Rise of the Defender (16 page)

     Even as she selected her mother’s
indigo-blue brocade and carried it back across the hall, she didn’t know why
she was bothering.

     She needed help putting the dress on, a
rare occurrence indeed. The serving wench who tended her grunted and tugged,
but finally managed to get the dress secured. Dustin dismissed her and went back
across the hall to look at herself in her mother's mirror; she didn’t even have
one in her own room.

     Much to her surprise, the dress didn’t look
all that bad. In fact, it accentuated her curves quite nicely and she found
herself gazing back at her own reflection, turning back and forth in the light
and admiring the fabric. It was a scoop neck, long-sleeved design that
flattered her slim waist and full breasts. Her mother used to wear the surcoat
with a collar and a wimple, but Dustin always hated to be restricted that way.
For her, a corset was about the limit of the severe trappings she would wear,
and her mother had even had to plead with her to get her to put it on.

     The matching slippers were far too small,
she knew that already. Yet she had a pair of durable black leather slippers
that went quite nicely, although she thought she might visit the cobbler and
see if he could make her a pair to match the surcoat.

     Back in her room, she brushed her long,
straight, silky hair until it gleamed. She had a natural cowlick on the left
side of her forehead, right on the hairline, so she always wore her hair parted
on the left. Even as long as it was, she wore it free and pulled it over her
right shoulder and let it hang like a waterfall, cascading over her breast and
falling to her groin.

     Dustin looked down at herself, wondering
why on earth she had gone through the trouble to bathe and change and brush and
primp. After all, she was simply going into town to see Rebecca, and her friend
didn't care how she looked. With a confused shake of her head, she went to find
Sir Christopher, as he requested.

     The day had dawned clear and in actuality,
a bit warm. She squinted under the bright sunlight, looking about for the tall,
blond man who was her husband. The first person she ran into was Jeffrey.

     “My lady.” he greeted her with a smile.

     She smiled back. “Hello, Jeffrey.”

     “You look very lovely,” he observed. “The
dress looks better on you than it did on your mother.”

     “Mother has a great many dresses, although I
think most of them are far too small,” she said. “Mother was terribly tiny.”

     Jeffrey nodded in agreement. “God rest her
soul, my lady. I apologize for not attending her funeral yesterday, but with
most all of the knights seeing to her burial, I could not leave the keep.”

     “I understand,” Dustin said, sad anew at
the mention of her mother. “You always were terribly loyal, Jeffrey, and mother
knew that. In fact….”She suddenly jumped and her hands flew to her back. “
Ouch!
”

     “What is it?” Jeffrey asked, concerned.

     She was fumbling with something on her
back, twisting awkwardly. “Damnation! A stay has snapped.”

     He turned her around. “Let me see.”

     Christopher rounded the corner with David
just in time to see Jeffrey fumbling with the back of Dustin's dress. Before he
realized what he was doing, he charged the big Germanic knight and felled the
man with one huge blow to the jaw.

     Jeffrey went sprawling, blood spattering on
the dust. Dustin yelped, terrified, as David pulled her clear of the fight.
Christopher descended on Jeffrey like God’s wrath, grabbing the man around the
top of his armor and hauling him quite effortlessly to his feet for another
round.

     “Christopher.” Dustin shrieked. “What are
you doing?”

     He paused a brief second. It was the first
time he had ever heard her use his Christian name. When he looked at her, she
was shocked at the anger she saw.

     “I have a better question.” he shot back. “What
was
he
doing?”

     She was thoroughly perplexed and growing
annoyed. “One of my stays broke and he was fixing it.  What on earth do you
think he was doing?”

     Christopher stopped in mid-rage, suddenly
realizing with horror what an ass he had just made of himself. He looked at Jeffrey
as if to confirm Dustin’s answer, and the big man simply stared back at him.
Then, Jeffrey's hand came up and he opened his palm, inside was a steel hook.

     “It came off,” he said, spitting out a
tooth.

     Christopher let go of him. “Christ,” he
muttered, turning away from the man. He had never felt so completely foolish in
his entire life.

     Dustin, still confused and concerned,
rushed to Jeffrey’s side. “Are you all right?”

     “Fine,” Jeffrey spit out some more blood,
eyeing Christopher.

     Dustin whirled on her husband. “Why did you
hit him?”

     Christopher was standing by David, his hand
on his forehead. The hand fell to his side as he faced his wife. “The reason no
longer exists. Are you ready to go to town?”

     She was angry now. “Then if the reason no
longer exists, you will apologize to Jeffrey. ‘Twas inexcusable.”

     Christopher met Jeffrey's eye. “My mistake.”

     Jeffrey lifted an acknowledging eyebrow but
Dustin was livid.

     “’Tis no apology you gave him.” she
accused.

     Christopher gazed down at her evenly.
Christ, she looked gorgeous in that dress. “Aye, it is. Now, are you ready to
leave? I have time to take you myself.”

     Her cheeks were flushed with fury.  “I
shall not go with you.” she said. “Jeffrey will take me.”

     Christopher gave her a slow, reptilian
blink, glancing at the German. “I think not,” he said quietly. “Come along, my
lady.”

     “No,” she exclaimed, moving away from him. “I
will not go with a man who strikes for no reason and then refuses to apologize.
Stay away from me.”

     Christopher didn’t want to create a scene
in the middle of the bailey, but if he forced himself on her, then a scene he
would have. She was angry and had every right to be. He took a deep, calming
breath and crooked his finger at her.

     “Then a word, please,” he said politely.

     She balked for a moment or so, crossing her
arms across her chest defiantly until she felt Jeffrey give her a little shove.
Momentarily uncertain as to why Jeffrey should support the man who just
clobbered him, she found herself stepping in Christopher’s direction.

