Marriage Under Siege by Anne O'Brien Read Free Book Online

will you go?' he pursued. 'You can hardly live alone and unprotected.
Not with the prospect of armed gangs, not to mention legitimate troops who are
prepared to take possession of any property that might further their cause.'
    'I shall not be
unprotected.' She noted but ignored the impatience in his voice and in the
determined clenching of his jaw. 'Sir William Croft offered me an armed guard
if I wish to travel any distance. And certainly I can live alone within my own
household. As a widow of advanced years I hardly need a chaperon. And as a
woman I believe that I will be in less danger of attack than you, my lord. No
man willingly wages war against an unprotected woman. It is not considered
chivalrous.' Her lips twitched in the merest of smiles. 'Sir William's warning
and advice to you would seem to have been most apt, my lord. It is perhaps
necessary for you to look to your own possessions, rather than be concerned
with mine.'
    'I see that you are well
informed!' And how did she know about that? Annoyance deepened. 'I suppose that I must learn that nothing remains secret
for long in this house.'
    'Very true. Besides,' she
continued, 'I have had my fill of protection, of betrothals and marriage.' She
breathed in steadily as her wayward emotions once more threatened to slip
beyond her grasp. 'Primarily I shall go to Leintwardine Manor. It is part of
my jointure and only a short distance from here. I shall be comfortable there.
It is a place of...great charm.'
    'I still do not think you should
do anything precipitate,' Mansell insisted. 'Take time to decide what is best
for you.'
    'I shall remove myself from
this place as soon as may be. By Friday, if that can be arranged.' He noted
the faintest of shudders once again run through her slight frame and did not
believe that it was from cold.
    'You sound as if you hate
it here.'
    'I never said that.' For
one moment her eyes blazed, glinting gold and green in their depths, only to be
veiled by a swift downsweep of sable lashes.
    'You do not appear to
appreciate the very real dangers,' he pursued the point, but knew he was losing
the battle. 'I feel a sense of duty to see to your comfort—and safety.'
    'How so?' Her gaze was
direct, an unmistakable challenge. 'You have no duty towards me. You need not
concern yourself over my future, my lord Mansell. After all, until yesterday,
you were not even aware that I existed as a member of your extended family.
After tomorrow, I shall take my leave.'
    Abruptly she stood to put
an end to the discussion and walked from the room without a backward glance,
leaving food and wine untouched, her black silk skirts brushing softly against
the oak floor. The wolfhound shadowed her once more, leaving Mansell alone in
the solar to curse women who were obstinately blind to where their best
interests might lie.
    'And the problem is,' he
confided to Sir Joshua when he walked with him to the stables an hour later, 'I
find that however much I might wish to accept her decision, to let her make her
own arrangements, I simply cannot do so. God save me from difficult,
opinionated women!'

Chapter
Three
     
    ' A sad occasion, my lord.' Mr Gregory Wellings shuffled the papers before him
with all the professional and pompous efficiency of a successful lawyer.
    Thursday morning.
    They had chosen to meet in
a room that might have been transformed into a library or study, or even an
estate office, if any of the previous Brampton lords had shown the least
inclination towards either books or business. Since they had not, it was a
little-used chamber, of more recent construction than the original fortress,
but neglected in spite of the splendid carving on the wooden panelling and the
wide window seats, which might tempt someone at leisure to sit and take in the
sweep of the distant hills. Although it was rarely used, there was clear
evidence of some recent attempt at cleaning, presumably for this very event.
Where else would it be possible to invite Lord Edward's legal