Truth be told, it was the night before battle.
He wanted to spend what might be his last remaining moments with her.
“I see,” he said after a moment. “Then collect your bag, or whatever you wish to bring, and make your excuses to your sister. While the men are eating boiled pig, you shall dine on the finest the tavern has to offer and sleep in the most comfortable bed I could procure. My future wife shall have only the best.”
She smiled at his determination to take great care of her. In truth, she liked it very much. “There’s one more thing,” she said.
“What?”
“I’ve not even met your father yet and I have been on a battle march with him for two days.”
He chuckled, low in his throat. “Not to worry,” he said. “Who do you think I have invited to sup with us?”
The thought of meeting Jax de Velt was thrilling. A little intimidating, but thrilling. Corisande gripped his hand, her eyes alight with the possibility.
“Wait here,” she said. “Let me grab my satchel. If Gaia happens to see me, I do not want her to see us together. She might become suspicious.”
“I’ll wait.”
Flashing him a smile, she scurried off across the dark meadow, heading for the surgeon’s wagon in the distance, and Cole watched her like there was nothing else on earth worth watching. Wholeheartedly, with his entire being.
She consumed him.
As he’d told her, it was already the best day of his life.
A life that he prayed was only going to get better.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Northwood Castle banners were flying high as they joined William Marshal’s encampment. The dark green banners with the black, clawed serpent announcing the Earl of Teviot made its way into camp, but only to the edge. The soldiers guarding the camp perimeters had Teviot’s army settle at the edge of camp because, logistically, that was the easiest thing to do.
Teviot’s men began to set up their base.
Directly behind them came the red and black de Velt army from Pelinom, led by Atreus and Julian, who had escorted his mother and sisters to Alnwick Castle and then made it back in time to join up with his father’s army. Pelinom’s army was positioned next to Northwood’s, and Jax joined his men as their encampment was established.
An encampment that was attracting some attention.
Truth be told, all of the armies under the command of William Marshal knew what de Velt’s army had done to Fountainhall Castle, so everyone was eager to catch a glimpse of the legendary army that put their enemies on poles. Most agreed that they had never been so glad to be allied with someone and especially Jax de Velt.
Jax was due to meet up with Cole at the only tavern in town, called The Falcon and the Flower, but he wanted to check in with his men and have Julian and Atreus join him. Both knights were in the process of making sure the men were settling down for the night, but to Jax, Julian looked particularly exhausted. He came up behind his son, eighteen months younger than Cole, and put his arms around him to give him a hug.
Julian grinned.
“Greetings, Papa,” he said, waiting for Jax to step back before he lifted an enormous sledgehammer and drove a stake halfway into the earth. “Where is Cole?”
“Over in the de Bourne camp,” he said. “He is going to join us in town for a meal, so let someone else do that and come with me.”
Julian looked at his father as he leaned on the hammer. “It will take them twice as long,” he said. “I am the only man in northern England who can drive these stakes into the ground in a reasonable amount of time. Do you not know that about me?”
Jax chuckled. While Cole was enormous and powerful, both in height and breadth, Julian was shorter but had the strength of Samson. As his brothers would tease him, even his muscles had muscles. He was a physical specimen of perfection, a knight of the highest order who had worked hard for that physical perfection, and he was obedient to a fault. His resemblance to his father was uncanny, feature for feature, but he was a fair, much like Cole. They both had dark blond hair, only Julian shaved the sides of his head to velvety numbs while leaving the top a little longer. He preferred it that way.
But the eyes…
That was where Julian stood out. He had the two-colored eyes that all of the males in his family had, and almost the exact same splash pattern that his father had, only instead of having a muddy-brown left eye and a half-brown right eye, the brown color was pale, very nearly the color of a topaz. That bright green burst was still very prevalent in his right eye, so big that it nearly covered the entire eye. Looking at the man, a first glimpse would make it seem as if he had one topaz-colored eye and one green eye.
It was an interesting look on an uncommonly handsome young knight who was, unfortunately, quite self-conscious about it. For that very reason, Julian had always had difficulty looking men in the eyes. Not because he was shifty or ill-mannered, but simply because he knew how he looked.
Unthoughtful men and women had commented on it enough times.
And Jax knew it, too.
“All I know is that you are a pain in my arse and a light in my heart,” he said after a moment. “Finish what you are doing, then, and seek me when you are done. I am going to find Teviot and pay my respects.”
As Julian waved him off and began swinging the sledgehammer again, Jax headed over to the Earl of Teviot’s encampment. It had been a while since he’d seen his old friend and ally, and as he wandered into camp, he was recognized by Teviot’s knight, John Winebald. A tall man with a premature crown of gray hair, he dropped what he was doing to escort Jax to the earl’s tent and ushered him inside.
Adam de Longley, the third Earl of Teviot, was a handsome man with dreamy blue eyes. His hair, quite red in his youth, was now streaked with gray. He was sitting at a table with his son, John, but the moment he saw Jax enter, he bolted to his feet and rushed to the man, embracing him as one would a brother.
“Jax,” he said happily. “My dear friend, how long has it been?”
Jax smiled at the man he genuinely liked. “At least six months,” he said. “It has been a while.”
“A while, indeed,” Adam scoffed. “Too long. I was hoping we would see you when your army came to Northwood to join us, but they said you were with William Marshal.”
Jax nodded. “I was,” he said. “There is much happening, Adam. We’ll gather with the other commanders before sunrise and go over the situation.”
Adam’s smile faded somewhat. “I assumed as much,” he said. “I was not told what the trouble was, only that we were needed at Berwick. I committed my men without question, you know that. I assume it is with the Scots.”
Jax lifted an ironic eyebrow. “When it is not with the Scots this far north?”
“Good point.”
There was a moment of wry humor between them before Adam led Jax into the tent, towards the table, where his son, John, stood up to greet him.
“My lord,” John said. “It is an honor to see you again.”
Jax looked at the short, rather round knight who was a fierce fighter and a just commander. “And you,” he said. “I did not mean to interrupt your sup. Please continue. I simply wanted to pay my respects.”