A Love Worthy

Chapter Thirty-Four

            A part of her wanted to question him, to demand an explanation for his absence, for leaving her alone for days on end without a reason to why but she feared shadowing thoughts, notions that she dare not bring to the forefront, fearing they may be true.

            She felt her heart sink even deeper in her chest as his footsteps carried him away and out the room. She opened her eyes and stared around, disappointed to find she was alone.

            Unable to keep them at bay any longer, she thought mayhap he no longer found her attractive? Her belly was swollen with child and she had gained a bit of weight. Did he find her unappealing? Did he not love her as he had claimed too?

            Fighting tears, she sank back down and forced herself asleep.

            Her anger intensified the next evening. She had been alone most of the day, aside from Thora and Belle accompanying her for a time and engaging in small conversation but after sensing her saddened and distant mood, the girls left to carry on with their tasks.

            She was trying to focus on the book in her hands when a voice sounded from within the hall. Ginelle lifted her head as Ellison entered the room, surprised to see that her green eyes that usually illuminated a happiness was slightly perplexed with confliction.

            Frowning, Ginelle set her book aside. “Ellison? Is something the matter?”

            Ellison paced the room, not bothering to remove her cloak as her feet carried her back and forth. 

            Anxiety forced her heart into a frantic rhythm as she studied her friend. “What is it?” she demanded. “Would you come and sit with me?”

            Ellison stopped pacing and moved to settle by her. For a moment, she was silent and Ginelle lightly gripped Ellison’s shoulder. “I -“ she murmured softly.

            Ginelle felt her pulse accelerate anxiously. “What?”

            “I am afraid to tell you. I do not know how to say it-what to make of it.” She mumbled.

            Ginelle shook her head, “I am not understanding, Ellison. What is wrong? Has something happened?” she squeezed her friend’s shoulder, “Is it Edmund?” when silence followed she felt a sudden dryness in her throat, “Dorian?”

            Ellison lifted her head, her expression torn as she said, “I saw Dorian in town, and he was escorting a woman, a woman with red hair.”

            Ginelle gasped as the blood drained from her face, all her fears emphasizing the amount of shock and disbelief.

            She felt a violent rush of tears as she shook her head determinedly as if to convince herself that the red-headed woman was not Victoria. “No, he wouldn’t-“ she clamped her mouth shut realizing just how foolish it would be to dislodge the assumption.