“I should go get my sister. She’s been looking forward to seeing her new home.” Isabella pecked him on the cheek and left his side.
He sighed as he watched her walk away, hips swinging in a mesmerizing rhythm.
Ulf broke away from the group of sailors he was speaking to and came over. “You are quite besotted, my lord, if you don’t mind my saying so.”
Martin laughed. “I have been from the first day we met. She’s magnificent, isn’t she?”
Chuckling, Ulf shook his head. “You never could resist a challenge. Are you ready to introduce her to the family?”
“I can hardly wait. Mama and Eglantine will love her.” Isabella was very much from the same mold—strong, intelligent, and full of an unquenchable inner fire. He very much looked forward to seeing the three of them get acquainted.
“What about Lance? Are you worried about him?”
“Not a bit.” Not since Yarmouth, at any rate. Isabella was his, heart and soul. He had no fear that his tall and handsome brother might draw her eye. “If anything, I look forward to making him jealous.”
Ulf guffawed at that. “Don’t rub it in too much. I know you two have never gotten along, but he looks up to you, believe it ornot. You set an example that he has difficulty living up to. And you were always your father’s favorite.”
It wasn’t the first time Ulf had said such things. And Martin couldn’t deny that bringing Isabella home put an end to any hopes Lance might have had of someday becoming baron.
“I promise to keep my gloating to a minimum.” At least, his outward gloating. Inside, he was doing a victory dance.
Isabella reappeared through the hatch with Adelaide by her side.
“I’ll leave you be,” Ulf said with a wink. “Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll take care of bringing us into port.”
His wife and his sister-in-law joined him at the railing as they passed the abbey, the entrance to Rye Harbor. He wrapped an arm around Isabella’s waist, enjoying the way she melted against him. The two of them were a perfect fit. “You arrived just in time to get your first view of Winchelsea.”
He pointed across the water to the familiar silhouette of the church and the castle. The port teemed with ships of all shapes and sizes.
“It’s bigger than I thought,” Isabella said, shielding her eyes from the sun.
He grinned and murmured in her ear, “That’s what every man wants to hear.” Then he nipped at her earlobe. He couldn’t help himself.
She elbowed him in the side. “You’re incorrigible.”
“You bring it out in me. Every time you’re near, my thoughts turn wicked.”
“Well, try to drag your mind out of the bedchamber for a bit. I’m nervous enough about meeting your family without you distracting me with your nonsense.”
“You? Nervous? I don’t believe it for a moment.” Her poise was unbreakable.
“What are you two whispering about?” Adelaide asked, interrupting their littletête-à-tête.
“Your sister was just telling me she’s nervous about meeting my family.”
Adelaide raised her eyebrows. “Isabella? Nervous? She faces every challenge like an army general.”
“You see, my love? You can’t convince either of us.”
Isabella folded her arms. “Just because I don’t show it doesn’t mean I don’t feel it.”
There was a moment of vulnerability in her expression that made him wrap his arm around her and kiss her forehead. “They will adore you. I know they will.”
“I can’t wait to meet them,” said Adelaide, looking out over the water as they made their approach. “Did your sister Eglantine really win an archery competition against your men when she was my age?”
It was nothing short of a miracle what a change the last week had wrought on Adelaide. Her color was back. She hardly coughed. The young lady looked healthier than he’d ever seen her. And she seemed delighted by every outlandish tale he’d told about Eglantine. He looked forward to seeing the two of them together.
“She did indeed. She’s an expert falconer as well. I’m certain she’ll introduce you to her goshawk, Horus, before the day is out. I swear she spends more time with that bird than with her own family. She even lets him sleep in her room, much to Mother’s annoyance.”
