“Okay, I winna tell ye how much I love ye and make a fuss on your beauty and your wit and wisdom. I will listen tae ye tell me I am a hero because I helped a friend and I rescued ye from an evil man. I will nae return your kindnesses with a compliment on you at all, except tae say that I verra much admire this wee bit of flesh here.”
I leaned over and kissed her on the top edge of her cleavage, a bit of soft skin that was wonderfully exposed. The skin was delicate and rose and fell with her breaths. The movement was almost imperceptible unless I watched and I thought I might want tae press my lips tae that spot and linger there.
When I drew away, there was a glint in her eye, a smile at the edge of her mouth. “Oh you do? You admire that one little spot?”
“Aye, tis blindin’ me with its beauty. I canna draw my eyes away from it.”
That beautiful spot of skin rose with a sigh. “What else would you say to me?”
“I would say I would verra much like tae take ye tae bed, Madame Campbell, if ye would be willin’.”
Her smile spread. “Oh I would be willing, Master Magnus, I would definitely be willing.”
* * *
The end.
Series Order
Kaitlyn and the Highlander (book 1)
Time and Space Between Us (book 2)
A Warrior of My Own (book 3)
Begin Where We Are (book 4)
A Missing Entanglement (short, optional, between 4&5)
Entangled With You (book 5)
Magnus and a Love Beyond Words (book 6)
Under the Same Sky (book 7)
Nothing but Dust (book 8)
Also by Diana Knightley
Can he see to the depths of her mystery before it’s too late?
The oceans cover everything, the apocalypse is behind them. Before them is just water, leveling. And in the middle — they find each other.
On a desolate, military-run Outpost, Beckett is waiting.
Then Luna bumps her paddleboard up to the glass windows and disrupts his everything.
And soon Beckett has something and someone to live for. Finally. But their survival depends on discovering what she’s hiding, what she won't tell him.
Because some things are too painful to speak out loud.
With the clock ticking, the water rising, and the storms growing, hang on while Beckett and Luna desperately try to rescue each other in Leveling, the epic, steamy, and suspenseful first book of the trilogy, Luna's Story:
Leveling: Book One of Luna’s Story
Under: Book Two of Luna’s Story
Deep: Book Three of Luna’s Story
Some thoughts and research…
Characters:
Kaitlyn Maude Sheffield - born 1994
Magnus Archibald Caelhin Campbell - born 1681
Lady Mairead (Campbell) Delapointe she is the sister of the Earl of Breadalbane
Hayley Sherman
Quentin Peters
Beaty Peters
Zach Greene
Emma Garcia
Baby Ben Greene
Sean Campbell -Magnus’s half-brother
Lizbeth Campbell - Magnus’s half-sister
Sean and Lizbeth are the children born of Lady Mairead and her first husband.
Baby Archie Campbell - born 2383
Bella (?)
John Mitchell - Bella’s guy
Colonel Hammond Donahoe
The Earl of Breadalbane - Lady Mairead’s brother
Uncle Archibald (Baldie) Campbell - uncle to Sean and Lizbeth
Tyler Garrison Wilson - Archie’s alter-ego
Grandma Barb
Fraoch MacDonald - born in 1714, is aged 26 in 1740 when he meets Magnus
* * *
Some Scottish and Gaelic words that appear within the book series:
Chan eil an t-sìde cho math an-diugh 's a bha e an-dé - The weather's not as good today as it was yesterday.
Tha droch shìde ann - The weather is bad.
Dreich - dull and miserable weather
Turadh - a break in the clouds between showers
Solasta - luminous shining (possible nickname)
Splang - flash, spark, sparkle
Mo reul-iuil - my North Star (nickname)
Bidh thu a ‘faileadh mar ghaisgeach - you have the scent of a breeze.
