Kevin sighed heavily. “I do not know,” he said. “Mayhap he is one of the many who have vowed vengeance against me. But you needn’t worry. I will find the man and I will punish him.”
Annavieve released him slightly so that she was looking him in the eye, her face very close to his. “You told me that you went to the Levant and discovered you had a talent for killing men,” she said, looking rather concerned for him. “I will not ask you totell me stories of your exploits the way the king did the night we supped with him, but I will ask you if you believe your sins from the Levant have followed you home. If they have, then Magda was the first victim. I wonder if I will be next.”
His features hardened. “Nay,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “You will not be a victim and if my sins have followed me home from the Levant, then they are my sins to bear alone. You will not suffer because of them if I can help it. I swear to you, Anna, that I will protect you until the death. I would die a thousand painful deaths if only to keep you safe.”
She leaned her forehead against his cheek. “I do not worry for me,” she murmured. “But I do worry for you. If this man is truly looking for you, then you must take great care.”
He closed his eyes, feeling her in his arms, now feeling a good deal of apprehension regarding her safety. He didn’t want to tell her of his suspicions, that he had possibly been followed from the Levant, because it seemed she already had those same suspicions. He didn’t want to frighten her more by confirming them. He kissed the top of her dark head.
“Do not worry for me,” he told her. “I can take care of myself. But from now on, you shall never be without a knight for protection. If I am not able to be with you, then one of my subordinates will. You will never again be vulnerable.”
Annavieve simply nodded. For the longest time, they held each other in silence, each to their own thoughts. Annavieve’s tears over Magda’s death had calmed but they were very close to the surface; more than once, tears rolled down her cheeks which she quickly wiped away. When Kevin thought she was sufficiently calm, he gave her a squeeze and gently let her go.
“Now,” he said. “I have a mass competition to attend in about an hour and you will accompany me. Would you like to change into one of your new garments? I must go and prepare, so if youwould like to wear something different, let us select it now so that you may change your clothing.”
Unenthusiastically, Annavieve looked to her open trunks including the jewel box, which had been shoved back into the room and sat just inside the closed door. She was emotionally and physically drained after the day she had just experienced and attending a tournament game, no matter how exciting she’d once thought it might be, no longer held the appeal that it had even an hour ago. Her heart simply wasn’t in it.
“Must I go?” she asked.
He gave her a squeeze. “I cannot leave you here,” he said. “You might as well go. Please let me give you a smile on this terrible day of days, Anna. You will like it, I promise.”
She sighed sadly. “I am not sure if I can,” she said, her voice tight. “My heart is broken. I cannot enjoy anything right now.”
Kevin wasn’t unsympathetic. “I know,” he said. “But if Magda were here, she would tell you to go. She would tell you not to worry over her, for she is in Heaven now. She is happy. She would not want you to be sad for her.”
Annavieve wiped at her nose, eyeing him. “How do you know she would tell me to go?” she asked, a tinge of humor in her tone. “More than likely, she would sit on me to keep me from attending.”
He grinned. “Then pretend you have outsmarted her and are attending a tournament she does not want you to attend,” he said. “Would it not give you satisfaction if you knew you had disobeyed her?”
Annavieve couldn’t help but laugh at the thought. He had a point. Resigned, but still very saddened, she reluctantly agreed and he kissed her, encouraging her to get out of the bed and select something lovely to wear. She did, very hesitantly at first, but soon enough the lure of her lovely dresses helped overcome grief that was clouding her entire spirit at the moment. Shecouldn’t imagine facing the rest of her life without Magda but that was indeed the situation now. She had no one except Kevin, and not even Kevin truly belonged to her. She felt like an orphan.
But she summoned her bravery as much as she could and tried to focus on something else. Soon, she had selected a beautiful crimson and gold gown and Kevin took great pleasure in helping her dress. The truth was that he helped her remove the lamb’s wool and once she was down to her shift, he removed it and put her back on the bed, making love to her in the lazy warmth of the early afternoon.
Annavieve responded eagerly, finding comfort for her grief in his touch, as he awakened desires within her that she never knew to exist. His mouth was all over her body, tasting her everywhere, and he brought her to a climax with his mouth upon her sex very quickly. He left her panting, wanting for more, and when he finally joined his body with hers, it was with measured and delectable force. He positioned her in such a way that he was able to suckle her breasts as he made love to her and she again climaxed easily with his expert attention.
But as he approached his climax, he did something strange; instead of spilling himself into her body as he’d done before, he withdrew right at the moment of release and spent himself on her belly. Annavieve watched, fascinated, as pearls of thick liquid ended up on her flesh. After kissing her endlessly when he was finished, he quietly cleaned off his spill with a corner of the coverlet and, with a somewhat embarrassed grin, embarrassed that he’d lost control, he encouraged her to dress once again.
As Kevin put his clothing back on, Annavieve resumed dressing in an off-white shift of linen and the crimson and gold gown over it. Kevin had to help her with it because it needed to be cinched up in the back, but the truth was that they’d never spent such a sweet and wonderful moment together. Kevin, who was supposed to be dressing her, kept kissing the exposed fleshof her back and neck as he tightened up the stays. Annavieve would giggle, putting her hand back to feel his head against her shoulder, running her fingers through his growing–in hair. It was a sweet experience and one she needed desperately. As he helped her gather her shoes, she broke the warm silence.
“Why did you do that?” she asked softly.
He was taking a knot out of one of the ribbon garters she was intending to use. “Do what?”
She looked back over to the bed. “When we were…,” she stopped, trying to make hand gestures to describe their lovemaking rather than actually speaking the words, which she found somewhat embarrassing. “You did not spill your seed within me. You pulled yourself out. Why did you do that?”
He finished straightening out the knot and handed the garter to her. “Because,” he answered. “I have realized that the sooner you conceive, the sooner my task ends. I do not want this to end, Annavieve. If I can stop it from ending, I will.”
It was such a deliriously sweet thing to say and Annavieve’s heart swelled with love for the man. She reached up, touching his rough cheek. “But the duke expects a child.”
Kevin sighed heavily, kissing the palm of her hand. “I know,” he said. “But mayhap we can delay the inevitable for a while, at least until I can determine what is to be done with this situation.”
She cocked her head curiously. “What do you think we will do?”
He sat down on the bed beside her as she rolled hose up her leg. “Any child you bear will be mine,” he said, his voice quiet. “I have decided that I am not apt to surrender any son of mine to the House of de Ferrers. The child you bear will be a Hage. He will be mine, as will his mother. You may be married to another man, Anna, but it is a man who would be horrible to you and, I suspect, horrible to any child you may have. You weretaken from your mother at birth, which is what I suspect Dorset will do to you. He will take our child and leave you to rot at Sempringham. I will not allow this, you see. I will not allow any of it.”
He seemed genuinely distressed and she leaned towards him, laying her head on his big shoulder. “You will think of something,” she said. “I have faith in you, Kevin Hage. Faith can move mountains. You are a great and honorable man.”
He kissed the top of her dark head. “We shall see,” he said. The mood of the room was falling again, a mood of sorrow and fear, and he didn’t want it to cast a shadow upon her. She was only now starting to regain her composure from Magda’s death so he patted her knee and stood up.
