Hidden Dragons by Bianca D'Arc Read Free Book Online

just
for herself. Since her mother’s death, there were precious few
reasons to cook a special meal.
    “ That smells delicious,” Robert
complimented her as she reached for the two wooden bowls she and
her mother had used.
    She filled both, handing one to Bear, but when
it came time for her to give the other one to Robert, he instead
offered another wooden bowl of different design. He smiled at her,
softening the realization that he had noticed that she didn’t own
much in the way of tableware.
    “ We have things in our packs that
we can use to supplement your wares,” he said quietly. “I know you
live simply and have little use for company.” She was shamed by his
knowledge of her lack of friends. “We have imposed on your
hospitality a great deal and you have not complained once, though
you have had a right to.” He laughed and held the bowl steady as
she filled it for him, letting the moment pass.
    It was embarrassing to know they had noticed
how poorly she lived, but their matter-of-factness about it made
her feel a little better. They were truly gentlemen as well as
knights of the realm.
    “ Mama and I didn’t entertain much.
We only made what we needed for ourselves,” she tried to explain in
a quiet voice as she filled his bowl.
    “ Made?” Bear asked. “You made these
things?” He held up the intricately carved spoon, seeming to admire
the woodwork she had taken pains to learn how to do
competently.
    This, at least, was a question she could answer
without shame. She put down the wooden ladle as Robert placed his
now-full bowl down in front of him. Then she reached into her
pocket and pulled out her latest project. It was the little piece
of wood she had taken from the barn’s small stockpile earlier in
the day.
    “ I began working on this today. It
will take a while yet to finish the fine detail and smooth it out
so there is no fear of splinters, but your presence here reminded
me that I should at least try to be prepared for company.” She
offered the half-carved spoon to Bear for his inspection. The spoon
form was complete. It was the scrollwork and leaf pattern on the
stem she had yet to fill in completely.
    “ This is fine work, mistress. You
have great skill with wood carving. Why, you could trade these for
coin in many towns and villages,” Bear proclaimed, examining the
spoon with great care.
    Isabelle smiled. “I actually do trade them on
occasion. There is a tinker that comes through once every season.
He does not leave without visiting me to see what I have to trade.
He was here last month and I traded a set of twelve spoons of
similar design for my new bed linens and a few copper pennies. I
would have had more to trade except it was harvest and I had little
time to work on them,” she admitted. “I used the pennies to buy
eggs each market day, until they ran out.”
    “ You like eggs?” Bear asked
quietly, handing the half-finished carving back to her.
    “ Very much,” she agreed, pocketing
the spoon and realizing they had yet to begin their meal. It seemed
the knights were waiting for her. “Do you mind if we say the
blessing before we eat?” she asked, not sure of the proper
etiquette.
    “ By all means,” Robert answered,
smiling and putting her at ease.
    She paused, bowing her head. “Blessed Mother of
All, it is by your bounty that we have this food to eat. Thank you
for your blessing. By your grace, please watch over us and guide us
with your loving hand, this we pray,” she said, using the simple
words her mother had often used.
    There were more formal blessings, but on this
occasion it seemed only right to use the more familiar words. They
put her at ease, regardless of the fact that she was about to share
yet another meal with two of the most attractive men she had ever
met.
    But they were not for her. These men were
noble. Knights of the realm. She was just a poor woman who eked out
a living on the edge of the forest. She was nobody. She could never
hope to claim