     He pulled her aside privately, looking down
at her stormy face. He sighed. “In the first place, my lady, you will never
again use that tone with me,” he said in a low voice. “Secondly, you would not
understand why I struck Jeffrey, but suffice it to say that he understands and
we will hear no more of it, especially from you.” When she opened her mouth, he
put up a warning finger. “And, lastly, I will indeed escort you into the
village.”

     She was so furious that she was grinding
her teeth. “Then I am not going into town. I am staying
here,
” she
seethed.

     “Aye, you are going into town if I have to
throw you over my shoulder and carry you,” he said with growing irritation.

     Her eyes flashed and she stepped back from
him, gathering her skirts. “If you touch me, you shall regret it.” With that,
she spun on her heel and raced into the castle as fast as her legs would take
her.

     Christopher charged after her, leaving
David and Jeffrey standing in his wake. David shifted on his big legs casually,
crossing his arms.

     “Is she always like this?” he asked.

     Jeffrey nodded. “Always. Should we follow?”

     “Why? He won’t lay a hand on her,” David
looked at him.

     Jeffrey shook his head. “Not to protect her.
To protect
him
.”

     David smiled. Then, he laughed. “Come on,
frank. Let's go take care of that mouth.”

     Jeffrey let David lead him away, not at all
annoyed by the fact that he was now missing a tooth. It had been worth it to
confirm what he had speculated, that Christopher was indeed concerned for his
new wife, as much as he tried to pretend otherwise.

     Dustin just beat Christopher into her
rooms. She had heard his footfalls close behind her and she was furious and
frightened at the same time. But when she entered her rooms and he was right on
her heel, she found she was terrified and she ran to the other end of the room,
grabbing the first thing she could find. Whirling around, she threw a pretty
glass goblet at the doorway just as Christopher entered. He ducked swiftly and
the glass shattered on the doorjamb above him.

     “Get out!” Dustin screamed, hurling another
glass.

     The second one shattered on the wall a foot
to the left of him and he scowled. “Stop that.”

     “Go!” she yelled angrily, throwing another
goblet and watching it break on the wall above the door.

     “Dustin, stop that at once,” he said
sternly, coming into the room.

     She picked up her pewter decanter,
half-full of wine, and threw it at him. He turned slightly, catching it in the
armor and it exploded, coating him and his mail with wine. He frowned verily.

     “Dustin, cease this instant before you do
any damage.” he ordered.

     She was out of ammunition and, with a
shriek, ran to the table beside her bed and picked up her hairbrush. The heavy
wooden brush went sailing through the air and he deftly dodged it, glaring at
her.

     “You are going to be sorry,” he warned her.

     He began to remove his armor, letting it
crash to the floor. Dustin, furious and panicked, threw her polished metal hand
mirror and ivory clip at him for good measure as he stripped off his hauberk,
the mirror catching him in the shoulder.

     When he was down to his shin armor, his
breeches and his heavy linen tunic, he started advancing on her again. She
yelped angrily, jumping up on her bed and grabbing her candleholder for good
measure, flinging it at him even as he lunged for her. The metal holder caught
him in the cheek, near his ear, and immediately drew blood. His irritation fed,
he managed to grab her skirt before she could hop off the end of the bed and
tugged hard, pulling her back at him.

     Dustin knew he had her and she was as mad
as a cat in a snare. When he yanked her back, she balled up her fists and took
a good swing at him, but he ducked it, throwing his shoulder into her abdomen
and managing to slam her down onto the bed. She twisted and struggled, but it
was futile, he had her pinned down with his own massive body and her wrists
were captured above her head with both of his hands.

     She stopped fighting him, breathing heavily
as they glared at each other. Purely symbolic, she twisted a few more times before
relenting fully to his superior strength and size.

     He scowled down at her, eye to eye, fully
aware of her heaving breasts against his sculpted chest. Christ, he had been
angry when he had thrown himself on top of her. But now still angry, yet he could
feel the long-dormant flames of desire beginning to stir in him, as well.
Flushed as she was, she was incredibly beautiful and tempting.

     “No more of that,” he growled.

     She twisted again, her pretty mouth in an
angry frown. “Let me go!”

     He could match her anger and exceed it. “Not
until you regain your senses. I do not appreciate having items thrown at me,
lady.”

     She tensed up underneath him and tried to
bring her knee up to his groin. He was fast, moving to cover her completely
with his huge frame and trapping her legs against the mattress.  He raised a
disapproving eyebrow at her attempt.

     “That,” he said quietly, “would not have
been wise. I should like to have a son someday, and I will not have you
jeopardizing my bloodlines.”

     She met his gaze with such fury that he was
surprised by it. Unable to look at him any longer because she was completely
helpless trapped underneath him, she turned her head away. He continued to
study her beautiful face at close range.

     “Good,” he said. “Now that you are calming,
you will hear me. I will not tolerate a disobedient wife, Lady Dustin. I
understand that your mother let you run amuck and do whatever you pleased
without anyone to answer to, but those days are gone. You will answer to me
now, and you will be respectful and compliant at all times, especially in
public. Am I making myself clear?”

     She was glaring off across the room, trying
to ignore him, and his hands tightened on her wrists. “Is that clear?”

     She let out a strangled yelp and snapped
her head back to look at him. He could not have been more than an inch above
her and she suddenly felt her insides quiver strangely. The anger she had felt
not a split second before was turning into something so warm and peculiar it
was nearly painful in her chest, and her palms began to sweat. The longer she
gazed into his sky-blue eyes, the stronger the feeling became.