Lords of Eire: An Irish Medieval Romance Bundle

by Kathryn Le Veque

  But all of that hinged on Bric MacRohan.

  Brushing out her long, dark hair, she re-braided it and stoked the fire once more before climbing into bed. It was quite comfortable and warm, and as she lay back on the pillow, she realized just how exhausted she was. It had been a very eventful day.

  Sleep claimed her before she was even aware of it.

  Bric had just passed beneath the portcullis of Narborough’s gatehouse when Daveigh was standing in his path.

  “Well?” Daveigh demanded. “What happened?”

  Bric pulled his war horse to a halt, climbing off the beast and handing him over to a waiting stable groom, the only man that the horse wouldn’t snap at. Liath was the horse’s name, a massive dappled-gray horse with a nasty temper, but in battle he was invaluable. He could anticipate Bric, so it was like having a shadow. He adored the animal and the feeling was mutual, but it was only Bric that the beast adored.

  Anyone else was a potential victim.

  “To be truthful, I am not entirely convinced it was Nottingham,” Bric said as he pulled off his helm, wiping a weary hand across his forehead. “Rather than engage us, they tried to evade us, so there was more chasing going on than combat. They headed west and we let them go.”

  “What about the town?”

  “The damage wasn’t too severe. It seems they were only interested in stealing supplies.”

  Daveigh frowned. “Foraging,” he muttered. “Peterborough is to the west.”

  Bric nodded. “I know,” he said. “John’s mercenaries held the city up until a few months ago, but it is possible there are still pockets throughout the area.”

  “Is that what you believe? These are simply vagrant mercenaries?”

  Bric shrugged. “It is as possible as anything else,” he said. Then, he looked around the outer bailey and at the massive walls, lit up against the night with fatted torches that billowed black smoke into the sky. “We were not attacked here?”

  Daveigh shook his head. “Nay,” he replied. “All has been quiet.”

  Bric pondered that. He’d suspected the attack on the village had been a ruse, as they all had, and was both puzzled and pleased to realize it wasn’t. But he wasn’t going to ponder it further. He was exhausted, but there was more on his mind than simply sleep.

  There was the matter of a certain young woman he’d left behind.

  His focus turned towards the inner ward and the keep.

  “I saw the priest arrive when I was departing,” he said. “I suppose Lady de Winter is furious that the wedding did not take place tonight.”

  Daveigh looked towards the keep as well. “I do not know,” he said. “I have not seen her since you left, but I am sure she is waiting up for me.”

  “And me.”

  Daveigh grinned. “She will berate me for letting you ride to battle and avoid the ceremony before she will unleash her anger on you,” he said. “If I were you, I would retreat to my chamber and bolt the door. Do not come out until morning, no matter how much she bangs on your door and bellows.”

  Bric was still looking at the keep. He was thinking on retiring, but not to his chamber. The entire time he’d been away, his thoughts had intermittently lingered on the lovely young woman with the pale green eyes. Was he disappointed he hadn’t married the woman that night? In truth, he was, just a little. Other than the initial conversation they’d had, he hadn’t really had the opportunity to come to know her. Even so, he couldn’t seem to get her out of his mind. So rather than retire to his chamber for the night, he wanted to seek her out and talk to her. He knew it was late, but he didn’t much care.

  Bric MacRohan rarely thought of anyone else’s wants, comforts, or desires other than his own. If the woman was asleep, then he would wake her. He was fearful that if he didn’t take the time to speak with her, alone, then he might not have another chance in the near future because Keeva and Daveigh seemed to want to be present whenever he was around her. Therefore, he didn’t let Daveigh know what he was thinking. He simply nodded his head.

  “Mayhap I shall,” he said. “Where is the priest, by the way?”

  “I am not entirely sure. I have not seen him come out of the keep, so it is possible he is still in the hall.”

  “And my intended?”

