Friarsgate Inheritance: Until You Part 10

He was an elderly man, but his eyes widened with recognition as he approached them. "My lord Leslie!" he said. "Welcome! Welcome back to San Lorenzo!"

"Pietro! How wonderful to find you still here!" Glenkirk said, wringing the old man's hand. "Is your master inside? I have brought a message from our king."

"Come in, my lord! Come in!" He led them out of the sun, which was surprisingly hot.

"I will tell my master that you are here. We were not expecting visitors," Pietro said. He led them into a beautiful light-filled chamber overlooking gardens. "If you will wait here, my lord. There is wine for refreshment." He hurried out as fast as his old legs could carry him.

"He was my majordomo when I served the king here," Patrick noted.

"He obviously likes you," Rosamund said.

"His daughter liked me, too," came the mischievous reply. "She had dark hair and eyes and golden skin."

"From what I have seen along the road, my lord, I imagine she is now a plump and well-settled matron. A grandmother, perhaps?" Rosamund murmured sweetly.

"You are jealous, sweetheart," he said, and his tone was exceedingly pleased.

"Why are men so vain?" Rosamund wondered aloud.

"Ouch!" he cried, falling back, clutching his chest in mock distress. "Your claws are all the sharper for these weeks on the road, my sweet Rosamund." Then he chuckled.

"My lady!" Annie said excitedly. "Look out in the gardens. There are flowers blooming, and 'tis but February. And didn't the sun feel good, and it still winter?"

"Winter does not visit San Lorenzo, Annie," the earl explained, "except on very rare and quick occasions."

"You mean it's like this all the time?" Annie was astounded. "Surely you've brought us to paradise, my lord."

"I once thought it so," he replied.

The door to the salon opened, and a tall, grizzled gentleman walked through. "My lord earl!" he said, and he bowed.

"Lord MacDuff," Patrick said. "Is there someplace we may speak privily? And if my lady and her servant might be taken to comfortable quarters . . . We will be staying with you. Dermid, go with Annie and Lady Rosamund." The Earl of Glenkirk's voice rang with authority.

"Of course, my lord," the amba.s.sador replied. "Pietro!" The majordomo was immediately in the room. "My lord?"

"Show the lady to our guest quarters, and see that everything is done to make her and the earl comfortable. My lord, come with me." And Lord MacDuff led Patrick from the salon.

Pietro bowed. "I speak English, a little bit, my lady," he said.

"And I speak French a little bit," Rosamund told him with a smile.

The majordomo smiled back. "Then if my lady will follow me," he responded.

They followed him from the lovely salon out into the round marble foyer and up two levels of a wide marble flight of stairs. On the third landing he opened the gilded walnut doors and ushered them into a s.p.a.cious apartment.

"Is there anything you need at the moment, my lady?" he asked her.

"We have been on the road for many days, Pietro. I should love a bath," she told him.

"At once, my lady," he told her, and he hurried off.

"And what will you be wearing after I take these stinking clothes and have 'em burned?" Annie demanded to know.

"Do I not have at least one clean shirt or chemise?" Rosamund asked.

"Well, you can hardly meet anyone in just your chemise," Annie replied pithily.

"Well, then, I suppose after my bath I shall need to see a seamstress," Rosamund told her servant. "The earl has promised me that he would have a suitable wardrobe made for me. And you will need new garments as well, Annie."

"I'd actually like to have a bath myself, and some clean clothing," Annie admitted. "Don't think I'll ever get the stink of horse out of me hair."

"Let's explore this apartment and see what we have while we are waiting for my bath," Rosamund suggested.

Together the two young women began walking about and opening doors. The apartment had its dayroom in which they now stood, but it also had two bedchambers adjoining each other and two small chambers each containing a single bed, a chest, and a little table.

"You have your own room," Rosamund told Annie, "and there is one for Dermid. Choose now, you two, and set your possessions inside. Dermid, I did not ask you before, but were you with the earl when he was last here in San Lorenzo?"

"Nay, 'twas my uncle," Dermid said. "I was just newly breeked when the lord came home. My uncle chose me to go with the earl when the king sent for him. He has no lads of his own, just daughters," Dermid explained. "He said he was too old to go traipsing about any longer, and so was the master. But when the king called, a loyal man answered, and that man would need his servant. He'd been training me to take his place these last few years anyway. He'll be surprised when he learns where I've been."

"If you can tell him," Rosamund said quietly.

"Aye, lady. I may not be able to say," Dermid answered her.

"Oh, my lady, look!" Annie had opened the windowlike doors across the dayroom. Beyond was a balcony that stretched across the villa, and beyond it was the blue sea. "Ain't it beautiful!" Annie said.

"Yes, it is," Rosamund replied, joining her servant. "I don't think I have ever seen anything as beautiful outside of Friarsgate."

"That's the first time I've heard you mention home in weeks," Annie noted. "I wondered if you had forgotten it."

