WolfeLord by Kathryn Le Veque
CHAPTER TWELVE
Atticus was swinging from a tree branch.
Seated on the grass on the banks of the River Eden, which carved a path on the north side of Carlisle Castle, Adria was sitting within full view of the castle. That was the rule when anyone went outside the castle walls – the guards had to be aware of where one was in case something unexpected happened.
Not that anything had happened in months, surprisingly. The Scots had been quiet for quite some time, but that didn’t mean security at Carlisle was relaxed. It was just the same as it always was, men just as vigilant as they always were. They weren’t prisoners in the castle, however, because every so often, Adria and Lily would stray to the river’s edge to let Atticus play with Bradford and some of the other pages.
There was a little spot, shrouded in trees, where the children liked to play by the riverside. They liked it so much that Will had two big stone benches built so the women had something to sit on. There was even a wooden chair and a bed made of rope that was strung between two trees. Atticus liked that bed the best because he could lay on it and swing himself to sleep beneath the green canopy. Whenever Will accompanied them to the river’s edge, he’d fall asleep in that swinging bed, too.
Even now, Atticus and Bradford and two other pages, Rufus and Edward, were playing in the trees and howling like wild men. Will and Marcellus had made a rope swing for the children and they were spinning around in it, having a marvelous time. Adria had the nearly finished blue tunic for the Earl of Warenton in her hands, a project that had been put off due to Lily’s declining condition and Adria’s increasing duties. But at the moment, she was finishing with the embroidery around the neckline. It was coming along marvelously. Though it was well after the earl’s day of birth celebration, Lily still wanted him to have it.
Adria would make sure he did.
After her encounter with her father, and then Marcellus, she found that she was desperate to clear her mind. Just an hour or two of peace was all she wanted, but she’d located Atticus and he’d asked her if they could go to the river’s edge. The sergeant at the outer gatehouse had given his permission, so they had. It turned out to be the break she’d needed to sort out what was going on. Lily and Will’s issues were bleeding onto her, whether or not she wanted them to.
It wasn’t as if she didn’t have enough troubles of her own.
Adria hoped Marcellus had chased her father away, but she suspected he wouldn’t do anything without Will’s knowledge or blessing. Will, however, was not only occupied with Lily, but with his father and grandmother, who had arrived earlier in the day. Adria had seen them when they entered Carlisle. She’d met Scott de Wolfe several times and Lady Warenton, too, and she liked them both. They were nice people.
All the more reason to chase her embarrassing father away from Carlisle.
“I could hear the yelling all the way at the castle.”
Startled from her thoughts, Adria looked up from her embroidery to see Will coming through the trees. Atticus saw him, too, and the sight of his father seemed to do something to him – his whooping and hollering grew louder as he and his three cohorts acted like wild men. When Will realized it, he grinned and shook his head.
“I see what the problem is now,” he said. “My son is acting like his cousin, Hermes.”
That brought a chuckle to Adria as she turned back to her careful embroidery. “Mayhap you should bring Hermes to the river’s edge and let him wear Atticus out,” she said. “I fear the lad has no limit to his spirit.”
Will was forced to agree. “Indeed,” he said, noting that the rope bed was unoccupied and making a break for it. “Do you mind if I utilize the rope bed in your presence?”
Adria grinned. “You needn’t ask my permission. You’ve done it before.”
“I know,” he said, reaching for the rope. “But Lily was always here and I’m never terribly mannerly in front of her. I do not want you to think me rude if I lay in your presence.”
“I do not think you rude. I think you weary.”
The smile faded from his face. “That is quite true,” he said. “Speaking of weary, I heard you had an eventful day in the kitchen yard.”
Adria’s warm expression left her as she carefully embroidered the golden leaves on the neckline. “Did Marcellus tell you that?”
“He did, but only what he witnessed,” he said. “When he told me, I went to your father to make sure he leaves Carlisle today, but he is pleading illness. He insists he cannot leave while he is feeling poorly.”
Adria rolled her eyes and stopped her needle. “He is not feeling poorly,” she said. “He is only saying that so you will not force him to leave. God, I wish the man would just go away and leave me alone. I wish he had never come here in the first place.”
