by Jayne Castel
Elias shook his head, his expression turning fierce. “I don’t think I love you, I know it. I would never cage you. Anthor queens are allowed more freedom than those of the north. My mother never bowed to my father. She’s been able to live as she pleases.” He broke off here, a hand cupping her chin. “I would give you all the freedom you desire … all I ask is that you be my wife, that you let me love you.”
Ryana’s breathing faltered. This man was relentless. He would never give up, and suddenly she was tired of resisting him, of fighting what she really wanted—deep down where she dared not look. She’d been alone for so long that she’d convinced herself it was the only way forward for her. It was easier than risking her heart.
But she realized she was past that now. She already loved Elias. Leaving him would tear her apart anyway, and she would hate herself forever for giving up a chance of happiness. They came so rarely. One might never present itself to her again.
“I’m scared,” she whispered as her vision blurred.
He gave a soft, shaky laugh, his thumb brushing away a tear that trickled down her cheek. “And you think I’m not?”
“This is all new to me.”
His lips curved. “It’s virgin territory for me too. Help me explore it … will you be my wife, Ryana?”
“Aye,” she breathed. “I will.”
Relief gleamed in Elias’s eyes, and he leaned in, his mouth covering hers.
This kiss wasn’t like any of the others. Their unions before now had been hungry, fierce, and almost brutal at times, yet this kiss was achingly tender. It was full of love.
Ryana melted against Elias as he deepened the embrace. It was still soft, yielding, although his heart now galloped under her palm. Ryana’s lips parted under his, and she welcomed his tongue. Elias growled deep in his throat, pulling her hard against him.
Suddenly, he gasped.
Ryana stilled. Drawing back, she noted the pain that tightened his features. “What’s wrong?”
He favored her with a lopsided smile. “My side … I’d forgotten I’m injured.”
Ryana huffed. Reaching up, she traced a fingertip along the strong line of his jaw. “It’ll heal soon enough,” she whispered, “but in the meantime I’ll have to be gentle with you.”
Elias’s smile turned sultry, his gaze burning into her now. His hand reached up, the backs of his fingers brushing across the tops of her breasts. The gown she wore pressed them up shamelessly against him.
Ryana swallowed, trembling under his touch. “You don’t want to rejoin the celebrations?” she said, trying to keep her voice steady. “They’ll have brought out the sweets by now.”
Elias’s mouth quirked, and he leaned forward, placing his lips to where her pulse fluttered at the base of her throat. He then breathed her in. “We too have something to celebrate,” he murmured against her skin. “And I don’t want sweets … I’d rather feast on you.”
Later, they lay naked together upon the bed, bodies entwined. Ryana’s clothes and the leather pack lay discarded on the floor, while the late afternoon sun streamed in through the window, warming their skin.
Outdoors, laughter filtered up from the bailey below, as did the shrill notes of a bone whistle. The celebrations had moved outdoors it seemed. The people of Veldoras would celebrate long into the night.
“It must feel strange,” Ryana murmured as she lay nestled into Elias’s shoulder, “for you and your men to still be here … the defeated enemy in a liberated city.”
“Aye, it does,” Elias admitted. He stroked her back—a soft, sensual caress. “I’m not entirely comfortable with it … the sooner we depart for home the better.”
Home. The way he said that word made warmth seep through Ryana.
“You once said you hadn’t been back to Mirrar Rock in years,” she replied. “What’s the thing you miss most?”
Silence stretched out while Elias pondered her question. “The air,” he said finally. “It’s warm all year round. During the day it smells of the sea and frying garlic, but after dark the scent of night flowering jasmine drifts through the city.”
Ryana smiled at his description. She liked the idea of that. “The Royal City smells of pine and wood smoke,” she murmured. “It’s a different world.”
“Will you miss it?” he asked after a pause.
Ryana shook her head. “You can’t miss a place that never really felt like home.”
“You’ll like Mirrar Rock,” Elias assured her.
His confidence made her smile widen. “How can you be so sure of that?”
“Because it’s bold, sultry, and earthy … like you, my love.”
