Willa did not feel at all well. She felt sure she was dying. Her husband had killed her with a cold. And why had Eada not foreseen this?
The man slumbering in bed beside her rumbled in his sleep as he shifted about. He was lying naked, with not even the linens on him, while she was buried under a mountain of furs and still freezing.
Pig, she thought with annoyance. He'd made her sick and now slept like the dead while her coughing had awoken her and would not let her rest. Her gaze dropped to his bare buttocks. The poultice had fallen off and now lay on the edge of the bed. Stupid man, how would he heal if he did not keep the poultice on? Willa pushed the furs aside and leaned over to snatch up the poultice. She slapped it back on his rear end.
The action had a most satisfying effect on Hugh. Even as Willa dropped back beneath the furs, his snores ended and he reared up on the bed with a bellowed, "Yow!"
"Bad dream, my lord?" she asked innocently as his bleary eyes found her.
Grunting, Hugh dropped back onto his stomach. Willa glared at him, then forced a smile when he glanced her way. He frowned. "You should be sleeping."
"Aye. I should," she agreed dutifully.
"Why are you not?"
"I cannot sleep. I do not feel well and I am cold."
Hugh's forehead wrinkled as he pondered her words, then he reached out one arm, hooked it around her waist and dragged her to his side. The next thing Willa knew, she was tucked up half beneath him with his leg cast over both of hers. He tugged the furs up to her neck and settled his arm on top of them so that it lay in front of her face.
"Your poultice," she squeaked against his forearm.
" 'Tis dried out now," he said on a yawn. Then he settled his head on her breast and brushed it back and forth atop the furs. He settled with a satisfied sigh.
Willa lay completely still, realizing he planned to warm her with his own body heat. He was warm, she realized as some of the chill left her. She relaxed a bit and peered at his face. His eyes were closed again, but she didn't think he slept.
"Thank you." She smiled shyly when he opened one eye to check on her.
"No thanks are needed. You are my wife. 'Tis my job to warm you when you are cold. 'Tis my job to give you what you need. Do you need for anything, you must ask me." His eyes closed again, and Willa made a face at him. His words had somehow belittled his action. She lay still for a moment, then asked, "Lord Hillcrest was truly your uncle?"
Hugh blinked his eyes open, looking vaguely surprised at the question. "Aye."
He closed his eyes again, and Willa glanced over his arm at the room around them. No, there was nothing to entertain her there. She peered back at his face. "I do not recall that you ever visited us either here or at Claymorgan."
He opened his eyes again, but this time annoyance was the overriding expression on his face. "Nay."
"Why?"
He shifted, his leg moving restlessly across hers. "My uncle never really encouraged visitors. In fact, more often than not he discouraged it."
"That would be my fault," Willa said unhappily. "He was probably trying to protect me, as usual. Lord Wynekyn was the only visitor he allowed."
She saw Hugh scowl and turned her face away with remorse. He caught her chin and turned it back. " 'Twas not your fault. My father and uncle had a falling out," he said firmly, then released her chin again and closed his eyes once more.
"What sort of falling out?" Willa asked.
Hugh frowned but didn't open his eyes this time. He merely said, "You are ill and should rest."
"I am bored and you did say that 'twas your duty to supply whatever I need," she wheedled. "I need information... to reassure me that I was not at fault for your not being able to visit Papa."
That brought his eyes open. "Was he your father?"
Willa flushed. "Nay. He said not, but I thought of him so. He was the only father I knew."
Hugh nodded slowly, then said, "You were not at fault. I do not think you were even born when they had their falling out. I was only nine or so at the time."
"What happened?"
For a moment she thought he would not answer, then he heaved a long-suffering sigh and explained, "My father was the second son. He use to run Claymorgan for Uncle Richard, but they argued over how he should run it. My father decided he would strike out and make his fortune as a knight. He failed. Sleep."
Willa blinked at the abrupt order at the end of the short explanation. He'd closed his eyes again. She glared at him briefly, then dragged one hand out from under the furs to poke his arm. "What happened then?" she asked the moment his eyes opened again.
"When?"
"Well, after you left Claymorgan?"
"I told you, my father tried to make his fortune as a knight. He failed."
"Why?"
He looked unhappy, then said, "He was a fine warrior, perhaps the best of his time, but he had spent too many years running Claymorgan. He was used to luxuries a knight cannot afford."
"Well, what of you?"
"What of me?"
"Where were you and - Do you have any brothers and sisters?" Good Lord, she couldn't believe she'd neglected to ask such things ere this.
"Nay. I was an only child. Mother called me her miracle child. She was with child many times, but I was the first and last to survive birth."