“What did he do?”
She looked at him then. She hadn’t told him why her father had really come to Carlisle and she supposed she couldn’t avoid it now.
Perhaps he should know.
“Do you remember when we spoke of my father and how he wishes for me to marry well?” she asked, watching Will nod. “Then you will also remember that he wants me to marry well so that he can beg coin from my husband. Since I have refused to marry, he has gone to Hermes and Ronan and informed them of my availability as a bride. Evidently, he hopes they will agree and then he intends to create some horrible competition between them, the prize being my hand.”
Will appeared surprised. “He did this?”
“He did,” Adria said, fighting off the shame of the confession. “When he told me, I was outraged and told him to leave. He grabbed me by the arm to force me to go with him and I proceeded to fend him off with a fire poker. That is what Marcellus saw. And then he further shamed me by telling Marcellus he would give me to him. God… I just want the man gone.”
Will was still standing next to the rope bed, listening intently to a rather shocking tale. “Why did he want you to go with him?”
She glanced at him, quickly. “I have not told you all of it, so you may as well know,” she said. “Not to get too much into my family history, but since my father gambled away the family fortune, he had to find a way to regain it. He has only always viewed me as a tool in this quest, so he concocted a plan to have me foster at Kenilworth. That is where I met Lily.”
Will nodded, finally sinking back into the rope bed. “I know.”
“Kenilworth is the finest castle for fostering and training in all of England, but it is only for the finest houses,” she said. “My father knew this, so he borrowed money from a very questionable man named Silas de Brito, had fine clothing made for both of us, and then we attended a tournament where Lord and Lady Lancaster were the patrons. My father is very good with his flattery and he managed to present me to Lady Lancaster, who agreed to take me to Kenilworth. The object, of course, was for me to find a rich husband, which I did not.”
Will could see her from where he was laying. He folded an enormous arm behind his head. “So that is why he is here, demanding you marry well?”
Adria nodded. “Exactly,” she said. “The bargain he struck with de Brito was that my father pay the money back or give me over to de Brito as his bride. It is either a pound of gold or a pound of flesh, but either way, de Brito will gain his money. I gather that de Brito must be threatening him about it, so that has made my father desperate.”
“And he is offering you to any bachelor who can pay him.”
Adria lowered her head, sadly. “He is,” she said. “One of these days, he will offer me to someone who will accept him and demand to marry me, but I have already thought of that. I told him that I would commit myself to the cloister at Carlisle Cathedral immediately. That will end any chance he has of marrying me off for money.”
“Haven’t you forgotten something?”
She looked at him curiously. “What?”
“Lily’s wish.”
She eyed him reluctantly. “Nay, I haven’t forgotten,” she said. “But surely now that you know everything, you cannot agree to it.”
“Why not?”
“I told you why – because my father just wants money from you. That is all he’ll ever want from you.”
“And I told you that I can handle your father.”
Adria sat there, looking at him with those big, pale eyes. Will stared back and the more he stared at her, the lovelier she became. He couldn’t imagine her slipping through his fingers to someone else, someone who might not treat her well or, worse, abuse her. If her father was looking for a husband with anyone he could find, then her prospects were not vetted.
It could be anyone.
He didn’t want to see that happen.
“We have discussed this,” Adria said, breaking him from his train of thought. “You are the heir to the de Wolfe empire. I am no one important.”
He cocked a dark eyebrow. “And I told you that it did not matter to me,” he said. “I’d much rather have someone like you than a politically ambitious woman who only cares for the status of her family. You do not care about that, do you?”
“Nay, but…”
He cut her off. “Then you are perfect,” he said. “Lily was right to select you. More than you know.”
“Why would you say that?”
His eyes began to take on a distant twinkle. “Because I do,” he said as an idea came to mind. “Let us start at the beginning, Lady Adria. Are you willing?”
“The beginning of what?”
“Just… humor me. Let us start at the beginning of everything, as if you and I have only just met.”
Adria wasn’t sure why, but she was willing to play along. “Very well,” she said. “What do you want me to say?”
