Page 51 of The Two Wills

“Pish! Did I not just deem you the most beautiful woman in the world? And you relegate my greatness to the boundaries of London? A pox on thee. I take my compliment back.” He shouts across the room. “Innkeeper, bring me another fucking Madeira! I’m nearly sober!”

“God forbid,” I say. “You don’t deserve to look as handsome as you do after … what was it? Were you in a brawl or did you bed one of the Queen’s guards last night?”

“I didn’t bed one of anything last night … more like a battalion. My arse aches.”

“Oh, Kit, you make me blush.”

“You’re the one person I can never make blush.”

I raise my eyebrows. “As a free-thinking woman, I will consider that a compliment.” I pause to allow him take another drink, before I proceed. “Now, Kit, I’ve asked to meet you, because I want to tell you of a young actor you must meet.”

“Ugh, God’s wounds, I loathe actors! If I didn’t need them to do my plays, I’d suggest they all be sent to the tower and tortured, like they torture my words. Fuck ’em.”

“This one you might think differently about. People are saying he’s the most beautiful young player anyone has ever seen. I remember you told me about that scandalous play you’ve been writing and how it required a … how did you put it? ‘A devastatingly exquisite youth.’ I think I’ve found him. He’s an apprentice with the Lord Chamberlain’s Men.”

Kit sits up on his bench for the first time, his fog lifts. “Is he your relative?”

“No.” I smile. “But thank you. He’s very blonde, with sapphire blue eyes, and skin as smooth as a babe’s. He’s immensely talented … they say. Though I have yet to see him do a full performance. I did see him in practice. And while I’ll admit he will be difficult, I think he’s precisely what you’re looking for.”

“The Lord Chamberlain’s Men would kill me if I poached one of their apprentices. Their contracts are brutal.”

“From what I understand, his contract term should soon be ending. His company is returning to London in a week, and he’ll be performing the leading female role in a new play. I just have this feeling you’ll appreciate my suggestion.”

Kit looks at me a long time, like he is trying to parse his way through a riddle. “While I adore you, Rose, I know you rarely do things without some benefit to yourself. So …?”

“Let us just say I owe the boy a favor. And I promise, you’ll find a use for him one way or another. He matches your tastes precisely. Certainly, the Lord Chamberlain’s Men have found him most desirable.”

“Hmmm,” he grunts suspiciously, staring into my eyes with those piercing (though bloodshot) green globes of his. “This has nothing to do with you having fallen in love with the Lord Chamberlain’s Men’s ordinary poet, does it?”

“Oh tush! No!” I protest, perhaps too much, as I can feel my face blush. “Not in the least.”

He clicks his tongue. “Rose, I warned you! How deep into it are you?”

“Kit, dear, It’s really nothing.” I can see he doesn’t believe me. It’s the worst thing about men of Kit’s sort. They are much more likely to understand a woman’s heart, and therefore able to spot even the most elaborately decorated dissembling.

“Well, don’t let it be anything more than a trifle.” He scoffed. “I’ve seen both women and men absolutely ruined when they fall under Will’s spell. He always comes out appearing innocent, as if he had no idea of his power. The worst sort of cad. Move on!”

“I won’t!” I slap the table, which causes our drinks to nearly spill. I attempt to calm myself. “I beg your pardon. See here, Kit. There’s no point in pretending. I need your help.”

“Here it is!” He laughs and sips his Madeira. “The truth, finally.”

“Yes. Sorry. You see, it’s that awful young man who is blocking me from what I want. I simply need for you to borrow him for your company. Just for a little while. Until I have all of Will’s love.”

Kit shakes his head at me like I’m a misbehaving child, and I would like to kill him for it. “My dear,” he says, “the only way you’ll get someone like Will to love you is by taking that which he loves most.”

“I beg your pardon?”

“Rather than ridding the youth from Will’s world, make use of him. Inspire Will to jealousy by making his muse fall in love with you.”

I gasp. “You can’t mean …?”

“Of course I do.” He smiles and toasts me with his glass. “Bed the buggery boy.”

“But he’s.… he’s like you … I mean as far as his affection for those … bits which I don’t possess.”

“It’s all about appearances, my love. Win your way into the boy’s affections, then allow yourselves to become caught in some display of love—the more lurid the display the better—but make sure Will sees it. The boy will become not only a betrayer in Will’s eyes, but something even worse: a human being.” Kit smirks knowingly. “This is certain death for a muse. Will will instantly dismiss the boy from the company. Ergo, beautiful boy gone, you become the muse—since, naturally, he’ll want to possess that which his former muse hath stolen. Two birds killed with one act of false seduction.” He sits back in his chair, satisfied with himself. “Am I brilliant?”

My nipples pebble at the shift in the plot. “Indeed, you are, Kit. Indeed, you are.”