The Snow White Bride (35 page)

“Alexander Lammergeier, Laird of Kinfairlie,” Eleanor supplied when Alexander might have argued this man’s familiarity.

“Excellent.” Reinhard marked his vellum
with
a flourish, then snapped his fingers again. He surrendered both vellum and quill to his squires, then sent them all scampering with a murmured command. Then he folded his hands together and returned Alexander’s glance, saying nothing at all.

The chamber filled with expectant silence. After a moment, Reinhard returned to his survey of the solar’s contents. Alexander frowned as the guest peered at a stool, as if finding it lacking some attribute, but Eleanor shook her head minutely.

The boys returned momentarily, bearing chests that were small but obviously weighty. “And where would you like the coin to be secured
,
Laird Alexander?” Reinhard asked. Four pages and an elderly man turned their expectant gazes upon him.

“What coin?” Alexander asked.

Reinhard, against expectation, smiled thinly. “You truly did not know. Allow me to introduce myself properly.”

Alexander did not comment that such an introduction was past due.

“I am Reinhard von Heigel, the friend and confidant of the late Etienne Havilland, Baron of Breton. Etienne, of course, was the father of your wife, and appointed me to execute his will.” Every soul in the chamber crossed herself and Reinhard nodded acknowledgment of the courtesy.

He then continued. “Etienne insisted that his legacy could only pass to a male heir and thus, when he knew himself to be possessed solely of a daughter, he stipulated that his estate would remain in trust until his daughter, Eleanor, gave birth to a son. Etienne decreed that the father of that son would be his heir and that I, should he depart this world before me, should act as trustee of those funds.”

Reinhard cleared his throat and gave Eleanor a ste
rn
glance. “I must confess that I had hoped that Eleanor would deliver of a son much sooner than this. The burden of managing Etienne’s considerable wealth has been onerous. In truth, I feared that I would meet my own demise before an heir had been produced.” He smiled tightly. “I congratulate you both on ensuring that prospect was never realized.”

“Wealth?” Alexander echoed, eyeing the chests with new certainty of their contents.

“Wealth aplenty,” Reinhard declared. He flicked open each trunk, revealing each one to be filled with coins. One held gold coins, the other three were filled with silver ones. “Which was why, sir, I asked where you would see your inheritance secured.”

Anthony coughed delicately, drawing every eye, including Alexander’s, for he had not realized that his castellan had joined the growing company in the solar. “I would suggest, my lord, that the coin be counted before it is accepted in Kinfairlie’s treasury, the better to ensure that all has been delivered as anticipated.”

“A most prudent notion,” Reinhard said. They looked to Alexander once again. His sisters were grinning, waiting to see how he would accept this extraordinary fortune.

“You knew of this,” he said to Eleanor.

“Why do you think that men have desired so ardently to wed me?” she asked, and he shook his head.

“I can think of a thousand reasons beyond this one.” The lady’s answering smile was all the reward he could have hoped to win. He perched on the side of their
bed and she caressed the cheek of their son. Alexander wanted nothing more than to explore the child’s marvels with Eleanor.

“Look at his tiny fingers and toes,” Isabella whispered with awe.

“He is perfect,” Annelise whispered in her turn.

“As is his mother,” Alexander said, and Eleanor flushed crimson.

Anthony cleared his throat pointedly. “My lord?”

“On the floor above this one, Anthony, we will use the chamber with three windows as our counting room,” Alexander said decisively without glancing up. “Please ensure that the windows are secured from the inside and that a guard is placed upon the portal. Only you or I shall be admitted once the coin has been secured, and once that coin is secured, I would bid you offer my finest hospitality to our esteemed guest, Lord Reinhard.”

“Very good, my lord.” With Anthony’s bow, the men finally left the solar.

“Praise be,” Vera muttered. “I thought they would never leave!”

“Men in the birthing room,” Moira clucked. “It is
shocking.”

“Strangers even,” Vera agreed with no small measure of indignation. She then patted the boy’s cheek with a fingertip. “You are a clever one, lad, seeing yourself in an affluent household from the first!” The babe gurgled, seemingly content to be cosseted by his father now. “We can expect much from this one, to be sure.”

“His presence is sufficient,” Eleanor declared.

“You should have seen your face!” Elizabeth said, poking Alexander in the arm. She then mimicked the fierce
scowl that Alexander had presumably shown moments before. “I thought you might cast him out the window!”

“It is good that you did not, for he might have taken insult,” Annelise said.

“Think of all that coin, Alexander,” Isabella whispered. “Think of what might be done with it.”

Alexander looked down at his smiling wife and held her gaze. He knew full well what he would do with it and he imagined that their thoughts were as one. Kinfairlie had some debt, to be sure, but nothing to match the sum of coin Eleanor had brought to his coffers.

“Strangely,” he mused, “I find myself envisioning three weddings that will be the talk of all of Christendom, so beauteous will be the brides at each of them.”

His sisters roared outrage as one and Alexander laughed at them.

“Of course, each maiden will choose the man she loves best to be her spouse,” Eleanor interjected, “And will do so in her own time.”

Alexander claimed his wife’s hand with his own. “And until that moment and beyond it, Kinfairlie will be secured.”

Eleanor sighed contentment and the pair shared a smile that fairly heated the chamber. “Begone all of you,” Alexander roared with mock outrage. “I would have a moment with my lady wife.” They all left, complaining as they did, and once the portal was firmly closed, he bent toward Eleanor. “For it is she and no other who is the crown jewel of Kinfairlie,” he murmured before his lips closed over hers.

The lady did not seem inclined to argue with that.