A visitor

It had been several days since her return from the countryside, and she had only seen Bronn once. He had returned to her room another night, and told her what he could about the happenings in the street. People were disillusioned with their new boy king, food was scarce and the whole royal family had been attacked in the streets. And there were others determined to take the throne for themselves, with large armies that could be arriving to attack the city any day.

Rowena tried to stay busy and distract herself with work, but she was feeling anxious and worried all the time now. She didn't like being away from Bronn at all sometimes, and this made her angry with herself. She had vowed never to let a man affect her this way, and now that one had, she found it maddening at times.

So one morning when Aunt Rosamond came to the barn to tell her she had a visitor, she tried her best not to seem over-eager, but it was all she could do not to race out of the barn. But the man she saw there was not her sellsword. She now realized, Bronn would've just come looking for her himself. His presence was so common by now that no one ever questioned his comings and goings.

She looked at her Aunt Rosamond in confusion, and then back at the man standing there. He was quite tall and handsome, she realized, with long wavy brown hair. He was looking at the ground, kicking at the dirt nervously with his boot. When he finally looked up, she immediately recognized his beautiful amber eyes, and ran to him.

"Jon!" she cried, as she threw her arms around his neck, and he picked her up and twirled her around. He was beaming at her now, and she couldn't take her eyes off of his face. He was so much the same, and so changed. She wanted to touch his hair and his face, but she didn't dare. Instead she just stared at him in fascination, and he did the same to her.

Rosamond cleared her throat to remind them they were not alone, and they untangled themselves and stepped apart, trying to regain some composure. Rowena was in disbelief that he stood before her. She had wondered about him for so long, not knowing if she would ever see him again.

"Rowena." He spoke her name, and seemed at a loss for words as he continued to gaze upon her. "You…are more beautiful than I could have imagined." He finally managed.

For a moment she could do nothing but smile back at him, and then she laughed aloud. "Oh Jon, I thought I'd never see you again. You look wonderful." She thought she could cry tears of joy at this moment, but she fought them back, and wondered how he had come to be here.

"What brings you to the city?" she finally managed to speak.

"You, of course!" he said, smiling a more formal, polite smile now. "And Aunt Rosamond and Uncle Bayard," he added, nodding at Rosamond. "I am long overdue for a visit, am I not?"

Rowena smiled and nodded, and realized he must have heard of her visit to his family home. She stepped closer to Rosamond, reaching for her hand, feeling a bit wary now, though she wasn't sure why.

"Shall we go inside where it's more comfortable?" Rosamond suggested. They both nodded, and Jon held his arm out for the women to lead the way. As they walked to the house, Rowena gripped her aunt's hand tightly, and she felt the woman pat the back of her hand reassuringly.

Rowena couldn't stand the awkwardness anymore, so decided she would go straight to the topic she knew they were afraid of bringing up.

"I've met Metylda's husband," she said cheerfully. "He is quite handsome and very kind. And her son, Amfrid, is a lovely child."

And that was all it took for the tension in the room to all but vanish. Jon was quite excited to hear news about his siblings. And she told him how much Godefry had grown, and how little Amfrid had helped them find bet. All during their conversation, there was no mention by any of them of Averet or Emelin, and Rowena was glad for that.

The conversation was relaxed and happy when Uncle Bayard returned from a trip to the market, and as he and Jon began talking about business related things, Rowena excused herself to see if Grace needed help in the kitchen.

"It's so nice to finally meet this young man of yours," Grace smiled at her while she chopped potatoes. Rowena picked up a knife to help her.

"Oh he's not my young man, Grace." She corrected her. "We thought we were in love as children, but he has a wife now, and children I would imagine."

Grace her a confused look and furrowed her brow, turning back to her potatoes.

"What is it?" Rowena asked, "

"Not my place, Rowena." The old woman replied, keeping her eyes on what she was doing.

Rowena gave an exasperated sigh. "Please, Grace." She asked wearily. "What else haven't I been told?"

Grace looked at her guiltily, and Rowena felt bad for pressuring her. But she didn't think she could take any more surprises right now. "Does it matter?" Grace asked her somewhat stiffly. "I think you have feelings for another now? Do you not?"

Rowena was surprised to hear this coming from Grace, and now it was her turn to look guilty.

They continued chopping vegetables in silence, until Rowena simply couldn't stand it anymore. "Just tell me." she pleaded.

"It's his wife." Grace said, without looking up. "It's been almost a year now since she passed. A riding accident, it was."

Rowena put down the knife she was holding and sat on a nearby chair, absorbing what Grace had just told her. Was this the reason for Jon's sudden appearance? Or was it because he knew what had happened on her trip home to see his family? And why had no one bothered to tell her any of this before now? She was so tired of everyone around her trying to protect her from things. She was a grown woman, not a child. She felt panic rising in her, and the usual thoughts came to her. Run. Run to the barn, to her rooms. And then she had another thought as she stood up, which was to find Bronn.

But as soon as the thought came to her, she heard her name being called from the other room. It was her Uncle Bayard. She took a deep breath and steeled herself, and walked back into the room, pretending to know nothing of what Grace had just told her.

"Rowena, there you are," Uncle Bayard exclaimed. "We were just saying it might be nice if you and Jon took a ride to the meadow outside the city after supper. You have been stuck inside the yards here for nearly a week. I'm sure you'd like to get out of the city and go for a ride?"

