The Legend (15 page)

Peyton looked away from him,
horrified with her scarlet cheeks. Odd chills raced through her at his tone,
her anger with him dampening somewhat. Why was he so confusing? Cold and hard
one moment, soothing and warm the next.  She couldn't hate him when his mood
was calm and his manner soft, and her heart swelled strangely when she
remembered their brief rendezvous under the canopy of trees.

The strange swell against her
ribs almost made her smile, but she fought it. She had no idea what she was
possibly feeling, or why.  She was so confused she was barely aware of anything
anymore.

CHAPTER
FIVE

The gates of Blackstone were
already open as Alec and Ali guided their dancing steeds into the dusty bailey.
Sharp sentries on the wall had spotted the distinctive silver charger from a
distance and the announcement of the impending return had prompted Olphampa to
urgently seek his liege. Just as Alec reined his horse to a halt in the
immaculate yard, Brian came marching from the innards of the castle.

"Alec!" he roared.
"Where is God's name have you been?" 

Alec dismounted calmly and pulled
Peyton off with him. She was glad when he kept his arm on her as Lord Brian
approached angrily.

"I am waiting, Alec."

"'Tis a long story, Da. We
will retreat inside and...."

"Nay!" Brian boomed.
"Here and now. Where have you been? Where have you all been?"

Peyton shrank from the furious,
loud voice, but Alec's grip on her was firm and comforting.

"Very well, then, if you
will stop shouting,” he said to his father. “You are upsetting the ladies. The
story is simple, really; mother sent me to Lady Peyton's rooms last night to
escort her to the party, but the lady was feeling so poorly that I suggested we
take a ride to clear her head. We lost track of time and paused to rest until
dawn."

"It is well past dawn,"
Brian pointed out, arms crossed impatiently.

"Aye, it is. I did not say
we set out at dawn to return, did I? I simply said we rested until dawn. The
remainder of the time was spent hunting for Lady Ivy."

"Lady Ivy?"

"She thought her sister had
run away, afraid of the impending betrothal, and hastened to retrieve her.
However, she became lost and when you sent Ali in search of our missing guests,
we met up with him upon our return. I insisted on helping him hunt for the
lady."

"How did you know Lady Ivy
was missing? After all, if you and Lady Peyton left before her sister's
departure, then how..?"

"Ali told us, of course. We
found Lady Ivy at St. Cloven."

Some of his bluster gone with the
steady explanation, Brian looked to Peyton dubiously. It took every ounce of
summoned courage for her to respond to him with a weak smile. He then took
turns glaring at Ali and Ivy as if he did not believe his son's excuse in the
least, but he was wiser than to dispute Alec in public.

"As you say," he
motioned to his son, still doubtful of the story presented. "Bring them
inside. Your mother has been frantic with worry."

Gripping Peyton's arm gently,
Alec cast her a bold wink and escorted her toward the castle while Ali and Ivy
remained behind in anticipation of the private family conversation that would
undoubtedly take place now that Alec was returned. Ali knew that Lady Celine
would vent her rage on her delinquent son and he had no desire to be caught in
the crossfire. Instead, he took Ivy gently by the arm.

"I would be honored if you
would allow me to introduce you to my parents, demoiselle," he said
politely.

His voice was amazingly warm,
caressing even, and Ivy found herself gazing into his onyx eyes. The confusion
she had tried to alleviate with aimless chatter earlier in the day had not
abated; it was as persistent as a rash, those lessening somewhat. As time
passed it was becoming easier to come to terms with the tolerance she was feeling
for the dark soldier, but still, a faint puzzlement lingered.

Yet she met Ali's inquisitive
gaze. "I would like to meet your parents, as well." She realized she
meant it.

He smiled faintly, waging his own
peculiar battle against her apparent tolerance. It was a difficult battle for
self-protection that he, too, forced down as he gazed into her blue eyes.
"My mother might even make a warm milk brew for your approval. She only
prepares it on special occasions."

Ivy looked at him curiously.
"And what is the special occasion?"

His eyes twinkled. "Why,
making your acquaintance, of course."

