Today I am featuring Cynthia Breeding's story,
"A Knightly Challenge"
in the Prairie Rose Publications anthology
One Hot Knight
Book Description:
Come join us for a medieval collection of wonderful
romantic tales that take place during the hottest part of the year with ONE HOT
KNIGHT! This unusual offering of summertime stories set between the medieval
times of 1100-1300, of hot nights and even hotter knights, will keep you
reading long past bedtime.
You’ll be entranced with these five tales of knights and their ladies from some
of today’s top medieval authors, as well as some rising stars in this
up-and-coming genre.
ONE HOT KNIGHT is sure
to bring you hours of enjoyment as you read on to find out how these knights
and ladies will find their very own "happily-ever-after" endings at
this very “hottest” time of year!
-o0o-
In Lindsay Townsend’s A GATHERING OF HERBS, a
father is betrayed by one son while the other tries to save him. Can Solomon
defeat his wicked brother and also win beautiful Agnes, the woman he loves—or
will he have to make a choice?
There’s something odd about Cianna Mackenzie—but she
meets her match in Deborah Macgillivray’s GAMBIT, CHECK, AND MATE.
Cianna strikes a bargain with powerful Iain Sinclair that she never intends to
uphold. But how else can she save her people? Now, how will she save herself?
Scottish-born Brenna Montgomerie plays a deadly game of
deception in Cynthia Breeding’s A KNIGHTLY CHALLENGE. When she’s found
out, can she dare hope that a handsome English knight will show her mercy—and
love?
With the help of the mysterious Esteban Montero,
beautiful hostage Sophia Corbolini escapes her captors. Now, she must decide if
she trusts him enough to put her fate in his hands through binding marriage
vows. NORTH STAR by Angela Raines pits family members against one
another as a new, true love shines bright.
A young woman’s life is changed forever in an instant in A
QUIET NIGHT AT THE HAPPY MONK by Keena Kincaid. The Happy Monk tavern is
everything to Johanna—home and livelihood. When the king sets his sights on her
property in the midst of an uprising, Johanna must flee with her sometime
lover, Giric—who happens to be a spy. How can she give up everything for
love?
Purchase Links for One Hot Knight:
Featuring:
A Knightly Challenge by Cynthia Breeding
Excerpt:
Her nape began to tingle just as she heard
the first footfall behind her. Then
another. And a snicker. Brenna straightened her shoulders. Irvine still had a large contingent of
English foot soldiers encamped between the village and the castle, but she
hadn’t noticed any near the market. She
tried to quicken her pace. The footsteps
came closer. Sliding a hand down her
thigh, she remembered that her sgian-dubh was not strapped to her calf, thanks
again to Lord Percy. She was at the edge
of town, only the stables remained before the road cleared the quarter mile to
the castle gates. She was a fast runner,
thanks to the many times she’d raced with her brother, but—
A rough hand grabbed her arm, spinning
her around. Her arisaidh slipped off her
shoulders, the apples falling to the ground.
Two men leered at her, one with several teeth missing. The other had a
scarred face and crooked nose. The
stench of ale nearly over-powered her.
Her deceased husband—she found it hard to bless his black soul—became a
monster when he drank. Although the
marriage had been short, Brenna acquired enough bruises not to want such an
encounter again. She tried to jerk her
arm away, but the gap-toothed one just clamped tighter. Showing fear would do no good, she knew. Taking a deep breath, she glared at him.
“Take your hand off me.”
He laughed and turned to his
friend. “I think we’ve got a little
spit-fire, eh?”
“Let’s find out,” Crooked-nose said,
“the stable there is a good place for a tumble. We can each have a turn.” He reached over to run a finger along the
neckline of her gown. Brenna swatted his
hand away, then turned to bring her knee into contact with her captor’s
codpiece, but he quickly sidestepped her, his eyes narrowing. “If you like it rough, we can oblige.”
“I don’t believe the lady is
interested,” a deep voice said from the stable doorway.
Brenna nearly gaped as a tall man
emerged from the shadows, dressed entirely in black from his breeks to his
leine and brat. Even his hair was black,
glistening nearly blue in the bright afternoon sun and falling loosely to his
broad shoulders. He had the muscled build of a Highlander, but his accent was English. He wore no armor. He certainly was no foot soldier, but the
knights all stayed at the castle, and she hadn’t seen him there.
He moved toward them with the easy
grace of a wolf stalking its prey and, as he advanced, she could see his eyes
were the same golden color as a wolf’s too.
A little shiver went down her spine.
The stranger stopped several paces
away and tossed his cape back over one shoulder, leaving the handle of his
sword exposed.
“Unhand her,” he said quietly, his
tone brooking no nonsense.
For a moment, her captor hesitated and
then he stepped back.
“We were just going to have a little
fun.”
“That would be for the lady to
decide.” The dark-haired stranger’s
whisky-colored eyes flicked to Brenna once and then back to the two men. “I suggest you get back to camp and stay
there.”
The scar-faced one stood his ground. “We don’t have to take orders from you.
Besides,” he added as he looked to his friend, “there’s two of us and only one
of you—“
The stranger’s sword hissed out of its
scabbard, the point coming to rest just below the man’s chin.
“Are you sure you do not wish to return to
camp?” Golden eyes bore through the man
as the sword pricked his throat, allowing a drop of blood to dribble down. “That is, while you still can?”
The man’s face turned white, making the
reddened scars stand out in profusion as he quickly backed away. His friend grabbed his arm.
“Let’s get out of here.”
“An excellent decision,” the stranger said,
watching as they loped off, trying not to run.
He sheathed his sword in one fluid motion and turned toward Brenna, his
tawny gaze taking in her riotous curls, traveling slowly down her face,
lingering for perhaps a bit too long at her neckline and then sweeping down the
length of her gown.
The August sun suddenly felt too warm. His look was bold as though he could see
right through her woolen sark and her chemise to her naked flesh. She became aware of how massive and powerful
his arms and shoulders were—and that she was quite alone with him.
“I
owe ye thanks,” she said, trying to keep her voice steady.
He inclined his head. “Why were you out here by yourself without
another servant?”
“Tis but a wee walk—” Brenna stopped. He thought she was a servant? She probably looked it since her hair had
come undone and she wore one of her plainest dresses. