The Legend (50 page)

Gilbert nodded slowly. "Aye,
Your Grace, you did. But Alec is correct; He is not yet consented. As he said,
he must ask his wife."

All eyes suddenly riveted to
Peyton and she felt the weighty stares as if she alone were to decide the fate
of England. But her gaze, her adoration, shone only on Alec. She understood
just how monumental his decision was and did not take it lightly.

"My lady?" Edward
encouraged hopefully.

She smiled into Alec's eyes,
reaching out to trace a finger over his smooth, sensuous lower lip. "'Tis
his decision, your grace. I cannot make it for him. But if he chooses to resume
his knighthood, my support is with him."
And my love.

Across the table, Ali rose to his
feet. "As I recount my oath of loyalty, as well. Where Alec goes, I go, be
it at St. Cloven or the Welsh border."

Alec heard Ali's words, but he
was far more caught up in Peyton's sensual touch and loving gaze. Her
fingertips were caressing his cheek, his chin, and he nearly forgot about the
question looming over their heads. Every man and woman in the room was waiting
for an answer as if the entire future of the civilized world depended upon it.

Though consumed with his wife, he
was not senseless. His mind was working furiously, weighing the possibilities,
the liabilities, and the entire situation. His reasoning came to bear and the
answer he sought emerged, like the brilliance of the sun released from the
shielding clouds.

Alec knew that his destiny was at
hand. As Peyton's fingers moved over his lips, he kissed them sweetly and rose
to his feet. Six and a half feet, two hundred forty pounds of English knight
focused on his king. The power, the force radiating forth from the man, was
beyond believing; as if, somehow, the man were myth and human combined.
Strength bestowed by the gods filled his limbs, feeding credence to the reputation

Time froze for a moment.   Peyton
felt it; they all did. The Legend was restored.

"I would be honored to
return to your service, Sire," Alec said unwaveringly. "But I would
prefer not to lead your armies at the moment and, considering Llewellyn is not
an impending threat at the moment, I do not see that my presence in London is
imperative. I should like to remain at St. Cloven until the birth of my son,
and then I shall be more than happy to join your army at Windsor."

Edward had to sit down. Twelve
years of pleading, begging and threats had finally come to an end and he was
weak with the overwhelming knowledge.

"You cannot possibly know
how glad I am to hear you say that, Alec," he said hoarsely. "God has
answered my prayers."

Alec glanced down at his wife.
"And mine."

The Legend had returned.

***

“Your son will not be born until
April or May," cradled in Alec's naked embrace, Peyton was nearly asleep.

Alec's eyes were closed as well,
the end result of a most strenuous love-making. "And I doubt Llewellyn
will choose to revolt during the harsh winter months. By the time spring thaws
the ground, my son will be in my arms and the Welsh prince will be planning his
strategies. There is plenty of time yet."

She snuggled closer, smiling
sleepily. "Edward was surprised, wasn't he? I thought he was going to
swoon when you agreed to resume your knighthood."

Alec turned on his side,
capturing her in a tight embrace in preparation for slumber. "Did you see
Ali's face? I thought he was going to weep like a woman."

She sighed deeply, relishing his
warmth. "I am so proud of you, my Alec."

He smiled into the darkness, yet
in the same moment, a hint of uncertainly clawed at him. Second guessing his
decision. But he knew, clearly, that he had made the correct choice. The doubts
he felt were a natural part of a most enormous resolution.

Peyton's supple, nude body was
pressed against him as close as she could go. His heat was lulling into a
delightful slumber as she felt his massive hands drift over the swell of her
white buttocks. Surely there was nothing more wonderful that her husband's
delicate touch, a gentleness she had experienced from the very first day he had
held her in his arms. A power that filled her, a strength that possessed her
soul.

A strength that would soon be
leaving for a date with destiny. The Welsh border beckoned her husband and Peyton’s
eyes lurched opened with that thought. As delighted as she was with the
resumption of his knighthood, the heavier emotions of longing and fear began to
plague her. The longer she lay enveloped in his massive arms, the more potent
they became.

"What will I do when you are
gone, my Alec?" she whispered, clutched against his magnificent chest.
"Who will be here to hold me?"
Who will be here to love me?

She had told him once that she
would never love him and he had acted indifferently to the suggestion. Now,
more than ever, she wanted to declare her feelings, but knowing he cared not
for her love prevented her from hazarding the venture. She would not tell him
what he was unwilling to hear. But, Good Lord, how she ached with the want to
tell him everything. Especially now.

Alec's held her tightly, staring
off across the darkened room. "You will have my son to hold," he said
after a moment. "Moreover, you are entirely selfish in your thinking. What
am I going to do without you to quarrel with or make love to? I shall be
entirely lonely."

"You will have Ali."

"Somehow, it's not the
same."

She giggled. "Nor will it be
for me. Your son and Ivy simply cannot fill the void."

He put his hand under her chin
and lifted her eyes to meet his serious gaze. "Do you not want me to go? I
will not leave if you do not want me to."

Her eyes widened. "Of course
you must go! Never imagine for one moment that I do not want you to fight for
Edward. I am so proud of you, my Alec. I never thought that you would lift a
sword again."

He touched her cheek gently.
"Nor did I. Since I have met you, I have done a great many things that I
never thought to do."

She looked at him a moment.
"Do you plan to tell your father of your decision?"

He averted his gaze, studying her
hair, the sweet curve of her face. "Someday. Mayhap the same day I tell
him of his grandson."

"You plan to wait that long?
Truly, Alec, do you not think your father will want to know this most
incredible turn of events?"

He shrugged faintly, his eyes on
the swell of her breasts.

"He shall want to know. But
I am not sure when I plan to tell him. Mayhap tomorrow. Mayhap in ten years. I
simply do not know."

