A Marriage Made in Secret by Jenni Fletcher

Author:Jenni Fletcher
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2021-04-01T18:08:50+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Henry chewed slowly on his pie, inwardly chiding himself for not having noticed Mathilde’s fear of the water sooner. He ought to have realised in Paris, but he’d been so preoccupied with thoughts about kissing her that evening that he’d forgotten all about her sudden panic on the riverbank. If he’d only remembered, it would have stopped him from making such a potentially monumental mistake today. As venues for their afternoon of freedom went, he could hardly have brought her anywhere worse, and yet, despite that, he was glad that they’d come, as though the river itself had somehow drawn them closer together. He felt honoured, too, that she’d trusted him enough to talk about her mother, although he’d been somewhat unnerved by the way she’d spoken about the Queen afterwards, as if she thought of her as some kind of replacement, someone to whom she could prove her worth after what she considered her failure. He understood the impulse, but as mother figures went, Isabella wasn’t exactly the safest choice, especially now...

He glanced surreptitiously across the table, seized with a strong urge to protect her. She was already far too dependent on Isabella. If she was right about her father, then she had no home to return to if things went wrong at court, which, thanks to Mortimer and the Queen’s increasingly grasping and autocratic behaviour, he was starting to think was a distinct possibility. The great future that everyone had expected and believed in already seemed under threat, just a few months in. He hoped that things would settle down soon, but if there was trouble then Mathilde would be vulnerable... Just the thought of it turned the pie to lead in his stomach.

‘Mathilde...’ He tossed the last piece of crust out of the window for a passing gull to enjoy, coming to an impulsive decision. A risky one, but one that still, strangely, felt right. ‘There was another reason I invited you to come out with me today. I wanted to tell you something.’

‘Mmm?’ She tilted her head to one side, her expression a hundred times more relaxed than when they’d first sat down. ‘It’s not that you’re leaving again, is it?’

‘Ah. Well...’

‘Oh.’ Her face fell in a way that made him want to leap over the table and gather her in his arms.

‘The Scots have begun launching raids into the borders. Mortimer’s riding north with an army and I have to go with him.’

‘I see.’ She gave a sad-sounding sigh. ‘I’d hoped that all that was behind us.’

‘So did I, but that wasn’t what I wanted to tell you either. I have some good news for once. Mortimer’s granted me a manor as a reward for my service.’

‘Henry, that’s wonderful!’

‘The property isn’t large, but it’s a good one. East of Ludlow, towards Worcestershire. It’s a start.’

‘Just a start?’ She laughed. ‘How many manors do you want?’

‘Several. I want to be a man of fortune, of rank even some day. I want...’

‘What?’ She prodded when he hesitated.

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