Chapter Three #4
Katiana came to a halt and faced him. “Do you expect me to be hysterical?” she said.
“Titus, I have seen twenty years and six. I may as well have seen fifty years, because in the eyes of any prospective husband, I am a spinster. I am ancient. My aunt dresses me in lovely clothing in the hope that some man will fall madly in love with me and forget about my lack of dowry, but that has not happened yet. It will never happen, I am certain, so I have resigned myself to that. It is nothing to become distraught about, and certainly not in front of you. We have only just met again after not seeing one another for many years, and I am not going to weep on your shoulder about this. I do not know what you expect from me.”
She was growing incensed, and he could see that he’d offended her.
“Forgive me,” he said softly, sincerely.
“I did not mean it the way it sounded. It seems that you think I am criticizing you when I only meant to express my incredulity. You are beautiful and accomplished, and I… I was clumsy, Katia. Please forgive me.”
She took a deep breath to calm her annoyance. “There is nothing to forgive,” she said as she resumed walking. “But I do not wish to speak on my marital state any longer. Agreed?”
“Agreed, my lady.”
“And stop telling me how beautiful and accomplished I am.”
“I’m so very sorry. I never meant it to sound patronizing.”
“Then let us not discuss it any longer, shall we?” she said, setting a line he was not to cross. “Now, let us speak of you. How long did you remain at Roxburgh after I left?”
Titus felt as bad as he possibly could. From the moment he saw her horse charging in his direction until this very second, he’d mostly behaved like a silly fool.
He’d always been a bit of a chatterbox, and sometimes, he simply lacked tact.
But the truth was that his pleasant surprise at realizing who the woman on the runaway horse was had turned into excitement, and he’d managed to insult her with his inept attempts to hold a conversation with her. Nay—more than a conversation.
He wanted to know about her.
When he realized who she was, someone could have knocked him over with a feather.
He had been that astonished. The pretty little lass with the big, bronze-colored eyes had indeed grown into a goddess.
He’d never in his life seen a more beautiful woman, and that had triggered his inelegant behavior.
Rather than be smooth and composed, he’d been thoughtless and reckless.
When he was supposed to be speaking to Denys de Winter at Westminster, he found himself escorting this glorious creature back to her aunt’s home.
And he wasn’t sorry about it at all.
But at the moment, he needed to amend his behavior and hope she didn’t hold a grudge.
“I wasn’t at Roxburgh too much longer after you departed,” he said in answer to her question. “About a year later, I went to Rule Water Castle, which is the largest outpost in the de Wolfe empire. Men call it Wolfe’s Lair, and it is quite active. I saw a good deal of action at the castle.”
“How long did you stay there?”
“Five years,” he said. “Until I was knighted by my father and sent to another de Wolfe outpost of Wark Castle, where I had been stationed once before. I’ve been at nearly every outpost that our family controls, but I have also spent time on the Welsh marches and in London. I’ve been quite busy.”
She glanced up at him, her features warm and relaxed again now that they’d moved away from the subject of her spinsterhood.
“Then I hope you return to London often and visit me, should time allow,” she said.
“It does my heart good to see an old friend such as you, one I associate with fond memories. I did so enjoy my time at Roxburgh, in spite of the way it ended. You were always very kind to me, and I appreciated that.”
Titus smiled. “I would like to visit you when I am in London,” he said. “I think your horse running wild was quite fortuitous, don’t you think? He reintroduced us.”
She laughed softly. “He did,” she said. “I was supposed to go to the spice merchant today, but I think the day ended better than I’d hoped.”
“It is not over,” Titus said, seeing that they were coming up to the junction in the road that would lead them to Ludgate and the city of London beyond. “But I will say again that if you grow weary of walking, we can ride together on my horse. It is a long way back.”
Katiana had to admit that her slippers were becoming loose. More walking and they would fall off completely. They simply weren’t made for long walks. With a sigh, she surrendered.
“Very well,” she said. “I fear that my shoes will not withstand the extended walk into London.”
Titus came to a halt. “No trouble at all, my lady,” he said. “It will be my pleasure.”
After fastening the reins of her horse to the rear of his saddle, he turned to her and put his enormous hands on her waist, lifting her up without effort onto the back of his saddle.
Deftly, he mounted in front of her, no mean feat with a man his size.
As he settled in and adjusted the reins, he reached around behind him, took one of her arms, and pulled it around his waist.
“You’d better hold on,” he said. “I would hate to lose you.”
Katiana was hesitant to put both arms around his waist, but the truth was that she was more comfortable that way. He had a very big warhorse who seemed to want to shuffle around, and, fearful she was going to lose her balance, she held tight to Titus.
Of course, it felt very good to do so.
“Ready,” she told him.
She felt him pat her left hand. “Hold tight,” he said. “I’ll get you home safely, I promise. But do you want to stop at the spice merchant first?”
“I think not,” she said. “Everyone is probably out looking for me, so it would be best to simply go home.”
“As you wish.”
“But the next time you visit, mayhap we can go,” she said, wondering if she sounded too forward. “The merchant has bits of food set out so you can taste his spices. They can be quite delicious.”
“I would like that,” he said without hesitation. “I will come tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” she said, leaning sideways so she could see his profile. “You do not need to come so soon. Surely you will be occupied.”
He couldn’t really turn his head with his helm on, but he could see her in his periphery. “I do have business here, that is true,” he said. “But it will not take all day. Unless you are occupied tomorrow, in which case, I will simply come at your convenience.”
Katiana was slowly coming to realize that he wanted to see her again. And soon. It was sweet and flattering, but she struggled not to become too excited about it. He’s only being kind, she told herself. Don’t get your hopes up, lass. He’s a de Wolfe.
There was no possible way that she was worthy of a de Wolfe.
But it was fun to dream while it lasted.
“Tomorrow is agreeable,” she said. “The morning is usually the better time to shop, but you can come at your convenience.”
“I will come at sunrise.”
“Why so early?”
“Will you not be awake?”
“Of course I will.”
“May… may I tell you something at the risk of offending you again?”
“Proceed at your own risk.”
He snorted at her empty threat. “I’m happy that we met again, Katia,” he said. “I’ve not had much happiness in my life as of late, but this has been an unexpected pleasure. I want to thank you for that.”
Katiana was in danger of blushing furiously. “It has been a happy circumstance for me, also,” she said. “It has been good to talk to you again. I am glad it will not be for the last time.”
He didn’t reply, though she couldn’t have known it was because he didn’t want to incriminate himself. Or perhaps even sound too leading. She couldn’t even see the rather silly smile he had on his lips, all the way to Ludgate.
But somehow, she could feel it.