This Heart of Mine (18 page)

She blushed and silently fussed at herself for doing so. “Tell me of Scotland, Alex. Until I joined the court I never lived anywhere but at my homes in England and France. Tell me of your land. My betrothed husband is a Scot, and if I do wed with him, I shall be living there.”

“My family has a small castle in the Highlands to the north and west of Aberdeen. They also have a town house in Aberdeen.”

“Do you not have a house in Edinburgh? Surely you follow the court?”

“Nay, lass, I’ve not the time or the inclination to involve myself in the Stewart court. Stewart monarchs invariably borrow money from their nobility, never pay it back, and are incredibly ungrateful. The king, however, is a cousin. We share the same grandfather, James V.”

Her green eyes widened, impressed by this revelation. “Your grandsire was the king of Scotland?”

“Aye. My grandmother, Alexandra, was the heiress to”—He hesitated an instant, realizing that he had almost said BrocCairn, then, recovering, he continued—“our family’s estates. She claimed a handfast marriage with the king, but as she died birthing my father, Angus, nothing was made of it. The king recognized his paternity, but my father bore the Gordon name. It was said that my grandmother loved her Jamie Stewart very much.”

Velvet sighed dramatically. “How wonderfully romantic! If only I could fall in love!”

It was pure madness that led him to say it, but Alex could not contain himself. “I think I’m falling in love with you, Velvet,” he said quietly.

She stopped in midstep and turned to look up at him. “You must not, Alex,” she said with utmost seriousness. “I am betrothed, and you know it.”

“Yet you tell me you fled this betrothed, that you will not have him.”

“I have not said I would not have him. I simply will not wed him until I know him, and until my mother and father return home from India. I would not, however, compromise my family’s good name, Alex. Surely you don’t think that I would?”

“Nay, lass, I do realize your honor would not allow you to
shame your family, but, Velvet, would you break my heart? The heart that I would so willingly put into your gentle keeping?”

She looked so confused, and his heart rejoiced. Then she said with total candor, “I have never been courted by a man before. Are you courting me, Alex?”

“Would you welcome such a suit, Velvet?”

Her beautiful young face was grave, and for a long moment she considered. Finally she spoke. “I have said that I would marry only for love, yet how can I know what love is if I accept my parents’ decision blindly? The one freedom they have always given me has been the freedom of choice, and though they be far from me now, I know that they would allow me that same freedom in this case. Yes, Alex, I will welcome your suit provided that you understand that it may lead to nothing more than a simple flirtation. I cannot mislead you. My family’s honor binds me legally to this unknown earl though my heart might be drawn elsewhere.”

Pulling her into his arms, he kissed her roughly, leaving her blushing and breathless. She slid her arms about his neck, and his big hand tangled in her auburn hair, holding her face up while he covered it with kisses. “Ah, lass,” he murmured thickly, “you make me a very happy man!”

Velvet, suddenly filled with an unexplained joy, laughed up at him, her eyes shining brightly as she said, “You make me happy also, dear friend!”

While they continued on down the riverbank, a far more intense scene was being enacted in a secluded part of the inn garden. Robert Southwood had waited from the instant he had laid eyes upon Angel Christman to be alone with her like this. His gentle manner was deceptive, for like his father before him, he took what he wanted. Without any preamble, he declared himself. “I love you,” he said in an intense voice. “I have loved you from the first moment I saw you!”

Angel stopped, shocked by his words. She had not believed that Velvet’s brother was the kind of gentleman who would make mockery of a poor girl. She was confused and, for a minute, unsure of what to say to him. Then realizing that to play the simpleton would only encourage his cruelty, she said briskly, “You make fun of me, my lord, and that is unkind of you. Your sister loves you dearly, and she is the best friend I have ever had. Would you endanger the one thing I prize most, Velvet’s friendship? For shame, my lord earl!”

“But I do not mock you!” he cried. “
I
love you, Angel!”

“Then you are a fool, my lord, for you do not even know me!”

she snapped, her patience gone. I may be poor and unimportant, she thought to herself, but how dare he tease me in this fashion!