She was thoroughly puzzled.
"Making my acquaintance is a special occasion?"

His smile faded as he thought on
the question. She truly had no idea the extent of it.

"Aye, demoiselle, it
is."

***

Lady Celine was in Brian's solar.
When her son entered the room, she flew into a rage and rebuked him for his
irresponsible actions. The more Brian attempted to explain the circumstances,
the more upset she became and Peyton stood by, stunned, as the woman admonished
Alec as if he were a naughty child.

Alec remained quite calm in the
face of his mother's rage and Peyton was positive she saw the corners of his
mouth twitch with humor. Lady Celine's fury continued for several long, agonizing
minutes, but as her tirade began to die somewhat, she turned her attention to
Peyton. Startled to find herself the focus of blazing sky-blue, she was
expecting to be dealt a measure of Alec's treatment and braced herself for the
reprimand. Instead, Lady Celine surprised both her son and his future bride by
pulling Peyton into a protective embrace.

"Furthermore, Alec, you
should know better than to force a delicate lady into the wilderness were God
only knows what sort of horrible catastrophe could befall her. Wild animals,
bandits.... and you do not carry a sword, dear, and it would be difficult to
protect her. Did you not think of her safety when you suggested taking her from
the protective innards of the keep?"

Alec looked at Peyton and she was
shocked to see his gaze soften. "The lady can take care of herself,
mother."

"Ridiculous!" Lady
Celine snapped. "I will hear no more of your nonsense, Alec. Get out of my
sight; I am too angry to deal with you at the moment."

Alec raised an eyebrow faintly
and did as he was told. "Take good care of my wife, mother," he said
softly as he strolled past Celine.

Celine's eyes widened with
surprise as her gaze found her husband. Brian, sputtering with shock, stopped
his son just as he cleared the doorway. "Alec? What's this you say?"

Alec paused, turning to his
stunned parents with faint amusement. "Why so surprised? Are you not
pleased that I am doing as ordered?"

"Yes, of course, but...."
Brian turned to Peyton, amazed to see that she was completely calm. "He....
informed you, my lady?"

Peyton nodded. "He did, my
lord. And I have agreed."

Brian's amazement increased.
"You have? Well.... of course you have!" he suddenly laughed loudly,
from relief and joy. "A wise decision, both of you. What a pleasure it
will be to have relations to the de Fluornoys. By this time next year, I shall
have a grandson!"

Peyton blushed furiously as Alec
grinned. "One step at a time, Da. We have not been married yet."

"Soon!" Brian
exclaimed, suddenly taking Peyton into his arms and kissing her loudly on the
cheek. "Soon! And.... oh, my, you do taste nice. Alec, I cannot tell you
how very pleased I am."

They were laughing at his
enthusiasm as well as his comment regarding Peyton's flavor. Lady Celine
wrapped her arms about her new daughter and hugged her gently as Alec came back
into the room. Peyton, rosy with the compliments and excitement, met his gaze
shyly and he smiled at her.

"As am I," he responded
softly. "I appreciate your insistence in the matter."

"I am glad you think
so," Brian put his hand on his son's shoulder and pushed him to the door.
"We have many plans to make, Alec. I should like to see you married before
the end of the week," he suddenly paused. "But what of the other
sister? Did..?"

"Ask Ali," Alec stopped
him. "He shall not dispute you in the matter."

Brian smiled again, broadly.
"I am pleased to see that you two are not intent on fighting me anymore on
this matter. “'Tis time you both realize that I know what is best for your
respective futures."

Alec's gaze never wavered from
Peyton. Clasped against his mother's breast she looked uncomfortable and
uncertain, yet there was an excited flush to her cheeks. He was pleased that
she was not intent on ruining his parent's delight with declarations of her
hatred for her future husband.

As he gazed into her lovely face,
he reiterated his earlier thoughts; he did not want her to hate him. Strange
that for a man who never wanted a wife, he was willing to accept this
particular woman with a good deal of ease. He hoped that whatever animosity had
occurred between them earlier would somehow slip away into forgetful oblivion.
He was more than willing to forget their bitter words.

