Free Dragonblade Trilogy - 02 - Island of Glass by Kathryn Le Veque

knight’s quarters. He would not comment on Reid’s
statement, mostly because the same dilemma had kept him up most of the night. 
His euphoria from their engagement had cooled, leaving him muddled for the rest
of the day. This morning, the situation was not much clearer.
    It was misting outside. He could
see Aubrielle standing in the courtyard, wrapped in a heavy cloak with a hood
that concealed her face.  She heard his footfalls as he approached and she
turned to him, her sea-colored eyes luminous. She smiled, completely unsettling
his building annoyance.
    “Good morn to you, sir knight,”
she sounded uncommonly congenial. “I am surprised to see that I am ready before
you are.”
    “Ready for what, my lady?”
    Her smile faded. “To travel to
Glastonbury, of course. Do you mean to say that you have already forgotten our
bargain?”
    “I have not forgotten at all. We
do indeed have a bargain. But we did not specify when this trip to Glastonbury
was to take place.”
    She gazed at him, the pleasant
twinkle leaving her beautiful eyes. He could see all of the excitement drain
from her. After a moment, she turned away and headed back to the keep. Kenneth
watched her go.
    “My lady,” he called to her in a
low voice. “A trip of this magnitude takes some planning. We could perhaps
discuss this after your morning meal.”
    “I have already eaten,” she
grumbled.
    She continued walking and
Kenneth, though he was loathe to do it, followed. “Then we shall discuss it
now.”
    He entered the keep on her heels,
sending a servant for watered ale and bread.  Aubrielle went into the great
hall and removed her heavy cloak. Kenneth stole a glance as she settled into a
chair near the hearth; she had a delightful figure with full breasts and a
slender torso. He went to the fire and stoked the blaze until the flames were
as tall as he was.
    “Now,” he leaned the poker
against the stone. “We cannot leave until the earl is in the ground. Did you
not recollect there is a funeral to be had?”
    She shrugged. “I thought not to
attend because my darling uncle had washed his hands of me. Why should I pay
respects to his memory when he clearly cared nothing for me or my welfare?”
    “Be that as it may, as his heiress,
it is your duty to tend him.”
    She looked away from him, having
nothing to say to that. He leaned against the wall, crossing his big arms and
watching her face. She was such a lovely creature who had moments of perfection
in character, but they were infrequent.  He wanted very much to see more of the
sweetness beneath.
    “You are highly educated, of that
there is no doubt,” he said quietly. “But you still have much to learn.”
    She cast him a long glance. “What
do you mean?”
    “You have much to learn about patience
and of self-sacrifice, and of general manners. Did the monks teach you any of
that, or did they simply give in to your spoiled character and petty whims?”
    Aubrielle flared. “You saw the
marks on my back. The monks indulged me nothing.”
    “Perhaps not. But you did not
learn anything from their beatings. You continue to be headstrong and selfish.”
    “How dare you speak to me that
way.”
    “Have I said anything that is
untrue?”
    She leapt out of the chair, her
cheeks flushing pink. “How would you know if what you say is true? You do not
know me at all. How do you know that am impatient and selfish?”
    “You forgot spoiled and petty.”
    The poker was closer to her than
it was to him. She picked it up and hurled it at his head. Kenneth ducked
easily, turning to watch the poker clatter against the wall.
    “And you forgot violent,” she
hissed. “Simply because I am giving you an earldom, do not think for a moment
that it gives you license to insult me.”
    Kenneth knew she could be
demonstrative with her anger. That was a kind way of putting it. He also knew
that, one day, she might put out his eye were he not careful. If he was going
to subdue this type of behavior, it