One Summer of Surrender by Jess Michaels

Author:Jess Michaels [Michaels, Jess]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: The Passionate Pen
Published: 2016-11-08T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirteen

Stenfax dug his fingers into Elise’s hair, dragging her body against his as he kissed her deeply, passionately. She moved against him, whispering how she loved him over and over. But in the background, there was a persistent sound. Bang, bang, bang.

He tried to ignore it, tilting her face toward his, seeing all her love there, watching all the time and the lies bleed away until they could be together.

Bang, bang, bang.

And in that moment, he realized this was a dream.

“No!” he said, holding tighter, but she was fading, fading away.

He opened his eyes and sat up with a start. The banging at his chamber door was loud and constant.

“My lord? My lord?” It was his butler Xavier’s voice in the hall.

“Come in, Xavier,” Stenfax grunted, adjusting the covers over his naked body. “For Christ’s sake, just stop knocking.”

The door opened and Stenfax flinched at the light from the hall, raising his hand to block it and the shadow of his servant entering the darkened room.

“I’m sorry to disturb, my lord,” Xavier said.

“What bloody time is it?” Stenfax grunted.

“After three, sir,” Xavier said.

Stenfax looked at him. The normally impeccable butler was in his dressing gown and a crooked nightcap. He held a candle that gave his wrinkled face an eerie glow.

“Why are you in my room at three in the morning?” Stenfax asked, but he despite his calm tone, he was beginning to worry. There was no good reason he would be disturbed by his staff like this. Only tragic ones.

“You have a visitor, my lord,” Xavier said, and from his shifting, he was very uncomfortable giving this news.

“Who?” Stenfax said, his tone sharp at last.

“It’s the Duchess of Kirkford, my lord. And a maid.” The man shifted again. “And a small valise.”

“What?” Stenfax barked, throwing the covers off and grabbing for his robe.

“They—they arrived very suddenly and I put them in the parlor. They both seemed very upset and—” The servant cut himself off and Stenfax took a step toward him.

“And?”

“Her Grace has a nasty bruise on her eye, my lord.”

Stenfax tensed. He had left Vivien’s club hours before and Elise had been seemingly safe in the arms of Winstead. Now she was here and injured.

“She was hit,” he ground out past clenched teeth.

“It appears so,” Xavier said with a solemn nod.

Stenfax took a long breath, mostly so he wouldn’t scream out his anger and anguish at her pain. Then he looked at Xavier. “Send the maid to the servants’ quarters, make sure she’s comfortable there. And the valise may be taken up to a chamber for her ladyship. You choose, and leave the door open so I may escort her there later. I’ll be down in a moment to speak to Elise—Her Grace.”

“Yes, sir.” Xavier executed a sharp bow before he moved for the door.

“And Xavier?” Stenfax said, keeping him from departing.

“Yes?” the butler asked, turning back.

“The wine tonight was chilled. Do we still have any ice?”

“A little,” Xavier said. “Most has melted.”

“Gather what we have left in a cloth and give it to Her Grace.

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