Page 74 of The Blacksmith

“You never told me of the earl’s daughter,” Terric said suddenly.

Lance ground his teeth, cursing Guy silently under his breath. He’d hoped his friend would keep that information to himself, although he wasn’t exactly surprised to learn it wasn’t so.

“There’s nothing to tell.”

“According to Guy, there’s much to tell. He said you were in love with the lass.”

“Guy is an arse.”

“He would likely agree,” Terric said, raising his brow. “But that doesn’t make his claim false.”

“We should discuss our plans. With Stanton’s support—”

“Lance.”

There were times he was grateful for these men he called brothers, but other times he longed for the solitude that came with being a smith.

A position he no longer enjoyed now that he’d left both Bohun and Stanton. It had been agreed, months ago, that he would return here once he’d secured Stanton’s support. He knew not what came next, but worrying about the future was futile since they may or may not still have their heads when this was over.

“Terric.”

The chief frowned. “I am not Guy. You can speak to me of this.”

The Scot did not intend to disparage their friend. He understood Terric’s meaning. While Guy would never find himself at the mercy of love, or so he thought, Terric had already done so once before. He understood as well as anyone the pain of its loss.

“As I said—”

“You said there’s nothing to tell. You’re off your head if you think I believe that.”

For such a large man, Terric could be surprisingly . . . gentle. But Lance really did not want to discuss Idalia.

Despite knowing his efforts would be futile, he’d tried to see her before he had left. Unsurprisingly, she’d refused him. Though he’d gained Stanton’s support for their cause, he had lost something even more valuable.

“She is . . . remarkable,” he found himself saying. “When I arrived, her mother was very ill. Thankfully, a physician arrived from London just before I left. It seems the skullcap she’d been taking for her headaches was the cause of her condition. But in her absence, Idalia took her mother’s place, since her older sister had married not long before,” he explained.

“But you don’t wish to speak of her. Lady Idalia?”

“Nay.”

Terric cleared his throat.

“What is there to say? We spent some time together and . . .”

It was excruciating to talk about her, even in such general terms. Although he’d opened himself to Idalia, Lance was not a man accustomed to speaking about his feelings. Before meeting her, the only person he’d professed to love was his mother.

“We fell in love,” he said, forcing the words out. Surely Terric would know better than to press.

“Hmmm.”

Lance concentrated on the tapestry behind his friend’s head. The lord’s chamber was overly large but nearly always cold. Multiple tapestries attempted, futilely, to keep out the chill.

“If Guy sat here, having declared such a thing, I would tell him to continue as if he’d not met the lass. But you are not Guy.”

“Thank the saints,” he said, forcing a smile.

Terric did not return it. “I am sorry your station prevents you from being with a woman such as Lady Idalia,” he said, his tone earnest.

Lance said nothing.