Willa accepted his words with a nod, then asked, "Well, where were you and your mother while your father was trying to earn his fortune as a knight?"
"We traveled with him."
Willa wasn't fooled by his matter-of-fact tone of voice. She knew it must have been a hard, lonely life. "Where are your mother and father now?"
"Dead." The word was hollow. "My father died while I was fostering. Mother followed shortly after."
"Then you are alone, like me."
Hugh glanced at her sharply, but merely nodded. "Aye."
"Except, of course, for Jollivet and Lucan," she added and watched the grimace that flashed across her husband's face. She'd noticed that he seemed to react so every time his cousin was mentioned.
"Aye, well, Jollivet is the son of my father's sister. His mother was a lady-in-waiting to the queen. He has spent a great deal of time in London and around court since earning his spurs. Much to his detriment," he added under his breath.
"And Lucan?" Willa asked, her lips twitching at his comment. "He seems a very good friend to you."
"He is. We fostered together. He is like a brother to me. We both had poor prospects while growing up. He is a second son. I was the first born of a second son. If Uncle Richard had had children..." He shrugged and fell silent.
"I am sorry you did not get to know Lord Hillcrest better. I know you are angry that he made you marry me, but he was a good man."
Hugh was silent for so long, Willa thought he wasn't going to respond. Then he said solemnly, "Aye. He was a good man. I did not think that he knew where I was or what I was doing, but the day I earned my spurs, a messenger arrived leading the most beautiful horse I have ever seen. The stallion bore the finest chain mail and sword that I could have dreamed of. There was a letter with it. He had been following my progress. I had done him proud. This was his gift to me."
Willa felt tears fill her eyes. "Aye. That sounds like Papa. He was terribly kind. He must have loved you a great deal."
"Aye." Hugh looked uncomfortable; then his expression became stern. "Now sleep."
He closed his eyes again. Willa considered asking another question; there were quite a few things she would like to know about him, but she'd already made him speak more in the past few moments than he had in all the days that she'd known him. She didn't wish to push her luck. Besides, she would no doubt have a couple of days to get those answers from him. She also was growing weary again.
Yawning, she noted Hugh's deep breathing. He appeared to have fallen back to sleep. However, he was not snoring anymore. Willa watched him sleep, her eyes growing weary and beginning to droop. Then she shifted to a more comfortable position and slid a hand out to move his arm lower. Though she enjoyed the warmth of his body, his arm felt like a great felled tree across her chest. The weight made it even harder to breathe than the stuffiness of her cold.
Hugh murmured in his sleep and tightened his hold on her waist. He pulled her even closer until her left breast was pressed against him. Willa peered at her husband's face in repose. He did not look nearly so fearsome in sleep. His face was almost endearing like this. Not that he wasn't attractive when he was awake, but it was a harsh handsomeness then. Dark and stern. Well, all right, grumpy. He looked young and sweet in sleep.
Smiling, she cuddled closer and shut her eyes to allow sleep to claim her.
"I am ill! You should let me win," Willa exclaimed as Hugh called check.
"Ha!" He laughed up at her from where he lay on his belly, surveying the chessboard. "You win often enough on your own without my letting you win. Who taught you to play?"
"Uncle." She grinned, pleased that he had noticed her skill. "I have beaten Baldulf, Howel and my uncle over the years. I like to win."
"Aye." His gaze became considering. "You have a competitive nature."
Willa opened her mouth to deny it, but then closed it. She wasn't sure why the description bothered her. It simply did not seem an admirable quality in a woman and the description sat awkwardly on her shoulders. Willa hadn't been raised to be competitive. She'd been raised to do as she was told. Knowing that those around her risked their lives to guard and care for her, she'd been as well-behaved and obedient as was possible.
"Tell me about your childhood," Hugh said suddenly and Willa glanced at him with amusement.
"I have already told you about my childhood, at length," she said. And it was true. They had spent the past three days getting to know each other as they recovered. Eada, Lucan and Gawain had been their only visitors. Eada checked on them twice a day, changing Hugh's poultice and dosing them both with various vile tasting herbs meant to help them heal. Gawain delivered the food, tasting it before Willa was allowed to eat. And Lucan had kindly stepped in to act as intermediary between Hugh and his responsibilities as lord while he was mending. He delivered messages from Howel and anyone else who wished his counsel, then carried away Hugh's decisions with him.
Other than that, they had spent their time playing chess, dice and talking. Willa had quite gotten over her shyness with her husband. That never-ending chattering that Eada had commented on had taken over and she'd told him almost everything there was to know about herself. In return, Willa had pestered him about his past and had found herself saddened to learn that his youth sounded as lonely as her own. She felt a kinship with him.
"Not everything."
Willa glanced up, feeling suddenly wary. "Aye. I have."
