Betrothal (Time Enough To Love) Page 7

  She tried not to smile too broadly, lest she seem boastful, but could not keep the satisfaction out of her voice. “Sir Geoffrey has asked me to choose which knight and lady we are to portray.”

  The room buzzed like an excited hive at her words, each lady expressing an opinion about who Alyse should choose.

  “Oh, choose Sir Lancelot, Alyse, with you as Elaine.”

  “Anne, you know Prince Edward will be Lancelot.”

  “What about Sir Perceval? He sought the Grail in some of the legends,” Maurya reminded her. “He has always been my favorite.”

  “Sir Perceval could be a good choice,” Alyse admitted, “but he is sometimes portrayed as uncouth or loutish. I would not want Sir Geoffrey seen as such. Nor would I want to play his sister, Dindraine.”

  “But you could be Gawain’s sister, Elaine,” Maurya reminded her. “She loved Perceval and helped him defeat the Red Knight.”

  “What about Sir Tristan?” Lady Anne ventured another opinion. “Quite a bold knight. And Lady Isolde was beautiful.”

  “But what a scandalous relationship, Anne!” Alyse’s indignant voice drew smiles from the other ladies. “Isolde was married to King Mark.”

  “But Tristan married an Isolde too. You could be her. Of course they did not have a very happy marriage, but they were married.” Anne’s snide tone echoed her sour face, her mouth puckered in disdain.

  Without a doubt, her chamber mate once again waxed jealous and was trying to bait her. Well, she had become used to ignoring the girl by now. “I had actually thought about Sir Erec and Lady Enid,” she ventured instead, looking to the princess for her approval.

  Joanna nodded then frowned and asked, “Why Sir Erec, Alyse? He is one of the minor knights, is he not?”

  “Oh no, Your Highness. Sir Erec is second only to Sir Gawain as the best knight at the Round Table. And he falls in love with Enid, marries her and spends so much time with her the other knights say she has bewitched him and his prowess has waned. So they go on an adventure together and he proves to her that his prowess is as great as ever.”

  “Well, Alyse, I can certainly see why you would choose that couple. Trying to make your marriage fit the legend?” Anne sniggered, earning a stern glance from the princess.

  “Lady Anne,” Princess Joanna admonished the girl, “you should look to Alyse as a model of behavior in this matter, for she is thinking how to put Sir Geoffrey into the best possible position before the king and the court.” Joanna nodded approvingly at her. “I certainly commend your choice, Alyse. I believe Sir Geoffrey will be pleased with it as well. He obviously trusted you greatly to give you this important task, and I think his judgment sound in doing so. Your choice will confirm that you will be a good helpmeet to him.”

  “I thank Your Highness for your most kind words.” Alyse’s face heated again at the fulsome praise. “I pray that Sir Geoffrey agrees with you.”

  Now she could hardly wait for the evening meal when she would meet with her betrothed again and tell him her choice. Anticipating his reaction would keep her thoughts occupied until then. Oh, pray he would be pleased!

  “Now, ladies.” Princess Joanna rose, prompting the others to do likewise. “After this flurry of excitement I think I would like to walk in the gardens a while before it becomes overly warm.” The young princess started for the door, Maurya, Alyse and Anne following in her wake. An attendant opened the door and the ladies stopped their progress at the sight of Geoffrey Longford standing in the doorway, his eyes wide with surprise.

  * * * *

  Geoffrey had raised his hand to knock at the princess’s chamber door when it opened as if of its own accord, bringing him face-to-face with Princess Joanna and her retinue. He stepped back and bowed deeply to the princess.

  “Sir Geoffrey.” Princess Joanna greeted him with an amused air. “You have been quite the topic of our conversation this morning.”

  Geoffrey shot a glance at Alyse then smiled back at the princess. “Indeed, Your Highness, I beg pardon. To have had such a tiresome subject before you on a beautiful morning must have tried your soul.”

  Joanna laughed, a trilling that sounded pleasantly in the ear. “Nay, Sir Geoffrey, quite the opposite I assure you. You enlivened our morning nicely. We are now on our way to the gardens for some fresh air, and to cool us down from our heated discussion of the Knights of the Round Table.

