One Knight Only Read online

  But to her dismay, the trestle tables were being taken down from the midday meal. A dozen servants were busy at tasks, and many gave them curious looks but did not come forward to greet them.

  Philip stopped at her side, hands on his hips. “Shall I give a shout, then? Mayhap someone with authority might care.”

  “Where is Sir David?” Anne asked.

  At last a man came toward them from an arched doorway across the hall, and in his wake strode Sir David, looking grim as he towered high above the other man.

  The man bowed to her. “Lady Rosamond, please forgive this rude greeting. I am Sir Daniel, Lord Egmanton’s steward. I could not meet with Sir David early enough—”

  “I was made to wait an hour,” the knight said in a gravelly voice that betrayed his anger.

  Sir Daniel bobbed his head in agreement. “It is regrettable. We were told you would not be arriving until late in the evening. The baroness is unavailable at the moment—”

  “And where is Lord Egmanton?” Anne interrupted, stepping forward as she dropped her sodden hood to her shoulders.

  Sir Daniel gaped up at her—he was several inches shorter. “He is detained in the village due to the weather. But both will be at supper. Might I show you to your chambers? I can have hot baths prepared, and if your clothing is not dry, I can provide you with what you need.”

  Somewhat mollified, Anne said, “You have my thanks.”

  In their chambers, they discovered that no one had prepared for them. Anne herself would have just made due, but she was Lady Rosamond now. She demanded Sir Daniel’s presence, and showed him the bedchambers assigned to her and her retinue. He looked embarrassed, but not all that surprised.

  Anne turned to her men and her maid. “I see no reason to be insulted. Who is next on my list?”

  Sir Walter began to rummage in his saddle bag.

  “My lady, please!” Sir Daniel said, raising both hands to halt her. “Lord Egmanton desperately wishes to meet you.” Wincing, he added, “But he is not in charge of the household.”

  “Ah, I see. Lady Egmanton is behind this.”

  Sir Daniel looked terrorized. “My lady, I never said—”

  Anne gave him her most brilliant smile. “Fear not, Sir Daniel. There is no reason to mention your name to her ladyship. I will deal with her.”

  He bowed himself out, bobbing up and down in his gratitude.

  When he was gone, Sir Walter watched her carefully. “My lady, what do you mean to do?”

  “Greet our hostess, of course,” Anne said. “Obviously she does not care much for this match—her young son and a scandalous widow.”

  Philip folded his arms across his chest and looked approving. “And you mean to…?”

  “Thoroughly impress upon her son that I am the wife for him. Do you not think his mother will like that?”

  “Remain alert more than angry, my lady,” Walter cautioned. “Perhaps the Egmantons don’t want you here for a more sinister reason.”

  Anne felt her anger fade as she remembered her determination to discover if one of the noblemen on her list could be a traitor.

  “Isn’t he rather young to already be against the king?” Philip asked.

  “Sir Walter is right,” Anne said. “I promise to be cautious.”

  She tried to keep her expression serene, but Philip was looking at her with suspicion.

  Chapter 10

  P hilip could see how the baroness had meant supper to go. He and his fellow knights sat at their assigned table, well below the salt cellar with the servants, a deliberate slap at Lady Rosamond. But however the hall was designed, he was still able to hear Lady Egmanton. Perhaps her booming voice carried naturally. She had a large bosom, broad hips, and when she entered the room, she was like the lead sailing ship, with her attendants trailing in her wake and her headdress fluttering as sails on a mast.

  Her eldest son, with but twenty years, Philip had heard, greeted her with a kiss to the cheek. He was rather on the thin side, as if training on the tiltyard was not something he valued. He didn’t look like a man with the fortitude to go against his king. His twin sisters, of marriageable age but still young, were healthy, handsome girls who would obviously have to be careful if they wished to avoid their mother’s fuller shape.

