Restoring Garnet's Heart [Elinor's Stronghold 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) Read online

  “Byram!” Garnet’s excited voice broke into the conversation, and he turned to smile at his wife, this beautiful woman who’d been with him such a short time, yet who filled his heart with love and joy.

  “You must come and see what we have discovered.”

  Byram nodded. “Thank you, Henry. You and your people report to Carlysle, and he will allocate your tasks.”

  He turned to Garnet. “What must I see? Come and show me.”

  “You know the main storeroom, the one where most of the supplies were damaged by the fire when the demesne was lost?”

  “Yes indeed. It is obvious why these men were raiding the hamlets. Much of the stored food was spoiled.”

  “Ah, but there you’re wrong. It wasn’t.”

  “What?”

  Garnet was giggling and sparkling like the sun on ice. Her happiness was a warm cloud surrounding her and drawing him to her. “I’ll show you.”

  Byram followed her into the storeroom in the stone cellar, through the door they’d had to break down, past the few remaining bags of grain and a single tray of preserved vegetables, to a second door. This led into an area where barrels were kept. Most had held ale, others foodstuffs, especially salted meat, but all were empty.

  Dramatically Garnet paused then flung open a door at the end of the room. Inside, neatly arranged, were shelves of apples, potatoes, onions, and other vegetables, each one carefully placed so as not to touch its neighbors. Against one wall was a high pile of bags of grain, and against a second wall were rows of barrels. Garnet skipped down the line. “These ones all hold salted meat, and in this far corner is some wine. Isn’t that wonderful? We have enough food to feed our own people for several months and won’t need to draw on the stronghold’s supplies during that time.”

  Byram felt fury race through his body. “Do you mean to say that Lord Jeffrey didn’t even bother to check his storerooms? He just raided his hamlets, killing people right and left, because he was too lazy to look in his own cellar?”

  Garnet stared him in the eyes. “These men were soldiers. I doubt if they looked past the empty ale barrels. Preserving food is women’s work. Also, I think the brighter, nobler of his followers didn’t remain here for very long. Lord Devon joined us just after the tourney, and from what I understand, perhaps half of Lord Jeffrey’s followers left as soon as he gave them their freedom. The ones who remained with him were those with fewer options and probably less training and ability.”

  “If I was hungry, I would’ve been checking all the barns, storerooms, and cellars more carefully than these people did, though,” objected Byram.

  “I think most women would have, too. But isn’t it great we’ve found all this food. It’s enough for several months!”

  Byram couldn’t resist her happy, smiling face. He tugged her into his arms and kissed her softly on the lips. “Yes, it’s wonderful news indeed. But you’re even more wonderful.”

  She felt so good in his arms. Soft, and warm, and every inch a woman. Her pelvis rested against his aching dick, her soft breast pressed into his chest, and he wanted to throw her skirts over her head, lean her against the wall, and fuck her. Unfortunately that wasn’t possible right now. They had a huge challenge before them, and he was determined to win his lord’s respect by doing the best possible job of getting the demesne back into working order.

  * * * *

  Garnet was loving their new living arrangements. She, Byram, and Carlysle shared two rooms in the upper corner of the demesne house. The building had a solid stone cellar and a ground-level construction of stone, but the upper floors were wood, making it vulnerable to attack by fire arrows, which is what Lord Jeffrey had used.

  The new stone wall, which was being laid out four long paces outside the previous wooden palisade, would make it safe, as no archer could send an arrow that far.

  The stone stair to the solar went up from the great hall, and then there was a long wooden passage, which Carlysle’s people had already cleaned and mended. At the far end of the passage was a large room, and a small inner room, which may have been meant for storage. Now it was Ava and Ysabel’s room and had a chair in it for Garnet to sit there, to spend time with them, and sew if she wished to leave the great hall.

  In the big room there was plenty of space for Byram’s storage chest of possessions, her large bundle of goods, and the few things Carlysle still owned. The chair in the children’s room belonged to Garnet, and the girls were awed to have it in their room.

  But the most important piece of furniture was the bed. Carlysle had checked its construction carefully to make sure it would be solid enough for the three of them. Then he’d brought armload after armload of clean straw, and Garnet had restuffed the mattress, making everything fresh and neat for the three of them.