Osna - a sigh
Rionnag - star
Sollier - bright
Ghrian - the sun
Mo ghradh - my own love
Tha thu breagha - you are beautiful
Mo chroi - my heart
Corrachag-cagail - dancing and flickering ember flames
Mo reul-iuil, is ann leatsa abhios mo chridhe gubrath - My North Star, my heart belongs to you forever
Dinna ken - didn’t know
A h-uile là sona dhuibh 's gun là idir dona dhuib - May all your days be happy ones
May the best ye’ve ever seen
Be the warst ye’ll ever see.
May the moose ne’er lea’ yer aumrie
Wi’ a tear-drap in his e’e.
May ye aye keep hail an’ hertie
Till ye’re auld eneuch tae dee.
May ye aye be jist as happy
As we wiss ye noo tae be.
Tae - to
Winna - won’t or will not
Daena - don’t
Tis - it is or there is. This is most often a contraction t’is, but it looked messy and hard to read on the page so I removed the apostrophe. For Magnus it’s not a contraction, it’s a word.
Och nae - Oh no.
Ken, kent, kens - know, knew, knows
iora rua - a squirrel. (Magnus compares Kaitlyn to this ;o)
scabby-boggin tarriwag - Ugly-foul smelling testicles
latha fada - long day
sùgh am gròiseid - juice in the gooseberry
Beinn Labhair - Ben Lawers, the highest mountain in the southern part of the Scottish Highlands. It lies to the north of Loch Tay.
“And I will come again, my love, though it were ten thousand mile.” Is from the beautiful Robert Burns poem, O my Luve's like a red, red rose, written in 1794 after Magnus’s time.
beannachd leibh - farewell or blessings be with you.
* * *
Locations:
Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida, 2017
Magnus’s home in Scotland - Balloch. Built in 1552. In early 1800s it was rebuilt as Taymouth Castle. (Maybe because of the breach in the walls caused by our siege from the future?) Situated on the south bank of the River Tay, in the heart of the Grampian Mountains. In 2382 it is a ruin.
Kilchurn Castle - Magnus’s childhood home, favorite castle of his uncle Baldie. On an island at the northeastern end of Loch Awe. In the region Argyll.
The kingdom of Magnus the First is in Scotland, his Castle Dom (really needs to be renamed) is very near Balloch Castle.
Magnus and Kaitlyn’s safe house is in a secret location.
The Cracker Barrel off I-95 in Savannah.
Castillo de San Marcos - St Augustine fort. It does have that sort of hold in a wall dungeon.
Ham House is a historic house with formal gardens set back 200 metres from the River Thames in Ham, south of Richmond in London. It is a three and a half hour walk from St Thomas Hospital.
Elizabeth (1659–1735), married Archibald Campbell, 1st Duke of Argyll in Edinburgh in 1678. Their first child, John Campbell, 2nd Duke of Argyll, was born at Ham House in 1680 and their second son, Archibald Campbell, 3rd Duke of Argyll was born in the same room a few years later. (Some names and dates have been changed in this story, but this family is Magnus’s relations in London. He lived with them from when he was about 10 until he was about 16.)
St Thomas Hospital was described as ancient in 1215. Seriously. It is located on the opposite bank of the River Thames to the Houses of Parliament.
* * *
True things that happened:
The Siege of St. Augustine was a military engagement that took place during June–July 17
40. It was a part of the much larger conflict known as the War of Jenkins' Ear, between Great Britain and Spain. Magnus was verra fortunate that the siege happened while he was in the dungeon.
During the Siege of St Augustine there were 14 deserters. One of those must have been our new friend, Fraoch MacDonald.
The War of Jenkins' Ear began in October 1739. In November, in response to two Scots garrisoned on Amelia Island being killed in an ambush by Spanish-allied Indians, the Darien settlers mobilized and, together with forces from South Carolina, captured some Spanish forts including Fort Mose, before attempting to lay siege to St. Augustine. Then the Spanish won the Battle of Fort Mose, resulting in the death or capture of 51 Darien settlers, most if not all of them were from Scotland.
