by Jayne Castel
“We’re free,” she finally replied, her voice catching. “But I came here seeking peace … and looking to atone for my past. I didn’t go looking for … love.”
Shona’s voice trailed away as she said that last word. Her heart was now pounding so hard, she was starting to feel light-headed. It didn’t help matters that his hand now cupped her cheek and he was gazing down at her as if she were the Virgin Mary herself.
“God forgave ye long ago, Shona,” he said gently. “But ye will never find the peace ye seek until ye forgive yerself.”
Shona gazed up at him. The urge to deny his words rose within her. Yet in her gut, she knew he was right.
In coming to live upon this isle, all she’d done was run away from life—but Darach’s arrival had made her face the truth. She’d erred, but she’d only done so out of an earnest desire to protect the nuns under her care. She needed to let the cloak of blame she clung to go.
“God spoke to me, Shona, that eve in the kirk,” Darach continued, his voice lowering. “He knew we were destined for each other. Was he wrong?”
The pleading note in his voice undid her.
“No,” she breathed, swaying toward him.
A groan escaped him then, and he leaned down, his mouth slanting hungrily over hers. And the moment their lips touched, Shona was lost.
She’d forgotten how good this felt, how the strength and warmth of a man’s arms about her could chase away every last one of her cares. When his tongue parted her lips, delving into her mouth, Shona welcomed him hungrily.
He was delicious.
Their tongues danced. Her hands slid over the broad planes of his chest, while his strong hands tangled in her hair—one of them spanning the back of her skull.
With a growl low in his throat, he deepened the kiss further.
Shona’s thoughts scattered as her limbs melted against him. When they finally broke apart, she was trembling. Her body felt as if it were aflame, her breathing coming in ragged gasps.
“I want to make a life with ye here upon this forgotten isle,” Darach rasped. “Will ye let me love ye, Shona? Will ye let the past go?”
Shona’s heart beat a battle tattoo against her ribs. Life was suddenly spinning out of control, yet she welcomed the chaos, welcomed the warmth that pulsed like an ember in her belly.
Reaching out, she entwined her fingers through Darach’s. She was surprised to discover that he too was shaking, just like her; that passionate kiss had left them both reeling.
Silence stretched between them before Shona eventually nodded. He was right: it was time to put her regrets behind her, time to step forward and embrace life once more.
“I will,” she whispered.
The End
Have you read Drew and Carr’s story?
Stay in the world of The Sisters of Kilbride for a while longer with this epilogue novella to the series. A fast-paced tale of longing, freedom, and courage.
A widow intent on taking the veil. The guard who would lay down his life for her. The proposal that will alter their relationship forever. A powerful tale of unrequited love in Medieval Scotland.
Lady Drew MacKinnon doesn’t belong anywhere. A widow who has never remarried, she decides that the time has come for her to do as society expects and dedicate her life to God. But as Drew is neither pious, nor obedient in nature, she knows her new path won’t be an easy one.
Carr Broderick has served the MacKinnon clan loyally for years. And unbeknown to Drew, he’s been in love with her for just as long. He offers to escort Drew to her new life at a priory on the Scottish mainland, but this last mission will cost him. He longs to tell her how he feels, yet she is a lady and he is a warrior without lands, riches, or title.
But when Lady Drew approaches Carr with a shocking proposal halfway through their journey, he might just have the chance he’s always longed for. Or will he?
Get your copy of CLAIMED here!
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All characters and situations in this publication are fictitious, and any resemblance to living persons is purely coincidental.
Destined, by Jayne Castel
Copyright © 2020 by Jayne Castel. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the author.
Published by Winter Mist Press
Edited by Tim Burton
Cover photography courtesy of www.shutterstock.com and www.pixabay.com
Celtic cross graphic image courtesy of www.pixabay.com
Visit Jayne’s website and blog: www.jaynecastel.com
From the author
FALLEN was a real adventure to tell. I tend to plan my entire series before I write it, but there were still elements about this novel that surprised me. Coira and Craeg’s relationship was less angsty than I’d expected. He ended up being far more of a gentleman with a real soft side. Despite his rough upbringing, Craeg is a guy of true class—just what Coira needed after everything she’d been through!
Of course, this novel does have a few heavy themes in it. Coira’s past experiences had really damaged her, and the Black Death—which I’d been building up to in the previous two books—features prominently in this tale.
