Another slap. This time backhanded and with force that left her reeling. Robert unbuckled his belt.
‘I’ve tolerated your waywardness for too long,’ he said.
Constance tried to duck past him, but he pulled at the neck of her gown and swung her around. She landed heavily across the table face first, the stab of pain in her belly making her retch. Robert brought the leather strap down upon her, buckle end swinging free. Lights burst in Constance’s head as it caught her the bare flesh of her shoulder and she screamed.
She knew then she would never meet Aelric.
* * *
Aelric watched the dawn rise.
Constance wouldn’t come, but there was a spark of hope within him that refused to die. He caressed the dagger that she had given him. It was well made and the stone set into the end would fetch a good price alone: enough to see his belly full for a month or two at least.
When the sun was a half-circle behind the hills he pushed himself to his feet. He wrapped the sacking around his shoulders, biting down the pain in his back where the rough cloth grazed every cut. He stared back towards Hamestan, hoping to see the familiar dark-haired, slender figure making her way towards him, but the road was deserted.
Reluctantly he turned away, trying not to care. While they lived under the same roof he had entertained daydreams of marrying her, Norman or not, but what well-bred noblewoman would really swap a life of comfort for one of uncertainty and exile. It was for the best. He could move faster alone.
Casting a final look over his shoulder he walked away, knowing it would be a long time before he saw these hills again.
Copyright © 2016 by Claire Lackford
ISBN-13: 9781488004520
The Governess’s Secret Baby
Copyright © 2016 by Harlequin Books S.A.
Special thanks and acknowledgment are given to Janice Preston for her contribution to The Governess Tales series.
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