A rustling in the bushes caught Lady Fairley's attention, and she glanced into them suspiciously. Her gaze narrowed as she caught a brief glimpse of eyes peering through the branches; then they disappeared.
Aha! she thought with satisfaction. Jonathan had followed . . . as she'd hoped. Also, as she'd expected, he had appeared to be irritated with her choice of companions. Perfect. Of course, she'd hoped to have Alice along with her son as well--she'd figured that the best way to get the two together would be to have her son in as many situations with the girl as possible--but everything was a matter of timing, and she would be able to work with this.
Wait! Fate appeared to be smiling on her plans. Margaret was suddenly aware of a light pink cloth showing through the underbrush, and she was fairly certain it was not from anything her son would be wearing.
Turning back to the lunch she had just set out, Lady Fairley murmured under her breath so that only Lord Houghton could hear, "We have visitors."
Much to her amazement, rather than finish sinking down onto the blanket--as he had been doing--the old nobleman straightened and pulled his sword inexpertly from its scabbard. He whirled in place, calling anxiously, "What is it? A wolf? A boar?"
Rolling her eyes at his panicked reaction, Lady Fairley tugged at his breeches. Impatiently she said in a hiss, "Sit down, you old fool. I meant my son and your niece."
Really, she must love her son to be putting up with this clod: Looking slightly embarrassed, Lord Houghton promptly resheathed his sword and settled on the blanket beside her. He grumbled, "Well, you could have just said so."
Her mouth tight with irritation, Margaret tried for a discreet glance toward the bushes, but she couldn't see anything. Hoping that the pair hidden there had missed Houghton's odd behavior, she sought out and found the strawberries. Now she would enact the second part of her plan.
"What are we doing?"
"Shh," Jonathan hissed at Alice, squinting at the pair in the clearing, trying to sort out what was happening. Lord Houghton had jumped up and done a brief spin on the blanket with his sword drawn--as if preparing to fend off a horde of bandits.
Was the old fool trying to impress his mother by acting out made-up tales of bravery? If so, all would be well. Lady Fairley was nothing if not a bright woman, hardly the sort to be impressed by such posturing--especially by such a jester as Lord Houghton. The man was no match for Jonathan's father--now, there had been a true knight and husband!
Reassured, he once more peered through the bushes. His mother was leaning close to the silly Lord Houghton, offering him a strawberry. Oddly, she didn't just hold out the bowl for him to take; she was urging a fruit toward his lips as if he were a babe needing to be coddled.
"What is happening there?" Alice asked impatiently by his ear, making him grimace.
He felt confused himself. "That is what I am trying to figure out! Why is she feeding him like that? Is your uncle so decrepit he cannot feed himself? Must he be fed like a babe?"
Alice moved close enough to peer through the foliage at the couple on the other side. She shrugged impatiently, then said in peevish tones, "She is not feeding him like a babe; she is feeding him like a lover."
"A lover?" He stiffened. "That's impossible. My mother would never do something like that. Besides, I don't see what you mean, anyway."
Alice glanced through the brush again, then looked at him, wide-eyed. "You truly don't see what I mean?" Sighing, she gave an irritated expression he didn't understand, then struggled to her feet. "Wait here."
"What are you doing?"
Alice ignored him and pushed through the bushes out into the clearing. Deaf to his panicky hissed protests, she walked straight over to the couple on the blanket. Smiling at the startled glances her arrival caused, she greeted them cheerfully. "Good day, Uncle, Lady Fairley. I was wondering if I might beg a strawberry from you."
"A strawberry?" they both echoed in bewilderment.
Alice nodded solemnly. "Aye. I wish to show Lord Jonathan something, but I need a strawberry to do it."
"Oh." Lady Fairley and Lord Houghton exchanged a confused glance; then Jonathan's mother reached for the bowl of berries and held them out. "Take as many as you like, dear. We have plenty."
"Thank you." Alice took three and then turned away.
"My dear?" Lady Fairley called.
"Aye?" she asked, turning back.
"Whatever are you doing here?" Jonathan thought his mother looked embarrassed.
"Oh, well," Alice explained. "Mother said I should find you by the stables, but instead I found your son. I gave him the list of prospective brides I made up at your request, and he insisted that we come out here for a picnic to look them over."
