Her face went completely flush. He wondered if he should say these kinds of things just to keep the king away from her. What if she thought he meant them? Did he? Was she stealing his heart? Was it getting worse every day? Aye. Every day, he felt more protective of her, grew more impatient to see her, to be with her. The king was correct, Nicholas gave in to her every whim. He wanted to bury his head in his hands. How had he let this happen?
He looked at her. Aye, she was the kind of beautiful that wrenched at his guts. She was tall and elegant in an oddly awkward sort of way. When she looked at him, his heart rumbled with longing to make her his. When she spoke—ah, that was where she made him weakest. Her words, half of which he couldn’t understand, the way she laughed, and made him laugh, all worked at capturing his heart.
“You steal more of mine each day, as well,” she told him. “Imagine what I will do to any man who tries to take me from you.”
Nicholas inhaled as if he were breathing her alone, and she was enough. He smiled on her fully. She was different. She was from a different time.
“I heard from Reg that you are quite bold,” Richard said, watching her.
Nicholas turned his deadly glare on his cousin. That’s it. He wanted Reg out today.
“But now, I have seen it for myself,” the king continued. “What kind of hall do you come from that allows its women to behave so?”
Nicholas’ belly knotted and his mouth went dry. Richard suspected something. But what? It didn’t matter. That he suspected anything at all wasn’t favorable.
Nicholas had to get her out of there.
“My father’s hall is quite humble, Sire.” Kestrel turned her smile on Richard. “As is our cottage. I was raised by my father. He was a great man because he never taught me that I was less than he was.” When Richard continued to look displeased, she continued. “He lived in Wales for twelve years before he met my mother—”
“Ah, Wales!” Richard declared with a burst of laughter. “That explains it! The Welsh have odd mannerisms. Your father obviously taught them to you.”
“Obviously.”
“The fault is not your own,” the king allowed.
“What a relief,” she replied then set her gaze on Nicholas. “May we go for a walk, or even a ride?”
The king balked. “But you haven’t eaten!”
“I’m not hungry.”
“You will need a chaperone.”
Nicholas turned his flinty gaze on him. “Elia will come with us. Come,” he said to both women and stepped around the table. “Excuse us, Sire,” Elia said and hooked Kestrel’s arm in hers. They stood up and followed Nicholas out of the great hall.
“My heart is racing,” Kestrel told them. “We just walked out on the King of England.”
Nicholas glanced over his shoulder. “We are going to have to get more drastic.”
“More drastic?”
“Aye. We may have to wed to turn his attention completely away.”
“You’re joking.”
“I believe he is being quite sincere,” Elia told her, leaning in to whisper.
Kestrel shook her head. “I won’t marry you to be safe from the king. I would marry you because I love you. And only then.”
If she loved him. Why did the mere thought of it make his muscles shake to have her close?
“Elia,” he turned to look at her. “Find a place for Reg and his little army to live. Not too close. I will pay whatever is necessary. I want him out of here.”
“Aye, Nicholas.” Elia smiled at Kestrel. “I’m leaving you in the best hands I know besides the Lord’s”
“Thank you,” Kestrel told her.
Kestrel looped her arm through Nicholas’ as Elia left. She smiled when he looked at her. “What gives, Nicholas? Why did you look paler when I mentioned love than I did when you mentioned marriage? Are you afraid of love?”
“Likely not as much as you are,” he remarked with a slight, but playful smile. “I have not been in love in…hmm, I do not think I have ever been in love.”
They reached the stable and he began saddling a separate horse for her.
“No.” She stopped him. “I want to ride with you.”
He nodded, liking the idea but finished saddling the horse. “You will ride this one out a mile or two, until we can no longer be seen from the wall. And then you will ride with me.”
“All right,” she gave in easily and let him help her mount.
She appeared anxious in her saddle.
“You can do it. Be confident. Help the horse trust you.”
She smiled and nodded. “Are we going to see Walter?”
“We will see where the wind takes us.” He took up his reins and smiled at her. “Aye?”
“Aye,” she agreed happily, taking up her reins, as well.
They rode out of Scarborough Castle, past the walls and the small village. They rode on until anyone standing on the castle walls, looking over, could no longer see them.
And after Nicholas checked and double-checked to make certain they weren’t being followed, he took Kestrel from her horse and set her gently between his thighs and against his chest.
After he secured her horse’s reins to his, they set out again.
“Nicholas? About the things we said—”
“Aye, we were convincing.”
She let out a breathless little laugh. “Yes. Very.”
She moved around on his lap to settle in deeper. He wanted to hold her, caress her, protect her from every harmful thing.
“So, do you still doubt my tale is true?”
He drew her in closer with his hand on her belly. “If I accept it,” he said against her temple, “then I must also accept that I could lose you at any moment.”
He felt her tight gasp at his words. She turned in his lap and kissed his scruffy jaw. He dipped his head and took her mouth with desperate need that matched her own. They stopped riding for a while and just kissed and touched against a tree in the grass.
“What should we do?” she