In response, Ryana laughed, the sound filtering across the chamber and into the bright afternoon.
Epilogue
Shelter
Mirrar Rock
The Kingdom of Anthor
One month later …
ELIAS, KING OF Anthor, wed Ryana of Ridder Vale upon a wide terrace above the city, beneath the gleaming black bulk of the palace.
It was not yet noon, but the sun blazed down from a hard blue sky. Shielded from its fierceness, Elias and Ryana stood beneath a shade sail while the High Enchanter of the Order of Light and Darkness performed the wedding ceremony. From here, they had a magnificent view over a swathe of tiled roofs, down to the wide blue expanse of the sea.
Ryana couldn’t stop smiling.
She’d been nervous about this ceremony—especially about standing up in front of the folk of Mirrar Rock—but now she was here, her nerves disappeared. The folk of Mirrar Rock packed the terrace; the men were dressed in black, the women in colorful gowns and parasols. Incense wafted through the air, carried on a hot wind.
Elias and Ryana joined hands, while the High Enchanter stepped forward. Biel was a tall, spare man with long greying hair tied back at his nape.
“Now you will feel no rain.” Biel’s baritone reached out over the terrace. “For each of you will be shelter for the other. You will feel no cold, for each of you will be warmth to the other. There will be no loneliness, for each of you will be companion to the other. You are two persons, but there is only one life before you. May beauty surround you both in the journey ahead and through all the years. May happiness be your companion and your days together be good and long upon the earth.”
Ryana’s vision misted. She’d always been dry-eyed at weddings, too cynical to let the vows touch her.
But that was before Elias—before today.
Her husband pulled her into his arms for a passionate kiss, and the crowd responded with a thunderous applause.
The people of Anthor had a love for theatre, for public displays of affection, it seemed. The cheering went on a while—as did the kiss.
When they finally broke apart, Ryana was gasping for air.
Elias grinned down at her. “Do you think that’s enough, or should we go in for another?” Before Ryana could answer, he embraced her again, sweeping her off her feet into his arms.
The crowd went wild, and another enthusiastic applause rippled across the terrace. This time, Ryana gave them the spectacle they cried out for. She wrapped her arms around Elias’s neck and kissed him back lustily, not caring that half the city looked on.
Later, they sat side-by-side at the banquet table upon the terrace and shared their first goblet of wine together. Shade sails billowed overhead, shielding long tables of feasters, while brightly garbed servants brought out trays of food: saffron rice and grilled prawns, cured hams, huge wheels of aged sheep’s cheese, fat green olives stuffed with anchovies, and long thin loaves of dark crusty bread.
Ryana’s mouth watered as a servant placed a huge silver tureen of saffron rice mixed with seafood before her. The aroma of garlic wafted across the table. She’d only been in Mirrar Rock a few days and was in love with the food. It made the cuisine of her own people seem stodgy and bland in comparison. The flavors here were so bold that they danced off her tongue.
Elias served them, spooning t
he bright yellow rice onto a shared dish before them. “How did you cope being away for so long?” she asked. “If I’d grown up with dishes like these, I’d have never left.”
“You never appreciate what you have until it’s gone,” Elias replied with a wry smile. “On campaigns, most of the talk around the fireside was about food.”
Ryana took a mouthful of rice, her gaze widening in pleasure. She swallowed her mouthful and smiled. “I’m not surprised.”
She was aware then of a gaze boring into her. Ryana glanced up to see a sharp-featured, raven-haired woman farther down the table staring at her: Jada, the dowager queen.
The sour look on the woman’s face was impossible to miss.
Of all those she’d met at Mirrar Rock, Ryana’s mother-in-law had been the least welcoming. Jada had once been a beauty, you could see it in the sculpted lines of her face. Yet bitterness and scorn had eroded her looks far faster than time ever could.
Ignoring the dowager queen’s glare, Ryana favored Jada with a bright smile and turned back to Elias.
He was watching her, his eyes hooding in a way that never failed to excite Ryana. He looked striking today, dressed head-to-toe in black silk and leather, silver epaulets gleaming at his shoulders. In contrast, Ryana wore Anthor red: a high-necked crimson gown with long full skirts.
