‘Is it always like this?’ he asked.
‘Usually. Last year I didn’t celebrate with them,’ she admitted. ‘I couldn’t bear it.’
‘And now?’
‘It still hurts to be here without Murtagh,’ she said. ‘But it’s easier to bear it with a friend.’
Arturo squeezed her hand, though he didn’t want to be her friend this night. The kiss she’d given him had haunted him all last night and this day. He didn’t know where it would lead, and already he was letting his mind spin off with ideas of bringing her back to Navarre. But he didn’t know if she would want to leave her home and family.
The music ceased after a time, and several couples had left the Great Chamber. From the over-bright faces of the men and women, many had enjoyed the wine he’d sent. The king moved to the centre of the dais and lifted his hand. Several men raised a knee as a gesture of respect, and the crowd drew back, forming a small space in the front of the Chamber.
‘It is time for the competitions,’ Patrick declared. ‘All men wishing to join in, should come forward.’
Arturo sent Brianna a questioning look, and she nodded in encouragement. While he wasn’t certain whether the competitions involved fighting, he felt confident in his abilities. The other MacEgan men joined him, as well as Liam. Turning to the man beside him, he asked, ‘What must we do?’
‘You’ll see,’ Ewan replied.
One by one, the women approached. He saw Brianna and Adriana, as well as Honora and the other wives. Several women began adjusting their skirts, using ribbons to tie them to their ankles. It wasn’t until the first contest began that he realised what was happening. The women were competing for the right to choose a man.
‘What happens if the wrong woman chooses you?’ he asked Ewan, who stood beside him.
‘My wife is the strongest fighter among them,’ Ewan countered. ‘She’d bring down any woman who dared to ask for me.’ Sending him a teasing look, he added, ‘And would you really complain if a beautiful woman asked you to be hers for the night?’
Arturo shrugged in answer, but he wasn’t so certain. Brianna wasn’t nearly as strong as her opponents, and he didn’t know if she was willing to fight for him. Though the MacEgan wives chose their husbands, he saw several unmarried women eyeing him. One winked as she faced off against Adriana. His sister struggled against the woman, trying to fight in a more womanly manner. But when the maiden rolled Adriana to the ground and sat upon her, his sister grasped the woman’s hair and yanked hard, jerking her away. A smile crossed Liam’s face as his bride began fighting with more aggression, until she held the woman pinned to the dirt.
After the fight ended, Adriana moved to Liam, who claimed her in a fierce kiss. The cheers resounding in the Hall showed their approval of his choice of a bride.
Arturo paid little heed to the next fight, for he didn’t know either of the women. But to his startled surprise, the winner of the match came forward and took his hand. A roar of laughter resounded from the men.
The woman was quite young, possibly seventeen, with braided red hair. If she knew that his choice was Brianna, she didn’t seem to care. With mischief in her eyes, she started to lead him away.
‘Choose another man, cariño,’ he told her.
‘You don’t have a choice.’ She wrapped her arms around his neck and said, ‘I claim a kiss as my reward.’
Baffled, Arturo looked back at the other men. They were laughing at him, offering no help at all. Brianna had disappeared from the crowd, and he didn’t know where she’d gone.
The others were waiting for him, and the maiden had her lips puckered, waiting for the kiss. Arturo cupped her face, lifting it up. All were watching him, and when he pressed a kiss upon the maiden’s forehead, she challenged, ‘Is that how the men kiss in your country?’
‘You didn’t say where the kiss was supposed to be,’ he pointed out, and she sent him a furious glare. He hadn’t really intended to embarrass her, but she’d taken away Brianna’s opportunity.
A young girl cleared her throat, interrupting them. ‘My sister Brianna went home,’ the girl informed him, ‘but do not fear. I put a charm in her wreath that will make her love you.’
There was seriousness in her face, and Arturo bent down. ‘I thank you for your assistance.’ At the girl’s warm smile, he found himself amused by her belief in magic.
‘You are the one for her,’ the girl promised. ‘I know it, for it was in the bones I cast.’
In answer, Arturo lifted her hand to kiss it. ‘Then I should go after her, shouldn’t I?’
The young girl’s eyes widened, and she hurried back to her parents. Arturo moved through the crowd and after searching the inner bailey and the castle grounds, he found her walking amid the snow.
‘Brianna,’ he called out.
She stopped, but didn’t turn around. Gripping the long sleeves of her gown against the cold, she stood in place until he reached her side.
‘Why did you leave?’
She didn’t answer at first, and when he saw her shudder from the cold, he drew his arm around her. It encouraged him that she didn’t pull away. ‘Not out of jealousy,’ she said. ‘You’ve the right to choose any woman you please.’
‘And if I’ve already chosen?’ He slid his arm around her waist.
The words hung between them, and she gave no answer for a long time. ‘If it’s a new wife you’re wanting, you should choose one of them. Someone who will add joy to your life.’ She stepped away from his arms, walking slowly toward one of the other homes.
He didn’t like the direction of this conversation. It sounded as if she’d already given up. ‘And you felt nothing at all when you kissed me yesterday?’
She let out a heavy breath. With a hand, she tucked a strand of hair behind one ear, beneath the wreath of greenery. ‘I did. And that’s what bothers me.’
He wanted to go to her, but she had to make this decision on her own. Instead, he held back, watching over her. Amid the drifting snowflakes, there came the cry of an infant. Nothing at all unusual, but the sound stilled him. He heard the sounds of a mother soothing the child, and regret tightened within him.
Had Cristina lived, he might have held a son or daughter of his own. He might have taken the child upon his shoulders, soothing its cries.
Brianna turned and seemed to read his thoughts. The infant continued to fuss, and she glanced toward the sound. ‘Are you all right?’
His expression tightened, but he nodded. From a fold of his cloak, he held out the orange to her. ‘Take it, and go home, Brianna.’
But she made no move toward the fruit. She drew closer, studying him. ‘You said your wife died in childbirth.’
The edge of grief closed upon him, the cries of the infant grinding against his memories. ‘She did.’
‘Was it a son or a daughter?’ She moved closer, and if she knew what her questions were doing to him, she made no effort to stop.
‘I never knew.’ He shook his head, for the babe had died inside her. Often he wondered if he’d made the right decision not to let the healer cut into Cristina. They’d known that the babe was already dead, and he’d not wanted to desecrate his wife’s body.
Brianna caught his wrist and held it. Whether she was offering her sympathy or something more, he couldn’t tell. ‘Why do you ask me these questions, Brianna?’
She lifted her shoulders in a shrug. ‘I’m trying to understand you.’
He took her face between his hands. ‘I grieved for them until it nearly destroyed