Forbidden: Claude (Second in Command #2)(35)
“Wrong?” She didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”
“You know we can’t be together forever because I am a noble and you – you are forbidden to me.”
That was it. The time had come when she could finally tell him she was a lady and that they could be together after all. “It’s not true,” she said, staring at the ceiling. Claude’s actions stilled, and his breathing slowed. “I tried to tell you before when I wore the gown, but you didn’t give me a chance.” He said nothing, and so she continued. “Claude, my real name is Lady Evelina du Pont. I am from the southern regions of France near Toulouse. My father is a count, and I ran away because I was betrothed to a man I didn’t want to marry. But now that I found you, we can be married. I will talk to my father and convince him to break the betrothal. I love you, Claude and I want to be together forever. Don’t you want that, too?”
He didn’t answer. She started wondering if she’d divulged too much information too soon. Perhaps, she should have sprinkled in the truth little by little until he could accept it.
“Claude? Please don’t be angry.” Still, he didn’t answer. “Claude?” She sat up to look at him just as he released a loud snore. He was sound asleep and hadn’t heard a word she said.
Rain pounded down on the roof, and the winds continued to whistle through the cracks in the walls. The heat that had encompassed her suddenly left. Now, she felt chilled and frightened. What if Claude didn’t want to marry her, even if he knew she was a lady? She hadn’t considered that. If he turned her away, then she had doomed herself by giving her virginity to a man she couldn’t have.
No man would want her if she weren’t a virgin. And when her father found out that she’d acted like a strumpet instead of a lady, he would be so angry with her that he would probably put her in a nunnery for the rest of her life.
A tear dripped from her eye as thoughts filled her head that there was a life worse than marrying just for alliances. If she were in a convent, she would never feel love between her and a man ever again. Then again, if Claude turned her away, she wasn’t sure she would ever want another man, because he was the one she loved.
Chapter 13
Claude woke the next morning to find Evelina lying next to him on the pallet. The fire had died, making the room cold. He slipped off the pallet without waking her and lit the fire. Then he came back to cover her with the blanket so she wouldn’t be cold.
He stopped and stared when he noticed the bloodstain on the blanket. Clenching his jaw, he swore softly to himself.
God’s eyes, she’d been a virgin! Why hadn’t she told him? This thought upset him since he had meant to tell her this morning that what they did last night was a mistake. He sat down on the edge of the pallet, brushing back her hair and leaning forward to place a kiss on her forehead.
She made a noise that sounded like the purr of a kitten, turning and burying her cheek against the pillow
He felt awful for losing control last night. But his feelings for Evelina were strong. He couldn’t remember exactly, but he thought he might have told her he was falling in love with her. Had she told him she loved him, too? He didn’t think so.
What had he done? He fell in love with a merchant’s daughter who liked to pretend she was someone she wasn’t and told lies constantly. She’d even gone as far as telling him the gown was for her and that he should call her lady. Evelina was like a toxic drink to him. He had to have more, but when he did, it only shot pain through his heart that he never wanted to feel again.
Why had he been so careless? Now, he had only made things worse for both of them. He quickly dressed, and then peeked out the window to see that the storm had stopped. Claude never meant to be here this long. He was supposed to be with Rose and, instead, he was here doing things that this morning he wasn’t proud of at all.
He’d taken a young woman’s virginity, and now he was going to have to break her heart. But what did it matter since his heart was broken, too?
Claude picked up one of the travel bags and started wrapping soul cakes in Evelina’s peasant gown, shoving them into the pack.
“My lord, my lord,” came Felix’s voice as he pounded on the door.
Claude hurried over and opened the door, scowling at his squire. “What is wrong with you, making so much noise so early in the morning?” He noticed a guard from Briarbeck Castle standing at Felix’s side. “What is it?” he asked. “What’s the matter?”
“It’s Lady Rose, my lord,” said Felix.
“Rose?” His heart almost stopped. “Bid the devil, don’t tell me something has happened to her.”
“It’s her baby,” said the guard. “It started last night in the storm.”
“The baby?” Claude’s body stiffened. “What is it? Has the baby been born?”
“Not yet,” said the guard. “Lady Rose is having a hard time. The baby does not seem to want to come out. She sent me to find you. You need to return anon. My lord, I am afraid Lady Rose might not make it through this, and neither will her baby.”
“Damn you,” spat Claude, dropping the travel bag and gripping the man by the front of his tunic. “Why didn’t you get here faster?”
“The storm was too dangerous, my lord,” said the guard. “As it is, I rode in the rain to get here this morning. I had to wait until sunup because too many roads are washed away. I had to find an alternate route.”