Propped up on an elbow, Marian lay on her bed playing with Edward, who was busy trying to navigate his toes into his mouth. The moment was bittersweet, for although Marian enjoyed devoting time to her sweet baby boy, her heart grieved from her disagreement with Robin.
She was sure she was right and Robin was being an unfeeling cad, and she did not understand. It was so unlike him! He had always been the best of husbands and the most supportive, loving father, disregarding convention when it interfered with being a loving family. He had seemed awestruck and even reverent when she had nursed their girls, so why did he refuse to let her nurse Edward? What had changed his mind? It wasn't like him to behave, as Allan would call it, "high and mighty," just because Edward was heir to Robin's titles. Yet Marian could think of no other explanation.
A gentle rapping on her door made Marian realize how very protective she felt toward Edward. Drawing him close in her arms, she called out, "If you are Bette, we don't need you."
The male accented voice on the other side of the door surprised her.
"I am not 'Bette,' but I rarely lose one. May I please come in, Lady Marian? I fear I need to sit, my leg is throbbing so."
Delighted, Marian jumped from her bed and ran to usher Count Friedrich into her bedchamber.
"You ought to be in bed," she advised.
"Ah! If only it were so! Here we are, Marian, nearly alone in your bedchamber, yet this is not the way I've pictured it! You are pefectly safe!"
"Keep up that kind of talk and you might not be! Remember the skittles?"
The count smiled. He felt he was already beginning to help.
"You need to sit," Marian said, guiding him towards the bed. "You said your leg was throbbing."
"I do not feel it, now that my heart has begun to throb as well!"
"In that case, you may sit over here." Marian led him away from the bed and helped ease him onto a seat by the fire. "There! That's what your flattery gets you."
The count smiled and sighed. "You are beautiful, Marian, even when you scold me. Robin Hood is a lucky man."
A shadow passed over Marian's face. She turned her face away to hide her emotion.
The count decided it was time to begin mending the lover's quarrel between husband and wife.
"I do not like to see you sad. Tell me, what robs the starlight from your lovely eyes? It is your husband hiring the wet nurse, am I not correct?"
Marian gasped. "How did you know?"
He chuckled. "I listen. It is what makes me so successful at cards, and what made you such a wonderful spy for your country."
Marian was touched, pleased to be reminded of her past accomplishments. Those days felt hundreds of years away.
"If you listen so well, perhaps you can explain to me exactly why my husband saw fit to hire a nurse."
"I do not know. I only know this...Robin of Locksley loves you and wants what is best for you. Has he not always put your needs first? You wrote to me how kind and caring he was to you when your father passed. If I must be reminded of the skittles, then I remind you of that time, and every other time you can think of when he demonstrated his love for you. Marian! It is evident in the way he looks at you. You are also the lucky one! You are truly loved for yourself, precious as you are. Your husband's love for you is a rare and beautiful thing, Marian. Trust him. He would not do anything to hurt you."
Marian sat quietly, twisting the fabric of her gown in her hands, thinking over Count Friedrich's surprising words. At last she looked up, smiling gently.
"If Robin heard you, I think he would realize what a true friend you are to us."
"I always have been, and I hope always to remain."
Marian rose, approached the count, and bent to give him a kiss on his cheek. "Thank you," she breathed. "I don't know how to thank you. You are correct, Count."
"You may thank me by remembering to call me 'Friedrich,' ja?"
"Ja, Friedrich," Marian smiled.
"Marian? What's he doing here?"
Neither one had heard Robin enter, for he still had the ability to "walk through walls." However, it was impossible to miss the hurt and anger in his eyes.