Charity, who had been lying across his boots, jumped up at a sudden scurrying sound along the river bank and Clem, disturbed from his memories, opened his eyes and sat up straight. As the bitch sniffed about, Clem thought dolefully that the Pengarrons had probably only had a row like all married folk do. Oliver was a proud man who thought nothing of speaking his mind in public and causing others embarrassment. It was probably no more than that; he was foolish to think of winning Kerensa back. Still, he would look out for her, try to meet her alone, and if she needed him…

Kerensa arrived home a long time before Oliver. She suspected he had ridden straight from Ker-an-Mor Farm to Pengarron Point and she would have followed him, intent on a confrontation, but the children were too unsettled to be left. By the time she had helped Cherry to put the children to bed she felt too depressed and weary to face him. She wished despondently that he was not entertaining at home tonight but would stay out all night as he so often did.

Olivia wanted to keep Kerensa in her bedroom, imploring her to read more stories than usual and to look again and again at her paintings. When at last she was coaxed to lie down and be tucked in, Kerensa promised to return a short time later and read her another story if she was still awake.

Kerensa was thankful to have no problems with Kane when she moved on to the room he shared with Luke. Kane was always eager to please her and the moment he saw how fraught she was he settled down, with Bob dozing across the foot of his bed. She did not expect to be so fortunate with Luke and she was not.

He was teeming with unspent energy and frequently interrupted the story Kerensa read, making silly remarks and fidgeting persistently. She was used to his forthright questions made blatantly to shock but she was totally unprepared for the question he threw at her when she thankfully closed the book.

‘Mama, did you love Clem Trenchard very much?’

‘What? Luke!’

Kane sat up and threw a pillow at his brother. ‘Don’t talk to Mama about that now, Luke, can’t you see she’s tired?’

White-faced, Kerensa turned and sank down slowly on Luke’s bed. ‘How do you know about that, the pair of you?’

‘We overheard some people talking in the marketplace so we asked Beatrice about it. We could tell by her reaction it was true.’ Luke tried to sound matter-of-fact but he was a little frightened by his mother’s colour and reaction and he clutched her hand.

‘Yes, Luke, I did love Clem Trenchard,’ she replied. ‘At one time I was going to marry him.’

‘Did you love him more than Father?’ Luke sounded vexed.

‘No, Luke. I love your father more than anyone else.’