Page 18 (1/1)

Hawk trained his eyes on the floor He took a deep breath "Nay,I fear I did not express myself clearly" Hawk paused and sed hard "What I ood to me already’ "The lie burned his lips and left the taste of charred pride on his tongue But it kept Dalkeith safe

Jarandly a that showcased the extent of his kingly powers The Hawk reflected bitterly that once again Jaain, his voice dripped venolas, and We ipe all trace of Douglas from Scotia Not one drop of your bloodline will survive unless you do this thing"

It was the salas, and the only one that could have been so ruthlessly effective, over and over again

Haed his head to hide his anger

He’d wanted to choose his oife Was that so ht of choosing a wo a family far from the corruption of Ja’s efforts to sully and destroy theer a man who believed in love, he did believe in fa the rest of his days with a fine woman, surrounded by children, appealed to him immensely

He wanted to stroll the seaside and tell stories to his sons He wanted lovely daughters and grandchildren He wanted to fill the nursery at Dalkeith Och, the nursery, the thought stung hi the king had ever done to him I can never fill the nursery now--not if my wife bears seeds of iti a child of his own?

Hawk had never spoken of his desire for a family; he’d known that if James found out, he’d eradicate any hope of it Well, somehow James had either found out or had decided that since he hadn’t been able to have the wife he wanted, neither could the Hawk

"Raise your head and look at Us, Hawk," James co with lightless eyes

Jaaze on Red Comyn and appended a final threat to ensure cooperation, "We will destroy the Comyn, too, should this decree be defied Hear you what We say, Red Comyn? Don’t fail Us"

Laird Co before Jahts He acknowledged the pitying stares of the soldiers hoaze; the co resented the Hawk’s success omen, and accepted the fact that he would ed old crone Hawk Douglas would always do whatever it took to keep Dalkeith and all her people safe

The gossip mill had churned out endless stories of Janet Comyn, a crazed spinster, imprisoned because she was incurably mad

As Hawk trod the cobbled ay to the entrance of Dalkeith, he laughed aloud at the false ie he’d created in his mind of Mad Janet He realized that James had obviously known no more about her than anyone else, because James never would have bound the Hawk to such a woman had he knohat she was truly like She was too beautiful, too fiery James had intended Hawk to suffer, and the only way a et his hands on her, if he couldn’t taste her kisses and enjoy her sensual pro, silken creature of passionate tee He’d sent Gri to ignore her when she arrived He’d o on at Dalkeith as if nothing had changed He’d decided that if she was half as ossips claimed, she probably wouldn’t even be able to understand that she was married He’d concluded he could surely find so her somewhere, far fro about sharing living quarters

Then, he’d laid eyes upon "Mad" Janet Cooddess she’d flayed hi wit handfasted to unearthly beauty No lass he could recall had stirred in hier he’d suffered when he’d caressed her with his eyes While she’d been caressing that damned smithy with hers