He was thoughtful a moment, made difficult because Atticus and his hoodlums were running after each other, right under the rope bed. When they ran back towards the river’s edge, he continued.
“I want you to pretend you’ve never seen me before,” he said. “Pretend that you are at a feast at Kenilworth. You know the ones – those big, lavish affairs with piles of food everywhere. Remember those?”
The same twinkle came to Adria’s eyes at the memory. “Of course I do,” she said. “I loved those so.”
He watched her features soften at the memory. “Pretend I walk into the hall,” he said. “Look at me. Do you think I am handsome?”
Adria looked at him in surprise, her cheeks flushing, which told him what he wanted to know before she even said it. “I do,” she said, catching on to what she thought he was driving at. “And you would see me for the first time, too, dressed in a gown of pale blue with ribbons in my hair. What do you think of me?”
“You are the most gorgeous creature I’ve ever seen.”
That caused her cheeks to grow even redder. “I am honored, my lord.”
He fought off a grin at her enchanting reaction, a thrill he’d not felt in many years. He’d given up looking at women when he married Lily, so for him, this was something of an awakening. Feelings he thought were long dead in him were evidently only dormant.
Adria was stirring them.
He rather liked that.
“Now,” he said. “It is crowded and smoky. Too many people pushing around, laughing and drinking, so I ask you to accompany me outside, to the gardens near the hall. It is quite proper, as there are people all over the grounds, and I am perfectly behaved. Will you come with me?”
Adria smiled shyly. “Must I?”
He laughed. “Aye, you must.”
“Then I shall.”
“Good,” he said, his gaze lingering on her. “Now, we’re outside sitting in the garden under a full moon. The smell of roses fills the air and, somewhere, a nightbird sings. I would like to know about the lovely Adria de Geld. What will you tell me?”
Adria shrugged, turning back to her sewing because she needed something to do other than look at Will and blush.
“I would tell you that I come from a minor noble family,” she said. “I had a good childhood for the most part, though my mother died when I was young. Still, I was fed and tended to by an old servant, and when I turned eight years of age, my father bought me a white pony that promptly threw me.”
Will smiled. “Ponies have a tendency to do that,” he said. “What else?”
Adria shrugged. “I was taught to read and write by the local priest, who taught the children of the village every Wednesday and every Friday,” she said. “I enjoyed it. My father commissioned a prayer book for me. I still have it.”
“A pony and a prayer book,” Will said softly. “It sounds as if your father wasn’t always demanding and cruel.”
Adria shook her head. “Not when I was younger,” she said. “But as he grew older – as I grew older – he changed. He ceased to see a daughter and started to see a commodity.”
The conversation threatened to take a downturn, but Will wouldn’t let it. “You had a pony,” he said, steering the subject back to her childhood. “Does that mean you like to ride for pleasure? I do not think I’ve ever seen you do that.”
Adria cocked her head thoughtfully. “The white pony and I jumped many things,” she said. “Rock walls, downed trees, anything we could find. It was enjoyable when I was younger, but as I got older, my tastes changed. Lady Lancaster thought all of her ladies should be quite accomplished, so we were taught poetry and painting, sewing and dancing and drawing. The ponies faded away, but I was not troubled because I love to draw.”
“Do you?” he said. “I never knew that about you. I do not think I have seen any of your drawings.”
Adria looked up from her sewing. “That is because I keep it to myself,” she said. “But did you not notice scraps of vellum disappearing from your solar?”
He grinned. “Nay.”
She fought off a sly smile. “Lily has been very discreet,” she said. “She collects the scraps and pieces that you’ve torn away or discarded. I make my own charcoal to draw with, long and thin like a quill.”
He thought that was quite interesting. “I’m intrigued,” he said. “What do you like to draw?”
She shrugged. “People, mostly,” she said. “I have drawn you and Lily, and Atticus and even Marcellus. I draw animals, too, but I find people the most interesting subjects.”
“Why?”
“Because there is so much more than what you see on the surface,” she said, setting her sewing in her lap. “A man can hide so much behind a smile or a cross word. If you look closely, you see pain or beauty or joy. I’m not sure why that has always fascinated me.”