  Daveigh gestured towards the keep. “I am sure that Keeva put her on the high floor, where we put our honored guests. I am sure she has been long asleep by now.” He paused. “Bric?”

  “My lord?”

  Daveigh scratched at his ear, a reluctant gesture. “I hesitate to ask you this, but what do you think of her?”

  Bric could see that Daveigh was living in fear of his answer. True to form, he was guarded. “She is pretty enough.”

  “Quite. I’d say she’s damned beautiful.”

  “I would agree with that.”

  “Then… you are pleased with her?”

  Was he? Bric’s first reaction was to the affirmative. Aye, he was pleased with her. But he wasn’t going to tell Daveigh that. He was too embarrassed to admit it, or anything like it. Instead, he forced a smile.

  “Ask me that in a week,” he said, turning for the keep. “I will see you on the morrow.”

  Quickly, he moved across the vast outer bailey of Narborough before Daveigh could stop him, heading through the maze of earthwork and into the inner ward where the keep was situated. Before him, the imposing structure of Narborough’s keep loomed against the night sky, and he entered the forebuilding, dimly lit by torches, and made his way up the stone steps into the entry.

  It was deathly still in the keep when he entered, and very nearly pitch-dark. But he could see faint light coming from the great hall and as he moved through the darkness and into the cavernous room, he was immediately met with snoring. As he eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could see the priest at the far end of the room, sleeping on a bench before the gently snapping fire.

  There were a few others in the great hall, kitchen servants mostly, all of them sleeping near the fire in a group with the dogs nearby, all of them huddling up for warmth. It wasn’t unusual for the kitchen and keep servants to sleep in the great hall even though there was another open space on the top floor the servants used as well. In fact, the top floor was really only for sleeping and guest lodging, as it had four rooms that were used for visitors. It was where Daveigh had indicated Eiselle was being housed, so Bric took one of the smoking torches from the iron sconce near the entry and headed for the spiral stairs that led to the upper floor.

  The one good thing about the location of the visitors’ chambers was that they were well away from the master’s chamber where Keeva was sleeping. The master’s chamber was on the other side of the great hall, sealed off by two sets of massive doors. It was well protected and well-insulated from the noise of the rest of the keep, and Bric was counting on that. He didn’t want Keeva to come running up to Lady Eiselle’s chamber and chase him off.

  The smell near the top of the stairs told him he had entered the large open area where the servants slept. It smelled like a barnyard with piss buckets in the corner and old straw on the floor. Bric made his way through the snoring servants silently, going to the first door he came to and lifting the latch, only to be faced with an empty chamber.

  There was as small corridor to his left and he proceeded to open two more chambers, met with the same inky darkness. But lifting the latch of the forth chamber saw that it was unlocked, and he opened it slightly to reveal a warm room, a fire burning in the hearth, and neatly stacked trunks against the far well. He couldn’t quite see the bed with the door cracked open and, in truth, he didn’t want to be completely invasive, so he shut the door softly as if he’d never opened it to begin with.

  Quietly, he rapped.

  He rapped twice more before he received a response, a soft voice whose words were muddled by the heavy door. Assuming she had asked who had come, he tried not to speak too loudly for fear of rousing the servants.

  “It is Bric, my lady,” he
said.

  He must have spoken the magic words because the latch lifted and the door cracked open. Looking sleepy, and with her dark hair mussed, Eiselle stood in the doorway, wrapped up in a heavy robe. Her expression was one of both surprise and curiosity.

  “Sir Bric,” she said, sounding anxious. “Is everything well?”

  He nodded, realizing that even sleeping and unkempt, she was still the most beautiful woman he’d ever seen. Probably more so in her mussed state because he found something unerringly charming about it.

  “Everything is fine,” he said quietly. “I came to make sure you were well-tended after your busy day.”

  Eiselle nodded. “I am quite well, thank you,” she said. “And you? Are you well after riding out to fight off the raiders?”