  Every night they fucked and fucked again. The two men together inside her, bringing her great pleasure. Or one man swiving her, while the other watched, then swapping around. Sometimes the two men fucked, and she found that just as exciting as being swived herself. Watching them touch each other, sweat, and strain to reach the peak, pounding into one man’s ass while the other man’s cock bounced free, drove her as wild as them caressing her.

  Tonight she was flat on her back on the bed. Carlysle was between her legs, swiving her, and her mouth was full of Byram’s cock. Each man tasted quite different. Byram was tart. If his essence had been a dish she was cooking, she’d want to add a spoonful of honey from the wild bees. But since it was him, she swallowed him down anyway. Carlysle’s seed was bland. He needed a pinch of salt to spice him up.

  Mentally she grinned. She was being fucked by the two most wonderful men, and she was thinking of cooking instead of thinking of the pleasure she could give and receive. Busily she sucked Byram’s cock deep into her mouth. Roldan had taught her how to tilt her head right back, open her throat, and suck a man deep down. It was a difficult skill to learn, but she could do it, and Byram and Carlysle loved it as much as Roldan had. So she tried it now, sucking Byram deep and deeper still, opening the back of her throat letting him push in farther and farther until she could take no more, then letting him come up and out, gently scraping her teeth along his shaft as he pulled out of her mouth.

  Garnet poked her tongue into the slit of his cock, teasing out a drop of seed, then scraped her teeth over his cockhead, before licking up and down his shaft, pressing her tongue along his throbbing vein, and feeling the power of him within her mouth. When she heard his groans, she sucked him deep into her mouth once more.

  Carlysle was driving into her. He had her hips tilted up very high off the bed, and every thrust seemed to fill her almost as far as her bellybutton. He slammed into her hard, pulled out, and pushed in again and again, each stroke increasing her pleasure and building within her the fire that would burst into bright flames quite soon.

  Hands began to tease her breasts, cupping the mounds, tweaking her nipples. Byram. In reply, she cupped his balls, rolling them around and around in her palm. He gasped again and pinched her nipples lightly, pulling on the hard points until the sharp edge of pleasure made her belly clench. Deliberately she tightened her inside muscles, giving pleasure to Carlysle, including him in her game with Byram.

  Byram stopped playing, held his cock, and drove it in and out of her mouth. She sucked hard, hollowing her cheeks and exerting enough pressure to bring him excitement without hurting him.

  Carlysle pounded into her again, twirling his hips in the wicked way only he could do, and fire ignited deep in her belly, blasting through her body, out of control, burning, consuming, sending her spinning high into great pleasure. With her last thought, she sucked as hard as she could on Byram, knowing the way her cunt gripped Carlyle would bring him to his peak and wanting Byram there with them.

  A flood of seed burst in her cunt, followed almost immediately by Byram’s essence spurting into her mouth. Good. It was so good when they all shared together this way. They were a family, Byram, Carlysle, Ava, Ysabel, and
her. A family together forever.

  * * * *

  The midday meal was almost ready, and Garnet was teaching a messenger the list of spices she wanted to be sent from the stronghold when a loud trumpet blast was heard. Everyone ran outside into the courtyard to see Wade riding up with another soldier. “The heir! The heir must have been born,” she said.

  All around her people were saying, “It’s a boy. I know it’ll be a boy.”

  “No, it’s a girl. Lady Elinor collects warrior girl-children.”

  Wade waited until the courtyard was full of people, and then the trumpet blasted again. Finally he announced, “The stronghold has an heir. The stronghold has two heirs.”

  Two! Twins. No wonder Lady Elinor’s belly had been so huge. “A boy and a girl,” guessed Garnet to the messenger she’d been teaching.

  Once again Wade waited until there was silence in the courtyard before announcing, “Lady Elinor’s sons are named Warrick and Wymer. The name Warrick means hero, and the name Wymer means warrior. The hero and the warrior will grow up to protect both the stronghold and the demesne.”

  Screaming, shouting, and clapping broke out, and then everyone went inside for dinner. After bread and meat were served, Byram personally poured everyone a small cup of wine, and the lives of the two heirs were toasted over and over again.

