Once Upon A [Hidden] Time - [Stolen] Series IV

CHAPTER 40

MYRA
27 JUNE 1415

"His Highness," announced the bellman, as we entered the court, "Prince Edward."

Edward shamelessly held my arm, showing the entire court that he was my lover. I passed many familiar faces and took my seat next to Edward. James waved at me and took a seat next to me before anyone else took it.

"I wonder why these court sessions have never been recorded in your book?" I asked, leaning towards Edward.

"That is because I do not attend them," he mumbled.

I watched him with surprise. "Never?"

"Nay!" He took a sip of wine. "Full of gossip, deceit, and mockery." That was true.

"Has the King never asked you?"

"He knew I would not listen," he answered, facing the courtiers.

"Then why now?"

"I carry a rose that every man in court wants to touch, feel, and smell," he replied with pride. "I am trying to safeguard what is mine."

I didn't know what to say. Sometimes, he made me speechless.

"Someone is being very insecure," whispered James in my ear. Did he listen to what we were discussing? Yet, he didn't ask me which book we were talking about.

Lord Norfolk stood from his seat, raising his glass of wine. "A toast to Lady Farrow, whose wits, beauty, and charm have no match in all of England." The other men chimed in, raising their glasses.

That's awkward!

Everyone was looking at me from a different eye. Some men watched me lustfully, while others in admiration. Some women made me their topic of gossip, and some wanted to take my place in order to have the King's favour.

"A woman who speaks her own mind generally does not hold King's favour," Cardinal Wolseley commented, his eyes spraying venom at me. Was he jealous because I had more influence on the King than he did? I wasn't there to take his job, though. "Yet she does."

The court felt silent. I noticed Edward stiffening at the Cardinal's words.

"Your Eminence," James chided in. "Do you wish to say that a woman should not speak her own mind?"

"The witches speak their minds!" the Cardinal spitted shamelessly. The courtiers gasped at his remark.

"What is your point exactly?" asked Edward.

"My point is that a woman should not influence a King's Council," the Cardinal voiced his opinion. "The Council is for men, and this country should not depend on a woman's wit." Ah, well...he had no idea that a woman would be running this country after a century.

I took a sip of wine, warding off my nervousness. Good Lord! Where was this going?

"We are not talking about an ordinary woman, Your Eminence," Lord Norfolk argued. "Are you not with the King's decision on having Lady Farrow as our Council member?"

"When did this happen?" James whispered. "You never told me."

I elbowed him to shush him. This was not the time to discuss my job description.

"All I want to say is that, rather than influencing the Council, the woman should find herself a suitable match in court to marry," the Cardinal pressed. "There are so many here. Or does my lady wish to remain unwed?"

Did he smell what was going on between me and Edward, and he hated this idea, or did the King say something that the Cardinal didn't like?

"There are many men who want to win her heart, Your Eminence," James interjected. "A lady of her stature cannot decide in a day." This time, James actually dared to glare at the Cardinal.

Elizabeth remained quiet and neutral in all this, and I was learning from her how to stay quiet and invisible at the table, especially when the Cardinal was speaking. Edward gripped my hand under the table. Was he controlling his temper or giving me support?

"I heard the lady asked the peasants to bathe daily," the Cardinal argued. The courtiers gasped in horror. "Is it not my job to worry about my country when she is teaching our subjects Moorish values?"

There was a murmur at the table as someone commented. "Yes, yes, the Moors bathe daily." Did they think I was a Moorish spy just because I asked them to bathe? Yikes!

"He's got to be kidding me," I mumbled, rolling my eyes.

"I told you this was too much to ask the peasants," James commented.

"Is it wrong to keep yourself clean, Your Eminence?" Edward asked. "Many of our sicknesses are derived from filth."

"Perhaps, Your Highness, but every day?" the Cardinal argued. "And it is not just the nobles she is asking, but the peasants?"

"The peasant children will have the public baths to follow Lady Farrow's instruction," Edward announced. The court fell in a hushed silence. From Edward's attitude, the Cardinal must have sensed that he shouldn't press the matter further, or else he'd be in trouble. Raising his glass, Edward ordered, "Some music!"

We ate in silence, James filling me with the court's gossip from time to time while Edward sat like a newly sharpened pencil, his eyes darting everywhere—on every man who was looking in my direction.

I thought about this afternoon, when Edward invited me into the bath. It was his most romantic act when he started tending to my tense muscles. How did he know my body needed this? Did I look exhausted to him? I remembered him saying something, but at that point, my nerves stopped communicating with my brain, and I fell into a sweet slumber in the warmth of his embrace. Bathing had never been this soothing the way it was today. I thought I heard him confessing his love, but I wasn't sure. No, I had likely heard him wrong, having been tricked by an over-active, sleep-deprived, twisted imagination. It was the hardest task for him to tell me how much he loved me.

"Your Highness." Addressing Edward, Lord Norfolk looked in our direction. "I wanted to let you know that His Majesty shall be returning in a fortnight."

I sucked in a breath at this news. Life was so much more fun and peaceful without him. We had to know more about Jasmine, we had to find out how she managed her two lives—but if the King returned in two weeks, Edward and I could not open her book whenever we wanted.

"Are you all right, my friend?" asked James, noticing my drained face.

"Huh!" I had no clue how to answer. Was I all right? How did the King decide to end his prayers so soon? He went out for only a few weeks? Why so much trouble? He could have prayed here if that was the case.

"Lady Farrow needs rest," Edward answered James on my behalf. He was still not welcoming James into my life. He couldn't accept the fact that a man and a woman could be friends, without any carnal desire.

I noticed Haakon in the court, but he avoided looking in our direction. Since the incident of him disappearing through the tree, we hadn't had a chance to talk to him.

"Excuse me." Pushing my chair with the back of my knees, I stood from my seat. Edward gave me a stern look for leaving the table in the middle of dinner, but I wasn't in the mood to eat anymore.

"A dance, my lady?" James asked, flashing me his cute smile.

"In a while," I patted his shoulder and searched for Haakon. Edward must have sensed my anxiety, because he followed my gaze. I leaned in to whisper in his ear, "I see Haakon." He stiffened at my words, searching through the courtiers. "Let me talk to him. You stay!" Upon that, I left the table and searched for Haakon.