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advice…” Perplexed by his shift in manner, Leah wrinkled her brow and studied him, her face openly questioning. What was wrong?
    “I’m concerned about your… relationship with the lord of the castle.” Oh? Leah quirked an eyebrow.
    His features had a fatherly cast to them as he looked out the window, uncomfortable with the confrontational topic. “The rumor is that you were the leman to the prior lord of the castle.
    That Lord Royce found you in a… compromising situation when they took the castle.” Leah shrugged. She was starting to get a pretty good grasp of what a ‘leman’ was and it didn’t sound too great.
    “But my dear, I was here and served the old master faithfully. And I can safely say that I have never laid eyes upon you before Lord FitzWarren claimed the castle.” She froze in place. What should she say? What was a plausible excuse for showing up naked on the beach?
    “I wonder… I wonder if your intentions are honorable toward Lord Royce or if they have a sympathetic slant toward Lord Rutledge.”
    Leah blinked at him, unable to come up with a gesture that would articulate her answer.
    He patted her on the hand. “You don’t have to answer me today, child. Remember, I am a priest. Anything you confess to me is sacred.”
    She tapped her lips with her fingertips, reminding him that she couldn’t speak.
    “Ah, yes.” His brow furrowed. “I had forgotten. Can—“
    “What are you doing here, priest?”
    Both of them turned to stare at Royce, who dominated the doorway of the small solar door. Leah slid her hands out of Father Andrew’s and stepped to the side, eyeing Royce warily.
    Father Andrew remained calm and unruffled. “I was speaking to the girl. She has graciously offered to do some mending for some of the townsfolk in need.” Royce’s scowl did not lighten in the slightest. “She can’t exactly refuse you, can she? She can’t speak.” A servant scurried in behind him and left a small basket by the door, then scurried out just as fast. Royce didn’t twitch a muscle, simply stood, staring down the priest as if he were a viper.
    “Of course,” the priest murmured. “Forgive me. If I have imposed—” Leah cleared her throat and shook her head, trying to hide the smile on her lips. How odd that Royce should try and protect her, from a priest of all things. It bordered on absurd.
    Absurd, but sweet. Totally gave her the warm fuzzies.
    Father Andrew exited rather quickly, the door slamming behind him. Royce remained in place, his body still stiff and questioning, and his eyes turned to Leah.
    “I heard you were hiding up here, lady. I thought to bring you dinner, if it’s privacy you wish.” He gestured at the basket and turned to the solar door, closing the latch behind him.
    She studied him as he dragged a small table from the corner of the room and produced two small stools. He was dressed in dark colors today – a dark blue tunic with a yoke collar edged in plain blue, and darker leggings. She liked the color choice on him – it made his icy-gray eyes almost blue, and they seemed warm when they looked at her. His hair was slightly damp as well, which told her that he had just bathed before coming to visit her. She had seen him in the yard earlier, training his men, and had noticed the hard work they were putting in.
    The fact that he’d cleaned up and bathed just to visit her… it made her smile. It was sweet that he’d care what she thought, even if she was just an uninvited guest.
    “I thought you should eat, even if you’re not feeling well enough to be seen about the rest of the castle.” He eyed her as he pulled the basket over and placed it atop the small table. “How is your wound?”
    Leah sat on the offered stool and gave him a thumbs-up. She forgot the wound was there half the time. It still ached, to be certain, but it was a less aggressive sort of pain than her legs, and she tended to forget it.
    He took her raised thumb in his hands, examined