The Fearless Princess (Forgotten Royals)

Chapter Seventeen

A moment was never enough.

Enguerrand de Coucy stood across from me with a group of other young men, including my brothers. The summer sun and brilliant blue sky brought a sense of merriness to everyone gathered outside, preparing for a hunting trip. A picnic was laid out with mouth-watering food and some of the young people were more interested in meat pies than the coming hunting trip. The men were making wild jokes to Mary's young husband. I had to fight to keep the smile from my face, as no virtuous maiden should understand these remarks.

I also had to stop myself from staring at the French lord. No one could ever know about our forbidden night together. I couldn't think of the delicious heat as he held me against the wall. We exchanged no words once done, and he slipped away into the shadows. I would not allow myself to long for him. He shouldn't be different from any other man.

He couldn't be different.

"Should I even ask what you're thinking about?" Joan asked, stepping next to me, dressed in dark blue and gilt.

I sniffed. "Whatever could you mean?"

She just gave me a mischievous smile, and her eyes sparkled. Irritation stabbed at me. One step closer to a proper marriage with my brother and she was already acting like the Queen of England. Of course, she deserved it. But I didn't need her teasing.

"It's a shame your sister can't join us," Joan said, changing the subject with the grace of a royal consort.

I gave a regretful nod. The hunting trip had been arranged for Mary's wedding celebration. She should be the queen of the hunt. Instead, she was feeling poorly and no one thought of postponing her husband's sport until she could take part in it. I shouldn't feel too bad. She would have plenty of hunts and feasts in the future. This also gave Joan and Edward a chance to have some fun since they weren't able to announce anything yet. If anyone needed fun, it was them. Aside from the frustrations of obtaining permission to marry, the Prince of Wales and Countess of Kent were always overwhelmed by important matters. At the moment, Joan seemed like a young girl again, joyous and unguarded. I hoped I didn't look as foolish when I looked at Enguerrand.

I turned my attention to the outdoor feast before the hunt. There was something special about a picnic with the gentle strumming of a lute, accompanied by a chorus of chirping birds. The idyllic setting made me forget the years of pestilence and the foul smell coming from burial pits. War had shadowed my entire life, but it felt far away at the moment. It felt like summer had saved us from a winter of death. All the young men treated me like a beautiful princess, the way things were years ago. A priest might accuse me of being vain and I couldn't disagree. Of course. the men weren't any better, making absolute fools of themselves over me and every maiden there.

It was a merry spot, but my heart wasn't in it. I wanted a chance to speak with Enguerrand. I needed a better sense of what our night had meant to him. If he was content with it only being a moment.

When the joking quieted, I seized my opportunity to address Enguerrand. "How do you like Woodstock Palace, my lord?"

"It is magnificent, my lady," he said staring at me in a way that let me know he did not mean the palace. "But I find it hard to sleep here."

If I were younger, I would have flushed. Instead, I was caught between delight and worry that others would understand what he meant. From Joan's widened eyes, she didn't miss the meaning. I needed to redirect the conversation. "Faith, you must mean the ghost, my lord."

His brow furrowed as I took us down an unexpected road. "Ghost?"

I took a bite of the meat pie. "You didn't know about the ghost?"