Over the next hour, she helped distribute food, sent the children off to play, and helped arrange pallets for the younger ones. When at last the needs of each person were met, Edwin stood. “We will talk privately now.”
There was no avoiding it. She led him out of the Great Chamber and paused at the threshold of her room. Fresh rushes covered the floor and she had made small woven tapestries for the walls. In her chamber, gone was the straw pallet she had once slept upon. In its place stood a canopied bed of sturdy oak. The rich blue coverlet, dyed with woad, was part of her dowry, as well as the goose feather mattress. Soft cream curtains hung down around the bed to keep the heat within.
She gestured toward a chair. “You may sit down.”
Her father remained standing, displeasure tightening his features. “Where is your husband?”
“At Laochre, I imagine.” She sat down in another chair, folding her hands. Her nerves had grown steadier, and she saw no reason to hide the truth. “I live here.”
Edwin’s expression darkened. “I arranged this marriage to make you a queen, not an exile.”
“You arranged the marriage to gain control of Laochre. But our men and the Irish are enemies still.” She met his gaze directly. “Nothing has changed in the time since I’ve come here.”
Especially her marriage. Though Patrick had softened toward her, she was still a virgin. And though he’d claimed that nothing was the matter with her, it wounded her pride to think of his denial.
“I should have known you could not manage ruling a kingdom.” Edwin crossed his arms and shook his head with exasperation. “But it won’t matter. In a matter of days, the Earl of Pembroke’s army will arrive here. I will be joining them.”
Isabel’s heart bled at the thought of another battle. “What do they want?”
“Conquest,” Edwin said. “The Earl of Pembroke has come to aid King Dermot MacMurrough in regaining his kingdom. Dermot has promised the earl his daughter’s hand in marriage.”
She shivered, sympathizing with the Irishwoman’s plight. But another matter concerned her more. “Will they attack Laochre again?”
Her father narrowed his gaze. “That all depends on how cooperative your husband is.” His anger seemed to escalate. “But I can see already that he has not followed the terms of our agreement.”
“He wed me, as you ordered.” Needles of fear pricked at her, wondering what else he wanted.
“You are not carrying his babe.”
She blanched and shook her head. With a frank appraisal, her father added, “And I would wager you’re still a virgin.”
Isabel’s mouth tightened, and she did not answer. Her father expelled a curse. “I might have expected this.”
Heavy footsteps approached the chamber. Isabel rose and moved toward the door. It flew open and her husband stood glaring at her and Edwin de Godred.
Patrick had not donned the finery of a king, but even in a soldier’s garb, his presence commanded her. His sun-warmed skin peeked from behind a leather corselet while the gray tunic accentuated the steel of his eyes. Isabel could hardly breathe, for he looked upon her as though he wanted to take her apart with his bare hands.
He didn’t speak but closed the door behind him. His furious stance made her wonder exactly what to say.
“Hello,” she began.
His eyes focused on her, an intense gaze that burned her confidence into ashes. “What is he doing here? And why are Norman women and children here?”
Isabel didn’t quite know how to answer, since anything she said would only vent his anger.
But it was Edwin who replied. “I told you I would come at the end of harvest to see to my daughter’s welfare and to ensure the terms of your surrender.”
“You’ve brought more Normans upon my island,” Patrick accused. “Those were never part of our terms.”
Isabel was about to confess that it was her idea, but Edwin strode forward to face Patrick.
“It was never part of the terms for my daughter to remain a virgin. And she is, isn’t she?”
“No child of your blood will ever sit upon the throne of Laochre,” Patrick proclaimed.
The fury upon her father’s face made Isabel long for an escape. Her cheeks burned with humiliation, and they spoke as if she weren’t there. She stood, fully intending to leave. But Patrick blocked her path.
“Within days, the armies of the Earl of Pembroke will invade these lands,” Edwin answered. “But they will leave you in peace if I ask it.”
