be married, that just seemed ridiculous. In truth, the whole situation did.
It was not that she’d expected him to court her with pretty words and flowers, but she was takenaback by his complete avoidance of her. Averill had never been one to sit about daydreaming about wedding and having children, but had she imagined it, she would have expected there to be a little more interaction between a betrothed couple…and she was now worrying whether this was how the entirety of her married life would go—she in the keep and her husband in the bailey and never the two would meet…except in the marriage bed at night.
“Come now,” Bess said suddenly, catching her arm to urge her out of bed. “You’re sitting there looking like you carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. The bedding is not as bad as all that, and is over quickly.”
“How quickly?” Averill asked with a frown as she allowed the woman to lead her to the tub, which two maids were filling with pails of steaming water.
“Well now, that depends on the man,” Bess muttered.
Averill considered her words, and asked, “What exactly happens?”
The sudden stillness in the room was rather alarming. Bess had turned to stone, but so had the women working over her bath. Each of them exchanged glances with the others that seemed to exclude her.
Bess was the first to move. Letting her breath out on a whoosh, she moved to begin helping Averill out of her chemise, and muttered, “Don’t youworry. He’ll know what he’s about and take care of everything.”
“Oh, Bess.” Old Ellie, the eldest of the maids filling her tub, scowled at the lady’s maid. She then shook her head, tipped up the pail she held to dump the rest of its contents in the tub, and snapped, “You can’t be leaving the girl completely ignorant.”
“’Tis not my place to—” Bess began, but fell silent when Ellie dropped the bucket and straightened to glare at her, hands on hips.
“Well whose place is it then?” the old woman asked. “Her poor mother’s dead, God rest her soul, and her father won’t be explaining anything.”
Averill could feel Bess’s sigh ruffle the hair on the back of her head and glanced around to see her unhappy expression. Feeling sorry for causing her this discomfort, she cleared her throat, and murmured, “’Tis all right, Bess. I am sure you are right. ’Twill be fine.”
“Nay, I’d best tell you,” Bess said unhappily. “It might ease your mind to know what to expect.”
“That or scare you silly,” Sally, the younger of the two maids working at filling her bath, commented dryly as she emptied her own pail into the tub. She received a stern glare from Old Ellie for her trouble and rolled her eyes. “Well, it will no doubt sound awful in words,” she pointed out, and then glanced to Averill, and added, “’Tis much nicer in the doing, my lady.”
Recalling the night two weeks ago in Kade’sroom, Averill had no doubt that was true. It certainly had seemed nice to her, and she wouldn’t have minded repeating the exercise in the weeks since. However, Kade apparently hadn’t felt the same way.
Frowning over that thought, she asked, “Do all men like it?”
This brought a sudden round of laughter from the women.
“Oh, aye,” Old Ellie told her dryly. “As a rule, there’s nothing they like better.”
“As a rule?” she asked. “Then some do not like it?”
This brought another exchange of glances and a few grimaces, then Old Ellie said, “There are one or two who seem to lack an interest, my lady. But they are a rare breed indeed.”
Averill was frowning over this when Sally suddenly said, “They are rare, but I met one once. I couldn’t get a rise out of him no matter what I tried and didn’t know why till I saw the size of his…er…sword.”
“Sword?” Averill asked uncertainly. “Do you mean his—”
“She means his piffle,” Old Ellie interrupted, and then snatched up a linen that lay on one of
It was not that she’d expected him to court her with pretty words and flowers, but she was takenaback by his complete avoidance of her. Averill had never been one to sit about daydreaming about wedding and having children, but had she imagined it, she would have expected there to be a little more interaction between a betrothed couple…and she was now worrying whether this was how the entirety of her married life would go—she in the keep and her husband in the bailey and never the two would meet…except in the marriage bed at night.
“Come now,” Bess said suddenly, catching her arm to urge her out of bed. “You’re sitting there looking like you carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. The bedding is not as bad as all that, and is over quickly.”
“How quickly?” Averill asked with a frown as she allowed the woman to lead her to the tub, which two maids were filling with pails of steaming water.
“Well now, that depends on the man,” Bess muttered.
Averill considered her words, and asked, “What exactly happens?”
The sudden stillness in the room was rather alarming. Bess had turned to stone, but so had the women working over her bath. Each of them exchanged glances with the others that seemed to exclude her.
Bess was the first to move. Letting her breath out on a whoosh, she moved to begin helping Averill out of her chemise, and muttered, “Don’t youworry. He’ll know what he’s about and take care of everything.”
“Oh, Bess.” Old Ellie, the eldest of the maids filling her tub, scowled at the lady’s maid. She then shook her head, tipped up the pail she held to dump the rest of its contents in the tub, and snapped, “You can’t be leaving the girl completely ignorant.”
“’Tis not my place to—” Bess began, but fell silent when Ellie dropped the bucket and straightened to glare at her, hands on hips.
“Well whose place is it then?” the old woman asked. “Her poor mother’s dead, God rest her soul, and her father won’t be explaining anything.”
Averill could feel Bess’s sigh ruffle the hair on the back of her head and glanced around to see her unhappy expression. Feeling sorry for causing her this discomfort, she cleared her throat, and murmured, “’Tis all right, Bess. I am sure you are right. ’Twill be fine.”
“Nay, I’d best tell you,” Bess said unhappily. “It might ease your mind to know what to expect.”
“That or scare you silly,” Sally, the younger of the two maids working at filling her bath, commented dryly as she emptied her own pail into the tub. She received a stern glare from Old Ellie for her trouble and rolled her eyes. “Well, it will no doubt sound awful in words,” she pointed out, and then glanced to Averill, and added, “’Tis much nicer in the doing, my lady.”
Recalling the night two weeks ago in Kade’sroom, Averill had no doubt that was true. It certainly had seemed nice to her, and she wouldn’t have minded repeating the exercise in the weeks since. However, Kade apparently hadn’t felt the same way.
Frowning over that thought, she asked, “Do all men like it?”
This brought a sudden round of laughter from the women.
“Oh, aye,” Old Ellie told her dryly. “As a rule, there’s nothing they like better.”
“As a rule?” she asked. “Then some do not like it?”
This brought another exchange of glances and a few grimaces, then Old Ellie said, “There are one or two who seem to lack an interest, my lady. But they are a rare breed indeed.”
Averill was frowning over this when Sally suddenly said, “They are rare, but I met one once. I couldn’t get a rise out of him no matter what I tried and didn’t know why till I saw the size of his…er…sword.”
“Sword?” Averill asked uncertainly. “Do you mean his—”
“She means his piffle,” Old Ellie interrupted, and then snatched up a linen that lay on one of
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