polite behavior.” He gestured to the board. “You have eaten your fill; your companions have drunk a considerable measure of wine, unless I miss my guess; you are warm and sheltered from the storm and your horses are so, as well. Yet you harass my wife with your demands for more. You insult me with your insinuations. And you violate your responsibility to these boys entrusted to your care for training by filling their thoughts with whimsy and foolery.”

  “I did not harass your wife!”

  “You most certainly did. I knew the moment I laid eyes upon her this night that she was upset, and I see no other cause for such a situation than you, sir, and your impertinent questions.” Rolfe swept to his feet and took Annelise’s hand in his. “You are fortunate, Enguerrand de Roussineau, that I am a temperate man. You may have abused your welcome here, but I will not cast you into the forest in the night. You will, however, leave before the dawn.”

  “You cannot do this!” Enguerrand protested.

  “I most certainly can. This is my abode and you would do well to recall that you are my guest. I feel no compunction in ending my hospitality to you, given the treatment of my lady wife in her own abode.”

  “But we cannot be turned into the forest in the night! There are wolves...”

  Rolfe leaned closer to the other man. “When did you arrive at my gates?”

  “Just before the sun set,” Enguerrand admitted.

  “And as you have noted, this palace is distant from the road. What was your plan for accommodations this night, sir? Did you plan to force yourself into my palace? Did you know of its location?” Rolfe watched Enguerrand flush a dull red. “Or did you, perhaps, mean to seek sanctuary with the Sisters of Ste. Radegund? That is the sole other establishment that I know within any proximity.”

  Their gazes locked and held, then Enguerrand took a step back and bowed stiffly. “I apologize, sir, if my questions have given offense, either to you or your lady wife.”

  To Rolfe’s thinking, the apology was late and insincere, but he inclined his head. “I accept your apology,” he said though. “My palace is distinct and I suppose it is no surprise that its very essence prompts questions.”

  Enguerrand smiled. “Then we can stay?”

  “Oh no,” Rolfe said easily. “I am a man of my word, sir.” He let his voice harden. “You will be gone by dawn, Enguerrand, or you may never leave this palace alive.” He smiled coolly. “Perhaps I do have a trait in common with the wolves, for I do like to hunt.” Rolfe’s gaze did not waver and he did not blink. He watched Enguerrand consider the merit of defying him, of saying more in his own defense, of protesting anew or of asking more questions. The knight had the wits to abandon all those courses of action and beg leave to retire.

  “There is a chamber near the stables that you can use this night,” he said, his tone resolute. “The accommodations are simple but fighting men such as yourselves will require nothing more. When I rise on the morrow, sir, I expect you to be gone.”

  He stood with Annelise, waiting and watching while they left the hall, then wished that the door to those chambers would be barred behind their guests.

  Once they were out of sight, Annelise exhaled and leaned against him, her relief evident. “Will they come in the night?” she whispered.

  Rolfe shook his head. “The door to the chamber will be barred behind them.”

  “Good!” She smiled at him, her eyes glowing with such relief that his heart skipped a beat. “I was never so glad to see another living soul,” she murmured as he gathered her close.

  “Tell me everything about him,” Rolfe said. “Every detail you know and every possibility you suspect.”

  “Of course, my lord.” She smiled shyly and met his gaze. “Rolfe.”

  Rolfe could resist her no longer but bent and kissed her soundly before carrying her off to bed. A simple wish ensured that the hall was cleaned and the servants disappeared, then there was only their great curtained bed and the sweetness of his lady wife.

  He decided that her confidences about Enguerrand could wait a few moments, for it was high time that he did remove her garters with his teeth. He had trusted the lady and she had proven herself worthy of his confidence.

  Such a feat called for a reward, and Rolfe knew the one his lady liked best.

  Annelise was relieved beyond all else. After she had been thoroughly seduced by her husband, she found herself nestled in his lap with candles burning around them. He had eaten little at the board in Enguerrand’s presence, so she fed him from the dish of stew that had appeared after their lovemaking and told him about their guest.

  Rolfe de Viandin was his name.

  He listened avidly, his gaze locked upon her features. She did not doubt that he heard what she did not say aloud about her reaction to Enguerrand’s suit for her hand. She told him about the depleted mines at Roussineau and gave voice to her sense that Enguerrand wished to wed her for the sake of Sayerne itself.

  “He thinks my brother Quinn will not return from Outremer,” she explained. “And if he does not, Tulley may endow the holding upon me.”

  “Or your younger brother.”