"A picnic?" Lady Fairley repeated in seeming bemusement. Jonathan felt his annoyance rise.
"Aye." Alice's expression turned confiding. "I fear he neglected to bother to bring the picnic, however."
"Ah." Lady Fairley smiled. "Well, the two of you are more than welcome to join us. We have plenty," she announced.
"I shall be sure to tell your son that," Alice promised. On that note, she whirled away and rushed back through the bushes. As she returned, Jonathan began softly banging his head against a nearby tree trunk. Alice merely arched her eyebrows in response. She shook her head and moved to again sit at his side.
He turned to her at once. "We were supposed to be spying on them--" He broke off abruptly, silenced by a strawberry she popped into his mouth.
"I am aware of that, my lord," she answered as he automatically chewed, then swallowed. "I am not a complete nodcock."
"Well, then why--"
Another berry quieted him.
"Aiding you in finding a bride is one thing," she snapped. "Aiding you to spy on your mother and my uncle in their private moments is quite another. Now . . ."
Alice held a third strawberry out, then smiled in a way Jonathan could only describe as seductive. It was startling enough to make his mouth snap closed. All thoughts of his mother and Lord Houghton disappeared as Alice leaned forward and rubbed the fruit lightly across his lips. "Another succulent, sweet, juicy strawberry, my lord?" she asked.
Jonathan felt his eyes widen incredulously at the girl's husky tone, but his jaws remained stiffly closed. Her perfume was drifting around him, soft and enticing, and he was hard-pressed not to notice the way she was leaning forward, affording him a lovely view down the neckline of her gown. His eyes were drawn devotedly to the soft, luscious mounds of her breasts, which were pressed affectionately together and upward as if ready to leap out of her clothes at him.
As he continued to simply stare at Alice rather dazedly, she drew the berry away from his mouth to her own, luring his gaze to her full, soft, and very kissable lips. He watched her lick very deliberately at the rounded red tip of the fruit and found himself swallowing. Hard. Then she closed her mouth slowly around it. As juice began to run down from one corner of her lips, Jonathan's body tightened in response. His eyes greedily followed the trail that slid down her chin, and he had the sudden insane urge to lean forward and lick it away. Before he could act, though, the girl's own tongue slid out to catch the dripping juice. Jonathan swallowed harshly, aware that his breathing had become fast and heavy; his body was reacting as if she had licked and nipped at him!
Her demonstration apparently over, Alice straightened, her expression promptly becoming businesslike again. She popped the rest of the berry into her mouth and chewed energetically. "You see?" she asked as she swallowed. Her whole demeanor had changed. "Hardly the way one would feed a baby."
Jonathan blinked. He was completely and thoroughly aroused, his body hard and full of desire from her little show. A feeling of frustration overcame him. Worse, he suddenly realized, his mother was feeding that oaf on the other side of the trees in the same way. If it was giving the old man the same ideas it was giving Jonathan--ideas like licking the sticky, sweet juice from Alice's soft lips, pressing her back into the grass and--
He
rose to his feet with a roar, drew his sword, then charged through the bushes.
Alice stared after Lord Jonathan in amazement, then rushed to her feet and stumbled in pursuit. She reached his side as he paused at the edge of the blanket on which the older couple sat. His hand was clenching his sword, his chest heaving with every breath, and his eyes were darting furiously between his mother and her companion. Those two turned startled gazes up at him.
"Oh, lovely. You decided to join us."
Alice couldn't help but notice that despite the welcome of the words themselves, Lady Fairley sounded far from pleased by Alice and Jonathan's arrival. In fact, the woman was actually glaring at her son. Which was quite odd, Alice decided, since she was sure the invitation earlier had been sincere.
Before she could consider the matter further, Jonathan dropped abruptly onto the edge of the blanket and set his blade down, poking Alice's uncle with its tip in the process. Alice was trying to decide if it had been an accident or not, when the knight reached out to grab her hand and yanked her down, nearly into his lap.
"We are pleased to join you," he claimed, grasping Alice's shoulder to steady her and bestowing an enigmatic smile upon his mother. Then he reached forward, retrieved a strawberry from the small wooden bowl on the blanket, and turned to Alice. "A strawberry, my sweet?" he asked.
