She paused then to lick her lips nervously before continuing. “At Wildwood, my childhood home, my mother insisted that everyone bathe at least once a month. Some even bathed as often as once a week.” She sighed at the gasps her words elicited but pushed on. “While I do not insist that you bathe that often, I would see you bathe before accepting the gift of a plaid. I see little sense in putting a lovely clean plaid on a filthy body.”

Iliana waited for their murmurs to die down before continuing, “I will make my tub available to anyone who wishes to use it.” Smiling uncertainly, she gave a faint nod, then sank into her seat and silence enveloped the room. She did not think that was a good sign, and very much feared she had purchased four hundred plaids that would sit collecting dust until their next communal bath time.

Iliana peered down at the cheese and bread before her and sighed unhappily. It did seem nothing was going to come easy here. Not the garden. Not the cleaning. Not even the gathering of herbs had been easy.

“Me lady?”

Iliana glanced up with a start, a smile on her lips as she recognized Janna, one of the women who had been aiding her in the gardens.

A tentative smile on her face, the woman murmured, “I should like a plaid and would be pleased to use yer tub, if I might?”

“Really?” Iliana’s smile stretched clear across her face; then she glanced toward the kitchen anxiously and stood. “You may be first then,” she assured her. “I’ll just go make sure there is some water over the fire.” She moved toward the kitchen as she spoke, aware that Elgin was rising and hurrying to follow her. He had become very proprietary of his kitchen since rediscovering his cooking abilities.

Iliana was stopped by six more women before reaching the kitchen. Three of them were the women from the garden and two were servants from the keep itself. The last was Eda, the plaid man’s wife. Iliana assured them all of an opportunity to get at her tub, then burst into the kitchen to find that Elgin already had the water on to heat. He also requested an opportunity in her tub, and Iliana assured him she was pleased to offer him its use.

She was smiling widely when she returned to the great hall. That smile disappeared, her mouth dropping open in surprise as she saw the women all lined up to have a word with her about her tub.

The men were conspicuously absent, but Iliana could only think it a good thing. ’Twould most like take two or three days to put everyone through the tub as it was.