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Page 342
secret away to my dear sister Joanna. Oh, Alinor, were you indeed waiting for the Queen? Have you not seen your knight?"
"I was truly in the Queen's chamber all this morning," Alinor said carefully. If it was possible, she did not wish to lie to Berengaria.
"You see how clever she is, and truthful too," Berengaria said with a laugh to Joanna. "She never said she had not seen him." Then to Alinor, "Come and sit with us. You must learn to love Joanna and she you. Oh, Alinor," the dark eyes glowed with love and happiness and excitement, ''my lord will take us with him! He told me so. And Joanna is to come too." Berengaria burst into a joyous trill of laughter. She is to be my chaperone! Is it not delightful? And so silly and darling of Richard. As if I would suspect him of ill intentions toward me."
"I am very happy, my lady. Very, very happy. You know it was my dearest wish as well as yours."
"But you do not seem very surprised." Joanna's voice was kinder although still with a note of reserve.
She, Alinor thought, was even cleverer than Berengaria and far wiser in the ways of the world. "I am not really surprised," Alinor admitted. "My warden, Sir Simon, rode to the hospice with me yesterday and pointed out that we are in Lent and there could be no marriage. Thus the King must take you, my lady, or wait here another month and more." Alinor did not mention her suspicion that Richard would have been happy not to marry at all. She did not even need to school her expression to hide the ugly thought because Joanna had burst into laughter.
"You are in Sir Simon's ward? Are you the Lady Alinor that is a total compendium of all the virtues?" Joanna asked.
"Virtues?" Alinor exclaimed, "I? You heard of my virtues from Sir Simon?"
"I heard of nothing else. It seems to be his only topic

 
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