Page 23 of The Lovers (Echoes from the Past #1)
“Well, I’ve got to earn me living,” he replied. “A family don’t feed itself, if ye know what I mean.”
Elise nodded, not interested in pursuing the conversation.
She felt exhilarated and reckless as the boat nosed its way toward Southwark.
She only hoped it wasn’t a wasted journey.
Elise paid the ferryman and stepped onto the shore.
For a moment, she considered visiting the girls, but if her father found out that she had been wandering about on her own, he’d put a stop to her outing right quick.
Instead, she headed in the opposite direction toward Borough High Street.
The area where her family lived was still considered respectable, but this part of Southwark was anything but.
There were many inns that catered to travelers, and the area was famous for its gaming stews, brothels, and various other base entertainments.
Elise glanced toward the bulk of King’s Bench Prison but hastily turned away and hurried along the street and past the Tabard Inn.
She’d never actually seen the inn close up but had read of it in the Canterbury Tales , which she had “borrowed” from her father.
The historic inn had served as a meeting point for pilgrims setting out for Canterbury.
Hugh de Lesseps would have had her whipped for reading such bawdy and irreverent balderdash instead of tracts more appropriate for women, but Elise had quite enjoyed the tales. A passage came to mind as she hurried past the sprawling inn and turned onto St. Thomas Street.
Bifel that in that season on a day,
In Southwerk at the Tabard as I lay
Redy to wenden on my pilgrymage
To Caunterbury with ful devout corage,
At nyght was come into that hostelrye
Wel nyne and twenty in a compaignye
Of sondry folk, by aventure yfall e
In felaweshipe, and pilgrimes were they alle,
That toward Caunterbury wolden ryde;
The chambres and the stables weren wyde,
And well we weren esed atte beste.
She felt as if she were making a pilgrimage but of an entirely different kind.
Elise looked at the buildings, which leaned against each other like drunken men.
There were countless narrow alleys that seemed to lead nowhere in particular, and only people who resided in them had a reason to enter.
She finally found the house she’d been looking for and knocked loudly on the door, turning her head from side to side, as if she were going to be pounced on by her father or her husband at any moment. Elise’s heart thumped in her chest.
“Oh, please be there,” she whispered. “You have to be there.”
She breathed a sigh of relief when she heard footsteps, and the door swung open.
“Good Lord. Elise. Come in.”
Elise slipped inside the house, glad to be away from the prying eyes of the city.
She pushed back her hood and surveyed the humble dwelling.
It was small but tidy, with one narrow window that didn’t allow in nearly enough light.
The room was dim, lit by a single candle whose flame flickered in the draft created by the opening and closing of the door.
Elise and Gavin stood facing each other for a moment before Elise walked into his arms and buried her head in his chest. She hadn’t meant to cry or give in to self-pity, but seeing Gavin’s smiling face was her undoing.
He held her close as she cried, stroking her hair and murmuring words of comfort .
“You came,” he whispered. “You really came. I’d nearly given up all hope of ever seeing you again. I started to believe that you were content in your marriage and had forgotten all about me.”
“I have thought of you every moment of the day,” Elise confided. “I have longed for you, and I have wondered how you were.”
“Come. Sit down. Let me get you some warm broth. You look frozen through.”
“It was cold out on the river,” Elise replied as she took a seat at the scarred wooden table. She gratefully accepted a cup of broth and wrapped her hands around the warm metal.
“Are you still planning to sail for the colonies?” Elise asked as she took a sip of broth. It wasn’t very flavorful and lacked salt, but it was warm and dispelled some of the chill that had seeped into her bones.
“I am,” Gavin replied. “I sail on April second.”
Gavin studied her carefully, his eyes searching her face for answers. She’d come to him, so it was up to her to state her intentions.
“Gavin, does your offer still stand?”
“It does.”
“Would you not mind living in sin with a woman who’s married to another?”
“I don’t put much stock in sin,” Gavin replied with a smile. “Love between two people should never be a sin, even if it isn’t sanctioned by the Church.”
“So, how would we manage it?” Elise asked, hope swelling in her chest. Could she really pull this off, and was it still possible to salvage something of her life?
She knew this was wrong, but something inside her refused to care.
She would pay whatever price she had to to escape her joyless existence and snatch even the smallest bit of happiness for herself.
She’d taken the first step; the second one would be easier.
“We would pose as man and wife. It would probably be wise to change your name, so no one would suspect anything. Elizabeth, or Elspeth, perhaps. Once in Virginia, no one would have any reason to question our union.”
“But our children would be born out of wedlock,” Elise said, suddenly realizing that she wouldn’t be the only affected by this decision.
“So, they would. But as long as no one knows…”
“God would know.”
“Yes, I suppose he would, but I don’t think he much cares,” Gavin replied.
He’d always held some unorthodox views on religion, which Elise found scandalous, but at this moment, she was glad.
He wouldn’t reject her because she was already married and had lain with another man.
Gavin knew it had never been by choice and wouldn’t punish her for it.
He was kind and understanding, and her life with him would be vastly different.
“Elise, I don’t have much in the way of possessions. I have enough to pay for our passage and find us lodging once we get to Jamestown, but I cannot promise you a life of luxury. You must be prepared to work hard and make do, at least for the first few years.”
“I don’t need much, just a serviceable gown, a pair of shoes, and a cloak to keep me warm. Everything else will come in time.”
“We’ll build a life together, from the foundation up. We’ll be happy, Elise. You’ll see.”
Gavin got to his feet and came around the table. He held out a hand to Elise and she took it gladly, tilting her face up to meet his. This kiss was sweeter than any kiss they’d stolen before; this kiss was a promise of things to come, of a life built on love and trust.
Elise gazed up at Gavin as they pulled apart, her mind made up. She took his hand and pulled him toward the bed located in an alcove and separated from the rest of the room by curtains.
“Elise,” Gavin breathed as she reached for the laces of her bodice.
“We can’t. Not yet. I’ve a job at the Tabard Inn.
I’ve undertaken to sort through their accounts.
I need the money to pay for my lodgings until I leave so that I don’t have to dip into my savings,” Gavin explained apologetically. “I start at nine.”
Elise nodded as disappointment tore through her. She wished to give herself to Gavin as a sign of her commitment. They would be as good as married then, even if that weren’t so in the eyes of the law.
“You must go back. Pretend like nothing’s changed,” Gavin said as he reached for his coat.
“If you come to me too soon, they’ll find you.
The ship is due to sail on the morning tide on April second.
Come to me on April first. We’ll be long gone before anyone suspects that you’d run away. Bring only what you most need.”
“I will,” Elise promised.
“I love you, Elise,” Gavin said as he gave her hand a final squeeze. “Be careful getting back. You go first, and then I will follow in a few minutes. No one must see us together.”
Elise couldn’t imagine that someone would recognize her in this part of Southwark, but she didn’t argue. Gavin was right: It was best not to take any chances.
“I will count the hours and the minutes until I see you again,” Elise said as she smiled up at Gavin. “I hadn’t realized how much I loved you until I lost you. ”
“You’ll never lose me. I’m forever yours. Now go. I need to get to work.”
Elise hurried out of the alley, her head bent low. A happy smile played about her lips and her heart sang a joyful melody. There was hope after all. She wasn’t doomed to a life of loneliness and isolation with Edward Asher.