by Sherry Ewing
A Knight To Call My Own
Sherry Ewing
Kingsburg Press
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA
Copyright
Copyright © 2015 by Sherry Ewing.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.
Kingsburg Press
P.O. box 475146
San Francisco, California 94147
www.KingsburgPress.com
Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
Cover Photo: God Speed by Edmund Blair Leighton (1852–1922). This media is in the public domain in the United States. This applies to U.S. works where the copyright has expired, often because its first publication occurred prior to January 1, 1923. {{PD-US}} This work is in the public domain in the European Union and non-EU countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 70 years. {{PD-old-70}}
Cover Design: Mari Christie at www.MariChristie.info
Editor: Barbara Millman Cole
Book Layout ©2013 BookDesignTemplates.com
A Knight To Call My Own/ Sherry Ewing. -- 1st ed.
eBook ISBN 978-0-9905462-6-9
Bestselling author Sherry Ewing presents the continuing saga of the MacLaren’s from
If My Heart Could See You
in
A Knight To Call My Own
When your heart is broken, is love still worth the risk?
Lynet of clan MacLaren knows how it feels to love someone and not have that love returned. After waiting for six long years, she has given up hope of Ian’s return. Her brother-in-law, the Devil’s Dragon of Berwyck, is tired of waiting for her to choose a husband and has decided a competition for the right to wed Lynet is just the thing his willful charge needs to force her hand.
Ian MacGillivray has returned to Berwyck Castle in search of a bride and who better than the young girl who cared for him all those years ago. But Lynet is anything but an easy conquest and he will need more than charm to win her hand in marriage.
From the English borders to the Highlands of Scotland, the chase is on for who will claim the fair Lynet. The price paid will indeed be high to ensure her safety and even higher to win her love.
Don’t miss out on Sherry’s other novels: If My Heart Could See You, a medieval romance and the beginning of her series; For All of Ever: The Knights of Berwyck, A Quest Through Time Novel (a medieval time travel romance) and Only For You, its sequel.
Dedication
For my sister-in-law Barbara
A truly gracious and amazing lady who found her own knight in shining armor in the arms of my brother.
He is one lucky man and so are we
to have you in our family!
Love you, Barbie!
Acknowledgement
To Tricia Linden ~ critique partner extraordinaire and a true sister of my heart. Thank you will never cover everything you do to help me make my books reach that next level!
To my wonderful and supportive family~ thank you for always believing in me.
To my editor Barbara Millman Cole ~ I appreciate all you do to give my readers a quality book to enjoy.
And last but certainly not least:
To the lovely ladies of my Street Team ~ Thank you for your continued support and for everything you do for me so that other readers can find my novels.
I appreciate all your efforts on my behalf.
I’m so happy you’re all with me on this incredible journey!
Chapter One
Berwyck Castle
Spring, the Year of Our Lord’s Grace 1180
Beauty’s thundering hoof beats resounded, as the horse galloped across the strand, and left no doubt as to the urgency of her rider. Clumps of wet sand marked Lynet’s passage and gave evidence to just how far she had traveled. The distant voice of her guardsman calling her name was all but lost between the powerful roar of the ocean waves crashing into the shore and the dissonant emotions that filled her mind, causing tears to flow freely down her cheeks.
Transferring the reins of her mount to one hand, Lynet wiped the moisture from her eyes to clear her vision. Gasping for air, she tried to calm her racing heart, but ’twas to no avail. Heart-broken, she had saddled her horse and had left the safety of the castle walls hoping against hope her frantic flight would offer some form of solace to settle around her very soul. But ’twas of no use. Nothing would cure this pain of lost love. She would need to reach deep down inside herself in order to find a way to move on.
Tugging on the reins, she brought Beauty to a sudden halt then slid from the saddle to the soft sand beneath her feet. The horse was well trained and stood where she had left her whilst Lynet walked a short distance towards the ocean’s edge. Any energy she still may have had left her in an unexpected rush of defeat as her knees buckled beneath her, and she fell to the beach in a heap of despair, her outstretched arms and opened palms braced against the ground to keep her balance. Lynet’s chest heaved whilst she tried to fill her lungs with breath.
After a moment, and in an attempt to gain what little composure she had left within her, she shook the sand off her gloves, only to discard them, afore she plopped herself down to sit in a very unladylike manner. Having lost her wimple somewhere along the way on her hectic flight, she pushed her long blonde tresses away from her face.
Her fingers trembled as she reached inside her cape and pulled out the parchment she had crumpled into a ball. She smoothed it out as best as she could, knowing he had written the words himself and had spent good coin to ensure she received his missive. Afore she had read the letter the first time, she had held such hope the words he had written her would be the ones that she had long awaited. Alas, this too was a bitter disappointment she should have expected after all these years with nary a word from him. His long absence, and now this unambiguous message, confirmed her worst fears. All had tried to warn her, but she had wanted so much for him to realize on his own that he could come to care for her. ’Twas not to be.
