Knight of Passion Read Online Free Page B

was familiar; yet, he was not the same.
    He was all hard angles now. It was not just that his face was leaner, his body more muscular. Jamie always had the confidence
     and fearlessness he showed on the bridge yesterday. But before, there had also been a sweetness to him that he sometimes showed
     her. There was no trace of that in the man before her.
    He was telling the queen about yesterday’s events in the City. Apparently, he was unaware of Queen Katherine’s astonishing
     lack of interest in politics.
    The queen gave him a pleasant smile and picked up her skirts. “ ’Tis time for us to join the others for dinner.”
    “Your Grace, we must speak now,” Jamie said. “Gloucester will be here in two hours.”
    The queen stood stock-still, staring at him with wide eyes. “Gloucester is coming? Here to Eltham?”
    “Under the compromise with the bishop, your son is to travel to Westminster with Gloucester. However, theywill be escorted by men trusted by both Gloucester and the bishop.”
    “You speak as if the king were a grown man and not a child of three,” the queen said in a pinched voice. “But if that is what
     they have decided to do, there is nothing I can do about it.”
    Jamie met the queen’s gaze squarely; they all knew she was powerless in this fight.
    “Shall I be permitted to accompany my son?” Since the Council had ordered a separate household be set up for the king, the
     queen could no longer presume she would travel with her son.
    “You are invited to come to Westminster,” Jamie said. “But it is suggested that when the king returns to Eltham a few days
     hence, you remove yourself to Windsor Palace.
    “You will be safe there from the turmoil here in London,” Jamie added in a softer voice. “The king will join you in just a
     few weeks, for the Council has decided Christmas Court will be held at Windsor this year.”
    The queen picked up her skirts again and brushed past Jamie on her way to the door.
    Usually it was Linnet who attempted to alert the queen to the risks and realities around her. Her friend, however, preferred
     not to hear about events she felt helpless to influence. If she could not avoid unpleasant news altogether, she pushed it
     aside as quickly as she could.
    Linnet drew in a deep breath and attempted to walk past Jamie as the queen had done, but he caught her arm.
    “What are you doing here, Linnet?”
    She jerked her arm from his grip. “I thought you did not wish to know.”
    “I have a duty to protect the queen from every sort of danger,” he said. “Tell me why you are here.”
    She glared at him. “Because she asked me.”
    She turned and marched toward the door. With his longer strides, he reached it first. He stood in front of it, arms folded
     across his chest, blocking her way.
    “Why did she ask you?” he said. “And why did you come?”
    “Because I am her friend, and she is friendless here,” she said, clenching her fists. “They have taken her only child from
     her care, and she cannot even choose his nursemaids. They treat her so poorly, it is almost as if they believe she is in league
     with her brother, the dauphin.”
    Linnet’s heart fluttered as Jamie leaned closer.
    In a low voice, he asked, “Is she?”
    “Of course not!” she said, taking a step back. “Our French princess was raised to never have an opinion, to avoid conflict
     at any cost, and to do exactly as she was told.”
    “That has served her well,” Jamie said. “I hate to think what you might be teaching her.”
    “I would not let her make the mistake of supporting the dauphin,” she hissed at him. “A poorer excuse for a king I hope to
     never see.”
    “So you are the queen’s confidante?” Jamie asked.
    “I am exceedingly fond of her, and I do try to advise her…” Linnet raised her hands in the air. “But when I warn her she must
     walk a careful line between Gloucester and Bishop Beaufort, she responds by asking what they are wearing now in