He was still aching with the
estrangement and she did not push him. As much as he tried to pretend that she
and St. Cloven were his life, she knew he was still hurting a great deal.

Seeking to lighten the dampening
mood, she cocked an auburn eyebrow tauntingly. "Any regrets, my
Alec?"

He looked entirely serious.
"Christ, where to begin?"

She pinched him lightly and he
laughed, pulling her close. As she burrowed against him in preparation for
sleep, his smile faded. Any regrets? Only one. That he would be separated from
her for an indeterminate amount of time when he joined Edward's cause. Already,
he knew the isolation would drive him insane. Christ, he loved her so. He
cursed himself yet again for being too weak to tell her.

Peyton had fallen asleep when
sentries sounded the alarm from the battlements. With nearly four hundred crown
soldiers housed within the grounds of the fortified manor, Alec was unconcerned
as he carefully disengaged himself from his wife and went to the lancet window,
peeling back the oiled cloth to gaze over the compound. Below, there was a
heightened level of activity, but nothing that warranted panic. One of the
gates had been opened and he could see a single horse and rider surrounded by
his own elite guard in the center of the bailey.

Moving from the window, Alec donned
his clothing and was in the process of pulling on his boots when a faint knock
rattled his door.

Toby stood in the archway,
half-dressed in a disheveled tunic, hose and boots. "A lone rider, Alec.
From Blackstone."

Alec's eyebrows rose faintly.
"Blackstone? Christ, what's he doing here at this time of night?" Suddenly,
his face paled and his eyes widened. "Oh, Christ.... my father. Something
has happened to my father."

Toby could read the panic in
Alec's face and quickly sought to calm him. "The rider says that your
father sent him, Alec. Nothing has happened to Lord Brian."

Alec visibly relaxed. "Thank
God," giving his sleeping wife a final glance, he moved into the corridor
and closed the door softly. He found himself passing a second glance at Toby's unkempt
appearance, uncommon for the usually-polished knight. "What in the hell
happened to you?"

Toby looked as if he did not
understand his meaning. Then, he glanced down at himself and noticed faint
blood spots staining the midsection of his tunic. He ran his finger over the
area. "Oh.... I guess I cut myself."

Alec frowned and attempted to
lift the garment. Toby protested weakly and tried to move away, but Alec was
far superior in strength and ended up in a wrestling match with his younger
brother.

"Damnation, Toby, hold
still!" he snapped, shoving the man against the wall. "Let me see
what you have done!"

"'Tis nothing, I tell
you," Toby tried to yank the tunic free from Alec's grasp.

Alec put an elbow against Toby's
chest to slow his struggles, knocking over a chair in the process. Perturbed,
he grabbed Toby by the neck.

"Cease your wrestling, boy,
or I shall bind you hand and foot," he snarled. "What in the hell do
you not want me to see?"

A perfect set of teeth marks
appeared in the weak light. Alec's very perplexed look met with Toby's guilty
expression.

"What is this?"

Toby averted his gaze. "A
bite. What does it look like?"

Alec's eyebrows rose and he
refocused on the wound. "That's not merely a bite, Toby. Someone tried to
have you for supper. Who did this?"

Irritated, Toby yanked from his
brother's grip and straightened his tunic. "I am a grown man, Alec. What I
do is my own business."

Alec folded his thick arms across
his chest. "And I never said otherwise. You are not into peculiar sexual
thrills, are you? I can tell you from experience that you might end up
seriously injuring yourself. "

Toby cocked an eyebrow at his
brother. "You can tell me this as fact? "

Alec shrugged faintly. "I
was young once and eager to sample anything remotely erotic."

Toby raised an eyebrow.
"Does your wife know that?"

"She does not, and you will
not mention it lest I castrate you the hard way," his gaze turned to that
of genuine concern. "What happened?"

Toby absently touched his
abdomen, moving his gaze to the floor. "I.... oh, hell. Jubil bit
me."

Alec nearly keeled over with
shock. His eyes widened and his arms uncross. "Jubil bit you?" he
clapped a disbelieving hand to his forehead. "Christ, I do not want to
know anymore," he turned away, pretending to storm down the hall when he
suddenly whirled on his heel and was back in Toby's face. "Jubil bit
you?"

Instead of cowering in fear of
his brother's anger, Toby faced him openly. "She did. And other
things."

Alec's mouth gaped open, and then
promptly shut. Suddenly, his eyes twinkled. "Did you.... take her?"

"Several times."

Alec's mouth was open again, but
there was a curve to the corners. "You.... several times? Christ, Toby, she
is old enough to be your mother!"

Toby scratched his neck
thoughtfully. "Your point being?"

Once again, his mouth closed and
Alec blinked thoughtfully. "Nothing, I suppose," he said slowly.
"Except.... I will not allow you to make a sport out of her. She is my
wife's aunt and a respected member of the family. Do you comprehend me?"

"Indeed," Toby nodded.
"And who says I intend to make a sport out of her? I.... well, I just
might marry the woman."

Alec's shocked expression was
back, greater than before.

"Marry her?" he
repeated, then rolled his eyes as if unable to believe what he had heard. Grabbing
his brother about the neck, he started down the corridor. "You and I must
have a talk, Toby. You do not marry the first woman who pleasures you beyond
reason. You may believe yourself in love with her simply because she has made
you mindless with erotica but, believe me, that is not love."

Toby allowed his brother to lead
him away. "I never said I was in love with her. What I do with her is my
affair and there is nothing to say on the matter."

Alec cocked an eyebrow.
"Aye, there is a good deal to discuss, but now is not the time. I have a
messenger from Blackstone waiting for me and I shall not be distracted."