She looked at her uncle, who seemed overflowing with enthusiasm for this idea, and didn't quite know how to respond. "Is it safe?" she asked, remembering her promise to Bronn. "I thought it was too dangerous for women to be out in the streets right now?" She gave her uncle a pointed look, but he misunderstood it, and simply thought she was asking for permission. "I know what the sellsword has told you," he said, waving a hand in the air dismissively. "But I'm sure you'll be perfectly safe with Jon." He looked at Jon and nodded, and Jon smiled back at him and then looked at Rowena. She could tell that he at least sensed her apprehension, but she tried to return his smile.

During supper, Rowena was mostly quiet. She and Jon had caught up on all the news from his family, but no one at the table asked Jon about his. Uncle Bayard had plenty of questions for him about his farm and livestock, and market prices. It was the happiest she'd seen her uncle in some time, and she was glad to see it. Aunt Rosamond noticed her change in mood though, and regarded her with concern, but Rowena avoided looking at her, except to put on a smile when she did take part in the conversation.

Finally, supper was over, and there was nothing left but to clear the table. Rowena always helped, but her aunt shooed her away this time. "You go on outside with your Uncle and Jon," she insisted.

Rowena went outside to find her uncle and Jon. Uncle Bayard was going to give Jon a tour of the grounds and the stables, and wanted her to join them. He called to one of the stable boys to saddle Rowena's horse. When she protested that she could do it herself, he replied, "Nonsense! I won't have you working while we have a guest! We see so little of our relatives!"

Rowena sighed and followed behind them, trying her best to be as enthusiastic as her Uncle was, but he was too excited at having a male family member to show around that he would not have noticed anyway. When he had finally shown Jon every inch of the property, she thought poor Jon was quite overwhelmed as well, but he did his best to show interest in everything his uncle was telling him.

"Well, now," Uncle Bayard clapped his hands together excitedly, "I'm sure you both have listened to me long enough! Still want to go for a ride, Rowena?"

Rowena smiled and nodded, as the horses were led out. Bayard walked to the entrance of the stable yards with them, and spoke to the squire who Bronn had put on sentry duty for the day. He nodded obediently to the old man, but gave Rowena a suspicious look. She waited for her uncle to turn back for the house, and then looked back to see the squire had left his post, but he was going in the opposite direction, in a hurry. She was sure this would not turn out well.

The street was noisy and crowded, so she didn't have to worry about conversation with Jon until they had turned down the back street which led out of the city. He pulled his horse up alongside hers now so that they could speak.

"I'm afraid I have caught you quite by surprise, haven't I?" he asked. Rowena nodded and smiled, wondering why she felt so awkward with him.

"I'm sorry to hear about your wife," she said. "I didn't know. You know no one tells me anything." She laughed nervously, sneaking a look at him, and finding he looked almost as uncomfortable as she did. It made her feel a bit better.

"Thank you, Rowena", he said politely. "And I'm sorry for the way my father treated you. This time, and all the times before." He was genuinely remorseful, she could hear it in his voice. She started to see the little boy she had known, and was happy to see he had turned into just the sort of man she always knew he would.

"And I understand we are all indebted to this sellsword your uncle speaks of?" He continued. "Metylda says he is…fiercely protective of you?"

Rowena could not help but smile at Metylda's words, but she didn't like where the conversation seemed to be heading. "Yes, he has come to my rescue more than once," she said smiling. She had to force from her mind other memories of Bronn that came to her then, unbidden. "But he has been paid to do so." she added quickly, hoping Jon had not noticed her momentary distraction. "You can't believe the perils that exist in the streets of this city for a woman alone." She said dramatically and laughed. She hoped to lighten the conversation, and close the subject.

As they rounded a bend, Rowena turned her horse down a path that led off the main road. There was only enough room for one horse abreast, so Jon followed in silence. In a very short distance they reached an open meadow, surrounded on two sides by trees, and on the third, by a rushing river. Rowena slipped gracefully from her horse, and led them to a spot by the water near the trees. They left the horses to graze and sat down on a fallen tree beside the river.

"It's so good to finally see you, Rowena." Jon spoke softly, as they looked at each other. Both were trying to reconcile the adult before them with the child they had known. "A bit strange though, isn't it?" He said, and they both laughed. It seemed the awkwardness between them was gone now.

"I want to know how you've been, and what you've seen and learned all these years," Rowena said, genuinely curious. "Do you have children? Do you get along with your wife's family? And what brings you to the city?"

He laughed and took her hand casually in his. "Full of questions, just like always, I see." He said, smiling at her warmly.

"I do have children. Two boys and a girl. I think you would like them very much." He replied. "And yes, my wife's family has been very good to us over the years. She was their only daughter though, so this has been quite difficult for them."

"I'm so sorry," Rowena replied.

"As for why I'm here…" he hesitated before continuing. "I'm here for you, Rowena."

Rowena's breath caught in her throat and her stomach did a flip. He saw her the bewildered look on her face and smiled, taking both of her hands in his now. "I've always loved you, Rowena," he began, "even when I was married, I never stopped loving you. I want to take you back with me. Now we can finally be together, husband and wife."

Rowena was too shocked to speak. When she looked at him, she did feel genuine affection for him. He leaned over and pressed his lips to hers. She did not move to avoid him, but she did not kiss him back. When she looked into his eyes again, she could see the disappointment and cast her eyes down.

"I understand, it's very sudden," he went on, but she wasn't hearing him. Instead she was hearing hoofbeats, approaching fast. Then Jon heard it too, and saw the look of panic on her face. Jumping to his feet quickly, he drew his sword. He moved several paces away from her, taking a defensive stance as the horse and rider reached them.

Rowena didn't need to turn around. "Stand down, boy" she heard the familiar voice say to Jon, his tone just as ominous as it had been when he'd spoken to Averet.

A resolution is near! But Rowena will have to make a very difficult decision, which not everyone may approve of...

And there will likely be a rating change to this story before it's over...