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ran down his front, in his face and in his hair. He appeared to have ingested some of it.
    "Get to the showers, both of you. I despair of you."
    Poor Grandfather. He really did sound at the end of his wits.
    Rising with caution, I brushed off as much muck as I could with one hand and walked past the men with my head held high.
    The showers were at the side of the castle by the kitchen. They were outdoor wooden stalls and operated by a pulley system.
    I stomped into the first stall and locked the door behind me.
    Ivan entered the next one.
    I shucked off my tattered, dirty gown and pulled the cord to release the stream of water. "Yikes!"
    The water was bloody cold. They had a kind of soap made from―well, best not to think about that. It worked well on mud, which was the important thing. I scrubbed until I finally felt clean.
    This pres ented a new dilemma.
    "Ivan?" I said.
    "Yes, dear one?"
    "They haven't brought us any towels."
    "No, my love, they haven't."
    Silence.
    "Then how are we going to get back to our rooms?"
    Ivan chuckled. "We'll have to run."
    I swore, then heard his door swing shut. I opened mine and peeked out.
    "Up you go," he said, hefting me over one shoulder.
    "Help!"
    I let out a feeble cry while he raced across to the kitchen door and through to the great room, laughing all the way. He took to the stairs and I whacked his back, yelling obscenities as I bounced along.
    For a brief second, I saw Jon and Richard in the hall, their eyes widening with shock. Then we turned the corner and stumbled into my room.
    Ivan tossed me on the bed and flopped down on his back.
    I started to giggle.
    "Lord, you are a lot of trouble," he said, panting hard. "But a whole lot of fun."
    We both whooped hysterically. I was laughing so hard that tears streamed down my face and I could hardly breathe.
    "I'm exhausted," he said at last.
    "You gave the cousins quite a show."
    He laughed again.
    "Do you think Grandfather saw?" I asked.
    He shook his head. "Didn't see him there."
    We stared at the ceiling, while our heartbeats and breath returned to normal.
    Ivan rolled to his side and looked at me. His eyes were a tender rich warm brown. He picked up a lock of my wet hair with his hand. "I can be gentle," he said, his voice soft.
    "Prove it," I whispered.
    He gave me a kiss that would always remain in my memory as one of the most delicious moments of my life. He kissed ever y bit of me, my hair and every inch of skin that was visible―and some that was not.
    "That was the main course," he said. "Here comes dessert."

Chapter 10
     
    We slept in each other's arms until a knock on the door woke us. Jon was on the other side.
    "Ivan, R owena. Wake up. The old man wants to see you both in the hall."
    Ivan sprung out of bed. He hesitated, then remembered that he had come in with no clothes on. He looked back at me and smiled. "I'll go get dressed." He left the room in his natural state.
    I c limbed out of bed, stretching and taking my time. "Time to find another dress to wear― and face the music."
    The wardrobe was looking bare, but I picked out a pretty muslin day dress in virginal white and attempted to hoist myself into it. It was a tad too t ight across the hips and as usual, the back gaped. Tomorrow I would have to look into altering the remaining three dresses. I could sacrifice one to get the scraps I needed to let out the others.
    My hair was almost dry. I brushed it into a high ponytail and used a soft white sash to make a bow. Then I grabbed a pair of plain leather slippers and hurried down to the hall.
    Grandfather waited at the long table with Jon, Richard and two men I didn't know well. Ivan strode into the room after me.
    Grandfather smiled at me and pointed to the chair next to his. "Sit here, my dear. You look very pretty."
    I smiled back.
    Duke plodded to my side and put his head in my lap.
    "We have some questions about the Earl of Norland," Grandfather began.
    My heart leapt to my throat.
    "We know Norland's