Slight or short back cover (7)
I believe the answer is:
affront
'slight' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'short back cover' is the wordplay.
'short back' becomes 'af' (I can't explain this - if you can you should give a lot more credence to this answer).
'cover' becomes 'front' (both can mean a deceptive facade).
'af'+'front'='AFFRONT'
'or' is the link.
Can you help me to learn more?
(Other definitions for affront that I've seen before include "Deliberate insult or show of disrespect" , "Offend; offence" , "Indignity" , "Insult openly" , "Insult to one's face" .)