  Lady Egmanton looked about the hall, her nose in the air. When she realized that Lady Rosamond had not yet appeared, Philip could see the anger she didn’t bother to conceal. She had obviously wanted to make the final grand entrance of the evening, and wasn’t used to being crossed in her own little kingdom. She seated herself at the head table. She glared at her son as if it were his fault that her meal would be delayed. He only shrugged and signaled a maidservant. She brought him a goblet, and Philip noticed how carefully the girl remained as far away as she could. When Egmanton let her go with a nod of thanks, the relief on her face when she turned away worried Philip.

  At last, at the head of the stairs leading up to the second floor, David appeared. Though he was tall, he seemed abnormally so at the top of the great hall. When he raised a hand, the entire chamber went silent. Lady Egmanton frowned.

  David began to speak in ringing tones. “Lady Rosamond Wolsingham, daughter of the duke of Morley, widow of the earl of Wolsingham.”

  When Anne appeared at the head of the stairs, a round of cheering broke out. Philip almost joined, so impressive and tempting did she look. She wore a wine red gown that made her skin shimmer pale and flawless, down to the pointed bodice that just hinted at deep cleavage. No embroidery or pattern detracted from the sheer beauty of her shape in the gown. The tight sleeves showed her lithe arms, and on her head perched the smallest headdress with a veil attached. Once again she had chosen to display her black hair, though it was pulled up off her neck. Brilliant emeralds hung from her ears and decorated her neck. She appeared every inch a noblewoman.

  Anne unnecessarily lifted her skirts to display matching red slippers and delicate ankles as she glided down the stairs. When she reached the bottom, she released her skirts and looked about, wearing a pleased expression. “Good evening to the residents of Markham Keep!”

  There was more cheering, and she clasped her hands together and bowed her head repeatedly toward each group of tables in the hall. Philip rose to continue his part in the play. He escorted Anne to the head table, where Lady Egmanton remained stiffly seated. Her son had already risen to his feet, and now came around the table. Anne dropped into a deep, graceful curtsy.

  Egmanton took both her hands and raised her to her feet. “Lady Rosamond, it is such a pleasure to meet you at last. Do forgive me my absence this afternoon.”

  Anne waved a hand. “We traveled faster than we expected to, my lord. Now I am here, and so eager to make your acquaintance.”

  She subtly emphasized the word “eager” as if it were foreplay. Philip, who had kissed those red lips and craved more, felt a shiver of desire move through him. The young baron flushed red and cast a guilty look at his mother.

  The baroness’s eyes glittered with her anger, but all she said was “We are glad to give your marital state our consideration,” using the royal “we” like a queen.

  Anne laughed in that husky way she used as Lady Rosamond. “Lady Egmanton, my marital state is…”—she demurely glanced at the woman’s son—“open to evaluation.”

  “Then sit down so that we can be served,” the woman snapped.

  Philip held Anne’s chair until she was seated, then stepped back off the raised dais and stationed himself behind her. He had not been told to do so, but the people at Markham Keep made him uneasy, and he had learned never to doubt his instincts. He didn’t want to be across the hall from Anne should she need him.

  With Philip at her back, and her entrance a success, Anne felt a powerful confidence that was rare for a woman of her station. She would not go too far angering the baroness, but surely the woman deserved some taunting. And Anne had to be subtle and casual if she was going to discover if Lord Egmanton had a secr
et agenda.

  She felt more wary of the mother than the son, for he was unfailingly polite throughout the meal and allowed his mother to steer the conversation. He seemed very young, but very interested in her. Surely she was unlike the innocent young girls usually paraded before someone like him. Anne glanced at his sisters, both seated on the far side of their mother as if they had to be protected. They were almost perfectly alike in looks, although they wore different color gowns. They watched Anne with awe, which couldn’t be helping Anne’s case with Lady Egmanton.

  The baroness sucked the last meat from the starling bones and said, “How old are you, Lady Rosamond?”

  “I have twenty-five years, my lady.” Three years older than Anne’s real age.

