Besieged and Betrothed

‘True.’ He tugged his boots on.

‘Everyone’s asleep!’

‘Also true. Except for the guards, I hope.’

‘Then what are you doing?’

He picked up his cloak and flung it loosely around his shoulders. ‘Taking care of you. Wait here.’

She lay down again, curling up in the warm space left by his body, hardly knowing whether to feel relieved or disappointed or both. For a moment, she’d had the impression that something was about to happen between them. She definitely hadn’t imagined the way certain parts of his body had pressed so insistently against hers, but then he’d pulled away as if he couldn’t wait to get out of the room quickly enough. Because of Matilda? The idea was mortifying, though it still didn’t quell the ache in the pit of her stomach. Even the lingering scent of his musk on the pillow gave her a thrill of something, some new shivering sensation she didn’t recognise, but that made her want to stretch out on the bed like a cat.

She trailed her hands over her body, from her breasts all the way down to her navel, then pushed her arms out to the sides, tipping her head back and arching her back to ease the feeling of tension in her limbs. Strangely enough, that did make her feel better, though there was something shameless about it, too. She was writhing on the bed like a...well, perhaps not quite like a cat any more. Not that she knew what else she could be. She tilted her hips up, lifting her body...

‘Ready for a midnight feast?’

She shot up to a sitting position, clutching the covers to her chin in embarrassment. She hadn’t expected Lothar to return so quickly, but he was already standing in the doorway, a dark shadow holding a heaped trencher in one hand and a candle in the other.

‘No! I mean, yes... I mean, that was quick.’

‘You said you were hungry.’ His voice sounded deeper than before, almost guttural, and she bit her lip with mortification. Was he angry with her? Her behaviour must have been truly shameless if he was...

‘Where did you find all that food?’ She tried her best to sound nonchalant as he approached the bed.

‘In the kitchens.’

‘You woke up the cooks?’

He looked mildly offended. ‘If I can climb over the walls of Oxford Castle and escape past Stephen’s army in the middle of the night, I think I can break into a kitchen without waking anyone.’

‘They’ll think we have some very large mice.’

‘Probably.’ He sat down on the edge of the bed and set the trencher in front of her. ‘Now I want to see you eat.’

She didn’t argue, tearing off a chunk of bread and popping it eagerly into her mouth. It tasted fresh and delicious and she instantly reached for more.

‘Stop watching me.’ She peeped up at him, acutely aware of his eyes on her face. ‘It was bad enough when I was trying to sleep.’

‘Says the woman who woke me up by staring.’

‘That didn’t wake you up.’ She paused with another piece of bread halfway to her mouth. ‘How long were you awake?’

‘About the same amount of time as you, I imagine. You rolled into me.’

She lifted her chin up defensively. ‘By accident and, if you were asleep, how do you know you didn’t roll into me?’

‘Good point. Shall we say we rolled into each other?’

‘I’m surprised I slept at all, but I feel better.’ She smiled, feeling shy all of a sudden. ‘Thank you for everything you said last night. I needed to hear it.’

‘I’m glad. I’m only sorry it took me so long to come back.’

‘It wasn’t your fault. You couldn’t have known what would happen.’

‘No, but your father asked me to take care of you. I wanted to take care of you.’

‘You did?’ She opened her eyes wide, caught off guard by the tender note in his voice, though judging by the suddenly quizzical expression on his face, so was he.

‘Of course. You’re my wife.’