  Lord, that did not bode well.

  “Will you accompany us?”

  Geoffrey bowed again, but shook his head. “Nothing would give me greater pleasure, Highness, but I must return to attend your father the king shortly. I only came to beg a moment of Lady Alyse’s time, an it please you.”

  She gave him an inquiring look but said, “Aye, Sir Geoffrey. You may speak with Lady Alyse privately, though for a few moments only. More is not seemly, even for those betrothed. My ladies and I will await her just outside.” The princess sent him another curious look as she passed by but Geoffrey made his obeisance again and Alyse curtsied, and she continued down the corridor and out into the courtyard.

  Alyse turned to Geoffrey, her expectant smile making his stomach tighten. Suddenly he was tongue-tied.

  What am I to say? Have you made a decision yet? What knight have you chosen for me to portray?

  What if she had chosen badly?

  He did not want to hurt her feelings, but could not let her make a blunder that would cause more harm were it allowed to stand. He peered into a face that was losing some of its joy at his long silence. Desperate, he tried to read her mood and failed miserably.

  “My lord?” Alyse finally spoke. “You would speak with me?”

  “Aye, my lady.” Still he could find no words.

  Her brows rose in alarm at his continued silence. “My…my lord? I must attend the princess presently. Is something amiss?”

  Geoffrey closed his eyes briefly, looking for strength or inspiration, he cared not which. When he opened them, he saw the devastating effect that gesture had had on Alyse, for her face had paled and her lips quivered, though she remained otherwise composed.

  “The king has taken it back then, my lord?” Her voice trembled, and he could see what effort it cost her to remain calm. Her body tensed, as if in anticipation of a blow.

  Geoffrey blinked, utterly confused by her words. “Taken what back, my lady?”

  “The invitation for me to ride with you in the procession.” The words were spoken calmly, with dignity and resignation.

  Geoffrey laughed, and the tension drained out of him at her words. He gathered her hands into his and looked into her troubled face. “Nay, my love. The king would not renege on such a promise. You are still to be my lady as we ride to the tournament.” Her rigid body relaxed, and a smile played around her lips. “But that is what I came to ask you,” he continued, encouraged by her response. “Have you as yet chosen the knight and lady we will portray?”

  Her smile turned downward as her brows furrowed. “Aye, my lord, I have chosen. But you were to give me until the evening to decide. Why such haste to know my choice now? Has the king asked for it?”

  The lie would have been so easy, and she would never have known. But his honor would not condone it. He sighed and charged onward, determined to have her know his doubts. He only prayed the price for honesty did not run higher than he was willing to pay.

  “Forgive me, my lady, but I wished to know your mind in case the choice might…not be the most advantageous to us. Lord Braeton mentioned that if you have chosen one of the more important…or colorful knights it might…draw undue…attention. To us.” Geoffrey ground to a foundering halt. He inwardly cursed as her face registered shock and anger and grew grim.

  She pulled her hands from his and stepped back. “Lord Braeton doubted my ability to choose wisely in this matter? Or you did, my lord? Why not accept the credit that is so justly yours?”

  Her bitter accusation jolted Geoffrey. “Nay, madam,” he retorted, stung by her undeserved censure, “’twa
s not I who raised the initial doubt. I, in fact, championed your wisdom to Thomas.”

  “But you are here all the same, Sir Geoffrey.” She straightened her back and clasped her hands before her. “Obviously mistrusting me as much as your friend.”

  Geoffrey shook his head. “He knows you but little, Alyse.”

  “And you know me somewhat better, my lord, though indeed it is apparently not enough. You have asked time and again for me to trust you and I…I had begun to do so. Yet how am I to give unto you that which you withhold from me?”

  “Alyse, ’tis not about trusting you. ’Twas your inexperience I feared would lead you into mishap.” A poor excuse, but the only one he could summon. Why had he listened to Thomas, God curse him?

  “I may not have been at court very long, my lord, yet I have lived my entire life amongst noble households. I have been taught what is seemly and what ostentation, perhaps better than you.” She closed her eyes, and when she opened them, his heart sank, for they glittered with the mistrust of two days ago.

