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‘It’s almost dark, my lady.’ Tomas gestured up at the sky as if she might have somehow have missed the fact. ‘Perhaps you’d care for some refreshment instead? We weren’t expecting you, but I can soon have something
prepared.’
‘That would be lovely, but I’m still going to explore first. It’s been so long and I want to see everything.’
‘Are you certain? The walls can be dangerous.’
‘I’m not a girl any more, Tomas...’ she smiled fondly at the steward ‘...and I’ll have my knight to protect me.’
‘Which I swear to do with my life.’ Matthew bowed again.
‘As you wish then, my lady.’ Tomas looked faintly amused. ‘I recognise that expression. It’s exactly the way your mother used to look when she’d made up her mind to do something and I knew better than to argue with her, too. Refreshments will be ready whenever you are.’
‘Thank you.’ She turned towards the palisade steps, drawing in a deep, satisfied breath and then sighing it out again. She was home.
* * *
‘I thought I’d never get you to sit still and eat.’ Matthew’s eyes danced with humour as they sat in her old chamber, half a dozen beeswax candles illuminating the small table set between them. ‘How many times have you been around the keep now, do you think?’
‘Four or five?’ She laughed. It was a fair point. She’d been up and down the keep steps so many times, exploring every last nook and cranny of her newly reclaimed territory, that Matthew had eventually blocked the way and practically marched her to a seat. ‘It’s just that I’ve spent so long imagining it all in my head.’
‘And did you remember correctly?’
‘For the most part. It seems smaller, but then I suppose I’ve grown.’
He rolled his eyes. ‘You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?’
‘No.’
‘I don’t see why when I’ve made it clear that I like everything about your size—’ he dipped his gaze appreciatively ‘—and shape, too. But now you need to eat. You must be hungry.’
‘I am.’ Constance eyed the trencher in front of her. Compared to the way they’d eaten over the past couple of days, the few slices of mutton and bread seemed somewhat spartan. The animal-horn cups looked old-fashioned, too. ‘I know the food isn’t up to Wintercott standards.’
‘It’s all I want.’ His expression was tender. ‘It’s all I need, too, Constance. This—and you.’
‘Oh.’ She ran her tongue along her lower lip. Suddenly she wasn’t feeling quite so hungry any more, not for food anyway, but Tomas had gone to so much effort. She had to eat a few bites at least...
‘Constance...’ Matthew’s tone shifted suddenly. ‘Now that you’re home, this is where I want you to stay. If anything should happen to me, do whatever you need to do to protect Lacelby.’
She blinked, surprised by the seriousness of the words. ‘Is this because of your father and your argument earlier?’
‘Argument?’ One side of his mouth curved upwards. ‘That’s the polite way to put it, I suppose. You mean when I tried to strangle him?’
‘You weren’t going to strangle him. You would have stopped before you really hurt him.’
‘Possibly.’
‘Matthew...’
‘Yes, I would have stopped.’ He pushed his trencher away and ran a hand over his brow. ‘I may not like it or him, but he’s still my father. Apart from anything else, I’ve no intention of hanging for him.’
‘But surely whatever happened between the two of you is over? He threw you out.’
‘Ye—es.’ His gaze remained troubled. ‘But I don’t know what else the future may bring. Only whatever happens, I promise I’ll do everything I can to protect you. Lacelby, too. It was never my intention to bring trouble to your door. Only you should do what you think is best, too.’
‘All right,’ she answered dubiously. He sounded so grim that she couldn’t help but feel a faint stirring of alarm...
‘But this is a special night, your first back at home.’ He seemed to make an effort to smile. ‘We can talk about the future another time. Right now you need to eat and then get some rest. You’ll need your strength for showing me around tomorrow.’
