Mattie came through the gatehouse, rushing in her dog’s direction. “Winnie!” she demanded. “Winnie,stop!”
That only seemed to make Winchester tug harder. Gar didn’t want to see his boots torn up by a rabid mongrel, so he shook his leg, trying to dislodge the animal. He managed to release its hold, but that made it more angry, and it rushed Gar gain. Gar stuck out the same boot and shoved the dog away by the chest. He didn’t think the kick was too hard, but the dog went rolling away, much to the distress of Mattie.
“Winnie!” she gasped, moving to pick her dog up from the dirt. “Are you well? Did he hurt you?”
The dog’s answer was to run at Gar again as the man tried to walk off, snarling all the way. He lunged at Gar and managed to get a piece of his breeches, which were the same breeches Gar had been wearing for weeks. The same ones his grandmother had bathed him in. They were made from canvas, a strong material, but it wasn’t impervious to naughty dogs. Winchester lunged, grabbed a fold right on the seat of the breeches, and yanked. A great ripping sound followed, and Gar’s entire right butt cheek was suddenly revealed to anyone standing behind him.
Mattie happened to be one of them.
Startled, Gar tried to get the torn segment of his breeches out of the dog’s mouth, but Winchester was on a tear. He snarled and yanked, ripping the breeches further as both Gar andMaksim tried to beat him off. Mattie, catching a glimpse of Gar’s bare buttocks, quickly turned away and covered her eyes as her brother tried to control the dog.
“Matilda!” Maksim roared. “Come and take your dog!”
Mattie still had her hands over her eyes. “I cannot!” she said. “I… Maks, you’ll have to get him away. I cannot look!”
The rip was becoming worse. The more Maksim tried to grab the dog, the more Winchester ran away, thinking it was a game. All the while, he had the fabric in his mouth and ended up running a circle around Gar’s legs, ripping enough of the fabric to expose the man’s entire backside and then some. Gar was left trying to preserve his modesty and fight off the dog that no one could seem to catch. Soldiers in the bailey, watching the spectacle, were roaring with laughter as Mattie stood there with her eyes covered as Gar’s dignity was exposed for all to see. Trying to escape Maksim, Winchester managed to crash into the back of Gar’s knees, and he went down on top of the dog.
Maksim leaped in to grab him.
“Matilda!” Maksim yelled again, holding Winchester by the scruff of the neck. “Get your dog before I throw him in the sea!”
Maksim had only ever called her by her full name and he was the only one in the family who did, but hearing him shout it in that angry tone was indicative of his frustration. Mattie dared to uncover her eyes and, realizing that Gar was now sitting on his exposed buttocks, she rushed over to collect Winchester, pulling the dog away as he tried to rush at Gar again.
“I am very sorry, my lord,” she said, unable to look at Gar as he sat on the ground in torn breeches. “I do not know what has come over him. He is usually much better behaved.”
“Nay, he is not,” Maksim said, rage in his voice. “Get that beast out of my sight or I will put him on the fire and roast him!”
Properly rebuked, and just a little fearful that her brother would do as he’d threatened, Mattie picked up Winchester, whowasn’t exactly a small dog, and rushed off. She was joined by Agnes, who had been watching the entire situation unfold. She didn’t move to help tame the dog, mostly because she’d gotten a naughty peek at a man’s bare arse and she’d liked it. She was hoping the dog would tear more of his breeches.
Unfortunately, she did not get her wish.
Gar sat on the ground, watching the two young women and the dog run back toward the keep. Truly, he wasn’t angry as Maksim was. He figured it was some measure of Godly punishment for smelling like something a dog might want to fight. It was his fault, he was certain. As he sat there, watching the lovely vision in yellow silk run away, a hand suddenly appeared in his face.
“Come on, lad,” Maksim said. “Let me help you up.”
Gar looked up at Maksim, shaking his head in disbelief. “Did that dog truly just tear my breeches and expose my arse to the woman I am supposed to marry?” he asked.
Maksim was trying very hard not to laugh. “He did.”
“I hate that dog.”
“He hates you.”
“I am going to kill it the next time I see it.”
Maksim shook his head. “You’d better not,” he said. “Mattie loves that dog. It would not be a good way to start off your marriage.”
Gar sighed heavily. Without further ado, he accepted Maksim’s hand and stood up, trying to keep his backside covered as he did so. He could see the soldiers standing around, still grinning at what had just happened, and he also saw that his father and escort had chosen that moment to come through the gatehouse. He could see their curious expressions, their wondering why he’d just got up off the ground, with torn breeches no less. Rolling his eyes, Gar turned away.
“You’d better take me somewhere to bathe and recover my dignity,” he said. “And I’ll need new breeches.”
Maksim was still biting his lip to keep from smiling. “I can find you some,” he said. “But well done, you.”
“Well donewhat?”
“You took that humiliation like a man.”
“Is that what your sister thinks?” Gar said with sarcasm. “Did I impress her somehow?”
