Page 47 of Suddenly a Bride
“I don’t mind the journey. I’m a strong woman.”
He lifted one eyebrow. “And what would your errand be?”
“I would like to visit the villagers that you introduced me to. Mrs. Haskell gave me a list of people who could use work. I’m rather worried about harvesting the kitchen gardens and the orchards.”
“I already have men to help.”
“But aren’t they needed in the fields?”
He shrugged.
“Then ’tis good that I go. Perhaps you could send a groom to escort me, a lad you trust.”
“I would want you to ride a pillion behind him.”
“On a horse?” she said, aghast. “Without you to keep me from falling? Nay, we can walk. So who do you suggest?”
He touched her chin, and she held her breath, wondering, hoping that he might kiss her. He just stared seriously into her eyes.
“And if I ask you not to leave the castle?”
“You will confine me here?”
“Nay, but if I ever need to ask such a thing of you, will you obey me?”
“Well, youaremy husband.”
He slid his fingers up to cup her cheek. “Does that mean you will obey me?”
“Aye,” she answered, wanting to rub against his palm like a lonely kitten. “But I pray you would at least tell me why.”
“If I can.” He lowered his hand. “Ask for Will at the stables. He’s a sandy-haired lad with a good head on his shoulders. Be home before supper, so you don’t lose the light.”
“Thank you, Edmund.” She smiled up at him, wishing she could come up with a reason to stay.
But there was a knock on the door and servants lugging in buckets of water, and she found herself in the corridor with Edmund firmly closing the door in her face.
How had he done that? she wondered with frustration. She stayed in the great hall until the servants had left Edmund’s wing of the castle. She even waited a few extra moments for good measure. Then she marched back to his bedchamber, took a deep breath, knocked quickly, and walked right in.
“Oh, my,” she breathed, and promptly forgot whatever excuse she’d made up for barging in.
Edmund had been leaning back in the tub, his thick arms resting on the edge, one leg bent in the water, the other resting on the rim of the tub. After she’d burst in, he sat up so straight that half the water must have sloshed out the sides and formed pools about it.
“Edmund, forgive me for startling you,” she said with forced sincerity, even as she walked toward him.
“What are you doing here?”
His voice was a growl that did not scare her.
“I—I forgot the groom’s name,” she said, hoping that God forgave her the lie. “My, I wouldn’t have believed you could fit inside that tub.”
And then she was standing over him. Before her eager gaze could move lower than his damp, hairy chest, he snatched a towel off the stool and dropped it across his hips. Gwyneth could only sigh as it soaked through and sank to cover him.
“The groom’s name is Will,” he said. “He works in the stables, in case that slipped your mind as well. Now would you mind leaving, so I can enjoy my bath in peace?”
Not breaking their shared gaze, she dipped her fingers in the water, then splashed a few droplets across his chest. “You cannot enjoy your bath with your wife waiting on you?”
This time she was certain he hesitated.