"You have told me all about your life since moving to the cottage here at Hillcrest," he agreed. "However, you have not even started on your time at Claymorgan."
Willa stared down at the chessboard and shook her head. "I was very young. I do not recall that time."
"Nay?" He took her hand and began to toy with it.
"Nay," Willa assured him, watching their hands. When he lifted them to press a kiss to the back of hers, she followed the action with her eyes. Then his tongue slid out to lick at the tender spot at the joining of her first and second fingers. Little tingles immediately ran up her hand and arm and made her toes curl.
"Not even Luvena?" he queried, licking the sensitive spot again.
Willa swallowed and shook her head. He licked between the second and third finger now. The tingling seemed to shoot further with each lick, and Willa found herself shifting as those tingles made it all the way to the apex of her thighs. It did not help that she clearly recalled the night they had consummated their union and the delectable things he'd done then.
Hugh drew her third finger into his mouth with his tongue and Willa bit her lip to keep from saying anything. He nipped it gently with his teeth, suckled the digit, then removed it. "Tell me about Luvena," he coaxed.
Willa shook her head and curled her fingers into a fist. Hugh was silent for a moment. At first she thought he was angry with her, but then he shifted to his knees and leaned forward to press his lips to hers. Willa opened to him at once, inviting the deep kisses she enjoyed most. The ones that made her hungry for more. She wanted to wrap her arms around him and press him close to her body, but Eada had said he would tell her what to do and he'd not said that was alright, so she forced her hands to remain at her sides and merely drank all the satisfaction and pleasure she could from his mouth.
Willa nearly spoke her gratitude into his mouth when he pressed her back on the bed and came down on top of her. She wanted to feel his body against hers. All of his naked body against hers. Unfortunately, while Hugh had remained unclothed the last three days, she had not. Except for when they slept, Willa was dressed. As she was now. Her clothes were between them and she didn't like it. It was a relief when he began to tug at the lacings of her gown. He hadn't even finished undoing the lacings, however, when the door opened without warning.
Willa and Hugh broke apart at once, both of them looking to see who had entered. It was Eada. She was late this morning. Or they had woken early. They had been playing chess while they awaited her arrival and that of Alsneta's nephew, Gawain, with food for them to break their fast.
"Well, ye must be feeling better if ye're up to that nonsense," Eada said dryly as she moved to the bed.
Hugh saw Willa flush with embarrassment at the acerbic comment, and scowled at the old witch for distressing her. He waited until he was sure the hag had seen his displeasure, then shifted to lie on his stomach to be examined. He grimaced and tried not to shudder as her cold hand clasped his arse. He could swear the old woman got her jollies examining him. She certainly seemed to like to touch him more than he felt was necessary.
"Hmm." He glanced over his shoulder to see her bent over, peering at his healing carbuncle. "Yer a fast healer, m'lord. 'Tis doing very well. Very well, indeed. Ye can get up. But try not to sweat and don't sit on it. I will be checking it tonight and if it has increased again rather than shrunk more, I shall have ye back on yer belly."
Hugh scowled at her stern words, but couldn't help noticing that Willa was beaming at this news. She was obviously pleased that he was healing well. As she should be. She was also looking quite expectant as the old woman walked around to her side. Getting off the bed, Hugh found his braies and began to drag them on as the witch examined his wife.
"How is yer cough?" the hag asked as he tied the string of his drawers.
"I hardly coughed at all last night," Willa told her promptly. "And only once or twice since awaking."
Hugh saw the crone reach out to feel Willa's forehead, then turned his attention to searching for his tunic.
"Hmm." That noncommittal sound drew his gaze around. The hag had her head bent to Willa's chest, listening to her breathe. As he watched, she straightened with a nod. "Very well then, ye can be up and about, too. And not a moment too soon. Those beasties of yers are drawing nearer the castle every day. They showed themselves in the clearing last night and scared the willies off the guards."
"Oh dear!" Willa scrambled off the bed and started for the door.
"Just a minute," Hugh said sharply, but he was overridden by Eada, who barked, "Yer shoes!"
Willa whirled at once to begin searching for her shoes. Though she'd dressed every day, she'd not bothered with footwear since taking her shoes off the night they had consummated their marriage. Hugh wasn't surprised they were not readily at hand. He saw her cast one quick glance around; then she dropped out of sight on the other side of the bed. Frowning, he walked around the bed, stopping abruptly at the sight of her derriere poking out from under it. She'd half-crawled under the bed in search of her shoes. Apparently, somehow, at some point, they had been kicked under the bed, because she released a victorious "ah ha," then backed out, and straightened, shoes in hand.
"Here they are!" She grinned at him and Eada, and began to pull them on.
