the deeds I’ve heard credited to him.”
“But … the king’s Bird of Prey? Why, Edward has not even been crowned yet.”
“Exactly. He dallies in Normandy when he should have been here this year and more. England is a ship without a captain,” he said in disgust. “But Edward sends Corbett, his hunter, on some errand,” he added musingly.
“If Corbett of Colchester were truly a confidant of the king, uncrowned though he may be, why would he concern himself with Orrick? And me?” she added, doubt etched on her delicate features. “Surely Edward would reward him with a demesne more important than Orrick.”
At that William’s handsome face lifted in an odd smile, and he looked at her more closely. “Do not judge Orrick Castle so lightly, dear Lilliane. There are few English strongholds so secure along the border to the Scottish hills. While I judge our new king to be a fool to linger so long abroad, I do not completely discount his judgment. No, he knows what he is about. And Sir Corbett does nothing so much as serve his king.”
“Then that is why my father so easily agreed to this abhorrent union!” Lilliane deduced at once. “It was done at the king’s bidding!”
“Perhaps,” William murmured, drawing nearer to her. He cast his eyes about, but spied only three servants busy at their tasks. “You should have been mine,” he whispered more quietly. He took her hands in his earnestly. “I cannot bear the thought of him taking you to bride.”
Lilliane blushed hotly at his bold words and sought to free herself of his hold. But he tightened his grasp.
“If there were but a way to avoid this marriage I would gladly seek it,” she admitted.
“So you find his scarred visage hideous too. Many of the ladies at court were frightened by his brutal appearance, although there were a few who seemed perversely intrigued by his battle marks. I’m glad to see you number among those who would turn away from him in disgust.”
Lilliane did not reply to this. It was true that Sir Corbett frightened her. But she could not put the blame for that on his ravaged flesh. Those marks she had found terrible, and yet not hideous. Unwillingly she thought of the three raking claw marks on his shoulder, and she felt the same shiver of horror and awe.
Unnerved by the memory, she peered at William, trying to drive Sir Corbett’s image from her mind. Sir William of Dearne was an incredibly handsome man. Perfectly formed features and smooth, unblemished skin had kept him a favorite among women of all ages. And yet Lilliane did not feel the same fascination for him that she had once felt. There was a petulance to his lips now. Or had it always been there?
Frowning, she turned away from him and moved briskly to the massive double doors. But he followed her. Before she could descend the few steps to the bailey, he stopped her once again.
“Lilliane …” His blue eyes were direct upon her. But when her clear gaze did not waver, his fell away. He reached his hand to lightly caress her cheek. “This is not how it should have been for us.”
“No,” Lilliane agreed in a soft whisper, her heart heavy with longing for the past. “No, it is not.”
By the time Lilliane had crossed the bailey to the rookery, she was fighting back tears. The doves rose in a flurry at her entrance, raising a swirl of dust. She watched as the birds slowly settled back upon their roosts. Like so many other things at Orrick, time had not changed the rookery at all. Many was the time she’d sought solace here from the heartaches of childhood. The soft cooing of the doves had always calmed her.
But even this soft reassuring remembrance of times past could not ease Lilliane’s troubled mind. With an angry gesture she dashed her tears away. It was not fair. It was not! She was denied even the luxury of mourning her lost love for William, for somehow he was not the same young man she had thought she’d loved. He had changed.
Or perhaps she
“But … the king’s Bird of Prey? Why, Edward has not even been crowned yet.”
“Exactly. He dallies in Normandy when he should have been here this year and more. England is a ship without a captain,” he said in disgust. “But Edward sends Corbett, his hunter, on some errand,” he added musingly.
“If Corbett of Colchester were truly a confidant of the king, uncrowned though he may be, why would he concern himself with Orrick? And me?” she added, doubt etched on her delicate features. “Surely Edward would reward him with a demesne more important than Orrick.”
At that William’s handsome face lifted in an odd smile, and he looked at her more closely. “Do not judge Orrick Castle so lightly, dear Lilliane. There are few English strongholds so secure along the border to the Scottish hills. While I judge our new king to be a fool to linger so long abroad, I do not completely discount his judgment. No, he knows what he is about. And Sir Corbett does nothing so much as serve his king.”
“Then that is why my father so easily agreed to this abhorrent union!” Lilliane deduced at once. “It was done at the king’s bidding!”
“Perhaps,” William murmured, drawing nearer to her. He cast his eyes about, but spied only three servants busy at their tasks. “You should have been mine,” he whispered more quietly. He took her hands in his earnestly. “I cannot bear the thought of him taking you to bride.”
Lilliane blushed hotly at his bold words and sought to free herself of his hold. But he tightened his grasp.
“If there were but a way to avoid this marriage I would gladly seek it,” she admitted.
“So you find his scarred visage hideous too. Many of the ladies at court were frightened by his brutal appearance, although there were a few who seemed perversely intrigued by his battle marks. I’m glad to see you number among those who would turn away from him in disgust.”
Lilliane did not reply to this. It was true that Sir Corbett frightened her. But she could not put the blame for that on his ravaged flesh. Those marks she had found terrible, and yet not hideous. Unwillingly she thought of the three raking claw marks on his shoulder, and she felt the same shiver of horror and awe.
Unnerved by the memory, she peered at William, trying to drive Sir Corbett’s image from her mind. Sir William of Dearne was an incredibly handsome man. Perfectly formed features and smooth, unblemished skin had kept him a favorite among women of all ages. And yet Lilliane did not feel the same fascination for him that she had once felt. There was a petulance to his lips now. Or had it always been there?
Frowning, she turned away from him and moved briskly to the massive double doors. But he followed her. Before she could descend the few steps to the bailey, he stopped her once again.
“Lilliane …” His blue eyes were direct upon her. But when her clear gaze did not waver, his fell away. He reached his hand to lightly caress her cheek. “This is not how it should have been for us.”
“No,” Lilliane agreed in a soft whisper, her heart heavy with longing for the past. “No, it is not.”
By the time Lilliane had crossed the bailey to the rookery, she was fighting back tears. The doves rose in a flurry at her entrance, raising a swirl of dust. She watched as the birds slowly settled back upon their roosts. Like so many other things at Orrick, time had not changed the rookery at all. Many was the time she’d sought solace here from the heartaches of childhood. The soft cooing of the doves had always calmed her.
But even this soft reassuring remembrance of times past could not ease Lilliane’s troubled mind. With an angry gesture she dashed her tears away. It was not fair. It was not! She was denied even the luxury of mourning her lost love for William, for somehow he was not the same young man she had thought she’d loved. He had changed.
Or perhaps she
Similar Books
