by Julia Latham
Paul shook his head. “It needs to be said aloud. Juliana helped me to realize how burdened with guilt I have been for not standing at your sides through such danger.”
Juliana stared at him, saying nothing.
“Paul—” Adam began.
Paul held up a hand. “That is all I need to say, a truth you should know.”
“So ‘tis time to celebrate our pride in you?” Adam asked.
Paul looked at Juliana. “But first I must remove this armor. My personal guard makes an excellent squire.”
She gave a faint smile, even as she followed him from the great hall.
Juliana’s fingers trembled as she undid each buckle of Paul’s armor in their bedchamber. He remained silent, and so did she, feeling awkward and sad and yearning and full of love, all at the same time.
He’d admitted aloud his envy of his brothers, and although he could not say it before others, she realized what he wanted her to know, that he agreed with her about his motives for avenging her father.
But other than that, their future was uncertain. Might he go with his brothers, leaving her to return to the League, leaving her only her memories of happiness in his arms?
The lump in her throat felt like it was swelling, like even swallowing couldn’t rid her of the feeling that sorrow choked her. She would cry; she would make a spectacle of herself, she who prided herself on being as impassive and unemotional as any Bladesman.
When his upper body was bare of armor, but for his padded doublet, he surprised her by taking both her hands in his.
“Juliana.” He seemed to breathe her name.
Stop! she wanted to cry, afraid to hear his words of regret.
“You were right,” he said hoarsely, “about everything. My need to reveal the truth about your father was selfish in motivation, and it was as if my eyes were cleared by your words.”
Relief was as warm as a blanket on a winter’s day. “So you will keep the League’s secret?” she asked with hope.
“I shall, because you ask it of me. But I still will hope to influence the Council of Elders so that nothing like this ever happens again.”
“Influence the Council—” she began, then had to swallow before saying, “As a Bladesman?”
“Nay, through my foster father. Although I do not rule out the occasional emergency assignment of great importance,” he intoned as arrogantly as the king.
She found herself laughing, and then was mortified as the first tear spilled from her eye. She tried to wipe it away, but he drew her into his arms and gently wiped it with his thumb.
“Why do you cry, sweet Juliana?”
“Because there is hope that I will see you again.”
“Hope? ‘Tis up to me to hope, for I offer you my love, and I do not know whether you will have me, after all of my foolishness.”
She stared up at him, feeling shocked and full of disbelief. “But … but you’ve made clear that you never wanted marriage.”
“And then I realized ‘twas because I never thought I knew how to give of myself to a woman, after the poor examples I had in childhood. I tried to show you this. You deserve such a good life, after everything you’ve experienced. How would I ever be able to offer that? But I love you, Juliana, and I want the chance to prove it to you.”
She put a trembling hand to his lips. “Please, Paul, please, let there be no more need to prove anything between us. That’s all my life has been about, proving myself, though I couldn’t see it. I denied my womanhood, and rejoiced on finding it again in your arms. Let there be no more proving, but absolute faith. I love you, Paul, and I will gladly be your wife.”
He inhaled and closed his eyes briefly, then gave her a crooked grin. “You helped me find peace with my past, Juliana. Can we let love bring peace to both our futures?”
And then he kissed her, and it was as if she was reborn, all her cares and doubts banished, the future bright with promise.
She leaned back in his arms. “But the League, Paul? I do not plan to leave it.”
“And I would never ask such a thing. I only ask that you’ll briefly retire when having my children.”
“Children,” she breathed in wonder. “Like young Edward.”
“I think a child of ours will be far from shy.”
“He or she will be too busy seeing the world, watching their father compete in all the tournaments he likes.”
“A life on the road? Nay, sweet Juliana. I have done that, and ‘tis in my past. A simple life with you and our children is all I want.”
“That sounds wondrous to me,” she answered, standing on tiptoes to kiss him once more. “But no tournaments? I had planned to dress as a man and compete.”
His expression changed from shock to horror to hard-won resignation.
And she laughed her delight and happiness.
Author’s Note
The late fifteenth century was rife with political turmoil, with many different kings coming to power. While reading extensively about this era, I became fascinated with the story of the little princes locked in the Tower of London. They gradually disappeared from public view and were assumed murdered. Their fate is much of the reason many people soured on Richard III, and welcomed Henry VII.
Several suspects had ample reason to want the princes dead, from Richard III to his onetime ally the Duke of Buckingham to Henry VII himself. In 1674, the skeletons of two children of approximately the correct age were found in a chest beneath a stairwell in the Tower and buried in Westminster Abbey under the names of the princes. Though photographed in 1933, the skeletons were incomplete, and no DNA tests have ever been done.
During Henry VII’s reign, several people pretended to be young Richard, Duke of York (as did my hero, Paul Hilliard), and all were eventually discovered and defeated. The trilogy of Paul and his brothers takes place in the 1480s, a time when Prince Richard would only have been in his mid teens. But I loved the story, and decided to play a bit with history, aging Prince Richard to match Paul. I hope you’ll forgive me the liberty I took.
If you’re interested in Paul’s brothers, Adam’s story is in TAKEN AND SEDUCED, and Robert’s story is in WICKED, SINFUL NIGHTS. Thank you again for understanding, and I hope you enjoyed the adventures of Paul and Juliana.
Julia
Romances by Julia Latham
SIN AND SURRENDER
WICKED, SINFUL NIGHTS
TAKEN AND SEDUCED
SECRETS OF THE KNIGHT
ONE KNIGHT ONLY
THRILL OF THE KNIGHT
Copyright
AVON BOOKS
An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers
10 East 53rd Street
New York, New York 10022-5299
Copyright © 2011 by Gayle Kloecker Callen
ISBN 978-0-062-03630-8
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded,decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
EPub Edition © NOVEMBER 2010 ISBN: 978-0-062-03630-8
First Avon Books paperback printing: January 2011
Avon Trademark Reg. U. S. Pat. Off. and in Other Countries, Marca Registrada, Hecho en U. S. A.
HarperCollins® is a registered trademark of HarperCollins Publishers.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
About the Publisher
Australia
HarperCollins Publishers (Australia) Pty. Ltd.
25 Ryde Road (PO Box 321)
Pymble, NSW 2073, Australia
http://www.harpercollinsebooks.com.au
Canada
HarperCollins Canada
; 2 Bloor Street East - 20th Floor
Toronto, ON, M4W 1A8, Canada
http://www.harpercollinsebooks.ca
New Zealand
HarperCollinsPublishers (New Zealand) Limited
P.O. Box 1 Auckland,
New Zealand
http://www.harpercollinsebooks.co.nz
United Kingdom
HarperCollins Publishers Ltd.
77-85 Fulham Palace Road
London, W6 8JB, UK
http://www.harpercollinsebooks.co.uk
United States
HarperCollins Publishers Inc.
10 East 53rd Street
New York, NY 10022
http://www.harpercollinsebooks.com
