By the Gods, what’s happening to me? Janney just fell off her horse. She’s fine now. He gripped the rough wood to hide his shaking hands. She wasn’t an experienced horsewoman. He’d forced her to ride before she was ready. It was his fault that she was hurt. It would have been his fault if she had died. Marek squeezed his eyes shut and took in a shaky breath. To be the cause of another woman’s death…but it wouldn’t be the same. He’d loved Mellona. She’d died giving birth to his child. He didn’t love this woman. This Janney Forrester. Oriana, Meta’s mother, entered the little hut again, bobbing her head, smiling apologetically. “Please, my Lord, our village would be honored if you and your lady would grace us with your presence at a feast this evening.” Marek knew that the people were so horrified that his woman had been hurt in their village that they wanted to do something to appease him. His woman.