  Anne glanced at Lord Egmanton, smiling with her eyes, hoping he understood that being with an older woman could be a good thing. She must have succeeded, for he couldn’t take his gaze off her. Lady Egmanton’s face flushed purple. He seemed easily led.

  “You are very old to be a young man’s bride,” the baroness said coldly.

  Anne was so tempted to say that experience could be pleasurable, but restrained herself. She didn’t want the old woman to have apoplexy.

  “I do not consider myself old, my lady,” Anne said with a smile.

  “But you are old to have not borne children.”

  Anne heard the two sisters gasp, and on her left Lord Egmanton stiffened. On her right Lady Egmanton continued eating the gravy-sopped bread trencher, as if she had not spoken cruelly. She seemed desperate to make Lady Rosamond take her son off the list.

  “Lady Rosamond?” One of the twins had gathered her courage to speak. “Have you been to court?”

  Anne smiled at the girl, but before she could respond, the baroness interrupted.

  “Appearance at court matters not at all. Suitability to be a wife and mother are the first requirements.”

  “Not a dowry, my lady?” Anne said, blinking innocently. She saw how the reminder of her wealth affected each of them, from the twins’ innocent envy to Lord Egmanton’s satisfaction to his mother’s disappointment. Of course Lady Rosamond’s wealth mattered greatly. Anne went back to cheerfully eating, while the rest of them locked gazes with each other in silence.

  Philip quickly ate his own meal, keeping Anne in his sights. Her flirtatious manner bothered him, and she seemed in a dangerous mood this evening. As she walked about the hall with Egmanton, she stopped by their table and smiled at them.

  “Lord Egmanton is taking me on a tour of the castle grounds,” she said, patting the young man’s arm. “He says the sun sets most beautifully here in Nottinghamshire.”

  He gazed at her worshipfully, blushing.

  “My lady—” Philip began, rising to his feet.

  “Nay, sit, finish your meal,” Anne said. “There are soldiers everywhere. Certainly my lord will keep me safe.”

  Her use of the possessive made Egmanton blush even more furiously. At the head table, his mother glowered, but remained silent, as if she’d done all she could.

  Philip had not. When Anne and Egmanton left through the great double doors, he followed them after receiving Walter’s approving nod.

  Once in the inner ward, it was easy enough to stay out of Anne’s way. The sun, which had come out only after they’d ended their journey, was already below the curtain walls, casting long shadows over everything. Servants went about their business preparing the castle for the coming night, lighting torches and lowering the portcullis to guard the gatehouse. While Philip waited beside the stable for Anne to move farther away, she bent her head flirtatiously toward the young lord, and then laughed at something he said.

  Philip walked swiftly to the dovecote, where the birds fluttered as they sensed him just outside. When a soldier frowned at him, Philip made a show of examining the structure with impressed curiosity. By the time the soldier finally left, Philip turned back toward the courtyard, but could no longer see Anne.

  Where was she taking the boy, and what did she think she was proving? If Egmanton were the traitor, if he knew something about Lady Rosamond, she could be in danger.

  He walked swiftly the way he’d last seen them, turned a corner of the castle, and saw the dark shadows of the lady’s garden before him.

  He swore silently to himself, then slipped over the low half-wall and slid into the darkness among the shrubbery and fruit trees. After hearing Anne’s laughter, some of his fear eased. He crouched low to the ground and parted the fronds of a fern to see the young couple.

  Anne was leaning up against the wall of the castle itself, looking beautiful in the soft glow of the evening twilight. She was smiling at Egmanton, who stood too close to her. Beside them, recessed in the wall, was a statue of a woman with a raised hand, gently holding a bird.

  “My mother says you are far too experienced for me,” Egmanton said.

  Anne tilted her head. “Am I?”

  And then Egmanton leaned in and kissed her. Philip kept waiting for Anne to push the boy away, but she didn’t. Philip told himself she was playing a part, but he could not explain away his own jealousy and confusion.

  Egmanton leaned into her, and with his other hand began to draw up her skirts.