“What do you see when you look at me?”
Adria looked at him, thinking of several answers to that question and not one of which she wanted to voice. She was thinking of Marcellus and Lily and their deception, and how Will was a victim of their lies. She was thinking of the heir to a vast empire without a strong marriage or the right woman by his side. Soon, he’d be losing the wife he had and he’d be the most eligible widower in northern England.
Somehow, that didn’t sit well with her. There was something about Will de Wolfe that needed protecting because the man had been greatly wronged by his wife, a woman she had loved so much. But somehow, that was changing.
Adria found herself wanting to protect him.
“I see a great knight,” she said after a moment. “I see the future Earl of Warenton.”
Will shook his head. “Nay, that is what I am,” he said. “I want to know what you see in me.”
“I do not know what you mean.”
“Do you see a good man?”
She nodded without hesitation. “A good man, a good father, someone who always tries to do right,” she said. “I have known you for almost as long as I have known Lady de Wolfe. She and I spent a few years at Kenilworth before I went with her to Lioncross and there you were. I know you are a man of good character. I have known that from the start.”
“Then why will you not marry me? Am I not a better option than Carlisle Cathedral?”
He was. Of course he was. Truth be told, he’d never paid much attention to her, which was completely understandable, but now that he was, she rather liked it. She was starting to feel a pull to him, an attraction she’d never felt before, and she kept trying to avoid the thrill it was giving her. They were being thrown together because of a terrible situation, but the glimmer in his eyes took the edge off of the guilt and confusion she was feeling.
Perhaps she was having a moment of weakness, but she didn’t care.
Perhaps she should simply agree with him.
“You are,” she said. “There is no question that you are. But I am still afraid that my father will try to fleece you for coin.”
“He can try, but he and I are going to come to an agreement. Quickly.”
“And what about your father? Mayhap he will not approve.”
“I do not need my father’s permission to marry.”
“You do if you want him to accept me. Surely he has something to say about this.”
Will waved her off, turning to look at Atticus, who was yelling as he swung around on the swing. “I have told him already and he has no issue with it,” he said. “He suggested we get to know one another, so that is what we are doing.”
Adria was surprised to hear that Baron Kilham had no objection to his son marrying a woman of minor noble birth. “He did?” she said, incredulous. “He does not take issue?”
“Nay. You seem to be the only one who does,” he said. “My lady, if you find me lacking in some way, I wish you would tell me.”’
Her eyes widened at the mere suggestion. “You?” she repeated. “Lacking? You are the most worthy man I have ever known.”
“But I am not good enough to marry?”
“More than good enough.”
“Then will you do it? Marry me, I mean.”
Adria looked at him, long and hard. The question hung between them, filling the air, the only thing stronger than Atticus’ yelling.
“Do you want me to, my lord?” she finally asked, almost pleading with him. “Truly?”
“You will address me by my name when we are in private, please.”
She looked shock. “You wish for me to do that?”
“I do.”
She tried to overcome that surprise. “Very well,” she said. “Do you really want me to, Will? God’s Bones, it feels strange to call you by your name. I feel as if I should beg your forgiveness.”
He laughed, sitting up in the rope bed and sliding off, landing on his feet. “I like to hear you say my name,” he said. “And, aye – I want you to. Have I not made that clear?”
He had. She was just being stubborn. After a moment, she nodded. “You have,” she said. “If it is really what you want, then… I will.”
He smiled at her, flashing that de Wolfe grin. “Excellent,” he said. “Will you sup with me tonight then?”
She wasn’t sure what he meant. “I sup with you every night, in the hall.”
He shook his head. “Not that,” he said. “Just you and me. If we are to marry, then we’d better become more acquainted quickly. I will admit that I am not unhappy about it, though I wish the circumstances were different.”
She watched him for a moment, feeling brave enough to speak her thoughts. “If the circumstances were different, we would not even be having this conversation,” she said. “The circumstances are what have brought us together, whether or not we are prepared for it.”
He scratched his head, nodding. “That is quite astute of you.”