  Alyse drew herself up in indignation, and he stood helpless before her, waiting for her scorn to engulf him. He deserved no less.

  “If you had doubts as to the appropriateness of my choice, my lord, you should not have asked me to attend to this task. I had no mind to do it until you bade me, so there would have been no offense. But to ask and then doubt me because of the words of another does not auger well for our marriage.” She paused and squared her shoulders. “In light of your misgivings, Sir Geoffrey, I believe it will be best if you make this decision for us. I would not be the one to bring shame to you through some carelessness. I therefore relinquish my choice to you.”

  If he could have sunk through the stones of the castle floor, he would have done so gratefully. He could feel the tremendous hurt he had caused her, even though she tried to keep it tightly wound within her. But her face! She did not scowl or frown, but the set of her mouth—lips drawn into a tight, straight line—spoke eloquently of the pain he had inflicted. He could scarce meet the wounded look in her eyes.

  And there was no way to make it right. He knew nothing he could say now to reassure her of his trust or to induce her to tell him her choice. Silently, he cursed Thomas, though the fault lay not solely with him. His friend had only planted the seed; Geoffrey had reaped what he had sown.

  “May I go now, my lord? The princess awaits me.”

  The clipped words stabbed like a knife in his heart, and he knew all the patient, clever work he had done to win her trust these last days lay in ruins. He nodded, too miserable to speak, and watched as she turned on her small, slippered heel and stalked down the corridor. The door slammed with a hollow boom as she left the castle.

  He clenched his fist and with a muttered curse strode away in the opposite direction, back to the king’s chamber.

  * * * *

  By the time Geoffrey returned to the reception room, Thomas had moved closer to the door in anticipation of the king’s customary afternoon ride. His entrance drew no one’s attention as the courtiers were milling about, waiting for the king to rise. He took the opportunity of the unguarded moment to seize his friend’s tunic and shove him out the chamber door.

  “Geoffrey! Have you lost your senses? What are you doing?” Thomas grasped his arms, tried to break his hold, but to no avail.

  Geoffrey bore him into the corridor and threw him unceremoniously into the far wall. Thomas whirled, and reached for his knife. Geoffrey darted forward, struck the blade from his hand and grabbed his clothing again.

  “You had to interfere, Thomas. Had to plant doubt in my mind.” Geoffrey’s voice lowered in deathly calm, though he seethed with anger. He adjusted his hold on the dull red fabric, screwing it into a tight knot against Thomas’s chest.

  “What are you talking about, Geoffrey? You are not making sense.” Thomas glared at him, though Geoffrey caught a flicker of fear in his friend’s eyes. Good.

  “I went to Alyse to learn her choice because you thought it would be ill-advised.” Geoffrey leaned his full weight into Thomas, trapping him against the wall with no hope of escape. “Now, in trying to prevent one disaster, I have created another. She thinks I do not trust her judgment and has withdrawn from me. Christ, she may not even speak to me again. Everything I have worked for the past two days, the trust, the companionship, the regard, has vanished.” He shook Thomas roughly, like a terrier with a rat, and turned a cold eye on his friend. “And you are going to help me get them back.”

  Thomas’s mouth twisted into a sneer. “Why does this matter so much to you, Geoffrey? The girl must wed you. What does it matter whether she comes willing or not to your bed? You are acting the lovesick fool!” He managed to wrest his tunic away and put some distance between them.

  “Better a lovesick fool than a man incapable of feeling.”

  “By God, Geoffrey…”

  “Peace, Thomas.” Geoffrey put out a dismissive hand. “My regard for Lady Alyse is none of your concern. But the grief and mistrust I have brought down on my own head are, for you certainly had a hand in that.”

  After ten years of friendship, how had they come to this?

  An unwilling chuckle erupted from his lips, causing Thomas to glance at him suspiciously. “Two friends at odds over a woman,” he offered ruefully. “We sound like a tale from the Round Table.”

