Hertford Castle, Kingdom of England, March 1514
The man in front of her strode towards the fire at the opposite end of the room, offering his gratitude as he dried his damp clothes,”I am most thankful that you have allowed me and my retinue to shelter here from the storm Queen Giovanna.”
“But of course, it would be inhumane of me to simply let you and your men catch a chill Sir Anthony.”
Anthony Wingfield hanged his wet cloak onto a hook adjacent to the fireplace, revealing the dark blue doublet that covered his taut, muscled, torso. Giovanna eyed the young man over, he was most pleasing to the eye with a sharp gaze accented by blonde hair and cerulean eyes. Giovanna chuckled,”I am glad to be away from court, I visited with the children two weeks ago and we had to leave early because all we could hear is the Queen shouting at the King.”
Sir Anthony’s eyes widened at this,”Then perhaps it would not be wise to head directly to court when there are such tempers about.”
The Dowager Queen smirked,”Perhaps not milord, here at Hertford Castle we enjoy a peace seldom ever felt at court.”
The two continued to talk at length, and Giovanna had to admit that she was rather taken by the dashing young man, and quite enjoyed speaking with him. As such she was disappointed when nearly an hour later Anthony Wingfield moved to put his now mostly dry cloak back on his shoulders,”I shan’t impose a burden upon you Queen Giovanna, now that the storms have stopped it is time for me and my men to ride for Suffolk.”
Giovanna rose to her feet and gestured to the window, as the sun began to dip below the horizon,”Surely you must not, it is nearly dark after all, you could be set upon by thieves or wolves in the night and I could not bear the thought of letting such things happen.”
“Are you sure? I could find an inn to stay at instead…”
The woman shook her head,”No you need not do so, I shall have chambers prepared for you, and your retinue can stay in the servants' quarters.”
Anthony Wingfield smiled warmly,”If you would be so generous then I would not refuse.”
…
A day had passed since Sir Anthony stayed the night at chambers set aside for him, and Giovanna had felt it necessary to visit him. Slowly opening the door, she took a deep breath, hoping that he would return her feelings. She found the young man alone, and standing at the opposite end of the room, packing some of his belongings for his intended journey. He turned around, surprise etched on his face as he saw her entry,”Is there something that you need of me milady?”
Giovanna blushed as she padded her way towards him. Their eyes met, and Giovanna took his hands into hers,”I would ask something of you…”
Anthony said nothing but did not shrink away either, and so she continued,”I would ask if you will love me, so that we could be of comfort to each other in this lonely world?”
His lips trembled, and he leaned in to kiss her, whispering,”Yes, I will love you Giovanna, I will love you today and every day after this.”
Giovanna gasped as Anthony caressed her face tenderly, and the two kissed, their lips coming together for what would be the first of many times.