‘I do not want to let you out of my sight,’ Rushton growled. ‘Now let us go before someone else ensnares me.’

He did not take the passages that would bring us to the front entrance again, though that was the quickest route to the farms; instead he wove through the house with me, dealing swiftly and evasively with people we encountered who wanted to ask him questions or tell him something. At last we came to the door that led to the old courtyard, which had once been the only entrance to the maze. It had also been the only way inside the walls to get to the farms when I had first lived there but these days the maze was seldom used, for compared to newer paths, it was slow and circuitous. As we entered its green passages, I opened my mouth to ask why we had not gone a quicker way, but Rushton closed the gate behind us and pulled me unceremoniously into his arms to kiss me thoroughly and at length.

He did not let me go until I was breathless and his green eyes danced with a mixture of ire and passion as he said huskily, ‘I warn you that if you look at me again as you did when you came out the front doors of Obernewtyn, I will not wait until we have some privacy to do what your eyes invite.’

I felt my cheeks flush, but the same mad glee that had earlier filled me with a desire to laugh aloud snaked through me. I said with mock indignation, ‘I did not expect to see you or I would have guarded myself better.’

He smiled again and kissed me more gently, and after a little we went on, he keeping his hand about my waist. The smell of the greenthorn was nowhere near as strong as on summer days when the sun shone down on it, but the wind was stirring the topmost branches so that they gave off a whispering sound.

I asked Rushton what errand he had on the farms that was so urgent and he said, ‘Grufyyd has been experimenting with ways to preserve lemons in pottery crocks of oil. He just mentioned to me that he has a store of them laid up that would serve us well on the Red Land expedition,’ Rushton said. ‘We are going to inspect them.’

I stared at him. ‘Urgent lemons?’

He gave me a simmering look. ‘I daresay it is irresponsible of me to drag you away from your work on such a slight pretext, Guildmistress, but I have barely seen you since my return. Do you mind?’

I shook my head and waited, but all at once he seemed to sink into his own thoughts. Finally, I said, ‘I only wish Dameon had come with Kella and Darius.’