“I told you that I did not want to be another unhappy marriage for you and I meant it,” she said. “It is my sense that if we are to have any hope of not falling into that pit of despair, then we must be open and honest with one another. Would you agree?”
“I do,” he said. “Very much. And since we are being honest, you realize I have the very odd task of trying to establish a relationship with you while Lady de Wolfe is… weakening.”
“I know,” Adria said softly. “It is very odd for you. For us both. Even as I stand here, all I see is Lily’s husband. I am concerned that I may not ever be able to get past that.”
“Understood,” he said. “But I hope you try.”
“I will try, I promise, but it does not seem right to even try until Lily is… until she is gone,” she said. “God could bring about a miracle, you know. I would hate to fall in love with her husband in vain.”
Will’s focus lingered on her for several long moments. I would hate to fall in love in vain. Those were the only words he heard. The idea of love hadn’t even been brought up yet, but here she was, speaking about it, and the mere mention from her lips had his heart pounding.
Love.
Was it possible he had a chance at love again?
“Then would you like to wait until everything is settled?” he asked after a moment. “If you would rather wait until it is over with, I understand.”
Adria nodded, though there was distress on her face. “It seems as if that is the right thing to do,” she said. “If we are to have any chance of coming together without the guilt of Lily’s situation hanging over us, mayhap that is best.”
Will sighed faintly, looking towards the river to see that the boys were splashing around in it now, up to their ankles. “This entire situation is so very strange and uncomfortable,” he said. “Would it be wrong to say that the thought of coming to know you when this is all over is helping me focus on something positive?”
Adria watched his profile as he observed the boys in the water. That strong jaw, strong nose, and comely features had her softening to the entire prospect. She’d been very reluctant before this moment, but now… now, she wasn’t reluctant any longer. He said that he was looking forward to coming to know her when all was said and done… truth was, so was she.
“It is not wrong of you to say so,” she said. “I am glad if it helps you. I wish I could do more.”
He looked at her, a grateful smile on his lips. “You are doing a great deal,” he said. “I am appreciative, truly. But will you still sup with me tonight? Alone?”
Adria nodded. “If you wish.”
“I do,” he said. “We must be discreet about it, of course, since no one knows what is happening with Lady de Wolfe. I would hate for the gossipmongers to see us and think we are doing something clandestine.”
Like Marcellus and Lily. Adria almost said it. She thought it was incredibly ironic that Will was worried about such a thing when that very situation was going on behind his back.
But she held her tongue.
“I will do whatever you wish,” she said. “Tell me where to meet you and I shall.”
“The small hall, I should think. At the usual supper hour.”
“I will be there.”
He nodded, looking at her as if he wanted to say more, but there was really nothing more he could say. They’d covered everything well enough and now it was time to get on with it.
“I am going to pull my son out of that water now,” he said, turning to the river. “Will you come as my reinforcement?”
Adria giggled softly. “No need for you to pull him out,” she said. “Wait here. I will get him out painlessly.”
With a smile playing on his lips, Will watched her march over to the river where Atticus and his friends were splashing each other. He didn’t hear what she said but, suddenly, the boys were bolting out of the water, running for their shoes. In little time, they’d pulled them over wet feet and were running back towards the castle with Adria trailing after them.
Will looked at her in astonishment.
“What on earth did you say to them?” he asked.
She grinned. “I told them that there were sweets waiting for them back in the castle and the first one to dry off and show up in the smaller hall would get an extra cream cake,” she said, tapping her head with a finger. “I know your son. Trust me when I tell you that I know how to make him do as I wish without bloodshed.”
Will lifted his eyebrows at her as they started back after the boys. “You are a sorceress, my lady,” he said. “I am in awe of your power.”
Adria broke down into soft laughter. “No magic, I assure you,” she said. “I told you that I find people fascinating. I learn about them, what makes them who they are. I have figured Atticus out.”
“Have you figured me out?”
It was a decidedly flirtatious question, the first such thing she’d ever heard out of his mouth. It would be a shame not to respond.
“If I did, I would not tell you.”
“Why not?”
“And reveal my secrets? Never!”
They shared the first genuine laughter between them.
And it was marvelous.
