After the Affair by Elaine Eleridge
Publisher: Friday's Child
Blurb:
A family torn apart by a reckless affair,
A father left to bring up two little girls by himself,
A mother, afraid and pregnant, struggling to make a new life in a far-off city,
Life changes for everyone after the affair.
Grace should never have married Richard Lawson, the gentle curate who helped her cope with her mother’s illness.
Seven years later, he is the rector of a rural parish, dedicated to his work, and at the beck and
call of everyone. A city girl at heart, Grace feels trapped by her situation. She thinks life is
passing her by and yearns for excitement and romance. Her resentment festers. She compares
Richard unfavourably with his charismatic stepbrother, Brandon Calthorpe, heir to the Calthorpe
fortune and the exquisite 16th century Dalchett House.
When Grace finally succumbs to her passion for Brandon she sets in motion a train of events that
bring only heartache.
As years go by the scars fade but do not heal. Grace is haunted by memories of her lost daughters
but she has no idea how the course of their lives has been dictated by her actions.
Excerpt:
“Here we are.” Richard indicated right and swung the car into a narrow driveway.
It was suddenly cooler, light barely filtering through dense woodland on either side.
Grace leaned forward as the road began to wind steeply downwards but it was some
minutes before they crossed a bridge over a tumbling brook and the house came
into view through the thinning ranks of trees. She drew in her breath. Below her stood
an exquisite building of mellow grey stone; a mass of tall chimneys and gables and
windows with diamond-shaped panes, the glass black now in the bright sunshine.
Behind were formal flower-beds, set in manicured lawns which merged into pastureland, and, in the distance, the Black Mountains, today a mere smudge on the horizon.
“Beautiful isn’t it?” Richard spoke quietly.
“I didn’t think . . . When you said an old house I didn’t imagine . . .”
“A sixteenth century manor house,” he finished for her as the tyres crunched on gravel and they pulled up in the middle of the forecourt.
“Why didn’t you tell me?”
“You never asked.”
He climbed out of the car and walked round to open the passenger door for her.
She clutched at his hand, her mind racing, trying to piece together what little she knew of his early life. His father, vicar of a country parish in Shropshire, had died when
Richard was fourteen. Left with nothing, his mother had become a housekeeper, taking Richard with her to live near Hereford where she looked after a widower and his young son. After several years she married her employer and, soon after that, Richard had
gone away to college.
Grace swallowed; her mouth dry. Her notion of a homely couple in carpet slippers no
longer fitted. She tugged at the short skirt of her dress in an attempt to smooth out the creases.
“Ready?” Richard put an arm round her.
“Hi there!”
The cry startled her. She turned to see a man emerge from the trees near the bottom of the drive.
They waited for him to catch up with them. There was a careless arrogance in the way he carried himself, the way he merely lengthened his stride but didn’t appear to hurry. Grace stared at him, intrigued. He was about the same age as her husband, slim and
long-limbed, as fair as Richard was dark, his hair, lightened
by the sun, curling into his neck.
“I heard the car. How are you both? Congratulations, by the way.” His lips curved in an easy smile.
Richard’s fingers tightened on her shoulder. “Grace, this is Brandon.”
She was suddenly self-conscious. Why had she assumed the stepbrother would be much younger?
Brandon Calthorpe shook her hand. “Pleased to meet you, Grace. Welcome to Dalchett House.” He stooped to kiss her cheek. “I have to say I think Richard is a lucky man.”
“Glad you approve.” Her husband’s voice had an edge to it.
Brandon’s gaze lingered on her a few moments longer. “Oh most certainly I approve,” he grinned at Richard, “though I can’t understand what she sees in you, Old Chap.”
In spite of his affable manner, Grace sensed he wasn’t joking. She felt the colour
creep across her face. He was watching them, a gleam of amusement in his pale eyes, as if he knew their marriage was doomed to failure.
“We should go in,” Richard said tersely.
“Of course,” Brandon nodded towards the house. “They’re anxious to meet you, Grace.”
Again that cool appraisal. She was relieved when they began to walk the few yards to the entrance.
Brandon Calthorpe held the studded door open for them. The hint of malice had
vanished. His expression was friendly; slightly impish.
“Good luck,” he murmured. “Don’t look so scared, Grace. They won’t eat you.”
Surprised, she found herself returning his smile as she stepped into the gloomy
passageway.
About the Author
Elaine Eleridge spent twenty-three years as a teacher in
Herefordshire before stress and her doctor’s advice
forced her to give up the job she loved. To deal with her anxiety and
OCD she turned to writing, something she had always enjoyed.
She obtained a Masters in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University,
a course that gave her valuable insight into her own work, and afterwards
she revised her first novel, ‘Avril’s Shadow’, which now languishes in a
drawer, out of sight but not forgotten.
‘After the Affair’ is her first published novel and she has two more,
‘First Love’ and ‘Guilt’, already half completed.
Elaine lives in Herefordshire with her husband. As well as writing she
loves reading, walking and sunny holidays.
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