AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Tea?” Lady Conwell offered. “I’m afraid we ran out of koffie earlier this month. It’s been hard keeping it here.”
Her chuckle left little to be desired as I offered a light shake of my head before she went on. Pouring herself a cup and dressing it with cream and sugar. I watched her as she sipped it with delicate fingers and dignity.
She carried on, finishing her statement. “An invite, for a fortunate young lady to join us. And this year, that young lady is you.”
I stared at her blankly. Shocked at what she’d said. It wasn’t unheard of; everyone was aware that this is what she did. Girls dreamed of being the one to attend. Gossiped about it, actually. In fact, the only daughter of the village butcher was invited last year. And she was able to secure quite the match from it. But I never imagined I would be summoned, let alone invited.
Something did not seem right.
“My annual Spring Ball will be the talk of the town, as it always is. It’s a masquerade this year. I do aim to outdo myself with this one.” She went on, her voice carrying.
I watched as she set her cup down on the plate, her hands were so clean. The nail bed neatly trimmed, not a speck of dirt under her nails. The sapphire ring on her left ring finger was far too large for her slender fingers. Absently, I buried my own fingers in my apron, to hide the dirt I knew was under them.
Clearing my throat, my voice a little hoarse. “Yes. I have heard of your whimsical balls, and this year sounds exquisite and splendorous.”
I plastered a fake smile on my face, the compliment had her beaming once more. I learned a long time ago that flattery was always the key to the Nobles. The gleam in her eyes at my praise, satisfaction was the kindest way to put it.
“Oh dear, yes, well it’s just a small gathering of friends and family. Nothing too grand,” she said, feigning humbleness. “It’ll be a special one after all.”
I saw through her though.
She fancied herself as a matchmaker. Plucking young ladies up out of the dirt, brushing them off and flaunting them, a charity case. But she was like all the others. Bored and with a nose held so high it was a wonder they didn’t get thwacked in the face by tree branches. But of course, she would not be found wandering the forests at the edge of the village.
And certainly not anywhere near my farm.
I vaguely heard Lady Conwell in the background talking. Chatting with me as my mind spun and swirled with confusion and uncertainty. In that moment, a strange hollowness in my heart, the one that had been plaguing me for weeks, fractured. This had all been a mistake. This wasn’t real, was it? My lack of understanding, what I was feeling, why I could not grasp the emptiness. Why was it there? The feeling of emptiness in my head caused it to become light.
None of this was real...
All of this had to be a strange dream and I would certainly wake up in my bed, covered in a sweat, trying my best to calm down after this nightmare. But would it truly be so bad if this was true?
If this wasnotanother nightmare?
“Mother?” A voice echoed in the hallway. “Are you in here?”
A wave of dread filled me, a feeling of unease and terror. I knew that voice, the sound of it ringing through my mind. A voice I had forgotten until now. Now, I remembered it. The way it grated on my senses. How it made me once feel.
A moment later, a young man walked through the door. He was tall, lean with strong muscles. He was impeccably dressed in dark trousers, polished boots and an emerald green doublet. But it was his hair, and his face that flashed in my mind. His shoulder-length auburn hair was pulled back and tied with a ribbon at the base of his neck. Neatly styled, not a single hair was out of place. His piercing golden brown eyes looked right though me.
Her voice broke my trance. “Kas, darling, there you are. Come meet this year’s invitee.”
The memory hit me like a punch to the gut. It was his face. His face, twisted in a cruel sneer. The image of him buttoning up his shirt. He’d had my heart and broken it into pieces. How had I forgotten? This man was one I had wished for. The one I had wanted to take me away from the life I had been living. I had confessed to him my heart and my love after a midnight stroll and then had given myself fully to him.
The fracture widened.Cleaving whatever had held it back in two. Crumbling as a host of memories flooded in. As if the lock on them had been broken, the barrier wide open. The hold weakening at each ticking second in this man's presence.
Our first meeting over a year ago.
The one next to the fountain in the city center. He’d offered to help as I picked up the flowers that had been blown over by the gust of wind. The petals danced around us as our eyes locked. I remembered his, his were intense and molten. Smoldering, I had felt myself fall then. Our shy introductions, my cheeks had turned bright red.
I remembered he’d sneak out to the farm and throw pebbles at my window, beckoning me to come outside. Tiptoeing past Nona’s bed, trying to avoid the squeaky floorboards. We would run off in the dark for a quiet stroll.
Our first kiss. Shared under the light of a full moon. I remembered the way the stars twinkled above as he leaned in. His lips were so soft, the way a lover tenderly kissed their partner. The way his eyes held mine that night, sparkling with longing. Before placing a firmer, demanding kiss on my lips. Causing every fiber of me to melt into him. To want him.
To want more.
Towishfor more.
I remembered every heated exchange between us as we met in the dark of night. Moreover, I remembered the first time, the pain from it, the hope that he would be my prince. The first and last man. Allowing him to take my maidenhead in terms of love. I hadn’t said it yet. Those three words, even after months of sneaking off with him. But I had given myself to him. He was everything a gentleman should be. Waiting for me to signal I was okay after pushing in. Allowing me the time I needed to expand around him. Kissing me softly as he took me slowly, giving me all the comfort I needed as a first time.