“Your father was Witt Christman, the son of Sir Randor,” said Robin. “Your mother, whom you favor strongly, was Joanne Wallis. Your family seat is near Longridge in Lancaster. Your parents died when you were five, and although your paternal grandparents would have taken you in, your father left your wardship to the crown. You will be eighteen on your next birthday, which is December fifth.”

“How do you know all this?” Angel demanded, furious at having her privacy invaded. “I asked Lord Hundston,” came his honest reply.

“Why?” She glared at him.

“I have told you why! I love you, Angel!” Dear heaven, how fair she is, Robin thought.

“My father killed my mother, who was unfaithful to him, and then took his own life,” she said bluntly.

“Unfortunate,” he answered, “but those things happen even in the best of families. My mother and Velvet’s was in a Moroccan harem once.”

“That
doesn’t happen in the best of families,” Angel answered quickly, and a small smile tugged at the corners of her lush mouth. “You are teasing me, aren’t you? Trying to make me feel better?”

“No,” he said. “ ’Tis true.”

“What do you want of me, my lord?” she queried him, still confused as to his motives. In her heart, she knew he was going to suggest something she could not countenance and she would offend him by refusing. How angry would he become? Would he forbid her to remain friends with his sister? Oh, Lord! He was so handsome. He was the most beautiful man she had ever seen.

“I want you to be my wife,” Robin said quietly.

“My lord, that is cruel!” she cried, and, to her surprise, her eyes filled with tears. Damn him! she thought. Damn him! Embarrassed she hid her face from him.

Southwood, however, would have none of it. Gently he turned her so that she was forced to face him. “Look up at me, my sweet Angel,” he said softly. “I love you, dearest heart.”

She stared at him as if he had gone mad. “You can’t love me,” she said. “Knowing facts about me is not really knowing me. Besides, you are the Earl of Lynmouth, one of England’s most powerful and wealthy men. I am nothing in light of your family. What is the daughter of an impoverished second son of an unimportant baron to the Southwood family?”

“I am Southwood, Angel. There is no one to tell me yea or nay! I am my own master.”

“You should marry a lady of equal wealth and family, my lord,” she said softly. “Even I know that.”

“I should marry the girl I love,” he answered her, “and, my beautiful Angel, I love you beyond life itself! Marry me, my darling! Make me the happiest of men!”

Angel was now totally disconcerted. She had always thought that the queen would eventually make some sort of match for her, for she could not remain a royal charge forever. Angel had believed that the only asset she had to her name was her beauty. Her face, she had hoped, would win her a wealthy merchant, or perhaps an unimportant but pleasant nobleman. It had never occurred to her that someone like Robert Southwood would fall in love with her, and Angel, being the practical girl that she was, had never even considered aspiring to such heights.

Her heart was hammering in her chest, and her normally muted color was high in her excitement. She looked at Robin and said, “I don’t know if I love you, and like Velvet I believe a girl should have some feeling for the man she marries.” She bit her lower lip with some vexation. “This is totally unthinkable, my lord! What will your mother say to such a match? The queen will certainly not countenance it. Speak no further about it, I pray you. I shall forget you have even mentioned such a possibility, and then perhaps you will allow my friendship with your sister to continue. I will not embarrass you by repeating this incident. I promise.”

Robin came perilously close to hugging Angel right then and there. “My mother married my father when she did not even know who she really was,” he said quietly. “She had suffered a loss of memory. My father, however, loved her no matter who she was, and he married her. She might have been a murderess, but it mattered not to him. What did matter was that he loved her even as I love you, Angel. As for Her Majesty, my love, she will give her consent. Come with me now and we will ask her.”

Angel looked aghast.
“Now?”
she cried. “At this time of evening?”

Robin grinned at her. “Yes, Angel Christman. Now! At this time of evening. You can ride pillion behind me to
Ardern Hall.”
He took her firmly by the hand to lead her off, but Angel hung back.

“Velvet,” she said. “Please ask Velvet to come with us.”

“Very well.” He smiled down at her. “Where do you think the minx has gotten to?” He shaded his eyes with his hand and looked down the garden. “Ah, there they are by the riverbank. Velvet! Alex!” he called.

