Royal Love

Chapter 21

   Days passed. It almost became a routine. Henry and I would escape for the day with my father's permission and a chaperone, then Henry would sneak into my chambers, and we would fall asleep in each other's arms, and every morning when I woke up he would be gone. He almost always left me a note.

   In the time between when he left my bed to the time he arrived for our escape he would return to the place he had been staying and change clothes then appear again. My sisters were not happy about not seeing me all the time but every once in awhile Henry would say they could come alone with us. They thought of him as a brother and he had become fond of them especially Alice.

   My cut had pretty much healed, and was mostly just a pink scar.

   When I woke up I found the empty spot in my bed where Henry had been. I sighed and ran my hand over the blanket. We hadn't done any more than kiss since that night after the library. I rolled out of bed and sat at my dresser to brush my hair. I still had the mirrors covered and avoided looking in any one that I passed.

   My ladies came in and helped me get dressed. I told them about each and every place Henry and I went to and what we did. I usually left out any thing when it came to kissing though. Today my ladies were trying to guess where he would take me.

   When I was ready I headed down for breakfast. Lady Weller was still staying with us and when I arrived in the dinning hall it was just her and my father. They were laughing over something my father had said but when I entered they stopped.

   "Good morning, dearie," Lady Weller said.

   "Good morning." I sat down and we waited for my sisters before having the food brought out. We were almost done when Henry arrived. The second he walked into the room I knew something was wrong. He looked sad and almost pained.

   "May I have a word with you Princess Sarah?" He had to use my title when we were around my father.

   I stood up confused. "Yes. Of course you may."

   I followed him into the hall. We didn't go to far from the door before he came to a stop. He turned to face me and reached for my hands. "I have to tell you something Sarah." His voice cracked and then I knew something was terribly wrong.

   "What is it? Go ahead you can tell me." I stared into his eyes.

   "I have received word from my father."

   My eyes lit up. "That's good. Did he stay you could stay?" When he still looked sad my smile vanished.

   "He wished I come home. My mother has fallen ill."

   "Oh Henry I hope she will get well." His next words, I realized, were the ones that caused him pain.

   "I am leaving. A ship leaves to go to France this afternoon and I'm going to be on it."

   I shook my head. "No you can't. What if I went with you?"

   Now he shook his head. "No. I can't take you away from your sisters. I haven't a clue how long I will be gone before returning. If you go with me you may not see your sisters for months."

   Tears sprang to my eyes. "So you are just going to leave me then?"

   He pulled me into an embrace. "I don't want to. There is no other way."

   I cried in to him. Sobs racked my body. I may not see him again. Then I made a decision. I pulled away and griped his hand. I stood on my toes. "Lets go to my chambers," I whispered in his ear. I pulled him up the stairs and into my chambers. Once in the safety of being behind my doors and away from other eyes, I kissed Henry. I made sure the kiss told of all my emotions.

   Slowly I backed up so that I stood in front of my bed. When the kiss broke Henry looked down at me. "Are you sure?"

   I nodded and he covered my mouth with his and laid my onto the bed.

...

   Henry had to leave around noon. I made him promise to write and gave him a kiss before watching him leave. I was filled with pain and didn't hide the tears that had gathered in my eyes. Just as he mounted his horse he looked back at me. "I love you Sarah," he said.

   I watched as he turned to leave. "I love you too," I whispered. I headed to find my sisters. The were in the west wing playing a game with Lady Weller. Alice was the first to see me and ran over to me.

   "Sarah!" She paused when she realized I was alone. "Where is Henry?"

   I broke then and the tears that never fell now poured down my face. Elizabeth stood up and came over. She wrapped her arms around me. When the tears didn't fall as much she asked her questions. "What happened Sarah?"

   "He left." Everyone gasped even Lady Weller. She had been our main chaperone when ever we escaped. She had also grown fond of Henry. I continued, my voice shook as I spoke. "He had received a letter from his father saying his mother has fallen ill. He left a little while ago to catch a ship to return to France."

   Lady Weller came to sit beside me. "Dearie you can't help that he left. He didn't want to leave you."

   I leaned against her. "I know that. It still hurts."

   She stroked my hair and it painfully reminded me of Henry. "I know dear. I know."