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He frowned. “No, not yet. But seeing as he has been gone for so long…”
I bristled. My father had left over a year ago to try to persuade the king his country needed him at home. I’d last seen my father when he’d visited briefly, six months earlier — just long enough to spread the word of Richard’s capture and get the ball rolling in terms of collecting the required ransom. Then he’d returned to the continent to make sure our monarch was being treated properly, even in prison.
“If an ill fate were to befall him…” John hinted.
I stuck up my chin. “If anything befalls my father, my cousin becomes my guardian.”
Since I was a woman and an only child, my father’s title and holdings would go to my cousin, Thomas, whom I trusted implicitly.
John cracked an egg open. “And if an ill fate were to befall him?”
I showed my teeth. God, what a snake this man was.
“Then my godfather would become my guardian,” I snipped.
I didn’t add what he already knew — the king was my godfather.
“Yes, but if anything were to happen to him…” Prince John’s smug grin cut to my soul. “Fear not, dear lady. I will do my duty and take over the guardianship. In fact, I already have.”
I stalked closer, looming over his chair. So close, I could hear the creak of armor as his guards stepped closer. I growled, enunciating each word.
“You are not my guardian. You never will be.”
And damn the man, who smiled ever more smugly.
“Ah, but I am.” He waved the egg. “These are difficult times, with so many men away at the Crusades. Therefore, I have passed a decree to protect young ladies of noble blood in the absence of their menfolk. There are just too many irreputable men lurking about, looking to take advantage of their wealth.”
“Oh, I know,” I snarled, barely holding back, Men like you, you scheming prick.
He nodded, clearly pleased with his own genius. “Exactly. I only have your best interests at heart. Besides, what woman wouldn’t want to marry a king?”
“Prince, you mean.”
“Prince. For now,” he grumbled. He took a bite of his egg, then held the rest up to me.
It took everything I had not to smack his hand away or, better yet, punch his arrogant mug.
“You’re overwhelmed, I can see.” His voice went all condescending. “Perfectly natural, considering how near the big day draws.” His eyes glinted. “The feast of Saint Matthias.”
“Three days away,” I reminded him. Not that that gave me much time.
He shook his head. “We shall marry on the eve of the feast of Saint Matthias. Don’t worry,” he hurried to add, “all the arrangements are being made by a dear friend. She’ll make sure everything is perfect. As a man, I have neither the time nor inclination for such things.”
I growled, reminding him I felt the same way. Especially when it came to marriage to him.
“What friend?” I spat, one sharp syllable after another.
His smile stretched. “The lovely Lady Thornton. She’s even found the perfect location — Nottingham.”
I stared. Nottingham?
Up to that moment, Tuck had been mumbling nonsensical prayers in the chapel. Now, he went perfectly still, like me.
There was no missing it — that sense of pawns being maneuvered around a chessboard by a cruel, calculating hand. And while Prince John was both those things, checkers was more his game. Chess demanded a mastermind. Which meant…
Lady Thornton?
That bitch? Tuck’s voice broke into my mind.
