Page 51 of The Sword and the Damsel

“Join me,” his father said, gesturing to the chair beside him. “Marie is about to bring out some roast pork.” He was still picking at the remains of a pheasant. He poured some wine for Victor and nudged him to take remaining wing. “How is your wife?”

“As well as can be expected under the circumstances. She’s been slandered, and there’s nothing either of us can do.”

“And you didn’t marry her to save her honor after a fall from grace?”

Victor looked at the ceiling and took a deep calming breath. Even his own father wouldn’t take his word for it. He looked his father in the eye. “It’s true that she married me to save her honor, but she didn’t fall from grace. Robert was lying. I took her maidenhead on our wedding night. If you need proof, you can ask Lord and Lady de Vere to see the bloody sheet.”

“All right, all right, I believe you! No need to go talking about bloody sheets.” He poured himself more wine, and the pork arrived along with more bread. “I wouldn’t fuss too much about a little mishap anyway as long as she’s good and faithful to you now you’re married, and as long as you two get busy makinggrandchildren. I was starting to worry you wouldn’t marry at all.”

His father always had too much faith in him. Perhaps that’s why he was so reluctant to visit. Every time, it felt like he was letting the man down. “I always wanted to marry. I just didn’t have any prospects after I came back from Spain.”

“Well, she’s certainly fond of you. That’s plain as day.”

Victor smiled. “And I’m very fond of her.”

“Ha! You’re more than fond, my boy. You’re so in love you can hardly see straight. I’m happy for you. She’s a lovely young woman.” He raised his goblet in a toast, and Victor reciprocated.

“We’re going to stay the night, if that’s all right with you.”

“Of course! Of course!”

His father was well in his cups now. It was as good a time as any to broach a sensitive subject.

“I was also wondering,” Victor said carefully, “if I might give her mother’s ruby necklace. It would mean a lot to me to be able to give her something from mother.”

“Give her all the bloody jewels. I don’t care. It all just sits in a strongbox in the cellar moldering. Besides, it would warm my heart to see them on a pretty young thing like her. Dear God, this is delicious,” he said stuffing a large bite of pork in his mouth. “Have some.”

“Thank you for the jewels, father. I appreciate it.” Most of the time, his father was generous to a fault, but occasionally, he was a maudlin fool, especially when it came to Mother. He was glad he caught his father at the right moment.

That concluded, he took a bite of pork. “Oh God, this is good. How does she do it?”

“She’s magic.”

“I’ll have to take some up for Alais.”

His father held up a hand as Victor started to rise. “Son, we need to talk about Robert. I know he’s offended you and yourwife, and he’ll hear from me about it. But I don’t want you going after him. He’s still your kin. He’s been good to me. Visits me more than you do.”

Victor started to offer an apology, but his father interrupted. “I know, I know, you’re busy. I’m not finding fault.” He took another bite. “He’s always been jealous of you, you know, even when you were boys. You both made your fair share of mischief, but you were always better at avoiding getting caught. On the rare occasions when you did get caught, you faced the consequences without flinching. He, on the other hand, got caught constantly and tried to weasel out of it every single time.

“The thing is, you were better at everything—swordsmanship, riding, flirting with pretty girls, at least until your injury—and to top it off, you were the heir. It’s not his fault his father gambled away everything of value except the house in Hastings and the flour mill.”

“I don’t see how that excuses telling a lie to ruin an innocent woman’s life.”

“It doesn’t. Of course, it doesn’t. But she hurt him, and he told a lie to hurt her back. And now you bring her home as your wife, succeeding where he failed. That has to rankle. You’ve bested him again, and worse, you’re now in a position to produce heirs of your own, putting Guestling even farther out of his reach. He’s never had your strength of character. He isn’t capable of taking this gracefully. I’m not asking you to forgive him, only have a little pity on him, and especially, not to kill him.”

“Pity. God, I hate that word.” Victor sighed. “I already promised Alais I wouldn’t kill him.”

“Smart woman, your wife,” his father said, gesturing with his knife. “Killing him doesn’t solve anything for her. The lie is already out. All you can do is wait for people to forget or lose interest.”

Victor nodded and said nothing.

“You should take the rest of this pork up to her. Take some wine too. Newlyweds need their strength. Go make me some grandbabies.”

He dutifully took a plate and a pitcher of wine along with two goblets and headed back upstairs to Alais.

Chapter Nineteen

Alais lay withher eyes closed in a happy reverie, her body still tingling with delightful sensations in the aftermath of their lovemaking. She’d put her dress back on but wondered if maybe she should have left it off. Victor’s reaction to her nakedness was something she didn’t think she would ever tire of.

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