  Wade sat with Byram, Garnet, and Carlysle at the high table. “Tell us, Wade, did the Lady Elinor have a difficult time giving birth to two children?” she asked.

  “Lady Elinor felt unwell and didn’t join us for dinner yesterday, but the labor did not truly begin until dusk. The babes were born only minutes apart about an hour after dawn, and Father Augustus named them just before I came here.”

  “That’s not so bad then. Lady Elinor is well?”

  “She is indeed, and Lady Rhyannon and Madam Heloise are with her to help with the care of the two heirs.”

  “Two heirs.” Byram shook his head. “No possible outcome could have been better. One for the stronghold, and one for the demesne. Lord Rhys will be the center of attention at Court when he announces he not only has his land back, but also two heirs.”

  “He will leave for Court in a week with Lady Rhyannon. Preparations are already beginning for the journey,” said Wade.

  “Is there any possibility of Lady Rhyannon getting control of her father’s property now that Lord Coll is dead? She said there were no other relatives to inherit she knew of except perhaps a distant cousin,” said Garnet.

  Byram answered, “Wouldn’t Lord Rhys himself be a closer relation?”

  “No, because her father married several times after he married Rhyannon’s mother, who was Lord Rhys’s father’s sister. The matter is very difficult. The King may decide the simplest solution is to give Rhyannon possession, as she is her father’s only child,” answered Wade.

  “What about her father’s other wives? Wouldn’t they have fathers and brothers who could demand a share of the inheritance? Especially his last wife?” asked Carlysle.

  “I doubt if the earlier wives’ brothers could make a claim any more than Lord Rhys could. But perhaps the males from the family of his final wife might be able to demand something. It’s messy, very messy indeed,” said Wade.

  Garnet stopped listening. It was all extremely complicated and didn’t matter as much to her as the challenges right there in the demesne. There was so much to do. Already the weather was slightly warmer, and soon the men would be able to start digging the foundations for the new wall. It would be helpful if plenty of rocks were gathered ready to build by that time, so the good weather could be used for building rather than for rock collecting.

  The demesne had a lot of very small wooden storage huts, some of them partially burned from Lord Jeffrey’s attack. The workers were busy pulling them all down now, salvaging the usable wood, and they would then clear a space and make two big storage barns, one for animals and the other for fuel. Garnet had listened to Carlysle speak several times about how he wanted a barn with high perches for poultry and plenty of space below for sheep, pigs, and cattle, like the one they’d built at the stronghold. The more animals they could keep alive through winter, the better their chances of living themselves. Of course, there were no animals at all there now, but the stronghold would give them some chickens, and once the baby animals had been born in the forest, they could capture pigs and ducks, and begin to build up their stock.

  The work to be done was enormous and challenging, but also exciting. Garnet wanted to help Byram and Carlysle make the demesne a stronghold to be proud of, a fitting inheritance for Warrick and Wymer.

  Chapter Four

  Rhys was determined to arrive at Court looking like a rich man with a large entourage. The problem was, his soldiers were already divided between the stronghold and the demesne, and both needed to be protected. He could scarcely bear to leave Elinor and the children. He and Hammond had been overwhelmed when she presented them with a son each. Still, this trip had to be made for the sake of their sons and also for Rhyannon.

  Rhyannon had to have a female with her at Court to demonstrate her status, but Elinor needed Aunt Heloise to help her with the babies. It was Elinor who’d suggested taking Nerida with them. Nerida was a very clever child and would easily learn and remember all she needed to know. Because she was not yet a woman, that also meant taking her father, William, with them, which made their party one larger and more impressive-looking, too. Of course, Lord Devon and Alistair accompanied Rhyannon, and they took the soldier Ebert as well, who’d always been loyal to her. So, a party of seven, but with four warriors, large enough to deter attacks from masterless men, but small enough to avoid having to take a baggage wagon. A reasonable compromise, assessed Rhys.

  Although the bitterness of winter had passed, it was not yet spring, so the roads were still frozen and much easier to travel than they’d be once the thaw began properly. Rhys was satisfied with the journey. They made good time and met with no trouble. However, the four warriors were ever alert.