"Nay. Friarsgate is my first love, and it will always be my love, Annie. We will go home eventually, but this is so exciting. I never thought to see a place like San Lorenzo, or live through a winter without chilblains on my hands. Once I should have been content to never leave Friarsgate, and one day I will feel the same way again. But not now. Not today."

The door to the apartment opened, and a line of footmen, led by Pietro, began to enter. He signaled with his hand to Dermid. "Here, man, help me," he said. Then he entered the more feminine bedchamber, pressed a hidden lock on one of the walnut-paneled walls, which sprang open to reveal a huge bathing tub, and with Dermid's aid wrestled the tub from its place out into the room. "Where will you have it, my lady?" he asked her.

Rosamund looked about the room, and then seeing that the windowed doors opened onto the terrace, said, "Put it out there, Pietro."

The majordomo smiled broadly. "Ah," he said as he and Dermid wrestled the tub to its desired location, "Madame is a romantic."

Rosamund smiled back at him. "It seems a perfect place," she murmured.

The tub was set out upon the marble terrace, and the footmen began to fill it with their buckets, slowly climbing the twin sets of steps placed on either side of the tub and dumping the water into the large vessel, which was made of hard oak and bound in polished bra.s.s bands. It was a labor-intensive effort, but finally the tub was filled.

"I shall need a seamstress, Pietro," Rosamund said. "The earl and I traveled swiftly and upon horseback all the way from the French coast. None of our party has suitable clothing for the duke's court. That must be remedied as quickly as possible."

"At once, madame," Pietro answered her with a bow. "My daughter is the finest seamstress in all of Arcobaleno. I shall send her to you."

"Is she the one who was once Lord Leslie's mistress?" Rosamund inquired.

"The very same, madame," he answered her with a twinkle. "His lordship will not recognize her, for she has grown well rounded with her marriage, her children, and her enterprise." He bowed again, and then turned and left her.

"Send her to us late this afternoon," Rosamund called after him.

"After siesta, of course, madame," the majordomo replied. "And she will bring a fine selection of fabrics, too." Then he was gone.

"Maybel wouldn't approve of your being so bold, my lady, and you can smack me for it if you will, but 'tis so," Annie said.

Rosamund laughed. "I am at a disadvantage here, Annie, and I know that Lord Leslie had a mistress when he was last in San Lorenzo. I would prefer no surprises. Now, help me out of these clothes and into that lovely tub."

"You're not going naked out on that terrace, my lady?" Annie fretted.

"We are facing the sea," Rosamund replied. "There is no one to see me." She sat down and pulled off her boots. "Whew!" she exclaimed, peeling her stockings off her feet. "Dispose of it all, Annie, and I mean it. It's beyond washing."

Annie nodded as she helped her mistress to undress. "I've saved one clean chemise, my lady," she told Rosamund. "When you are clean you can put it on. Dermid, go and bring in our packs," she instructed the earl's man.

Dermid gave her a wink and left them.

"Cheeky Scots devil," Annie muttered.

"He likes you," Rosamund noted.

"Aye, and I like him, but that's as far as it will ever go," Annie said.

"Why?" Rosamund wanted to know.

"Because you ain't never going to leave Friarsgate, and I ain't never going to leave you," Annie said.

"Nay, Annie," her mistress said. "If you love him, and he you, then you are free to wed him and go with him. I will not have you unhappy on my account."

"Well, as it ain't got that far yet, my lady, I don't have to think about it, do I?" Annie remarked with a small smile.

"One day you may, and when you do, I would advise you to follow your heart, Annie. I have, and what is sauce for the goose is surely sauce for the other goose," she chuckled.

"Oh, my lady, you say such funny things," Annie giggled. She picked up a coverlet that was lying upon the bed and wrapped it about her mistress. "You ain't going out to your tub as naked as the day G.o.d made you, my lady," she said firmly.

Wrapped in the fabric, Rosamund walked out onto the terrace. "I'll have to unwrap it sooner or later," she said, and after climbing up the steps to her tub she flung off the makeshift gown and stepped carefully into the hot water with a deep sigh. "Ahhh," she said, seating herself on the little stool within the tub. "This is wonderful!" Reaching up, she unbraided her long hair and began to wash it with the fragrant soap that had been placed upon the tub ledge.

Annie climbed up the steps with a bucket and rinsed her mistress' soapy hair with water dipped from the tub. Three times Rosamund soaped her auburn hair and scrubbed it and her head free of the dirt of the long road that they had traveled. And each time Annie poured several buckets of water over the young woman's head until Rosamund bid her to cease.

"Give me a drying cloth to wrap my head in while I wash," she said, and she took the item from Annie to enfold it about her head in turbanlike fashion. Then she set about washing the rest of her body. When she had finished, she exited the tub and said to Annie, "Get in, girl! 'Tis not likely you will be given another opportunity."