"What?" Alice's head shot around to face him, her eyes wide, her mouth gaping slightly. Jonathan popped the berry inside. He then pushed her jaw to chomp on it, before turning to smile at his mother.
"We thought 'twould be nice to enjoy a picnic while we consider my plight."
"Aye. So I heard." Lady Fairley's gaze seemed to narrow on her son with displeasure. "I also hear you forgot the food for this picnic."
"A slight oversight," Jonathan explained through clenched teeth. Then he gave a brilliant smile. "But how is a man expected to think of such petty things with a beauty such as Alice about?"
At that claim Alice's mouth dropped open. She found a second berry popped inside. Jonathan gave her a smile she didn't like and gently pushed her mouth closed. Alice couldn't help it; her eyes narrowed on the big knight suspiciously. Really, it was completely unkind of him to bandy about such compliments when he didn't mean them! Cruel, even. Obviously he had just brought her here as an excuse to spy on his mother!
Swallowing the fruit in her mouth, she turned to speak to Lady Fairley. "Aye, my lady, you understand. Unlike women, 'tis difficult for a man to think of more than one thing at a time. Why, I am constantly amazed that they can walk and converse at the same time. . . . Well, I am amazed by those who can," she added dryly. Turning, she found Jonathan glaring at her. He seemed surprised by her attack. Alice glared right back.
Their staring match was interrupted by what sounded very much like a laugh from Lady Fairley. Alice glanced at the woman, who suddenly burst into a fit of coughs and throat clearing. "Perhaps we should have a look at that list," she suggested after she was through.
Nodding, Alice glanced toward Jonathan expectantly. Scowling and muttering under his breath, the young knight pulled out the scroll he had been given and handed it to his mother. Lady Fairley unfurled the parchment and looked the names over consideringly. "My, 'tis quite a selection, is it not? You are quite fortunate, Jonathan!"
Alice's uncle grunted, leaning over to peer at the list. "Half of them are snaggletoothed hags or harridans. But that still leaves quite a selection."
"Aye." Lady Fairley nodded. "Perhaps we could remove some right now. Shall we go through them?" When no one dissented, she settled more comfortably on the blanket and started to read off names.
Alice sat quietly, listening to the roll of eligible women, but was a bit amazed when Lady Fairley followed each name with a favorable comment. Some of the girls were perfectly lovely, or acceptable in both personality and looks, but really, many of the women Lady Fairley was praising were . . . well . . . not praiseworthy. Either Lady Margaret had no clue of the women at court or she simply wanted her son to be married to anyone. While Alice found that a particularly awful concept, she forced herself to keep her thoughts to herself. This was none of her business, after all.
She could stand it no longer, however, when Heloise of Brock's name came up. When Lady Fairley commented that the woman was "such a friendly lass," Alice could not restrain herself. She muttered under her breath, "Friendly is right. The girl has been 'friendly' with almost every single one of the king's guards."
Much to Alice's chagrin, despite having simply breathed the comment, Jonathan overheard and gave a guffaw of laughter.
Lady Fairley looked sharply at them. Alice sat up straight, trying to adopt an innocent expression. She suspected she failed miserably. Much to her surprise, it was her uncle who saved her. He nudged Lady Fairley curiously and asked, "Who else is on the list, Margaret?"
Alice saw Jonathan stiffen at Lord Houghton's familiar use of his mother's first name. She sighed inwardly. This was all quite ridiculous.
"Lady Rowena," Lord Jonathan's mother read, then glanced up to smile at them all. "Oh, she is a delightful young girl--such a lovely personality. You really must consider her, Jonathan."
He waited until his mother turned back to the list, then raised an eyebrow in Alice's direction. She hesitated, not wishing to be rude or say anything to draw Lady Fairley's quiet ire again, but really, she decided, it would be too cruel not to give some warning regarding Lady Rowena of Wilcox. The woman was sweet as molasses, but her looks left much to be desired. Rowena weighed as much as Alice's uncle's prize cow, and unfortunately resembled it as well, with large, bovine eyes . . . which were crossed. Giving in to a devilish impulse, Alice nodded, then puffed out her cheeks and crossed her eyes in imitation.
