had missed.
The thought of Lynnette brought a quick sting to his eyes. Aggravated, he turned away from the assembled group in the great hall and took a long pull of the mulled wine, draining the cup in one swallow.
Lynnette.
His insides ached just thinking her name. He still could not guess, even after so long a time, why she left with another man. Theirs had been an arranged marriage, like most of his class and rank, but a genuine affection existed between them. Or so he’d thought. They laughed at the good times and had cried together when their son, Richard, succumbed to a fever shortly before his second birthday.
Still, they had little Lyssa, barely six weeks old at the time of her brother’s death. Garrett assumed they would have many more children but he’d been proven wrong. Lynnette’s unexpected disappearance put an abrupt end to that. Though he’d ridden out for weeks on his own in search of his wife, she seemed to have vanished without a trace. Finally, he could no longer hide from the truth. His wife had deserted him and their daughter for her lover.
Garrett spat upon the floor in disgust, angry at himself for still caring about her. At times, his marriage didn’t seem real. He could barely remember what Lynnette looked like, and then he would catch a glimpse of her in Lyssa and memories of Lynnette would come flooding back.
Ashby rose from the party of merrymakers, a thoughtful look upon his face. Garrett knew his childhood friend worried about him. It was true Garrett had lost his sense of humor these past few years and was in a black mood more often than not. His fits of depression could last for days, even weeks, and it was becoming harder and harder to rouse himself from his gloom.
Garrett poured another glass of wine and drank the contents in a single swallow, his eyes daring Ashby to say anything. Before, his drinking had been of little consequence. In fact, he usually became quite lighthearted when he partook in a few cups of wine. Now, the more he drank, his mood turned ugly to hateful.
Lyssa squealed in delight, drawing her father’s attention. “Oh, Papa, Papa! Come here, Papa!”
Garrett set his cup down and went to her, a smile upon his face. Despite everything, he always tried to be a good father to his only child. He was a family man at heart and relished the times when he pulled Lyssa into his lap and listened to her prattle on in the engaging way she had about her.
“What is it, Lyssa?”
“Look at what Aga made me,” she said excitedly.
Garrett took the doll Lyssa handed him and glanced toward his mother. Edith gave him a tentative smile, wary of her son’s mood. He’d been curt to her—to all women—since Lynnette abandoned her family. Part of it was not knowing where his wife had gone. Part came from knowing he could not marry again and beget an heir for Stanbury. He had soured on all women, not understanding how a wife could desert her husband and babe. The bitterness threatened to swallow him up at times.
Yet he knew his mother could not be blamed for Lynnette’s transgressions. He studied the doll his mother had thoughtfully made for his daughter. He decided he must show his mother more kindness in the future. She had suffered far too much in the past for him to add to her misery.
Garrett asked Lyssa, “Did you thank your grandmother properly?”
His daughter shrugged, her characteristic shyness taking over. Garrett swept her into his arms and swung her around, then tossed her in the air several times. Lyssa laughed until she had trouble catching her breath.
He set her back down on the ground and whispered into her ear, “Go on, Lyssa, and thank Aga.”
Lyssa skipped to her grandmother, pecked her on the cheek, and then threw her arms around the old woman, bringing tears to Edith’s eyes.
“Off to bed with you,” Garrett told his daughter. He motioned for Annie, her nurse.
Protesting, Lyssa informed him, “I’m five now, Papa. I don’t want to go to bed so early.”
He kissed her brow. “When you are a score and five, I’ll still tell you when it’s time for bed.” He gently nudged her in Annie’s direction.
Lyssa left reluctantly, dragging her feet, as Garrett turned to Ashby. “I have some papers to look over. It will take me no more than an hour or so to do them justice. Will you