“She might.”
Bayard leaned back in the bath, his eyes dancing.“Quinn wed.There is a marvel I had not thought to see it so soon.”
“And if you continue to comment, then it will be a marvel you will not see.”
“How so?”
“I shall ban you from the festivities for your comments.”
Bayard, untroubled, laughed and laughed.
Quinn did not join his merriment.Even though his annoyance had faded, still he felt disgruntled.The lady Melissande certainly possessed a gift for irking a man.
Or perhaps for irking him.
He sighed and confided the worst of it.“The Lord de Tulley has even been so courteous as to choose the bride.”
Bayard’s eye lit.“Who is she?”he asked.“What is she like?I might wager that she does not see the appeal of the match, given your mood.”
“She does not.”
“How fascinating.”The other knight showed no inclination to abandon the tub.Quinn felt the chill against his bare skin, although the room was warmer than most.He gave his companion a quelling look, but Bayard only smiled as he settled deeper into the steaming water.
The selfish cur showed no sign of ending his bath.
“Have you not soaked the flesh from your bones by now?”Quinn demanded.“I would not catch my death this day.”
“Then she cannot be so unpleasant,” Bayard said.“Although, one must wonder at her looks for Lord de Tulley to be so anxious to see her match made.In such a rush, as well.”He clicked his tongue.“Is she a termagant?”
Quinn chose not to reply.
“Or perhaps he meant to give you no opportunity to reconsider.Tell me more of her.”
“She is heiress of a neighboring holding, Annossy.”
“Wealthy.”Bayard’s brows rose.“Is she old?”
“Nay.”
“Pretty?”
Quinn did not reply.
“A young heiress, likely fine of feature, given your attitude,” Bayard concluded.“That sounds like fine fortune indeed.What precisely is your objection?”
“The objection is the lady’s.”
Bayard chuckled.“Those boots of yours,” he teased, just as Tulley’s servants returned into the chamber with steaming buckets of water.The châtelain himself supervised them, directing them to retrieve a second wooden tub from a shadowed corner.They rolled it out to the middle of the room as more water was fetched to fill it and the châtelain snapped his fingers to hasten them.
Two tubs?Quinn’s eyes widened slightly.It had been a long time since he had visited any hall blessed with such luxury.In fact, Quinn and Bayard had shared bathwater on so many occasions that who would indulge first was an ongoing jest.
“This is a well-equipped keep, Quinn,” Bayard commented, evidently seeing the direction of his gaze.“And your reward for leading us here is no small one, for you will not have to be second after me into the bath on this night.Better yet, I will not have to emerge any time soon.I have waited long for this bath and I will savor it.”
Quinn smiled despite himself at his comrade’s satisfaction.
“Especially as I now have a wedding to attend.”Bayard leaned back in his tub, beckoning to the servant for more hot water.“By the saints above, it will take me a week to soak this filth from my hide.”He sighed and closed his eyes as his water was warmed, then sank beneath the surface for a moment.
Quinn waited until he broke the surface again.“If you are as dirty as you say, then the second tub is a blessing indeed and I am glad of it.”He might have hoped the matter of his bride to be closed, but he knew his comrade better than that.Bayard was cursed curious and never left a matter rest until he understood all of it.