I planned FALLEN nearly a year before I wrote it, although it was an eerie feeling to be writing about the ravages caused by the Black Death when, in March 2020, a pandemic threw our world into chaos. History, indeed, has much to teach us.
The Bubonic Plague devastated Europe in the mid-14th Century, although the Scottish Highlands weren’t as badly hit as more densely populated areas. The plague arrived in Scotland in late 1349 and reached its full, devastating heights in 1350. However, I tweaked the time-frame by a couple of months as it hits the Isle of Skye earlier in 1349 when my story takes place.
We now know that the Black Death was caused by the spread of deadly bacteria from fleas—and from person-to-person through bodily contact and fluids—but at the time everyone was mystified by it. Healers had no idea how to deal with the plague, and some of the treatments such as bleeding and rubbing excrement on lanced ‘plague boils’ just quickened the patients’ demise! As such, I had to be careful with just how much knowledge I gave Coira. In many ways, thanks to her very wise mother, she is ‘ahead of her time’.
Later, healers did discover that people could recover from the illness if the buboes (enlarged lymph nodes), commonly known as ‘plague boils’, were successfully lanced. However, some patients went into shock after such a procedure and died anyway. Coira’s discovery of this practice helps her save a few lives!
I hope you enjoyed this emotional trilogy, and the happy endings for Ella, Leanna, and Coira. I teared up as I wrote the last lines of FALLEN, as I really didn’t want to leave this world behind. I hope too that you love CLAIMED, the wee extra where you’ll find out what happens with Drew and Carr!
Follow me on Facebook to keep updated on my upcoming books. Or you can join my mailing list (not only do you get updates, exclusive stories, and a chance to join my ARC list, but you also receive THE LAST ROSE OF SUMMER, a free short-story, set in the same world as THE SISTERS OF KILBRIDE).
Jayne x
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More works by Jayne Castel
HISTORICAL ROMANCE SET IN DARK AGES
BRITAIN
THE KINGDOM OF THE EAST ANGLES
Book #1: Dark Under the Cover of Night
Book #2: Nightfall till Daybreak
Book #3: The Deepening Night
The Kingdom of the East Angles: The Complete Series
THE KINGDOM OF MERCIA
Book #1: The Breaking Dawn
Book #2: Darkest before Dawn
Book #3: Dawn of Wolves
The Kingdom of Mercia: The Complete Series
THE KINGDOM OF NORTHUMBRIA
Book #1: The Whispering Wind
Book #2: Wind Song
Book #3: Lord of the North Wind
The Kingdom of Northumbria: The Complete Series
HISTORICAL ROMANCE SET IN DARK AGES SCOTLAND
THE WARRIOR BROTHERS OF SKYE
Book #1: Blood Feud
Book #2: Barbarian Slave
Book #3: Battle Eagle
The Warrior Brothers of Skye: The Complete Series
THE PICT WARS
Book #1: Warrior’s Heart
Book #2: Warrior’s Secret
Book #3: Warrior’s Wrath
HISTORICAL ROMANCE SET IN MEDIEVAL SCOTLAND
THE BRIDES OF SKYE
Book #1: The Beast’s Bride
Book #2: The Outlaw’s Bride
Book #3: The Rogue’s Bride
The Brides of Skye: The Complete Series
THE SISTERS OF KILBRIDE
Book #1: Unforgotten
Book #2: Awoken
Book #3: Fallen
Book #4: Claimed (Epilogue novella)
EPIC FANTASY ROMANCE
LIGHT AND DARKNESS
Book #1: Ruled by Shadows
Book #2: The Lost Swallow
Book #3: Path of the Dark
Light and Darkness: The Complete Series
About the Author
Award-winning author Jayne Castel writes epic Historical and Fantasy Romance. Her vibrant characters, richly researched historical settings and action-packed adventure romance transport readers to forgotten times and imaginary worlds.
Jayne is the author of the Amazon bestselling BRIDES OF SKYE series—a Medieval Scottish Romance trilogy about three strong-willed sisters and the men who love them. An exciting spin-off series set in the same story-world, THE SISTERS OF KILBRIDE, is now available as well. In love with all things Scottish, Jayne also writes romances set in Dark Ages Scotland ... sexy Pict warriors anyone?
When she's not writing, Jayne is reading (and re-reading) her favorite authors, learning French, cooking Italian, and taking her dog, Juno, for walks. She lives in New Zealand's beautiful South Island.
Connect with Jayne online:
www.jaynecastel.com
www.facebook.com/JayneCastelRomance/
Email: [email protected]