woman would benefit from a bath of her own, though she didn't offer her comment lest she offend the kind woman. 'Do you think your lord would permit me this vanity?'
Maude shrugged. 'You're to have anything you want, so long as you stay in this room. The baron doesn't want you getting sick trying to overdo. I guess I could find a tub around here and have my man haul it up the steps.'
'You have a family, Maude?'
'Aye, a good man and a lad nearly five summers now. The boy's a wild one.' Maude helped Madelyne stand up and walked with her over to the chair by the hearth. 'My boy's named William,' she went on. 'Named him after our dead king though, and not the one who's running things now.'
The door opened during Maude's recitation. Another servant hurried inside, carrying a trencher of food. Maude called out, 'Gerty, ain't no need to be nervous. She ain't daft like we supposed.'
Gerty smiled. She was a bulky woman with a pure complexion and brown eyes. 'I'm cook here,' she informed Madelyne. 'Heard you was pretty. Skinny though, much too skinny. Eat every bit of this food, else you'll blow away with the first good wind.'
'She's wanting a bath, Gerty,' Maude announced.
Gerty raised an eyebrow. 'Guess she can have it then. Can't be blaming us if she gets chilled.'
The two women continued to visit with each other as they cleaned Madelyne's room. They were obviously fast friends and Madelyne thoroughly enjoyed listening to their gossip.
They helped her with her bath too. By the time the tub was removed, Madelyne was exhausted. She'd washed her hair, but it was taking an eternity to dry. Madelyne sat on a soft animal skin in front of the hearth. She lifted strands of her long hair close to the heat so that it would dry faster, until her arms began to ache. With a loud, unladylike yawn, Madelyne stretched out on the furry skin, thinking she'd rest for just a minute or two. She wore only her chemise, yet didn't want to dress until her hair was dried and plaited.
Duncan found Madelyne sound asleep. She made an enticing picture, sleeping on her side in front of the fire. Her golden legs were drawn up against her chest, and her glorious hair covered most of her face.
He couldn't help but smile. Lord, she reminded him of a kitten, curled up so snugly. Aye, she was enticing all right, and she was probably going to freeze to death if he didn't do something.
Madelyne didn't even open her eyes when Duncan picked her up and carried her over to the bed. He smiled over the way she instinctively cuddled up against his chest. She sighed, too, as if she were most content, and damn, she was smelling like roses again.
Duncan placed her on the bed and covered her. He tried to keep his manner distant, but he couldn't seem to stop himself from brushing his hand against the smoothness of her cheek.
Madelyne looked so vulnerable when she was sleeping.
Surely that was the reason he didn't want to leave. The urge to protect her was overwhelming. She was so innocent and so trusting. In his heart he knew he'd never let her go back to her brother. She was an angel and he'd not allow her near the demon Louddon, ever again.
The rules had turned upside down on Duncan. With a frustrated groan he walked over to the door. Hell, he thought, he didn't know his own mind anymore.
It was Madelyne's doing, though she certainly couldn't be aware of that fact. She drove him to distraction, and when he was near her, he couldn't think much at all.
Duncan decided he'd have to put distance between himself and Madelyne until he settled the issues bothering him. Yet, as soon as he made up his mind to avoid Madelyne, his mood blackened. Duncan muttered an expletive, turned, and slowly closed the door behind him.
Madelyne was still weak enough that the enforced isolation didn't bother her. Yet after two more days, with only Gerty and Maude making an occasional visit, she was feeling the effects of her prison. She paced the room until she knew every inch of it by heart, and then began to drive the servants to distraction when she insisted on doing what they deemed was common work. Madelyne scrubbed the floor and the walls. The physical exercise didn't help much. She felt as caged as an animal. And she waited, hour upon hour, for Duncan to come to her.
Madelyne kept telling herself that she should be thankful Duncan had all but forgotten her. Lord, wasn't she used to being forgotten?
When another two days had passed, Madelyne was close to throwing herself out the window just to diversify her routine. She was bored enough to scream.
She stood by the window and stared out into the fading sunset, thinking about Duncan.
Madelyne thought she might have conjured him up in her mind, for even as she thought about how much she wanted to see him, he suddenly appeared. The door opened, bouncing against the stone wall announcing his arrival, and there he stood, looking fierce and powerful, and altogether too handsome for her peace of mind. God's truth, she could have stared at him for the rest of the evening.
' Edmond is going to remove the threads now,' Duncan told her.
Duncan walked into the room and over to stand in front of the hearth. He folded his arms across his chest, giving Madelyne the idea that he was bored with this mission.
She was hurt by his cold manner, yet determined he'd never know it. She gave him what she hoped was a most tranquil expression.
Lord, she was a sight to behold. Madelyne was dressed in a cream-colored gown and a blue overtunic. A braided rope was wrapped around her slender waist, accentuating her feminine curves.
Her hair wasn't pulled away from her face but rested against the swell of her breasts. Such a thick, curly mass of hair it was, worthy of any queen, the color of sable, Duncan thought, though intertwined with threads of red as well. He remembered the feel of it, so soft and silky.
He scowled, irritated over the way she continued to disturb him. He couldn't quit staring at Madelyne either, admitting that he'd missed having her by his side. A foolish thought, and one he'd never openly acknowledge, but there all the same, prickling him into a new awareness.
It suddenly dawned on him that Madelyne was wearing his colors, and he grinned. He doubted she was aware of that fact, and had she not looked so damn kissable, he might have mentioned it just to see her reaction.
Madelyne couldn't look at Duncan long. She was afraid he'd see how much she'd missed him. And then he'd have a good gloat, she thought to herself.
'I would like to know what you are going to do with me, Duncan,' she said. She turned her gaze to the floor, not daring to look up to see how he was taking her question, else completely lose her train of thought.
Aye, her ability to concentrate was always in jeopardy whenever she was around Duncan. She didn't understand her reaction to him, but accepted it all the same. The baron was able to worry her without speaking a word. He disturbed her peace of mind, confused her too. When he was close to her, she wanted him to leave. Yet when he was away from her, she missed him.
Madelyne turned her back on Duncan and looked out the window again. 'Do you think to keep me locked in this room for the rest of my life?'
Duncan smiled over the worry he'd heard in her voice. 'Madelyne, the door wasn't barred,' he said.
'Are you jesting?' Madelyne asked. She turned around and gave him the most incredulous look. 'Do you mean to tell me I haven't been locked in this tower all week?' Lord, she felt like yelling. 'I could have escaped?'
'Nay, you couldn't have escaped, but you could have left the room,' Duncan answered.
'I don't believe you,' Madelyne announced. She folded her arms in front of her, mocking his stance. 'You would lie just to make me feel foolish. You have an unfair advantage, Duncan, for I never, ever lie. Therefore,' she concluded, 'it is an uneven match.'
Edmond appeared in the open doorway. The middle brother was wearing his usual frown. Yet he looked wary, too, and stared at Madelyne a good while before he walked inside.
'You'll hold her down this time,' he told Duncan.
Madelyne gave Duncan a worried glance and saw him smile. 'Madelyne doesn't have a fever now, Edmond, and is as docile as a kitten,' he remarked. He turned to Madelyne then and instructed her to go to the bed so that Edmond could remove the bandage.
Madelyne nodded. She knew what needed to be done, but shyness overcame common sense. 'If you would both leave, I would have a moment's privacy to prepare.'