Acknowledgments
A huge thank you to David Sutton for reading and advising on story threads, wanting Magnus and Kaitlyn to consider their wealth, hoping I can find some empathy for Bella, and wondering about where James went. I appreciate your time, the back and forth as we get to the nitty gritty in this story and pull apart the confusing threads. As you said, when we were discussing a particularly wibbly-wobbly thread, “You’re earning your money now.” True that! You help the story get better and better, thank you, especially for your idea of adding a stocking for Archie. That was great.
* * *
A big thank you to Heather Hawkes for beta reading, championing, being a long time friend and supporter, and for letting me know that Magnus’s tears don’t make him weak, saying, “Only movie stars wouldn’t cry.” I’m so grateful that you’ve been enthusiastic and sometimes ‘on-call’ when I’m totally freaking out. And that this time you told me, “Personally, every book gets better.” Thank you.
* * *
Thank you to Jessica Fox for reading and saying, “Once again, I was impressed by Kaitlyn's terrible arsery. She was brave when she had to defend others but her traditional scared, impulsive and freaked out when Magnus was around to defend her, excellent character development while still being realistic.” I really want Kaitlyn to be a terrible arse and yet also a real girl, thank you for agreeing. Your notes and advice are great and when you said this at the end, “I could go on but it would be just writing about what I liked, which is a lot and I know you are on the clock here, so consider your fears assuaged and ego inflated.” Thank you. That was kind and helpful.
* * *
Thank you to Kristen Schoenmann De Haan for your tireless beta-reading for me. This go around you weighed in last yet still found things I hadn’t noticed. Thank you for saying, “I was so invested in this wonderful Montegue/Capulet friendship…” It means a lot that you saw Magnus and Fraoch this way, their friendship will be a good one in future books.
* * *
And a special thank you to Cynthia Tyler, a truly amazing editor, every pass you make helps the story get better and better. Plus you have this amazing history yourself — want to know about sword fighting, horsemanship, rifle shooting, sailing, Scottish history? Ask Cynthia! This installment I did ask and you delivered: North Florida maps, English tailors, the details of high-end costuming, the cuisine on ships crossing the Atlantic, as well as the correct terms of the boat doohickeys, how much money to buy a cart at port and yes, the man is selling oysters, plus the founding year of St Thomas Hospital. Thank you so much. I’m lucky to have every bit of your experience informing my story.
* * *
And thank you to my mother, Mary Jane Cushman. When I was in junior high school I helped her clean out the Old Jail to become the Amelia Island Museum of History. I helped her carry boxes of artifacts and affix to walls the hand-written cards to create the museum displays.
She was also co-owner of a toy store called the Gamekeeper on Centre Street and was so proud of the community. When David Sutton asked me to send Kaitlyn and Magnus there to shop for Christmas, he was exactly right. She was so proud of that shopping area and would have loved to see it in a book.
Amelia Island was a home she loved the details of and I hope I have told a story that does those details justice. She passed away in 2011 and was my greatest fan. I still miss her every day.
* * *
A huge thank you to every single member of the FB group, Kaitlyn and the Highlander. Every day, in every way, sharing your thoughts, joys, and loves with me is so amazing, thank you. You inspire me to try harder.
And when I ask ‘research questions’ boy do you all deliver.
______________________
I told the group that Magnus would be revisiting Ham House and one of the members, Elizabeth Corley, lived near that house many years ago.
She told me that the gardens were great fun to play in. And that, “The house is stunning too, full of dark wood and smells of the past!”
And, “…when you go in through the front door the floor tiles are black and white chequered and there is a balcony above that runs all the way around on the first floor so you can look down into the hall from there. The stairs are off to the left (and very very ornate carved wood!) There’s a door right by the start of the stairs that opens to a small chapel. I always remember one of the curators telling me about a secret staircase when I was a little girl that the servants used. I saw a small part of it, it was tiny and pitch black and really creepy! There’s a beautiful long gallery on the first floor too that runs from the front to the back of the house, all dark wood panelled. The river Thames runs along in front of the house and sweeping lawns behind the house. The stable block is part of the walled garden.”
