AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Robbie nodded and took a final look at the two women. The pair might have been past all help by this time tomorrow. Thank the Lord that Kat had talked him into going to the cottage. It would have weighed heavy on his conscience had any of his people died for want of a bit of care and kindness, right on his very doorstep.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
The palfrey skipped along beside the mighty warhorse, with Katherine perched on her back. Poppy might be small, but no one had seemingly thought to mention this fact to the sprightly mare who considered herself a cut above the stallion at her side and never missed an opportunity to nip at Zeus’s flanks when she could. He bore the unprovoked attacks with stoicism and the occasional disgruntled whinny.
Robbie scowled and patted his mount’s neck to steady him after one particularly sharp bite. “Can ye no’ control yer horse. I shall end up rollin’ on me arse i’ the dirt at this rate.”
Katherine stifled a giggle. “I do apologise. She is normally so sweet-natured.”
Robbie made that Scottish sound she now knew quite well, something between a snort and the clearing of his throat. It was far more articulate than mere words at expressing his general displeasure.
“Tell me about Holyrood,” she said, by way of diverting him from his concerns regarding the unruly conduct of her mare. “Is the palace very large?”
“No’ so big as Westminster or Greenwich, but sizeable even so.”
“I have been to Greenwich, never to Westminster.” Her husband was better travelled than she was, even in her own land.
“Holyrood is a pretty enough place, though no’ a palace. ’Tis an abbey, but with royal apartments. James prefers tae make his home there, an’ I gather he intends tae build a palace in the next year or so to house some of his court, but for now most are based at Edinburgh Castle.”
“But why does the king live there if everyone else is at the castle?”
“James likes his privacy. At Holyrood, his friends can come an’ go at will, without always bein’ under the prying eyes of the court.”
“His friends? People such as you, do you mean?”
Robbie laughed. “Well, aye, a lot o’ the time. But really, I mean his mistresses.”
“The king has mistresses?” She should not be shocked. James was, after all, unmarried, and kings did rather tend to do as they liked. But he was betrothed to the daughter of Henry of England, so surely…
“An endless stream of ’em,” Robbie confirmed, “an’ I doubt even he kens how many bastards he has sired already.”
“Oh. I see.” Really, she did not. “But he is only eighteen summers. Surely…”
“I have known the king well, since he took the throne three years ago, an’ in all that time he has never lacked for female companionship. He rarely sleeps alone.”
She fell silent, comparing this image of a monarch to the dour, serious man who now ruled England.
“In fact, since we are discussing the matter,” Robbie continued, “I must ask ye tae contrive not tae find yourself alone with James. He has a keen eye for a lovely woman, an’ for all that I admire him as a monarch an’ I am his most loyal subject, I am not prepared to share my bed or my wife wi’ him.”
“He would not!” Katherine was horrified at the prospect. “And neither would I.”
“Kings dinnae live by the usual rules and conventions, in my experience. James is not above bedding a married woman, I ken that for a fact. Your obvious charms will no’ be lost on him.”
“Even so, I do not think—”
“I have arranged for us to have an apartment in Edinburgh Castle, though I do usually take accommodation at Holyrood. We will be required to attend a number of state gatherings whilst in Edinburgh, an’ I shall accompany ye wherever possible. Our stay will not be an extended one since James needs me to depart for the continent with all possible haste, but I have business tae conduct at court afore we go an’ I cannae be always at yer side. Ye will be presented tae the king, that will be expected. An’ ye must curtsey an’ smile very prettily, but otherwise attempt tae keep your distance.”
“I shall. I most certainly shall.” She was particularly vehement in her reply.
“Aye, well, all will be good, then.Fuck!” He dug his knees into Zeus’s flanks when the stallion reared suddenly. Poppy had seized an unguarded moment to assert herself once more. “I swear, I shall feed that bloody animal to my hounds.”
Katherine patted her mount’s neck. “He does not mean it,” she crooned. “But you really must try to behave yourself.”
Poppy pranced ahead, unrepentant.
The stallion’s long stride soon caught up with the belligerent little mare. Robbie eyed the palfrey with distaste. “I believe when we reach the summit of the next hill, we shall be able tae see the castle ahead. I dinnae ken which of us will be most relieved, Zeus or myself.”
The room they had been allocated at Edinburgh Castle was tiny by comparison with the master chambers at Roxburghe or Elborne. But it had the benefit of a decent-sized fireplace and a view of the city sloping down to the expanse of water known as the Nor’loch. Katherine leaned over the windowsill to observe the bustle in the streets beneath.
