Page 57 of Second Chance Prince
Besides, Niki was a prince and was no doubt very experienced when it came to such matters. Roberta knew the mechanics of sexual congress, having spent many years around horses and the stables, but she was sure there was more to it. In fact, sheknewthere was more, if her reactions when Niki kissed her and touched her were anything to go by.
Arrangements were soon made. They climbed into the rather crowded second coach and made their way to the nearby inn.Once inside the establishment, Roberta was relieved to see that while it might be small, it was as spick-and-span as promised. Flowers graced a table inside the door, and a plump woman in a mobcap and apron came to greet them with bright-eyed interest. Her name, she informed them, was Mrs. Harmer, and she had run the inn for a year now since her husband passed on. A boy with a shy smile led them into the parlor while their bedchambers were being prepared.
There were only two bedrooms, but the barn had plenty of space for the others, and when Mrs. Harmer returned to show them upstairs, she assured them it would be perfectly comfortable.
“I don’t think we’ve ever had quality stay here before,” she added, beaming at them.
“We are very grateful,” Roberta said. “We were supposed to be driving through to Dover.”
Mrs. Harmer waved a hand as if having all these people descend upon her was no bother at all. “I will see what I have for your dinner, Your Highness, while you make yourself comfortable in your room.”
Your Highness, Roberta thought, uneasy with her elevation. Niki preferred “sir” but technically, as a prince and a duke, he was “Your Highness” or “Your Grace.” Perhaps she could ask to be called the more informal “Madam.”
Niki was still out in the stables with the horses. He was very particular about their care, and as Arrow was with them, she was glad of his watchfulness. Roberta was to take her beloved horse with her to Holtswig, and she was looking forward to riding with Niki.
She followed Mrs. Harmer up to the room, and thanked the woman again, and then closed the door and took a deep breath.
It was as small as the rest of the inn, but at least there was a bed, and a stand with a water jug and basin. Someone had brought her travel bag upstairs and placed it here, so she could at least brush her hair. The only window looked down to the back of the inn, where a washerwoman was busy with a tub of soapy water while a small child sat at her feet, playing. It was a domestic scene, and Roberta found it soothing.
She peered into the small mirror, which was worn from years of service, and began to tidy herself. The smell of roasting meat and vegetables came from below, where the kitchen must be, and her stomach rumbled. She was surprisingly hungry. She had not eaten much at the wedding supper, being too anxious and excited, and sad too at leaving her home.
Not that she wasn’t looking forward to the future. And now here she was, alone in an inn, a married woman.
Antonia knocked on her door and entered, looking about her with interest. “My room is smaller still,” she said, “and I am sharing with our maid. Her name is Ruth, and she is very pious. She reads the Bible every night. Do you need her, by the way?”
“No, I can manage.” Gabriel had arranged for one of the Grantham servants to travel with Roberta and Antonia and to act as their lady’s maid. Up until recently, her life had been simple and she had managed all these years without requiring someone to help her dress and brush her hair. Was she now expected to be helpless? Would she have servants at Holtswig to wait upon her and refuse to allow her to lift even a teacup?
Antonia was still babbling on, and she tried to concentrate.
“Mrs. Harmer says we will eat in two hours, and I am already starving. I wondered if you wanted some company. Ernest is stillwith the horses, and Freddie is in deep conversation with your husband.” She grinned. “It seems strange to be calling him that, but I imagine I will get used to it. I wondered if you might want to hear about Holtswig. I have been reading a lot about its history, so I can fill you in on any details you might need to know. Don’t you think the people will be impressed when they hear you talk about their country?”
Roberta wasn’t sure about that, but she agreed it would pass the time, and Antonia needed no more encouragement to begin to instruct her. She was such a clever girl, and she had a way of imparting information that made it both interesting and easy to understand.
“Saint Hugh decided he was tired of the hermit’s life and went wandering.”
Roberta, whose mind had been wandering too, looked up. “Can a saint decide to stop being a hermit?” she asked curiously. “I thought once you were one, it was for life.”
“Evidently not, because Hugh got up to all sorts of mischief. His masters weren’t very pleased with him. He fell in love with Michelle, and they set up house together and had seventeen children. Then they were banished from their home for, well, flouting the law, but before they could be arrested, they fled. They gathered people about them, landowners and wealthy folk as well as the poor, and made their own laws. They were revered and loved, you see, and everyone wanted to be with them and do what they said. That was the beginning of Holtswig.”
Roberta didn’t know whether or not to laugh. “That was the beginning of Holtswig? I can see why there might have been some problems.”
Antonia clicked her tongue. “Don’t say that in front of the officials. They are very proud of the story. They say it shows courage, independence, and wisdom, qualities that are prized to this day.”
“I see.” She thought a moment. “Something I have never understood, Antonia. Why do the Holtswiggers speak English? Not that I am complaining; I can’t imagine learning a new language. But I never hear them speak anything else.”
Antonia’s eyes brightened. “Ah, well, they do have their own language. Or they did. It is still used in formal situations, but these days, English is preferred for everyday speech. I think the old language just fell out of favor as ties with England grew, although some of Niki’s council would like to bring it back.”
At last, it was time to go downstairs to the parlor for their meal, but although Roberta kept looking to the door, hoping Niki would step through it, she was nearly finished by the time he finally arrived. She had planned to amuse him by telling him what she had learned from Antonia, but when he sat down, Freddie joined them.
Niki seemed distracted, frowning as he conversed with Freddie, and Roberta listened to their conversation. Niki was asking if the accident to the coach might have been something that could have been planned, and Freddie was explaining that according to the blacksmith overseeing the repairs, it was not.
Until that moment, it had not occurred to Roberta that it could have been anything other than an unfortunate mishap. Now, at the reminder that faceless men could be plotting to hurt Niki, she found she was no longer hungry.
“I don’t think there will be any more attempts,” Freddie said.“They have failed twice. They will wait until you are back in Holtswig.”
“How do you know?” Niki asked irritably. “You’ve been wrong before.”
Roberta looked at him in surprise. She had thought the two men got on well. Freddie seemed taken aback too.
