Here Be Dragons - 1 Sharon Penman (paper ebook reader .TXT) 📖

people were looking in their direction.Richard leaned over and, in a rare gesture of public affection, kissed his sister on the cheek. "I'm sorry," he said, and was. He had no answers forJoanna. What had worked for himdistancing himself from Johnobviously did not work for her. "I just want you to be happy, that's all.""I am happy, Richard, in truth I am," Joanna said, and then she smiled. "Ithink you are, too; I've rarely seen you look so relaxed. It must suit you, being Lord of Chilham, sheriff of Berkshire and Staffordshire.""It does indeed. Whatever else may be said of Papa, he did right by us in our marriages.""Yes," Joanna said, "he did. I only hope Llewelyn and I did as we for Elen."veil

545She was still thinking of that a few moments later, as she made her way across the hall toward Gwladys. How could a parent ever know which marriage would flourish and which would fail? Marared seemed utterly content with Jack deBraose, had given him a son upon whom they both doted. But Gwladys and her husband treated each other with the cool politeness of strangers, and after seven years, their marriage was still barren."I'm so glad you were able to come, Gwladys," Joanna said warmly, for she'd not been at all sure that Reginald would agree to attend the wedding; he was rarely seen these days in the same company as his nephew. The feud betweenReginald and Jack had been dragging on for several years now, ever since Jack had regained his freedom and laid claim to the bulk of the de Braose lands, as the heir of Will and Maude's eldest son. Nor had Llewelyn eased the tension any by siding with Jack, allowing him to wed Marared.Joanna had found it difficult to forgive Llewelyn for that, for putting additional strain upon his daughter's troubled marriage. But Gwladys kept her own counsel, and if she had regrets, none but she knew. She and Reginald seemed to find no lack of reasons for increasingly long absences apart, and now she said, quite composedly, "I'd have come with or without Reginald.Surely you do not think I'd ever miss Elen's wedding?"Both women turned, gazed across the hall. Elen was clad in a gown ofAlexandrine velvet, a brilliant blue-green shade that set off to perfection her free-flowing black hair, gleaming like polished ebony against a gossamer gold veil."She makes a lovely bride," Gwladys said, and Joanna nodded slowly."Yes . . . but not a happy one.""I do not think you need fret about Elen, Joanna. She's so volatile that she needs a steadying hand. I expect John will be good for her."Gwladys accepted a wine cup from a passing servant, clinked it againstJoanna's. "To Elen," she said. "And speaking of volatile spirits, my husband's wayward son has decided to put in an appearance after all.""Will? He's here?""Indeed he is. And how like Will; he misses the wedding entirely, but arrives in time for the celebration. I am sorry about this, Joanna, hope you do not mind too much.""No, I... I do not mind. You just caught me by surprise, for he did ^"TI down the invitation. Did he bring his wife?"

546r"No, thank God!" Gwladys said, and laughed at Joanna's startle^ look. "You do not know her, do you? Take it from me, the Lady Eva Marshal is a bitch, every bit as haughty and obdurate as her brother Pembroke."Joanna was only half listening; she had no interest whatsoever in Will's wife.She'd not expected this, that she'd feel so flustered at the thought of seeingWill de Braose again. She did not truly know him, theirs had been a brief afternoon encounter more than twelve years past. But she'd thought of him often since learning of Maude's fate, and she knew suddenly that of all the deBraoses, it was Will she'd always most dreaded to face."You do not like Will, do you, Gwladys? Would you tell me why?""Well, he did oppose my marriage to his father, so from the beginning there was tension betwixt us. But it's more than that, Joanna. I think he's a dangerous man, the sort that breaks hearts and heads with equal ease. Down inDeheubarth, the Welsh call him Gwilym Ddu.""Black Will?" Joanna echoed in surprise. "That's passing strange, for Iremember his hair as being very light, a flaxen color.""It still is," Gwladys said, very dryly."I see. He's not very well thought of, then?""That depends upon whom you ask. Men do not like him much, women generally like him too much. There's been more than one scandal involving an angry husband, an errant wife. Will's not trustworthy, Joanna. Local legend has it that he once sold the same piece of land to three different buyers, and whilstI cannot vouch for the truth of that, I'd not put it past him. He cuts with a sharp blade, does our Will, leaves himself no margin for error."The dancing had begun; a circle was forming for the carole, and Elen and John the Scot were soon coaxed into the center. They danced well together, won themselves a round of applause when the figure was completed. Elen then shook her head and John led her back toward the sidelines. He had a naturally ruddy complexion, even more flushed now from the dance, and the same unruly, sandy hair as his cousin the Scots King, but he did have an engaging grin, which he flashed as he caught Joanna's eye.Elen, however, had no smiles at all to offer. Although she was standing besideJohn, her hand in his, she seemed set upon acting as" their proximity were mere coincidence. She was watching the other dancers, looking so aloof thatJoanna wanted to take her aside, to shake some sense into her. Remembering how she'd labored to hide her own reluctance from Llewelyn, it seemed to her thatElen was behaving ve*> badly, and she started toward them, intent upon having a brief word 1547private with her daughter. For better or worse, Elen was now John's wife,