“Oh, ha!” Anne laughed. “Those are blessings indeed, once a woman reaches three score and ten.”
“Good day, mistress,” said Henry. “My best wishes to your mother.”
Thomasin noticed that he did not include her father in the blessing, but paid it no attention. She dropped a quick curtsey as the king and Anne moved past her, followed by their train. Mary Boleyn shot her a particularly waspish look. Her father Thomasnodded to her with a look of curiosity, but Jane Boleyn paused for a moment and pressed Thomasin’s hand.
“I do hope your marriage is a happy one. I never forgot the kindness you showed me once.”
“Thank you, Jane.”
Rafe was approaching, his expression sour, his eyes fixed ahead, as if he did not intend to acknowledge Thomasin at all.
“Rafe? May we speak?”
He stopped dead. “I will be late.”
“For a moment, please. You can give me that much.”
He ran a hand through his dark hair.
“I am to marry and leave court. I wanted to tell you myself.”
“So I heard.” He would not look at her. “So Sir Giles is the lucky man?”
“Yes, it is Giles, but I consider myself the lucky one. My betrothed is kind, gentle, honourable and reliable: everything I could have wished for.”
“How very exciting,” he replied, rolling his eyes. “But does your pulse beat for him? Does he excite you?”
Thomasin smiled. “He does. Is that all you think a marriage should be? A case of physical attraction that may fade over time?”
“I wouldn’t know.”
“No, you have proved that to me many times.”
“Have you finished?”
“Were you always this rude? Yes, looking back, I believe that you were, only I did not wish to see it then. My eyes are truly open now, Rafe. I did love you. I truly did. I saw something in you that could have been noble, something good and strong and true that I hoped to connect with. There were times when I thought that was possible. I would have married you, against all odds and the company you keep, but I came to realise that was not possible, because of your behaviour.”
He shook his head. “You know nothing of me, of my struggles.”
“No, you never opened up to me. Instead, you reacted with jealousy, fear and anger at times when we could have grown closer. You never trusted me.”
“Oh, I suppose you have seen the light now: I’m the poor villain on your stage, while you look for your fairy-tale ending, Thomasin, behaving like a princess instead of living in the real world.”
“Not at all. I have found my happy ending. I have found a man who shows me how good life can be.”
“Well, how pleased I am for you. Why have you come here to rub my nose in it?”
“I had to come and say goodbye. After all we have been through together, it did not feel right to leave without drawing this to a close. I have learned much these past two years, but the biggest lesson of all, I think, is about the pursuit of my own happiness. The ability to make my own decisions, to exercise my free will and choose what suits me, not what appeals to my vanity or my fears or my base desires.”
“Is that what I was, a base desire?”
“No, Rafe. You were far more than that. But I have learned and grown, and am moving towards the future that I will live as a woman, not a giddy girl whose head can be turned by a few fine words and sparkling costumes. I am happy to be leaving court.”
“You are imprisoning yourself in a backwater to prove a point. Stubborn as ever, Thomasin.”
His words rankled. “Not at all. You are lashing out. I have merely come to say goodbye and to wish you good health and happiness.”
“So you are deserting the queen?”