They came toward him hand in hand, and Robin noted silently that his youngest sister was pleasingly flushed and his friend, Alex,
looked relaxed and content. “Is everything all right, Robin?” Velvet inquired of him as they finally reached him.

“I have asked Angel to marry me, and, being the sweet child she is, she fears it is not at all a good enough match for me. She thinks the queen will not allow me to wed her, but I have explained that our mother wed my father under even more difficult circumstances with the queen’s blessing. We are going to
Ardern Hall
now, and Angel wants your support.”

“Do you love my brother?” Velvet was suddenly very protective of Robin. Men were such fools when it came to women. Dame Cecily had said it often enough.

“I-I don’t know, Velvet,” Angel answered honestly. “How can I know such a thing? I hardly know Lord Southwood.”

“It’s not important,” said Robin with a wave of his hand. “I love her, and most matches do not take into account whether the parties involved love each other. Alison and I didn’t love each other.”

“You knew Alison all her life, Robin,” said Velvet. “You have only just met Angel. Understand it is not just you I fear for, but also my dear friend, Angel. If this is some whim on your part, Robin, I shall be very angry.”

“When have you ever known me to be deliberately unkind, Velvet?” he chided her gently. “I realize that love at first sight is a rare phenomenon, but it has happened to me with Angel. I will devote my life to making her happy if she will but give me the chance.” His lime-green eyes were filled with such emotion that for a moment Velvet looked away in embarrassment. She had never known her brother to be this way.

She swallowed the little lump that had risen in her throat and, looking back at him, said, “Then, dammit, Robin, why are we standing here when we should be on the road to
Ardern Hall!”

Alex looked from one to the other, amused. What charmingly willful people they were, these children of Skye O’Malley. Both assumed that all was settled because it suited them. Neither had bothered to consult the other person most definitely involved. He looked at the beautiful blond girl and said quietly, “And what say you about all of this, Mistress Angel Christman? Are you content to rush off into the night to ask the queen’s permission to wed with the Earl of Lynmouth?”

“I think it is all madness, my lord,” she replied with a smile, “but if the earl be serious in his intent toward me, I could not receive a better offer. It is indeed a
magnificent
offer for a maid in my position. I suppose I must be practical in any event.”

Velvet looked somewhat shocked. “You would be practical in
the matter of marriage, Angel? What of love? This is a lifetime we are speaking about!”

Angel sighed and smoothed her palms down over her rather plain gown. “Velvet, you were born an heiress. I do not have your choices. Yes, I want to love the man I marry, but if the queen gave me to a stranger, I could not refuse. In the little time I have known your brother he has shown himself to be a kind and gentle man of the most delicate breeding. He says he loves me, and I do not believe he is a man easily confused by his own feelings. In time I believe I can learn to love him, and that is as good a basis for a marriage as any maid in my position has ever had.”

Robin put a protective arm about Angel and softly kissed the top of her golden head. “Thank you, sweetheart, for giving me your trust. I shall endeavor not to disappoint you. Now, little sister, if you are satisfied as to our intentions, may we be on our way?”

“Oh, no, my lord,” said the blushing bride-to-be. “Not until I have changed my gown. I cannot appear before Her Majesty in this travel-worn garment. Will you help me, Velvet?”

“Aye,” came her friend’s reply. Then Velvet said to her brother, “I assume you can arrange a coach for us?”

“A coach?” Robin laughed. “I had thought to have you ladies ride pillion behind Alex and me.”

“Pillion? Nay! We would arrive at
Ardern Hall
so covered with dust they would take us for gypsies! Angel and I have but one other dress apiece, and we will need them again tomorrow. You must find us a coach! I shall leave it to you, Robin. Come, Angel!” Her eyes twinkling, tossing her curls, Velvet took her friend’s arm and led her back into the inn.

In the short time it took for Velvet to help Angel from her worn blue gown and relace her into the magnificent turquoise one that matched her eyes, Robin did manage to find them a coach. He also learned that the queen was supping with the Earl of Leicester in his tent in the middle of the army’s camp.

It was but a few moments’ ride from the Mermaid Inn to the encampment. Upon arriving, the young earl requested a brief audience with the queen, and a few mintues later the four were ushered into Dudley’s quarters.