"I must send for Ali and
Lady Ivy," Brian muttered with excitement, distracting Alec from his
thoughts as a servant dashed off. "We must celebrate. And, God's Blood, I
have forgotten Olphampa and Sula. I must....!"

"I shall send for them,
dear," Celine smiled at her husband. "You will sit and calm yourself
before your chest begins to ache."

Celine exited the room, but not
before swatting her six-and-a-half foot son on the behind as if he was a
wayward child. Peyton hid her grin as her future husband did not so much as
move a muscle in response to his mother's spank. Apparently, he was accustomed
to Lady Celine's gestures.

"Wine!" Brian suddenly
boomed as if he had just remembered the secret to life. "Only the finest
reserve will do. I must retrieve it this instant!"

He darted from the room, mumbling
to himself and snickering at Alec as he moved past his son. The room was silent
but for the sounds in the bailey as Alec meandered toward his father's massive
oak desk, cluttered with vellum and broken quills.

"My father is not usually so
excitable," he remarked.

Peyton perched herself on a
silken chair. "Is your mother always so abusive?"

Alec lifted a blond eyebrow.
"Aye. She used to beat my brothers and I daily when we were young. She was
a firm believer in discipline."

Peyton looked at him curiously.
"Brothers? But I thought you had only one brother."

Any warmth that might have graced
Alec's features vanished. His expression was calm, but his eyes were like ice
and Peyton immediately sensed his change of mood. Just as his manner had
changed at St. Cloven when she told him of James.

"I had two brothers. One
died several years ago."

"I am sorry for your
loss," she said, wondering if she should simply keep silent. Having no
idea why he had suddenly grown hard, she was unsure if further words would
provoke him. Surely extending sympathies would not anger him, she reasoned.

His jaw ticked and he moved to
the narrow lancet window overlooking the bailey. He unlatched the pretty
lattice shutter and opened it, breathing in the late July air. Sensing there
was nothing more to say on the matter, Peyton looked at her hands and remained
silent.

Alec's gaze roved the bailey and
he caught sight of Olphampa crossing towards the main house. But his mind
wandered, moving from Peter to the events of the past several hours; it was
difficult not to ponder the eventful day. Beyond the hostilities and the harsh
words had been a most impacting occurrence; the kiss he and Peyton had shared
permeated his senses and the heat of their contact left him breathless. Never
had he felt such passion as if their being together was completely right and natural.

A young woman entered the solar
at that moment. Peyton looked up to find herself gazing at another Summerlin.
The family resemblance was uncanny, but unfortunately, the strong features that
made Alec so terribly handsome looked thick and harsh on a woman's face. She
gazed intently at Peyton.

"Greetings, moppet,"
Alec said, breaking from his deeper thoughts. "By your expression, I would
assume you have been speaking to mother."

"To Father," the girl
corrected, her intense stare almost hostile. "Is this your future
wife?"

Peyton stood up politely as Alec
replied. "This is the Lady Peyton de Fluornoy. My lady, this is my sister,
the Lady Thia Summerlin."

Peyton bobbed a curtsy. "My
lady, 'tis a pleasure to meet you."

Thia put her hands on her hip;
broad, beefy hips. She was nearly Peyton's height but a good deal heavier. She
had small blue eyes and the aforementioned thick features, but to her credit
she possessed a glorious head of wavy hair, the color of dark honey. In
reaction to Peyton's greeting, she simply sized her future sister-in-law from
head to toe before turning to her brother.

"I had no idea you were to
be betrothed. When did this come about?"

Peyton felt the sting of Thia's
rebuff and regained her seat. Her mood darkened as she watched Alec warm to his
sister, feeling distinctly belittled as he responded.

"A few days ago," Alec
said. "Were have you been, love? You usually greet me in the bailey when I
arrive."

Love
, Peyton thought with contempt.
He
calls her love!
What is there to love about horsey, bad-mannered Thia?
Amidst
her dark thoughts, it never occurred to her that she was actually jealous of
the affection Alec held for his sister.