Jarin smiled, for he knew that all too well.
Alexia scanned the room. “Where is she? I should go find her.” She started to rise, but Ronar pulled her back down and winked at Jarin.
“I’ll find her, my lady,” Jarin said. “I have something I wish to discuss with her.” Leaving the two lovers alone, Jarin plucked a knife from the table, sheathed it, then headed out the door and through the tunnel.
He found the lady sitting on a bed of moss beside the pond, her gown spread around her, caressing the water with her fingers. Moonlight shimmered over her in glowing silver and set a halo of glittering diamonds around her head.
An angel, a creature filled with so much love, the world was unworthy of her.
Jarin swallowed. He was unworthy of her.
Careful not to frighten her, he leapt from a boulder onto the ground and made his way to her.
She turned at his approach and smiled—that smile that stormed through every sense, bringing each one to life. She started to rise, and Jarin extended a hand to help her.
“’Tis been quite a day,” she said, staring at him curiously.
Jarin nodded and stared over the water. Nervous! He could command an army against an overwhelming force, but he stood here before this woman as nervous as a squire at his first tournament. Now that she was back home with her sister, he feared she’d had time to realize she deserved far better than him, feared ’twas only the danger of their journey and her need for his protection that had made her feel anything for him at all.
“Thank God for your friends,” she said. “I almost lost you, and I…I…”
He met her gaze, searching her eyes, hope rising.
“Could not bear it,” she finally said, looking down, and lifting a hand to her heart.
He took that hand and raised it for a kiss, drawing her eyes to his again. A world of promise lived within their brown depths if only he could dive in and drown in the love he saw therein. He opened his mouth to pledge his love to her, his devotion, but found himself speechless once again, enchanted by this precious woman before him.
They searched each other’s eyes, the bond between them growing deeper and deeper. Jarin ran the back of his fingers over her cheek and moved his thumb over her lips, so soft and sweet, he longed to kiss them.
Her breath caught. Her chest rose and fell, and she took a step back, breaking the moment. “But we are finally safe,” she said.
“Aye, God watched over us. I see that now.”
“You are no longer angry at Him?”
“Nay.” A breeze tossed his hair, and Jarin glanced over the dark thicket of trees surrounding the pond. “He has shown me the world beyond this one—the real world. Where my parents and sister are now, happy and alive.”
She pressed a hand on his arm. “I am so pleased, Jarin. I, too, have discovered that God never left me, that He loves me…that he loves us so much.”
Jarin smiled. “’Twas you who helped me see His love. It shines through you so brightly, naught can hide it.”
She lowered her gaze. “We both learned much on our journey.”
“I learned other things as well,” he said. Placing a finger beneath her chin, he raised her eyes to his once again. “I learned that what I thought was living was not living at all, but a mask for my unhappiness. I also learned what an astounding woman you are.”
She stepped back from him. “You flatter me, sir. I can see why so many women have fallen for your charms.”
“But only one has won my heart.” Jarin went down on one knee and gazed up at her. His heart galloped in his chest, his future teetered on the edge of bliss or despair. “I am only a knight errant and you the daughter of a thane, but I must ask you for what my heart begs. Will you become my wife?”
She stared at him, wide-eyed and mouth slightly open for what seemed like an eternity, an eternity in which Jarin’s hope began to fade, his future slipping into despondency.
Tears pooled in her eyes “I will not force you away from your life of freedom and adventure, Jarin. I will not do that to the man I love.”
He took her hand and kissed it. “Love? As I do you, with all my heart!”
Hope appeared in her eyes even as a tear slid down her cheek.
Rising, Jarin wiped it away with his thumb. “My lady, I no longer wish that life. My only desire is to be by your side—to protect, to honor, to love you forever.”
“And Thebe?” Her smile was hesitant, her eyes sparkling with love.
“We will raise her as our own.”
Ere he finished the words, her lips were on his. Wrapping his arms around her, he drew her close and drank of this precious woman until he was full of love and life and hope.
Gripping her shoulders, he drew her back. “Is that a yes, my lady?”
“Aye, Sir Jarin, a forever-and-ever yes!”
The End
She Walks in Majesty, Book 3, is now available!
Best-selling author MaryLu Tyndall dreamed of pirates and sea-faring adventures during her childhood days on Florida's Coast. With more than twenty-nine books published, she makes no excuses for the deep spiritual themes embedded within her romantic adventures. Her hope is that readers will not only be entertained but will be brought closer to the Creator who loves them beyond measure. In a culture that accepts the occult, wizards, zombies, and vampires without batting an eye, MaryLu hopes to show the awesome present and powerful acts of God in a dying world. A Christy award nominee and Inspirational Readers Choice Award winner, MaryLu makes her home with her husband, six children, four grandchildren, and several stray cats on the California coast.
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Other books by MaryLu Tyndall
Legacy of the King’s Pirates
The Redemption
The Reliance
The Restitution
The Ransom
The Reckoning
The Reckless
The Falcon and the Sparrow
Charles Towne Belles Series
The Red Siren
The Blue Enchantress
The Raven Saint
Charity’s Cross
Surrender to Destiny Series
Surrender the Sea
Surrender the Night
Surrender the Dawn
Surrender to Destiny Trilogy
Veil of Pearls
Escape to Paradise Series
Forsaken Dreams
Elusive Hope
Abandoned Memories
Escape to Paradise Trilogy
Pearls from the Sea Devotional
Westward Christmas Brides Collection
The Regency Brides Collection
Tears of the Sea - Mermaid Romance!
When Angels Cry - End times Romance
The Liberty Bride - Daughters of the MayFlower
Writing from the Trenches - A writing manual
Protectors of the Spear Series
She Walks in Power
She Walks in Love
She Walks in Majesty
ors of the Spear Book 2)
She Walks in Love (Protectors of the Spear Book 2) Page 33