“Hot tea, sire, and Adali will massage my shoulders,” Jasmine responded. “For me it is the sovereign cure. That, and a good night’s rest, and I shall be in fine condition by morning, I am certain.”
“Verra well, madame, then you are excused,” he told her reluctantly.
Jasmine curtsied. The earl of Glenkirk bowed.
“Ye’ll ride out at dawn,” the king commanded James Leslie.
“I shall, sire,” he replied and, taking Jasmine’s arm, departed the royal apartments.
“There now, Piers,” the king said as the pair disappeared. “I hae cleared yer way for ye, but it is ye who must woo and win the lady. I hae promised that the choice be hers, and I will keep that promise, for I am a man of my word.”
“I will win her, sire!”the marquis of Hartsfield said firmly.
“When cows fly,”murmured George Villiers beneath his breath, but Queen Anne heard him and, unable to help herself, began to laugh, helpless to her mirth, which caused tears to roll down her somewhat plain face.
“Why, Annie,” the king said, “I hae nae known ye to laugh so hard in many a year. What is it, my dearie? Will ye share yer jest wi us, eh?”
But the queen waved her hands helplessly at him, choking on her mirth as she did so. “‘Twas j-j-just a t-th-thought, Jamie, and ‘twould only be amusement to another female. “Or perhaps,” she continued regaining control of herself, “‘twould not be.”
The king turned away to speak with the marquis again, and his wife shook her finger at Villiers, who grinned mischievously at her, then winked.
“You’re a wicked laddie,” she scolded him softly.
“Aye,” he agreed complacently, and then, taking her hand up, George Villiers kissed it. “Your servant, Majesty,” he said.
The queen smiled softly, a knowing light coming into her pale blue eyes. “You’re a shrewd laddie,” she told him. “I am glad that we understand each other, Steenie.”
“I’ll never hurt him, Majesty,” was the answer.
“Then you will always have my friendship,” said the queen quietly, “and we are of the same mind inthismatter?”
“Aye, madame, we are,” he told her, “but Lady Lindley is too much in love with the earl of Glenkirk to be swayed, never fear.”
“St. Denis is ruthless,” the queen warned, “and he is clever.”
“I am more clever,” George Villiers assured her.
Queen Anne looked at the beautiful young man with the face of an angel. “Why, Steenie,” she told him thoughtfully. “I do believe that you are.”
He sent her a radiant smile.
Chapter Nine
There was a faint scraping against the casement windows in Jasmine’s bedchamber. A light wind ruffled the surface of the Thames. The moon silvered both the lawns and the river. Anyone looking up would have seen the shadowy figure of the man who had climbed the thick vine which grew up the brick side of the house. Clinging to his precarious ladder with one hand, he fumbled to open the casements and, meeting with success, swung himself over the sill and into the room. Walking over to the bed, he looked down upon the woman there.
It was the sound of the windows opening, and the thump of feet hitting the floor that had aroused and awakened her fully. Jasmine opened her eyes. “Jemmie!” she said, recognizing the silhouette looming over her. “Are you mad?”
“Aye,” he told her. “Mad for you, darling Jasmine!” Sitting on the edge of the bed, he pulled his boots off, then, standing, began to remove his clothing. “Did you think I would go off to Edinburgh for the next month without coming to say a proper good-bye?” He slid naked beneath the sheets with her, taking her into his arms.
“But what of Kipp St.Denis, my faithful watchdog?” she demanded. “He will go running to his brother, and then the marquis will complain to the king, and then heaven only knows what will happen,” she fretted.
“Kipp has gone home. I simply outwaited him. I then followed him back to his brother’s house to make certain. Turnabout is fair play, after all, is it not, darling Jasmine?” He nuzzled her ear, inhaling the warm fragrance of her. “I even watched the lights go out all over St.Denis’s house.” He nibbled upon a perfectly shaped earlobe. “Only then did I come to you.”
“Ohhh, Jemmie,” she sighed, pressing her body against his. “I have been wild with longing for you, and now you are to leave me.”
“But not until the morning, sweetheart. We have a few hours until then, and I intend that we make the most of them. It has been hellish not sharing your bed. I ache to have you as my wife.”
“Promise me we will never have to come to court or involve ourselves with the Stuarts ever again,” she said fiercely. “I do not like having my life manipulated by others, Jemmie. We will live in your Highlands forever, if we must, to escape the royal meddling. I know the king does not like his native land, and so is unlikely to chase after us.”