Annie didn't argue. Forgetting completely where she was, she stripped her filthy clothes off and climbed into the still-warm water to bathe her hair and her body. Rosamund sat upon a bench on the terrace, wrapped in a large drying cloth and brushing her hair with her pear-wood brush, the one luxury item she had carried with her from Scotland. The warm air and the bright sunlight quickly dried her thick hair. When Annie had finished bathing, her mistress handed her another drying cloth, and the servant came forth from the tub, smiling.

"Ah, my lady, thank you," she said. "I'm not much for all the washing you do, but after our travels it was good to have a bath."

"But now, Annie, we have another problem. What are you to wear?" Rosamund laughed.

"I got a chemise like you, my lady, but naught else. I expect that Pietro will be able to find me a skirt and shirt however. When Dermid gets back I'll send him off to ask." She wrapped herself in her drying cloth and sat down next to her mistress.

Rosamund handed her the brush. "Dry your hair," she said.

"Oh, I couldn't use your brush, my lady," Annie protested.

"Then your hair will dry a tangle, Annie," Rosamund said.

"I'll use my fingers," Annie told her. " 'Tis what I do anyhow."

While Annie was drying her hair Dermid returned with their packs from the horses. He flushed at the sight of the two women wrapped in their drying cloths. "I'll leave your pack there, my lady," he addressed Rosamund, his eyes averted from her. "And I'll distribute the rest as they ought to be." He tossed one of the saddlebags on Rosamund's bed and scurried away.

Annie giggled. "He ain't too brave now, is he?" she said.

"Go and put on your chemise," Rosamund instructed her. "I can put my own on, and then I'm going to lie down and have a nap on that soft-looking bed. You should do the same, la.s.s. Until the seamstress comes after siesta, whatever that is, there is naught for us to do." She lay down upon the bed, suddenly tired and unable to even pull out her chemise. "Just for a little bit," she said to herself softly, and she closed her eyes.

"I'm sending Dermid for that Pietro. I can't go around without my clothes until something new can be made for me," Annie said, and after putting on her chemise she went off to seek out her fellow servant Patrick finally appeared to find Rosamund sleeping. Seeing her upon the bed, wrapped in the drying cloth, so much of her bare to his view was tempting. Then he spied the tub still out on the terrace. He stripped off his travel-worn garments, then walked outside and climbed into the tub. The water was lukewarm and well used, but he was nonetheless able to wash himself thoroughly using the scented soap upon the tub's shelf. He sniffed and smiled. The fragrance was a familiar one, one he had not smelled in years.

Annie returned to the terrace in her chemise and gave a little squeak to see him so ensconced. "Oh, my lord!" She blushed furiously.

"Give me your drying cloth, la.s.sie, as I can see you are quit of it, and then find your own place," he ordered the serving girl gently.

"Aye, my lord," she answered him. "Pietro is sending the seamstress to us after siesta. What is siesta?"

"The time following the midday meal and the late afternoon when the sun is less hot," he explained. "It is the custom to nap, or otherwise amuse oneself, Annie."

"Thank you, my lord!" she answered, giving him a bobbing little curtsy. "Shall I wake my lady?"

"Nay, Annie. She is fair worn, I can see. Let her sleep. I will shortly join her. Run along now, la.s.s." He took the drying cloth from the girl.

"Yes, my lord," Annie said obediently, and she was quickly gone.

Patrick pulled himself out of the tub and dried himself off before wrapping the cloth about his loins and seating himself on the marble bench. The sun on his shoulders felt wonderful. He had forgotten how good one's body felt when exposed to the air and the heat of the sun. And he realized now that if Rosamund was tired after their exhausting journey then so was he. He stood and went back inside, lying down next to her. She murmured softly, but made no other indication that she was even aware of him. His eyes closed, and he was swiftly asleep.

When he awoke several hours later, Rosamund was gone from their bed, but he could hear her in the dayroom beyond. He gave himself a few moments for his head to clear, and then he stretched before arising to walk towards the sound of her voice.

"Ah, you are awake," she said, seeing him. She was seated at a table, eating ravenously. "Come and eat so we may siesta again," she told him, and she licked her fingers clean of grease from the chicken wing she was devouring. "I am going to enjoy this southern style of living, my darling."

He sat down opposite her with a grin and helped himself to the full bowl of oysters, which he began cracking open and swallowing whole.

"I left them for you," she said sweetly. "I thought you might need your strength, my lord." She picked up her goblet. "You are right. This San Lorenzan wine is delicious." Then she reached out for the pitcher and poured a generous measure into his goblet. "The seamstress is coming later," she said.

"So Annie said," he replied as he picked up the goblet to drink some wine.

"She is Pietro's daughter, an old friend of yours, I believe," Rosamund said innocently.

He choked upon his wine. "Celestina? Jesu! Maria!"

Rosamund giggled mischievously. "Pietro says you will not recognize her, for she has grown with age, bairns, and her busy enterprise. I shall be fascinated to meet her."

"You will behave yourself, madame," he said sternly.

"Now, Patrick, it is not often that the current mistress is permitted to meet the mistress of one's youth," she teased him wickedly.