Music for My Soul by Lauren Linwood

Author:Lauren Linwood [Linwood, Lauren]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance, Historical, General
ISBN: 9781619354418
Google: q9DaoAEACAAJ
Amazon: B00CSC14SA
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing
Published: 2013-05-13T16:00:00+00:00

Madeleine’s heart pounded fiercely as she stared straight ahead. She felt very awkward and self-conscious being so near him. She realized she held her breath, so she expelled it quietly. Garrett said nothing, and his eyes were still closed. She tried to relax, putting her hands under her head for support.

Why was he here?

And yet she knew. She’d known it was but a matter of time before they found themselves alone. She just hadn’t pictured it in this way.

She stole a glance at him, starting from the feet up. His muscular legs vanished under his rich, black tunic. He wore black often but the dark color suited him. His chest was broad, and she guessed it to be heavily muscled, too, as were his arms. His profile was, for lack of a better word, simply beautiful. She had never thought a man beautiful before Garrett.

He suddenly rolled over to one side and faced her, one arm propping his head up, the other resting in front of him. He seemed very large and strong compared to her. She was afraid to move. His very nearness made her feel so small.

“Who are you, Madeleine?”

Her mouth went dry. “Madeleine Bouchard, member of Farley’s mummers.”

“Bouchard?” he echoed. She thought quickly. “Yes, ‘tis French, my lord. My relatives came to England during the Norman invasion.”

He eyed her speculatively. “Then you’ve noble blood in you. I thought so.”

“Nay, my lord, you are mistaken. One of my ancestors simply served the nobility. Somewhere along the way he was granted a patch of land to farm. My father farms it to this day.”

“And why did you leave your home, Madeleine?”

A cuckolded husband would never understand why she’d left her own husband. She knew she could never admit the truth to him. Yet she couldn’t bear him to think ill of her.

“I was to marry a neighbor, but he caught the fever and died. I then was promised to his brother, but he, too, became ill and died. The third brother wanted little to do with me, but we still became betrothed at the wish of our fathers. He was killed when a mule kicked him in the head.”

She sighed. “People began to say I was cursed. Some called me a witch, and some thought the evil would befall any man who came around me. My parents, though they loved me dearly, felt it best that I should go.”

“And so you chose to go with Farley’s troupe?”

“Oh, yes. They were gathering in London, which is where I was headed when we first met. I knew I must reach them before they took off.”

“And your parents actually approved of this plan? Sending you alone on the road to London?”

“Of course not! They wanted me to go and work at the neighboring lord’s estate.” She snorted. “Can you see me milking cows and threshing wheat? I think not. I had my eye set on far better things. I knew I could sing and act as well as those who came through at our local faire each year, so I took off on my own.

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