  “There was no fight. It was a waste of time.” When she simply stood there, gazing up at him, he thought to press his intention before the situation turned awkward. “I realize it is late, but we have had so little time to speak since your arrival. So if you are agreeable, I thought to only take a few moments of your time.”

  Eiselle appeared uncertain at first but, after a moment, she stepped back and opened the door wider. “Would you like to come in where it is warmer?”

  Considering they were betrothed, it wasn’t an improper offer, to seek solitude in the lady’s boudoir. Bric took the torch and lodged it into the nearest sconce, lighting up the dim corridor, before entering her chamber. Eiselle shut the door quietly behind him.

  “I apologize that I missed the evening meal, but it could not be helped,” he said. “I trust the meal was pleasant.”

  Eiselle nodded, somewhat nervous about his presence. She kept a proper distance. “It was very pleasant,” she said. But when that wasn’t enough, she added, “Lady de Winter introduced me to Lady de Dere and Lady de Chevington.”

  “And the priest?”

  She appeared hesitant. “Of that, I would not know,” she said. “He kept to himself throughout the meal. I… I have never seen one man eat so much.”

  Bric grunted unhappily. “I would have at least hoped he would speak of plans for our marriage tomorrow,” he said. “Did Lady de Winter speak of any such plans?”

  Eiselle pulled her robe more tightly around her in the chill of the room. “Nay,” she said. “She only said it would be on the morrow, but I do not know anything more than that. Are… are you still certain you wish to go through with it? As I said when I arrived, if the arrangement displeases you, then I may still be sent home.”

  He just looked at her; petite, curvy, and that face… was he so fortunate that he was actually going to wake up to that face every day for the rest of his life?

  “Do you want to go home?” he asked. “You have made this statement more than once and I am coming to think that it is your way of telling me that you are not pleased with this arrangement. If that is the case, you need only tell me.”

  Eiselle shook her head quickly. “I did not mean to imply that,” she said. “I simply… that… well, if I may be honest, my lord?”

  He fought off a smile. “Please.”

  Eiselle drew in a long, thoughtful breath and perched herself on the end of her bed. “It is simply that ever since I arrived, I get the feeling that you are not agreeable to this betrothal,” she said. “Lady de Winter seemed to apologize for you far too much, as if she thought you were offending me somehow. You even asked me if anyone had told me of your reluctance to the betrothal. In all, I received the impression that this marriage was not a happy circumstance for you. Am I wrong?”

  Bric couldn’t help it; a smile broke through, tugging at the corners of his mouth. With a heavy sigh, he turned to the nearest chair in the chamber and sat down on it, so heavily that the wood creaked. He’d left his great helm down in the hall when he’d picked up the torch, but he was wearing mail over his entire body along with weapons and a heavy tunic, among other things. He was greatly weighted down and greatly weary, but he didn’t feel like retiring in the least.

  He had a lady to know, and perhaps there was no better time than now for honesty.

  “Since you are being truthful, then I should be as well,” he said. “Nay, you are not wrong. Do not misunderstand me, my lady – it is nothing personal against you. While I love your cousin, Dash, and he is like a brother to me, he also knew that I had no desire to marry. I am a busy man, and my vocation is my wife. There is not time for a family. But Dashiell seemed to disregard my personal feelings by proposing this marriage to de Winter, who gladly accepted it to unite the House of de Winter not only to the House of du Reims, but also to the Dukes of Savernake since Dash’s wife is the daughter of the former duke. To say that I was resistant to the betrothal is an understatement.”

  Eiselle was hurt by his words, but not surprised. “I see,” she said bravely. “I suppose I suspected all along. The betrothal was so unexpected and sudden, I wondered if you could truly be happy about it. You are a great knight, my lord. Certainly, a merchant’s daughter is not the fine marriage you would expect for a man of your station.”

  He was looking at her, bathed in the firelight. “Normally, that would be true,” he said. “But that did not have anything to do with my feelings. I simply do not wish to be married, to anyone.”