“I’m glad your friends could make it,” Elias said, smiling. “Even if Ninia couldn’t.”
Ryana nodded, her attention shifting to the long table around ten yards away. At its center sat four figures: Asher, Mira, Lilia, and Dain. Catching Ryana’s eye, Asher raised his goblet in a silent toast. Dressed in a white linen tunic and breeches, Asher reclined in his chair, one arm slung protectively over Mira’s shoulders. She’d never seen him so relaxed. Upon the back of his chair perched Grim; Asher’s familiar had joined him on his trip south.
Ryana smiled back at him and lifted her goblet.
“So you’re pleased you’re here?” Elias asked softly, drawing her attention once more. “That you’re my wife?”
Ryana’s mouth curved. Leaning back in her chair, she picked up her goblet and took a sip. Like the food, the wine in this city was delicious: deep, rich, and spicy. His question surprised her a little. Wasn’t it obvious from her beaming face that she loved it here? Even his shrew of a mother couldn’t dim her joy.
“Do you even need to ask that?” she asked after a pause.
He leaned close and reached up, stroking her cheek. “Aye … for sometimes I look at you and wonder if this is all real. I never thought I’d wed … frankly, I never thought I’d live this long.”
Ryana caught his hand with hers and placed a gentle kiss on his palm. She too had thought she’d never find someone to share her life with. She’d carried too many ghosts of the past with her. But now she’d left all of that behind, she could love and let herself be loved in return. It still frightened her sometimes, the depth of what she felt for this man. But she would never give it up, would never go back to her old life.
“I love you, Elias,” she whispered. “And I’ve never been happier.”
The End
From the Author
And here we come to the end of The Light and Darkness series!
I hope you enjoyed Ryana and Elias’s tale—and the stories of Lilia and Dain and Mira and Asher that preceded it: three very different romances but with common threads that bind them. I saved Ryana and Elias to the end deliberately. Not because they’re my favorite couple (although every couple is my favorite when I’m immersed in their story), but because of all the six protagonists in this series they had the most growing to do.
I’ve long had a love affair with Epic Fantasy, but the books I used to read as a teenager never had enough ‘romance’ in them for my tastes. These days there are quite a few fantasy romance novels around, although many of them follow just one couple through a series of books. My series was a bit different. My Historical Romances feature stand-alone romances with an over-arching back story and I wanted to give readers the same experience with these novels. I hope you’ve enjoyed dipping into three separate love stories while getting to experience an epic adventure spanning a trilogy.
It’s been a long journey … I began Book #1, RULED BY SHADOWS in 2016 and then published the novel in 2017. THE LOST SWALLOW was published in 2018, and since then I’ve been working on getting PATH OF THE DARK ready for publication. I’ve loved bringing The Four Kingdoms of Serran to life and populating it with a colorful cast of characters, but like all journeys this one has come to an end.
Thank you all for coming along on this journey with me!
Jayne x
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
EPIC FANTASY ROMANCE
LIGHT AND DARKNESS
Book #1: Ruled by Shadows
Book #2: The Lost Swallow
Book #3: Path of the Dark
About the Author
Jayne Castel writes Historical Romance set in Dark Ages Britain and Scotland, and Epic Fantasy Romance. Her vibrant characters, richly researched historical settings, extensive world-building and action-packed adventure romance transport readers back 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. In love with all things Scottish, she also writes romances set in 4th Century Isle of Skye ... 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.
Jayne won the 2017 RWNZ Koru Award (Short, Sexy Category) for her novel, ITALIAN UNDERCOVER AFFAIR, and is currently shortlisted for the 2019 RWNZ Koru Award (Best Novella), for WINTER'S PROMISE.
Get Jayne's FREE prequel short story to THE WARRIOR BROTHERS OF SKYE series: THE FIRST-BORN SON. http://www.jaynecastel.com/home/sign-up
Connect with Jayne online:
www.jaynecastel.com
www.facebook.com/JayneCastelRomance/
Twitter: @JayneCastel
Email: [email protected]
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