  Everything inside Philip protested, but he reined in an explosion of anger. When Anne pushed Egmanton’s hand back down, Philip knew that at least she was being sensible about how far she would take Lady Rosamond’s boldness. But her skirts began to inch up again.

  Philip crawled backward for several yards, then stood up and turned his head away to muffle his voice. As he brushed at the dirt on his knees, he called out, “Lord Egmanton went this way. Does his mother wish his presence?”

  Making a lot of noise, Philip stomped through the garden until he came upon them, both facing him, wearing innocent expressions.

  Philip bowed and spoke humbly. “My lord, you are wanted in the great hall.”

  The young man took Anne’s hand and kissed it. “Shall we return?”

  But Anne glanced at Philip and shook her head. “You go, my lord. I wish for a moment’s respite from the heat and noise of the hall. My knight will guard me.”

  Lord Egmanton bowed and swept past Philip.

  Philip crossed his arms over his chest and looked at her.

  She made the same gesture and inclined her head at him. She was daring him to protest, and he admitted that her very boldness heated his blood.

  “What was the point of this scene?” he asked softly.

  “And did you see more than us standing here conversing?”

  “I did. Someone has to keep an eye on you, and who better than one of your bodyguards.”

  “I have to know if a man with so few years can be capable of being my husband.”

  She was speaking in the bold voice of Lady Rosamond. Was she behaving like this in case someone watched them?

  “And you were going to test that?”

  She laughed, and he found himself moving toward her slowly.

  “With a kiss, aye,” she said. “But it seems that Lady Egmanton does not know her son as well as she thought. He was quite experienced. But I can manage him.”

  “Like you managed the last lord?” he asked, trying to quell the anger that simmered inside him. It wasn’t his place to feel this way, all tight and hot at the thought of her in the hands of one man after another. He had no claim on her—he told himself that he wanted no claim.

  Her smile faded. “I took care of myself well.”

  “You’re pushing this too far.”

  He was close now, within a few feet of her. Above them, the statue watched silently.

  “There will be men you can’t handle so easily, men who will take your playfulness as assent.”

  “Then I will disabuse them of that notion, as I did Lord Egmanton.” She cocked her head, hands on her hips. “Isn’t this the kind of woman I’m supposed to be, the kind of woman you like, the kind of woman who would boldly kiss you just because she could?”

&n
bsp; He tensed, feeling aroused and confused. Then she took his jerkin in both hands and turned him about. He let her handle him, let her push him against the wall, where the statue loomed above them, sheltered them. He wanted to understand her strange mood—but he also recognized the darkness within himself, the lusting part that wanted not to understand, only to feel.

  She put her hands around him, grabbed his ass and held him to her. His cock was hard between them.

  “This is what the Lady Rosamonds of the world know all about,” she whispered, her face below his. “I’m just beginning to learn.”

  “If that’s what you want,” he said in a low growl, “then let me teach you more.”

  He turned her about and pressed her into the ivy-covered stone wall, feeling every soft inch of her body along his. He took her mouth in a kiss, arching her head back so that she had no choice but to succumb to him. But he didn’t need to seduce her compliance. Her hands clutched at his back, she moaned beneath his mouth, and met his tongue with eager passion.

  “Did that boy kiss you like this?” he asked against her lips.

  Her tongue teased him. “He did. Do you want to hear how you compare?”

  He gave a harsh laugh. “I don’t need to.”

  He possessed her mouth again, losing himself in her passion. Nothing existed but the heat between them, and the clothes that kept them apart. He ran his hands up her arms and across her shoulders, then traced the neckline of her gown down to where it met in a point. His fingers dipped into the warm, damp hollow between her breasts, and she moved restlessly against him. He could not resist. He smoothed one hand over her breast, letting his thumb brush her nipple last. Beneath his touch, it rose up until it was outlined in silk. He caught her cry within his own mouth, felt her tremble with the sensations.

  He knew he’d been the first to touch her like this, the only one to awaken her sensuality. The darkness of night settled over them, and he wanted to hide her away, to keep her with him, to do things to her—