  Eiselle averted her gaze, looking at her lap. “Then I shall pack my trunks and leave on the morrow,” she said quietly. “I will not hold you to this betrothal. There is no crime in a man not wanting to be married.”

  Of all the things Bric thought his future wife would be, a gracious and understanding woman who understood his resistance to a marriage had not been among those thoughts. He’d once thought that any woman fortunate enough to be his betrothed would be most eager to sink her claws into him, eager to bind herself to the High Warrior, but Eiselle was far from it. She seemed not only willing to agree with him, but she wasn’t thinking of her own wants in the least.

  Or… was she?

  “You will not pack your trunks,” he said. “What you did not let me say was that this was my position before I met you today. I was certain you would ride in here, gloating over the fact that I was to be your husband. You did not do that and, even now, you are willing to do whatever I wish. I must say that I am quite surprised.”

  She glanced up at him. “Why?” she asked. “I do not wish for you to be miserable, because if you are miserable, I will be miserable. My lord, we do not know each other. Marriage is difficult enough without the added burden of the husband not wanting a wife.”

  His expression took on a suspicious cast. “You are making this far too easy,” he said. “Surely you must have other offers waiting for you, or even a lover.”

  “None, my lord. Not one.”

  He could hardly believe that, given her beauty, but he stopped short of telling her so. Instead, he cocked his head curiously. “Then if that is the case, what are your feelings on marriage?” he asked. “I asked you if you were agreeable to this marriage earlier and you did not answer me. Are you agreeable?”

  “If you are.”

  He snorted softly. “Again,” he said softly, “that is far too easy an answer. Tell me the truth, my lady, and tell me what you feel and not what you believe I should hear. Are you agreeable to this marriage or not?”

  Eiselle lifted her head, looking him in the eye. “As I told you, I have never had a marriage offer,” she said. “I will have seen twenty years and one this summer, so I am quite old for a prospective bride. Most girls my age have been married for a few years, but with me… this is the one and only offer I have ever had. It is shameful to say that, and I am sure you are thinking that there must be something wrong with me. But I assure you, there is nothing wrong with me. I have lived with my parents in a relatively isolated life, so there simply has not been the opportunity to seek prospective husbands and my father was not active in such a pursuit, anyway. He seemed to think that men should come to me, not that I should go to them.”

  Bric shook his head faintly. “I find that ast
onishing that you have never had a marriage offer,” he said. “With your beauty, you could command kings and princes, at the very least. You never even had a marriage offer when you were at Framlingham?”

  Eiselle was deeply flattered by his comment, her cheeks flushing. “Nay,” she said. “But… well, if we are being honest, it was not a good situation there.”

  “Why not?”

  She averted her gaze again, toying with her hands in her lap. “I went to Framlingham when I was ten years and seven,” she said. “I was very old to be a ward, and the girls at Framlingham had all practically grown up together. When I came, they did not like me very much. They weren’t very… kind.”

  Strangely, that statement made him feel rather protective of her. He sat forward, his elbows resting on his knees, his hands hanging.

  “Tell me what happened.”

  She cleared her throat softly. “I would rather not, if you please. I do not wish for you to think that I am complaining or speaking ill of others.”

  “I would not think that. And I asked because I genuinely want to know. What did those women do?”

  Eiselle didn’t like to think back to that terrible year, but he was asking a question and she would do him the courtesy of giving him an answer.

  “They did not want to be my friend,” she said after a moment. “I was an outsider; I understand that. But they were not kind. It was difficult to fit in, so I stopped trying. They began to whisper about me, how I was arrogant and aloof, and one night, one of the girls cut the end of my braid off. Still others stole things from me. One girl stole a necklace from me that belonged to my mother and when I saw her wearing it, she accused me of lying. There was no way I could prove the necklace was mine, of course, unless I sent for my mother, and my mother never leaves the house. My experience at Framlingham was not a good one, my lord. I am glad to forget about it.”