She knew she should not read his words again, but she scanned them all the same, wanting desperately to believe there was some hidden meaning she might have overlooked. Unfortunately, for her peace of mind, they did not change. Fresh tears fell from blue eyes that rivaled the clear sky above her whilst she pondered these far too few words afore her blurry vision.
Lynet,
I have but recently learned you continue to hold out hope that I would one day come for you. Alas, ’twill not be so. As I told you years afore, I have nothing to offer a fair lady such as you.
I beg of you, sweet lass, to find yourself a bonny lad to call your husband and live a happy life. ’Tis my fondest wish to know that you live a life filled with the love of a good man, whomever such a man shall be.
Your Servant,
Ian
Lynet sniffled and wiped her nose with the back of her sleeve. Taking a deep breath, she carefully folded the document and placed it back inside her cape. If she were smart, she would toss the parchment into the ocean waves and never think on Ian’s words again. But she could not force herself to ev
en consider such an act, knowing this would be the last bit of remembrance she would have of the man she loved all her young life.
Rubbing her eyes, she resolved her heart to forget her youthful infatuation with a knight who clearly did not love her. Love! Mayhap, ’twas just a foolish girl’s hope that her love would be returned. A woman full grown would have resigned herself, years ago, to make a match with an acceptable suitor and leave the thought of love to the bards who weave such nonsense.
She stood with a new resolve, firmly in place, to harden her heart so she might never be hurt again. She was, after all, a score of years and should have been wed ere now with bairns about her within her own hall. ’Twas not as if her sister’s husband had not brought the finest men afore her both from England and Scotland. She gave a weary sigh, knowing ’twas far past time she put away her fanciful thoughts of chivalry and a man who would love her for herself, not her wealth. Marriage was one of convenience to bring further lands and monies into one’s possession. She would no longer leave any place in her heart for love! Surely ’twould be a waste of time to believe in such drivel. Love and marriage did not go together. ’Twould be best to forget such fanciful notions of actually loving the man she was to marry.
Placing her hood about her head, she turned to Beauty and realized how foolish she had been to travel unaccompanied as far as she had. Berwyck Castle rose high above a cliff far off in the distance, and ’twould take some time to return to the safety within its boundaries.
She had just put her foot into the stirrup, when she glanced up at the sound of another horse galloping in her direction. Swinging her leg over the saddle, she quickly adjusted her gown and cape to reach the dirk she kept hidden at her side. She was about to kick her mare into motion to ensure her escape, when she recognized the rider and heard, with relief, the sound of her name carried on the wind.
Her guardsman came abreast of her with a look of disapproval upon his face. ’Twas clear the man was not pleased at her actions this day.
“You will be the death of me, my lady, if you so much as ever think on leaving Berwyck again without a proper escort,” the man berated her.
She solemnly gazed upon the guard afore her. He was a handsome man of a score and ten with dark black hair and eyes the color of an aquamarine sea. Having been appointed captain of her guard when she was at the young age of ten and four, the knight beside her had spent many an hour following her about to ensure she remained safe and out of mischief. She hoped he would understand her vexed mood. “I seek your pardon, Rolf, but I needed some time unto myself.”
“Bah! There are plenty of places you could have found such solace within the safety of the keep and castle walls!” he complained bitterly. “Think you our Lord Dristan shall forgive me so hastily that I let a mere girl of such tender years escape my notice?”
“I shall speak to my sister’s husband on your behalf. ’Twas hardly your fault I left the keep as I did and in such a hurry,” Lynet returned with a toss of her head.
Rolf rolled his eyes at her words. “By God’s Bones, ’twill only make it worse, my lady! I am already destined to be in the lists ’til the midnight hour for such a lack of duty. You, of all people, know the repercussions of failure under Lord Dristan’s watch.”
“Aye, Rolf, I know, and again, I must needs seek your pardon,” Lynet exclaimed. “I will still endeavor to make all aright with our liege lord.”
“Then let us away, and make haste. My fate is already sealed one way or the other.”
Lynet bowed her head, since there was no sense in furthering the argument between them. “Lead the way, Rolf. You shall have no more trouble from me this day.”
He gave her a look of pure skepticism. “That, Lady Lynet, remains to be seen.”