  Annelise shook her head. “I do not think there was any prospect of that. Yves is young, for one matter, and has only seen sixteen summers. But I think that if there had been any such possibility, Tulley would not have encouraged Yves to seek his fortune at tournament.”

  Her husband nodded. “That is r
easonable. I could not help but note how closely Enguerrand asked after Viandin. He seems much concerned with material matters.” He considered her for a long moment.

  “There is some other detail, is there not?” Annelise asked. “Some other part of the curse you have not told me?”

  He touched his fingertip to her mouth, sliding it across her bottom lip in a slow caress. “I like how you say my name, my Annelise. I should have told you sooner.”

  Annelise smiled beneath his touch. “Yes, you should have.”

  His smile flashed. “Say it.”

  “Rolfe,” she said, then kissed his palm. “My husband, Rolfe de Viandin.”

  His gaze darkened and he lifted the empty bowl from her lap, setting it aside and rolling her beneath him. He kissed her lingeringly then raised his head to survey her again. “I want to hear you shout it when you find your pleasure,” he murmured and Annelise shivered in anticipation.

  But she tapped him on the nose. “You, sir, would change the subject.”

  He smiled but did not argue.

  “Once again, you avoid telling me the whole of the truth,” she insisted. “Is there another part of the curse?”

  He grimaced and rolled to his back, pulling her against his side. His fingers twined in her hair and Annelise braced herself on her elbow to look down at him. He regarded her with admiration. “Of course, there is. You cannot be fooled, lady mine, and I am glad of it.” Before she could ask again, he raised a hand and spoke again.

  “Powers vested beneath the earth,

  Hear my words and attend my curse.

  Teach this one to respect my powers;

  Leave him trapped outside these towers.

  Condemn him to howl and prowl near,

  This place a reminder of all he held dear.

  Mortal ways he shall pursue no more,

  Doomed to remember forevermore.

  Let the one who crosses this threshold first,

  Be condemned to wed him despite his curse.

  And let the one in whom he confides,

  Lead a killer to his side.”

  Annelise gasped. “A killer?”

  Rolfe only nodded.

  She raised a hand to her lips, thinking furiously. “Surely, he would not...”

  “I think he is precisely the manner of man who might think it a good plan to see you widowed. Why, you could be married again before reaching Beauvoir to consult with your overlord, Tulley.”

  While Rolfe was calm, Annelise was outraged. “The fiend! If he believes that I would accept him under any circumstances, let alone after he did such a feat, then he is a fool...”

  Rolfe’s finger landed upon her lips, silencing her. “I do not mean to die, my Annelise.” He spoke with complete conviction, but Annelise was afraid for him.

  “I do not doubt that you could defend yourself well in this form, sir, but what about during the day?”

  “I confess that is why I was reluctant to confide in you.”

  “That is only half the tale,” Annelise guessed, and his gaze flicked to hers so quickly that she knew she was right. “What did Rosalinde do to you?”

  Rolfe shook his head. “Why should we taint a fine night abed with such discussion? We have already talked about Enguerrand for longer than he deserves. I would hear you make that cry, my Annelise...” He pulled her down for a kiss, but Annelise only brushed her lips across his, bracing her hands on his chest.

  “You evade my question again,” she charged and he smiled slowly.

  “And I am caught again.” He lifted a brow, looking mischievous, wicked and utterly alluring. “What price will you demand of me, my lady?”

  “The truth.”

  He made a face and sat up, lifting her into his lap again. “Make a less predictable choice, Annelise,” he said.

  “Tell me about Rosalinde and then I will,” she countered.

  He laughed. “Make it worth my while, Annelise.”

  “I will.” Their gazes held for a charged moment and Annelise’s heart squeezed tightly at even the possibility of her losing this man from her side. She realized in that moment that she had utterly lost her heart to him, that with his trust, her capitulation was complete. Would that break the curse and ensure that he was a man from this night forth? Annelise ardently hoped as much.

  He pressed a kiss to her temple, tangling them together, and she knew he was choosing his words. She had complete faith that he would confide in her and waited patiently.

  “Rosalinde was a beauty beyond compare,” he said finally. “I met her at the home of my maternal uncle, where I trained for my spurs, near Vézelay. She was a cousin of his wife, so I saw her first at the Yule. She had hair of brightest gold, a lovely sweet face, and eyes as blue as the midsummer sky.” The admiration in Rolfe’s voice as he recalled this woman made Annelise’s mouth go dry. “I had never seen a maiden who was so very beautiful and I was lost with but a glimpse.”

  Annelise leaned her face against his chest to hide her expression. She reminded herself that she had demanded this tale, and that she doubted it would end well.

