She looked at Will, her face haughty and firm. “I do not want to leave you.”
His insides warred, but in the end, he was undone by the determination that he could keep her from John for the few days remaining. The prince would not play his games when his mother was present, and if he must do so in order to guarantee her safety, Will would send Marian with the queen when she left.
“So be it,” Will said. “But we must take care to keep you from the prince’s sight until then.”
“Aye.” Marian smiled. “I shall claim illness or my flux.”
“Or I shall pay five women from the village to visit the prince as a gift for recovering from his illness,” Will added, feeling foolishly happy. “That will keep him busy enough for a night.” When was the last time he’d felt this way?
“Very well, then,” Locksley said. “Farewell, sweetling.” He came closer to the bed and, before Will could react, swept down and gathered Marian up for a last kiss boldly on the mouth, with a sidewise glance at Will.
He allowed it to pass. Locksley was leaving, and Marian was staying. With him.
“Alys and I will wed, and if you cannot attend that, at the least you must visit us in Clervillieres. . far, far from the reach of John,” Locksley explained, stepping back.
“Indeed we shall,” Marian replied, but Will remained silent.
He was still the Sheriff of Nottinghamshire, and he could not leave the county for any extended time. He would be attached to John through the king, and because of John’s own hold over Ludlow, Will could never expect to be free of the younger Angevin.
He must serve John until he died, or unless the king released him from his position as sheriff. But then what? What would he have to offer Marian?
Unlike Robin, who’d been Lord of Locksley until the prince claimed his lands, Will had naught but his honor- which had been severely tried as of late-and many years of service to Richard.
That amounted to little when it came to settling a bride-price.
A crust of discontent settled in his belly. He was not wealthy, nor did he own anything larger than a small manor house, seated in the county. She was Lady of Morlaix and far above him in station. He’d known this all along, and even from his days at Mead’s Vale he’d known she was a baron’s daughter. . and he’d reminded himself of this when she arrived here at Ludlow. But then the battle of wills with the prince had arisen, and Will had taken the opportunity to have what he believed he’d never touch.
Bitterness soured his happiness, and he felt a wave of self-revulsion. Clearly he’d not spent enough time on his knees in the chapel.
“Will?” Marian was looking at him, and he gave himself a bit of a shake.
“You must go with him,” he said, easing away from her. Chill settled over his skin when they broke apart. “John will have recovered from his sickness, and he will be more determined than ever to entertain you. There is little I can do to stop him, save violence.”
She was shaking her head. “I’ll not leave you, Will,” she said again. “He will not dare to truly harm me. He dares not leave lasting hurts on a noblewoman; he merely wishes to play. And it is not as if I’ve not had to suffer his hands on me before. ’Tis no pleasure, but there could be worse things-such as being called out for treason.”
He realized dimly that Locksley had left the chamber, but it was not too late to send her after him. “Marian, you needn’t take that chance. I’ll not have him put his hands on you again. Do not ask it of me. I could hardly bear it before, but now. .”
She was watching him so closely, he swore she could read his inner thoughts. “Will, I cannot leave you. I won’t. Do not try and force me.”
“But I have forced you into all of this, have I not?” he asked, suddenly blackly furious with himself and John, and with Locksley, the king’s rapacious war. . with it all.
“You’ve forced me into nothing. The queen sent me here, knowing that John would want me,” Marian told him. Whether by accident or design, the furs had slipped from her hand and now she sat bare to the waist, her lovely hair tangling about her.
As tantalizing as the sight was, he could not allow it to distract him. “The queen sent you to be John’s leman?”
Marian reached for him, her fingers on his arm. “Not to be his leman, although ’tis certain she suspected it would happen. She set me to spy upon John, for she suspects his plotting against Richard.”
Will looked at her, unsure whether to believe her words. They were shocking, but certainly rang true from what he knew of Eleanor. And he had seen Marian looking through John’s papers. “She will protect you, you are certain?”
Marian nodded. “I am certain of it. I have long been one of her favorites, and I’ve done what she wished. And I suspect that when she learns how you’ve acted to protect the people of Nottinghamshire in the face of John’s greed, she’ll have much to say to the king. He loves her above all people, you know. And she loves England too. More so than the king himself.”
“I know that.” Then he looked at her. “You believe I’ve protected the people? Only two days ago you accused me of senseless cruelty and dark deeds.”
“But is that not what you wanted me-and all-to think? How was I to know that you and Robin worked together? Once I realized that, I understood most of it. But why did you burn the houses? That I cannot comprehend. I do not believe you did it out of cruelty. But why?”
He could not help it. Her faith in him, her understanding, and her bravery brought his hand forth to touch her hair, sliding his fingers down over a thick lock to caress her smooth arm. Even though he knew it was folly to prolong this. He should be setting her away, leaving, then sending her off to safety.
“The houses were old and falling apart. They were dangerous and needed to be replaced, but I thought if they were rebuilt on the far side of the village, where John does not go, he would not see them. New buildings would be too much a sign of prosperity for him to resist, and he would ask for more than they could give-they are already so overtaxed for this bloody war.”
“And so you made a show of burning them in order to further blacken your reputation.” Marian was nodding. “And then Robin was tasked with helping to rebuild the houses. With your help in the way of resources. Lumber and other, aye, Will? Is that how it was? And you would meet with him or leave messages to tell him where and how to get the materials?”
He nodded. How had she figured it all out? No one else had seen through it. Then he noticed she was looking down, as if ashamed. “What is it, Marian?”
“I felt so badly for Robin all of this time-believing he was a hero while being painted an outlaw, a lawless man. How difficult it must be, I believed, for him to be thought so evil while he did so much good. But now I realize it was you all along. How you were hated and feared because of what we saw-or were meant to see-while all along you were the hero. You were the one who made sure the villagers were cared for, and the woods kept safe.” She lifted his battle-scarred hand to her lips, looking at him.
“I had already begun to love you before I knew that, and I confess, I fought the feelings. I didn’t want to love such a loathsome man. . but you were so kind to me, I could not-”
He snorted in disbelief. “Kind to you?”
The look she gave him was melting and sent a new wave of affection and desire coursing through his body. “You were most kind to me in John’s chambers. Did you think I did not know what you were doing? Protecting me, giving me pleasure, all the while pretending to be as evil as he? Refusing to allow me to touch you when it was clear you wanted me to?”
He looked away. When she spoke it like that, he almost believed he’d done the right thing.
“If you’d not been there, I cannot imagine what it would have been like.”
He didn’t know what to do with these feelings she roused in him, so he pulled her close and buried himself in the warmth and comfort of Marian.
It was many hours later that they disengaged themselves as a knock came at the door. The maid poked her head around, eyes wide and looking everywhere but at Will. The sun had risen long ago, and it must be near the midday meal.
“Begging pardon,” said the maid. “But word has come that the prince is looking for you, my lord.”
“Better me than you,” Will said to Marian as he slipped from her bed. Duty beckoned. His knees were a bit