Hugh opened his mouth to speak, but again, Eada beat him to it. "Good. Now, ye'd best run down to the kitchen and see if Alsneta has something ye can take to those beasties. And see if ye can't lure 'em back to the clearing by the cottage."
"I will," Willa called, hurrying for the door.
"Just a damn minute," Hugh bellowed as she opened the door. Finally, he had her attention. She paused in the open door and turned a surprised face back.
"Aye, my lord husband?"
"You are not going out alone to find those wolves of yours," he began. That was as far as he got. His pretty little wife laughed lightly and shook her head.
"Of course not, my lord. I shall take Baldulf with me." She rushed through the door and pulled it closed before he could comment further.
Cursing, Hugh started across the room after her. He couldn't let her leave the castle with just Baldulf. The soldier was fine as a guard here. However, Hugh wasn't about to let her out of the castle with only one man to accompany her.
"My lord!" Eada called.
"What?" Hugh paused at the door and turned back with irritation, just in time to have a ball of cloth slap him in the face as she tossed it from the other side of the bed. Hugh caught the material automatically and glanced down to find it was his missing tunic. He actually managed a thank you before whirling away to open the door. He donned his tunic as he rushed down the hall, chasing after his wife and Baldulf. He caught up to the pair on the stairs.
"Willa!" He sounded as impatient as he felt. Willa didn't seem overly concerned about his sour mood, however.
She smiled over her shoulder at him as she continued down the stairs. "Is it not lovely to be up and about again?"
Hugh grimaced at the question. Though he was grateful that his arse was improving and that she was recovering from her cold, he'd rather enjoyed their time in the sickbed together. She'd been a tad testy at first - obviously she did not take illness well - but then they had talked and laughed and played chess and dice.
Hugh had relaxed for the first time in a long time and Willa had relaxed enough to show a tendency to chatter. He'd enjoyed that, too. Her voice was as sweet in speech as it was in song and he'd enjoyed listening to her speak. Of course, he hadn't always been listening to exactly what she was saying. Sometimes, he had simply watched her lips move and allowed the musical highs and lows of her speech to drift over him, grunting once in a while to keep her babbling. He was almost sorry to see their time alone together end. He especially wouldn't have minded another hour to finish what he had started. He was sure he could have made her babble now that she was no longer nervous around him. His wife did not appear to be of the same opinion. She seemed to think it was wonderful to escape their enforced stay in the bedchamber. That was hardly flattering.
Becoming aware that she and Baldulf had continued on down the stairs without him, Hugh frowned and chased after them again. "Willa, Wilf and Fin - "
"Wolfy and Fen," she corrected with a laugh. "I can hardly wait to see them. It has been three days. They must be starved. And I really must try to urge them back to the clearing by the cottage. They will be much safer there."
"Aye. Nay. You need a proper guard - "
"I know, husband. Baldulf is coming with me." She smiled at the silent man descending the stairs at her side.
"Baldulf is not enough. I would have at least six men accompany you."
"Six?" That made her pause and turn on him with dismay. "Wolfy and Fen will hardly come around if I have half a dozen armed guards traipsing behind me! "
"Six," Hugh insisted, crossing his arms over his chest in a manner meant to convey that he would not be moved on this matter. Then he scowled, not at all certain that six men were enough. Perhaps he should send more, he thought, then became aware of the anger in her eyes. He watched with fascination as it built, then was suddenly doused by a smile.
"Very well, husband." Turning, she continued down the stairs. "I shall go to the kitchens to beg some scraps from Alsneta. Have the five men you wish to accompany Baldulf and myself meet us at the stables."
Hugh watched her go with narrowed eyes. Suspicion was rife within him. Willa had agreed too easily and far too pleasantly. In his experience with women, that meant she was up to something. Recalling how easily she had escaped his guard a time or two at the cottage, he let his shoulders droop with defeat. He couldn't trust her safety to even six men. He would have to accompany her himself. Hugh was scowling over that fact when it occurred to him that it meant his time alone with her was not yet over. He would get to spend at least part of another day with her.
Feeling more cheerful at this thought, he continued down the steps. A burst of laughter drew his eyes to his wife as she and Baldulf approached the kitchen doors. Now that he wasn't distracted by the need to see that she did not leave the castle with only Baldulf to guard her, he was free to watch the sway of her skirts as she walked. Unfortunately, there wasn't much sway to her skirts. The material was too coarse and the fit too large. Which reminded him that he simply had to get her some new gowns. She was now the wife of an earl and should be outfitted accordingly. He scowled over the matter briefly, then thought of his cousin. The popinjay ought to be good for something. Hugh would have a word with his cousin ere he went to the stables, he decided.
