Page 34 of Sweet Mead for Lady Martine

“Mother, we are four months late with the rent,” he told her.

“Oh, no.” His mother’s hand went to her mouth. “Why didn’t you say something about this sooner? I had no idea it was so bad.”

David put his arm around his mother’s shoulders. “I didn’t tell any of you because I didn’t want you to worry.”

“Well, we’re certainly worried now,” said Matilda in a sharp tone. “David, you should have told us.”

“Then did Lord Corbett take the inn away from us? Did we lose our home?” The fear on Cecelia’s face said it all. The poor girl lost her husband a few months ago and was about to birth a baby soon and would have to raise it on her own. David had to say something, anything, to try to comfort her.

“Nay, Lord Corbett didn’t take it,” he said, which was the truth.

“Oh, good,” said Greta. “I’d hate to think we lost the inn.”

David cleared his throat.

“There’s more, isn’t there?” asked Matilda.

“Yes,” said David. “Since we didn’t have the rent money, I had to give up the inn after all, but we won’t be forced to leave here.”

“That makes no sense,” said Uncle Joe from the door. He and Dirk had been standing there listening and David hadn’t even known it. “If we lost the inn then why are they letting us stay here?”

“Because we have a new owner now,” explained David.

“A new owner? Who?” Dirk wanted to know.

David released a deep breath and answered. “Lady Martine now owns the Cross Hare Inn. She left for now but will be back tomorrow. She’s going to help us raise the money to pay off our debts. The only thing is, we need to do it before her father and uncle return.”

“That makes no sense,” spat Dirk.

Uncle Joe spoke up next. “Do you mean we have only until Lord Corbett returns to try to earn the money, or we really will lose the inn and have no place to live?”

“Yes. I suppose that is exactly what I’m trying to say,” David answered.

“When will he return?” asked Matilda.

“We don’t know the answer to that.” This wasn’t getting any easier for David.

“In other words, it might be a month or two or it could only be a day or two?” asked his mother.

“Mayhap,” said David with a shrug. “It’s a chance we’ll have to take. We have no other choice. Lady Martine is trying to help us.”

The room was silent and no one said a word.

Finally, Dirk spoke up. “Since Lady Martine is going to be here and our living quarters are small, I volunteer to share my bed with her,” he said, making the girls giggle and causing David to want to slug him.

“She’s not staying here at night,” David told them. “At least, I don’t think so. Either way, you’re not sharing a bed with a noblewoman so get that crazy idea out of your head right now.”

“David is right.” Joe used his cane to tap the floor and stepped forward. “We don’t have another choice. We should be thankful Lady Martine wants to help us. I don’t believe any other noble would be so accommodating in our situation.”

“I agree,” spoke up his mother. “I like Lady Martine.”

“So do we,” Cecelia answered for her and Matilda. “We’ll do anything she says if it’ll help us save our home.”

“Me too,” said David softly, walking over and closing the lid on the empty wooden box that had held the deed to the inn. He was the head of this family now and it was up to him to make sure things went smoothly. Especially, when Lady Martine returned. Even though he wasn’t sure how having Martine here was going to work or what she could actually do to help them, it at least gave his family hope. As disturbing as this whole situation was, at the same time David still had a good feeling deep down. Martine wasn’t a shrew after all. This proved she still had a good heart.

One good thing that came from all of this was that now he’d have a real reason to be close to Lady Martine. With any luck, mayhap he’d even get another chance to kiss her.