Without a word, Martin lifted Bridget onto his lap to end that particular dispute. A wise lad.
“Did God give us so many daughters to punish us?” his father said to his mother.
His mother gave her husband a sideways glance and smiled, for everyone knew Lord FitzAlan doted upon his daughters.
Ah, it was good to be home. There was no better place to heal than amid this laughter and chaos.
But even after a month with his family, Jamie still felt raw. He ignored the chatter that floated around him as his thoughts drifted back to Windsor, as they so often did. What a fool he had been to believe he could change Linnet—or make her love him.
He had left Windsor the day of his fight with Linnet, ahead of his family. He could not bear to be under the same roof with her another hour.
Soon, he would travel to visit Stafford in Northumberland and offer for his daughter. He told himself it did not matter that he was having trouble recalling Agnes’s face.
And yet, he could not forget one inch of Linnet. He could see her naked now, the candlelight glinting on long strands of silky white-gold hair and revealing each tantalizing dip and devastating rise of her long, lean body.
And her face. Men would go to war for a woman with a face like that. Soft-blue eyes, straight nose, full bottom lip, high cheekbones. Each part was perfect, and the combination was enough to take a man’s breath away. Such delicate features for a woman as strong as the best-made sword.
“Jamie.”
He looked up when he heard his mother call his name and was surprised to find he and his parents were alone at the table.
“Come up to the solar,” his father said. “We have something to discuss in private.”
With all that had happened, he had forgotten about the messages his parents had sent to Windsor urging him to come home. Chances were good they wished to discuss the very topic he wished to raise with them: his plans for marriage.
They had been patient and not pressed him after he had come home devastated from Paris. But it was time now. He needed to know what he would bring to his upcoming marriage. Most of the family lands were entailed and the girls all needed dowries. Still, Jamie expected his father had some small estate he could grant him.
As soon as they were settled in the family’s comfortable solar, Jamie made his announcement. “You will be happy to hear I have decided to become betrothed at last.”
His mother raised her eyebrows and gave him a long, penetrating look. “I would be happy for you, if you seemed pleased yourself.”
“I am pleased,” he said in a firm voice. “Very pleased, indeed.”
“Who is the lady you have in mind?” his father asked.
“Lady Agnes Stafford.”
His parents exchanged a look.
“You know her?” Jamie asked.
“After you left Windsor, we had the ‘pleasure’ of speaking with Lady Agnes and her father. That Stafford is an insufferable idiot.”
His mother cleared her throat.
“Lady Agnes is a… a lovely young woman, though perhaps a trifle… fervent,” she said, speaking slowly as if choosing her words carefully. “But we had reason to believe your affections lay elsewhere.”
Jamie clenched his teeth and waited to speak until the blood ceased to pound in his ears. “You were misinformed.”
“From what I saw, son, ’tis Linnet you want,” his father said.
“Linnet is not the sort of lady I wish to make my wife,” Jamie said, keeping his voice steady with an effort.
“Perhaps you should give yourself time before rushing into a marriage with someone else,” his mother said, “so soon after your… disappointment.”
“I am not disappointed. I am relieved to have escaped marriage to a woman who lacks every virtue a man would wish in a wife.” His voice had grown louder than he intended, so he paused to take a deep breath before continuing. “I intend to leave soon for Northumberland to make the arrangements with Lord Stafford. I have reason to believe he supports the match, as I hope you will.”
“No need for haste,” his father said. “You’ve been gone a long time. Nicholas and the girls are just getting to know you again.”