I appreciate this glimpse into the house. It really helped Magnus’s memories, thank you Elizabeth!
__________________________
I asked, “Magnus agrees with Kaitlyn on something. Then a little while later he has to admit that she was right about something else. Then they have this discussion:
...he grinned. ‘I have learned that Kaitlyn Campbell was in the right in this.”
‘Good, I’m glad you see my point.’
He added, ‘You are always wantin’ me tae agree with ye and now it has been twice in a day. You are goin’ tae have tae agree with me on somethin’ so I daena feel so insignificant.’
‘Like what?’
...
What does Magnus want Kaitlyn to agree with him on?”
There were so many great ideas, from ice cream flavors, to food choices, to whether Florida is as beautiful as Scotland, to very romantic thoughts. It came to me as I was reading their answers that it would be about the scent of Kaitlyn’s shampoo. She’s gotten kind of carried away with the flower fragrances and Magnus is food driven. We all suspected this of course.
Thank you to Rachael Temaat, Jeanette Reames, Lillian Llewellyn, Jenna Rae Payne, Heather Haroldsen, Jackie Malecki, Carlla Hamilton, Karen Nichols, Michelle Lisgaris, Carmen Sánchez, Nikki Nikki, Nicola Ashton, Julie Stephens, Gail Bissett, Debbie Nida, David Sutton, Marian Birsa, and Donna Bartlett for weighing in and helping me come to the answer.
_____________________
I also asked, “So Magnus is riding a coach a verra verra long distance. Let's just say it's his century. He will be traveling for days.
The interior carries six passengers. It looks like each seat was about 14" wide, so there was some tightness and thinking on the bulk of the ladies clothing is liable to give me claustrophobia right there.
There are five other passengers in the coach when he squeezes into his seat.
Who are his fellow passengers?
Especially — who is the person that he is sitting right up against?”
This is what I chose:
There were six seats altogether, five were full of other passengers. My travel companions were a wealthy widow, Madame Fuller, and her son, Samuel, headed tae York; a young man who was a clockmaker’s assistant, his name was Paul Hanley; and a young woman, a Mistress Brookes and her traveling companion.
Thank you for the ideas, Jessica Martin (As Magnus settles in for the long journey ahead, he feels Agatha shift closer to
him so that every bump in the road conveniently jostles her practically in his lap. Agatha turns to apologize in a breathy voice as she runs her finger across her exposed decolletage. Magnus looks at the girl and says "That's alright lassie, but I'm nae sure my wife would approve of ye ridin all the way on me lap”), Janet Lewis Sims (The woman across from him, is flirtatious, and he’s trying not to give her any encouragement), Christine Champeaux (a woman about Kaitlyn's age, recently widowed) These were great ideas and helped me fill that carriage with interesting people.
___________________________
I also asked, “I need a place. Nick Reyes, a horrible person and a time-traveler, likes to go there. It's his favorite vacation place. He might mention it to Magnus, when he was there last…”
The most useful ideas were: Annie Miller (I feel like he’s the kind of jackass that has an island…) Jessica Fox (My first thought was a Greek or Mediterranean island with a house atop an oceanside cliff. I can almost see a battle on the big terrace that faces the ocean and has a huge drop into the jagged rocks on the shore below), Margo Machnik (Malta!!! In a cliffside villa), Carla Howell (He owns a Villa…Beautiful mountains, cliffs, ocean, exotic... perfect!), Sly Greenberg (Somewhere in the Greek archipelago…), Polly Hagen Jones (…some place living quite nicely, like Greece?)
Thank you for the ideas! Santorini was where he ended, and we got to meet Christo and Sophia and Magnus gained even more friends.
__________________________
I also asked, “I need the name for a Tailor shop in London in the year 1740. Also the name for the Tailor working it.
I also need the name of a women's dress shop and the name of the tailor working it.”
Under the Same Sky Page 24