  Thomas grinned at that, and the tension eased. “We do indeed. ‘Sir Thomas and the Lovesick Fool.’” He sobered. “My pardon, if my words have brooked a quarrel betwixt you and your lady. ’Twas not my intent.” He offered his hand and slowly Geoffrey reached out his as well. “So relate to me what has transpired and I will devise a plan of action to win back the regard of the fair Alyse.” His mouth turned up into a knowing smile. “For who knows better than I how to seduce a woman?”

  Chapter 9

  Alyse made an appearance at supper that night only because her duties required her to attend Princess Joanna. When seated at her accustomed table, she fidgeted, uncomfortable on the narrow bench. Nothing had seemed right since Geoffrey’s betrayal. She sighed and tried to pay attention to the tale Patrick was telling of his latest troubles with his horse. It did no good. She simply could not concentrate on anything other than her own plight with Sir Geoffrey.

  Inconstant oaf. When he asked me to choose our knight and lady, I believed he understood how much of a helpmeet I could be for him. I would never have chosen someone ostentatious. If he knows anything about me at all, it is that I shun attention.

  The servant brought her a trencher, filled with braised eels in a thick sauce. Alyse cringed and shoved it away, her stomach roiling. She reached for her cup of ale, but the thought of swallowing anything right now made her shudder. Between the smoky torches, the rank odor of the food and her own woes, there was little wonder her head had begun to pound. She would not have to feign illness to leave, as she had arranged with Maurya.

  When the new musician, Gracias de Gyvill, recently arrived from Spain as a gift to Princess Joanna from Prince Pedro, began to play softly on the lute, she tried once more to drag her mind from her misery. His lilting melody soothed her and she relaxed a little.

  Until an outburst of laughter from across the Hall made her jump and drew her attention to the table. But both her courtiers were absent tonight. Still, the sight of their usual haunt rekindled her ire against them.

  She could not decide who had angered her most. Geoffrey’s betrayal stung mightily, but she believed him led astray by his friend. She was more than willing to heap blame on that conceited lord, whose earlier disregard incensed her anew. Bitter memories of Lord Braeton blatantly ignoring her at court functions flooded her mind, and she winced to think how she had tried to dally with him the few times they had conversed.

  Well, she had gotten the better of him last night. She smiled for the first time that day at the thought of her banter with him. He had seemed more respectful of her after she had taken him down a peg. And appreciative. She recalled his ap
praising look after their exchange.

  As if he saw me for the first time.

  Alyse sat straight up on her bench. Had her spirited wordplay drawn his attention at last? Perhaps he had sowed seeds of discord between her and Geoffrey out of jealousy. Perchance he was angry that she had to marry another.

  Too late.

  She slouched again. She was betrothed to Geoffrey. Nothing could change that. Could it? Had she ever heard of a betrothal being broken?

  She glanced around the room, recalling as much gossip as possible from the past months. Had there not been talk about Lady Mary Percy and Sir Roger Delaney? One person surely knew.

  “Maurya.”

  Her companion turned to her and shook her head. “’Tis too early to retire yet, Alyse. Wait a bit and I shall get John to escort you.”

  “Nay, ’tis not that.” Alyse glanced at Patrick on her left and lowered her voice. “Tell me about Sir Roger’s betrothal. ’Tis no longer contracted, is it?”

  Maurya met her eyes with a hard stare. “Do not think of it, Alyse. Your spat with Sir Geoffrey will blow away like a March wind. He is an honorable and chivalrous man. If you give him a chance, I believe he will make amends for his behavior.”

  Alyse gazed back at her, undeterred. “They were betrothed, were they not? And now she is to wed another.”

  With a sigh, Maurya turned all the way around until she faced Alyse. Her voice lowered and she glanced around with sharp eyes to see who might overhear. “Aye, she and Sir Roger were to be married in March. Their families had arranged the alliance years ago. But Mary is His Majesty’s cousin…” She paused, scanned the surrounding tables once again. “’Tis said the king wished an alliance with another noble family. The Delaneys acquiesced, of course. One does not gainsay the king.”

  “So His Majesty could set a betrothal aside?”

  Maurya nodded slowly. “If there existed a compelling enough reason, yes, of course he could. But a quarrel with Sir Geoffrey would hardly qualify as such.” She captured Alyse’s gaze and her face seemed to harden. “Especially since King Edward favors the Longfords.”