  Once they arrived at Court, they were allocated rooms and told the King would see them after dinner tomorrow. Rhys had not expected to be granted an interview so fast, which meant he and the men had armor to clean and clothes to unpack. For Rhyannon, it was the same. She and Aunt Heloise had been making a dress for Nerida to wear, which was finished, but they wanted to put a small amount of embroidery on it, and Rhyannon had expected to have several days to do this sewing.

  “I won’t embroider the cuffs of the sleeves, just the neckline,” said Rhyannon. “Nerida, you must prepare all the rest of our clothes while I sit and embroider.”

  “I’ll walk around and learn where everything is, and what is the news,” said Nerida’s father.

  Rhys was a bundle of nerves before the meeting with the King. He paced the floor, fiddled with his cloak, stared at his boots, and prepared in his head what he had to say over and over again. Surely nothing could go wrong?

  The King was sitting by the fire when Rhys, Rhyannon, Lord Devon, and Nerida were permitted into the room. Rhys took a deep breath and bowed. “Your Majesty.”

  “I hear your fortunes have waned and waxed since we met, Lord Rhys. Lady Rhyannon, a pleasure to see you once again. Lord Devon, well met.”

  Rhys bowed again and stepped back to allow Lord Devon to present Rhyannon to the King. As she’d been told to do, Nerida stayed one pace behind them all, still and quiet.

  “So, Lord Rhys, what do you wish to tell me?”

  “As you know, Your Majesty, Lord Jeffrey won my demesne from me in battle. I married the Lady Elinor and have been guarding her stronghold. As winter began, Lord Jeffrey raided the hamlets of the valley, stealing their food and possessions. He attacked those who were sheltering under the stronghold walls, and we defended ourselves successfully. Lord Jeffrey died in the battle.”

  Rhys took another deep breath. The King sat quite still and calm. Much of this story he would already know, of course.

  “A month ago
my men and I attacked Lord Jeffrey’s demesne in reply to his attack on us. The servants surrendered to our soldiers, but Lord Coll and his servant tried to flee. They became caught in a pit trap I’d built for self-defense when it was my demesne, and both died in the trap. I’ve reclaimed my demesne and am rebuilding it. Lady Elinor recently presented me with twin sons, an heir for the stronghold and also one for the demesne,” finished Rhys.

  “Congratulations indeed, Lord Rhys. A wife, a stronghold, a demesne, and two heirs. You’ve been blessed by God indeed. I had heard that Lord Jeffrey became ill after winning his demesne. Several of his followers have returned to Court to tell that tale. And now he’s dead.” The King nodded and was silent for a long while.

  Rhys’s back was knotted with tension, and his legs were stiff. He wanted to move, to stretch, to do something, but didn’t dare. Rhyannon’s future depended on what happened next, and the King had not asked to hear her story yet.

  “Lady Rhyannon, you are here because Lord Coll is dead?”

  Rhys let his back loosen a tiny bit and smiled at Rhyannon, hoping her part of this interview went smoothly.

  “Yes, Your Majesty. I’m married to Lord Devon. Lord Coll came to the stronghold to claim the jewels my mother gave me. He said he’d inherited all my father’s possessions. My father had never given the jewels to his other wives, not even when they came to Court. They were always mine, so Father Augustus sent for my father’s papers.”

  Rhyannon turned to Nerida, and the child stepped forward silently, handed a rolled scroll to Rhyannon, and stepped back.

  Rhyannon handed the scroll to the King. “When Lord Coll found the papers didn’t give him my jewels, he threw them on the fire, but Father Augustus pulled them out. The priest says the silver plate and other things may also be mine, not Lord Coll’s.”

  Now Lord Devon stepped forward and bowed. “Your Majesty, as Lady Rhyannon’s husband, I’m claiming her father’s property in her name. Lord Coll is dead, as is his claim on it. Lady Rhyannon is the obvious person to take control of her former home.” Lord Devon bowed, and once again Rhys realized how tight his muscles were and how badly he needed to stretch and move. Rhyannon deserved to have her home back again. She really was the obvious heir, but who knew who that coward, Lord Coll, may have willed it to, or even what the King would decide?