  “I was astonished when she smiled at me. I thought she was merely polite, but over the following year—at Easter, at St. John’s Day, at the feast of the local saint in the parish church—each time I saw her, she granted me encouragement. She gave me a ribbon from her hair the next Yule and I was overwhelmed. At Epiphany, she gave me a kiss upon my cheek.”

  His hand rose to tangle in Annelise’s loose hair. “I was young. I was seduced by a pretty face and a charming smile. I knew nothing of her nature or her heart, but desire burned within me. In hindsight, I am certain she knew it and tempted me apurpose, though at the time, I thought our pairing might be destined to be.”

  A cup of wine appeared beside the bed and Rolfe took it in his hand, offering Annelise a sip before he drank some himself. “It was Midsummer when we rode to her family abode for her older brother’s wedding. I had earned my spurs and would be returning to Viandin after this journey—my uncle had invited me to linger to add another knight to the splendor of their party. Of course, once I saw Rosalinde, all the rest was as dust to me. She sought me out over those three days, time and again. She admired the sword my father had sent for my knighting. She confessed herself to be impressed by the destrier my uncle had bestowed upon me as a gift. There was a tournament to celebrate the wedding, and she tied her ribbon to my spear, cheering for me as I competed.”

  “Did you win?” Annelise dared to ask. She felt him nod.

  “I did. And she claimed a token of my affection as her reward. She led me to the garden where she granted me a kiss that set my very soul aflame.”

  Annelise blinked, but Rolfe chuckled and tightened his grip upon her. “It was a chaste kiss, Annelise, but my first from a beauty. It was novelty that made it potent, I fear, not the lady’s allure or even her amorous skills. I dared to ask for her hand in marriage in its wake.”

  He fell silent then and Annelise wondered why. She eased back and looked up at him, seeing that he was lost in the memory.

  “She changed,” he said softly, then shook his head. “The sweet maiden I had seen was banished and in her place was a clerk of stern visage. She demanded to know the precise amount of my wealth and my prospects. I admitted that I was a younger son and landless, that I would have to seek my fortune. I dared to take her hand and confess myself glad that we would have affection between us and that love might light our future.”

  Again he fell silent. Annelise put her hand over his. “She did not agree?” she prompted.

  Rolfe shook his head. “She laughed. She mocked me for such folly. I persisted, despite the change in her manner which worried me mightily.”

  “You are not a man to readily abandon your path,” Annelise said quietly.

  Rolfe chuckled. “Not me. I said I would ask my father to entrust a small holding to my care. I said I would ride to the tournaments and seek my fortune. I said I would do whatever was necessary to see her happine
ss complete.” He shook his head. “She told me I was not worthy of cleaning her shoes, that she saw sufficient poverty amongst the villeins of her father’s estate and that she would never wed a man who was not rich beyond all.”

  He grimaced. “I did not believe her. She told me she would wed an elderly neighbor of her father, a baron who had more wealth than he could count. This was a change from what I knew of her, though indeed, I knew little. I confess I remained incredulous that the beauty I so adored could possess such avarice. I saw her eyes glint with malice, though I did not immediately guess why.”

  “What did she do?”

  “She screamed and tore her own kirtle before my eyes. She cried that I attacked her, that my lust had made me indecent. She roused her father’s guards and they set upon me, like a common thief.” Rolfe’s gaze chilled as he looked down at Annelise. “I was humiliated before my uncle and patron, because our host believed his daughter.”

  “You were not the sole one deceived, then,” Annelise whispered.

  “I was not, but I never forgot that day, and how my trust of a beauteous maiden led me false.”

  “Do you fear that will happen again?” Annelise had to ask and her heart pounded as her husband smiled down at her.

  “Not with you, Annelise, for your beauty goes to your very marrow.” He spoke with conviction and awe, his fingertips trailing over her cheek as he surveyed her. His voice was husky. “You are a marvel, my Annelise, for you have taught me the merit of trust once again.”

  “Perhaps you were simply waiting for me,” she dared to say and he laughed aloud.

  “Tell me of destiny, my lady. Tell me our match was fated to be.” He lifted his brows. “I do come to consider as much myself.” He kissed her so thoroughly that she could have no doubt of his sincerity. It was on the tip of her tongue to confess her love, but Annelise feared he might not be ready to respond in kind—and she knew it would devastate her if he could not do as much.

  “And now, Annelise,” he murmured against her throat. “I believe we have a task that needs to be done. I would hear you call my name in your pleasure.” His eyes gleamed with sensual intent as he looked down upon her and she felt a quiver of anticipation. “Where would you have me begin?”