They quickly traveled the beach, retracing the path upon which Lynet had recently fled. Her captain remained watchful from years of training to be leery of the unexpected ambush. She supposed ’twas foolish to leave the grounds of Berwyck unattended as she had. If she had been captured, the price of her ransom would indeed be high, for most knew of her worth, be she wed or not. Her dowry was quite substantial, even if she were not under the protection of the Devil’s Dragon of Berwyck. Most would not so much as dare take something, much less someone, under his care, and yet, there were most certainly always the foolish at heart who would not think twice in doing so, if ’twould fill their coffers with the riches she would bring.
They slowed their mounts as they neared the open barbican gate. Was it just her imagination, or did she receive several disappointing looks from those high above who guarded Berwyck’s walls? She gazed upward to stare at the heavy metal spikes of the portcullis as they rode beneath them and she shuddered whilst thinking of the death trap awaiting an unwelcome visitor.
Bringing her horse to a halt in the outer bailey, she waited patiently for a lad to come to take the reins and lead Beauty to the stables. Ever efficient, she did not sit there long afore two young lads came running towards her and her guardsman.
Rolf dismounted and promptly came to her side, raising his arms to assist her from her saddle. She gladly accepted his help, resting her hands firmly on his broad shoulders. As he began to slowly lower her to the ground, their eyes locked to one another for the briefest of moments when she became level with his gaze. His stare was intense and quite unexpected causing her heart to flutter softly like the wings of a small bird in flight. Heat flushed her face since she had never thought to be the recipient of such a look, especially from her captain. She blinked, breaking the spell between them as he set her unsteadily on her feet.
He cleared his throat, causing Lynet to realize she continued to hold on to his arms for support. She hastily muttered an apology and dropped her limbs uselessly to her sides. Embarrassed to the core of her being, she refused to look at him again ‘til she felt the slightest pressure of his fingers beneath her chin. She raised her eyes to once more meet his and saw a tentative grin form on his face.
“I know ’tis not my place, Lady Lynet, but Ian is a fool for not seeing what he would gain by taking you to wife,” Rolf said with a sincere heart.
She scoffed at what she presumed to be reference to the wealth she would bring to her marriage. “Oh aye!” she responded sarcastically. “He is indeed a fool to throw away so much coin to fill his coffers, even if I come with such an agreement.”
“I was not referring to monies, my lady.”
“Were you not?”
“Nay, I was not. Any man with sense in his head can see coin matters little where you are concerned, not to mention he would be blessed to have you at his side.”
Rolf’s words consoled her injured pride, making Lynet blush whilst her face once more became heated at his words. Silently, she wondered for the first time if Rolf held a certain affection for her. She had never thought of her guardsman in such a manner, most likely because her heart had always belonged to Ian. Still, she could not boldly speak her mind to inquire if he spoke his own feelings. Instead, she voiced the next thought that popped into her head.
“Why do you not just address me by my given name, Rolf? You know I have asked this of you more times than I can count,” she whispered sweetly.
He gave her a small nod of his head. “You know the answer, my lady, if you but search your heart,” he replied respectfully.
He did care for her! Silence stretched between them, and she pondered how she could have been so blind. Sadly, she understood that she had hurt his feelings, but, ’til now, had been unable to offer him anything more than friendship. She thought of how Rolf had pulled her out of more reckless scrapes than even she cared to admit over the past several years. He had always been there, hovering near at hand, since Dristan had won Berwyck in the name of the king and had appointed him as her captain. If there were a fool in her midst, it surely must be herself.
Rolf’s name was called, and its sound took her out of her musings. Looking up towards the lists, she noticed how Dristan was beckoning to his k
night whilst his captain, Fletcher, stood anxiously with his sword resting upon his shoulder.
“I must go,” Rolf scoffed, “I have a long night ahead of me.”
“Aye,” she returned softly. “I will still have speech with Dristan if you but wish it of me.”
He turned his gaze to her once again, and Lynet thought she would burn on the spot from the intensity of his eyes leveling on her body. “Nay, you will not, my lady, but perchance, you may take pity on me by providing me with something to quench my thirst, once I return to the hall.”
Rolf did not wait for the opportunity to hear her answer, but bowed low over her hand and took his leave of her. She watched him go and pondered her stupidity. How many other broken hearts have I left in my wake with my refusal to wed over the years? There was no reply forthcoming inside her head, and, mayhap, she would never know for sure.
Lynet turned to make her way into the keep ’til she too heard her name called from the lists. Returning her gaze back towards the sound of men training, she noticed her liege lord crooking his finger for her to join him.
She gave a weary sigh and, with much trepidation, put one foot in front of the other. ’Twas time to pay the price for her waywardness and the trouble she had caused this day. She would not make another mistake as to actually put off the inevitable, for the Devil’s Dragon demanded reparation for her insubordination. She might as well get it over and done with so she could once more begin to ponder the direction her sorry life would now lead.
Chapter Two