Page 61 of An Inconvenient Vow

Jeffree bristled and stared stonily straight ahead. “You know very little of the matter, madam.”

“I freely admit as much,” she replied. “So why don’t you explain to me how you are not beholden to pass the torch on to your younger brothers?”

Jeffree snorted. “As always, you express yourself with great vigor; however, this line of argument will not catch your quarry. Instead, I suggest you set your snare with the other bait you mentioned.”

Sabina’s ears pricked up. “What other bait?” she asked, even as his meaning dawned on her. Oh. She glanced about uneasily. For a moment, she had wondered if they were quite out of everyone’s earshot. Lady Maud had cast a quick look over her shoulder that had put Sabina on her guard. “You mean… your meeting the terms of courtship?” she all but hissed at him.

He gave a short nod. “We need to be in agreement as to which point we have reached, wife. Apparently, I believe myself further along the path than you do.”

Sabina felt herself turn a little pink. She cleared her throat. “If you were to make this gesture,” she said slowly, “then I would accept that you have shown me public admiration and”—she added with only the smallest choke in her voice—“praised me in front of my family.” When his eyebrows rose at this, she added self-consciously, “After all, the Vyses are my family now by marriage, are they not?”

Jeffree made no immediate reply. Instead, he frowned down at his horse’s mane a moment. “If I agree to the undertaking in principle, it will still be some time before the boys are of an appropriate age to come under my custodianship.” Sabina nodded, considering that, very likely, Jeffree knew more about the common age of squires than she. “You would trust me to keep to my word?”

She gave him a long, hard stare before nodding warily again. “If you declared your intent to your mother and stepfather now…” She trailed off. “After all, you have given me no reason to doubt your word.”

He looked across quickly at that, their gazes meeting. He gave a nod and spurred on his horse to move up front to where Lady Maud and Sir Dudley were riding. Sabina let out her breath before dropping back to ride beside Githa’s cart. She made no mention of the matter but conversed with the boys who were inclined to be mournful about the impending parting of ways.

“There now, Master Jasper, Master Crispin, don’t ‘ee tell me you ain’t going to be glad to see your own home!” Githa chided. “Why, I’ve never heard the like!”

“I thought we were going straight to Areley Kings,” Jasper mumbled, tightening his arm about Brisis.

Sabina noticed the glitter of tears in Crispin’s eyes which he wiped surreptitiously against Feste’s neck. Her heart went out to them. “If it is any consolation, I do not think I am going to Areley Kings either,” she told them.

“What do you mean?” they clamored.

“Your brother has just informed me I am to go to Longacre with you.”

“Come to Longacre?” Crispin cried joyfully.

“We will make you right welcome there,” Jasper vowed, his mood lifting instantly. “We can show you all the places we have made mention of.”

“Have you told them?” Jeffree’s voice broke through the babble as he steered his mighty horse beside her own.

Sabina shook her head. “Only about Areley Kings. I thought I should wait until you had struck the bargain with their parents.”

“Told us what?” Jasper asked, shooting a glance at his brother and sitting up straighter.

“What bargain?” asked Crispin.

“Your sister-in-law is gifting you her dogs,” Jeffree said without preamble. “As a precursor to both of you training as my squires within the next twelvemonth.”

Crispin let out a yell as Jasper’s mouth dropped open. Within moments they were hanging over the side of the cart and grasping for Sabina’s hand.

“Feste is to be mine?” Crispin cried, squeezing her fingers. Sabina smiled. “Feste is to be yours and Brisis is to be Jasper’s.”

“And we are to be squires?” Jasper demanded, his brown eyes shining. “Both of us? Crispin doesn’t have to join the seminary?”

Crispin’s expression was painful in its intensity. “Father has agreed?”

Sabina turned to look at Jeffree for confirmation. “It is all agreed,” he said with solid reassurance.

Sabina’s wrung hand was released, her shoulders relaxed, and she let the boys’ happy prattle wash over her. At one point, her mother-in-law looked back over her shoulder and their eyes met. Lady Maud nodded ever so faintly and gave one of her thin-lipped smiles.

Sabina nodded back in acknowledgment but wondered at the wisdom of the bargain she had struck. Very likely she had won Jasper and Crispin’s unswerving loyalty for life, but Jeffree was quite a different matter. With him, she really had no idea where she stood.

They reached Lanyan’s Cross by midday and an awkward leave-taking followed whereby Jeffree insisted on drawing her to one side from the others. “I will come for you in three days, wife,” he said clearing his throat. Sabina nodded. “Have you nothing else to say to me?”

Sabina thought a moment. “I wish you joy in your jousting?” she ventured. His annoyed face told her she had not hit on the correct sentiment. “A safe journey, then.” He continued to glare balefully at her. “Well then, I hope you sleep better contented without me there to discompose you, Sir Jeffree,” she suggested instead with a barbed tongue and saw his eyes narrow.