A startled laugh burst from Jonathan's mouth, drawing another sharp glance from his mother. The older woman's eyebrows drew down in definite displeasure. Alice lowered her head repentantly, grateful when Lady Fairley continued.
She had gone through three more names, and was praising Lady Blanche for her gentle kindness, before Alice dared glance up. As she did, Jonathan raised his eyebrows questioningly.
Alice shrugged. She had yet to meet Lady Blanche. Jonathan's response to her signal was to waggle his eyebrows, then jerk his thumb toward himself and nod. Alice took that to mean he did know the woman, or at least knew of her. She presumed she was correct when he next sucked his bottom lip and the better part of his jaw back, leaving his top teeth naked and protruding outward, while squinting unattractively in an imitation of the lady in question.
Alice couldn't stop the laugh that spilled from her lips then. It was conjured mostly by how silly he looked. She tried to stop and covered her mouth, her gaze shooting guiltily to Lady Fairley, who'd glanced up again from the scroll.
"Well," the woman said irritably, rerolling the parchment from which she had been reading. "'Tis obvious that we shall not get anything done here today. That being the case, we may as well pack up and head back to the castle. Perhaps you three would be good enough to make a start while I . . . er . . . go for a little walk and clear my head."
Eager to redeem herself, Alice nodded and began to make quick work of the task while Jonathan's mother disappeared. Alice's uncle sat back in a relaxed pose, making it clear he thought this a woman's work. Surprisingly, Lord Jonathan assisted, rewrapping the untouched cheese in its cloth and tossing the unbroken bread in the sack. They were finished quickly and were left to sit and wait on Lady Fairley. She took an inordinate amount of time.
Alice was just thinking the woman might be in distress and need assistance when she suddenly reappeared. Lord Jonathan's mother stumbled out of the woods on the opposite side of the clearing from where she'd entered, looking slightly ruffled and a touch out of breath. Alice noted that with some confusion--she'd assumed the woman had gone on a call of nature--but had little opportunity to comment as the men, apparently more than ready to leave, were immediately up and preparing to do so.
"You know, I believe I have had
a wonderful idea," Lady Fairley announced as Jonathan helped Alice refold the blanket upon which they'd sat. "Perhaps we could arrange a dance tonight. Invite all the eligible women. That way, you could make up your own mind as to who is fitting, Jonathan."
Alice glanced at the knight to see how he took the suggestion. She was less than surprised to see it wasn't well. His eyes were wide with what appeared to be horror.
"Mother, may I suggest you not" he began, but Lady Fairley didn't let him get any farther.
"Thank you, son," she said, taking the blanket he held. She slid it quickly back into the bag she had brought, then moved to reattach the bag to her saddle. "Now, you two had best go retrieve your mounts."
Jonathan frowned, then nodded as he watched his mother settle on her horse. "Aye. We shall return directly."
Alice remained silent as he took her arm and led her out of the clearing.
They had tied the steeds some distance from the spot where they had originally come to sit, and Alice realized now that Jonathan had not wanted the horses to alert the older couple to their presence. Of course, she hadn't known what he was up to at the time. He had ridden out hard from the palace, holding on to Alice's reins as if she might turn and ride back if he did not, then had suddenly stopped and cocked his head as if listening. After telling her to wait where she was, he had ridden off, leaving her alone for a few minutes. It was only after he'd reappeared, suggesting she dismount and proceeding to tie the horses to a tree branch, that he'd let her accompany him farther. He'd led her off through the bushes then to the spot he'd chosen from which to spy.
Alice's honest nature had balked at the infringement of their family members' privacy as soon as she'd realized Lord Jonathan's intent. In fact, she had been looking for an excuse to let the couple know of their presence when she rushed in to borrow the strawberries. Well, that, and she'd suddenly given in to a desire to see what Lord Jonathan would look like while she was feeding him.
At any rate, the upshot of their actions was that they had a bit of a walk before they reached the horses . . . or, to be more exact, Jonathan's horse. Her own appeared to be missing.
"What the devil?" Spotting the lone animal, Jonathan rushed forward through the trees. Alice was hard on his heels. Reaching his mount, the big man looked it over, then examined the branch where the stallion's reins were still tied. "Damn! Someone has stolen your horse."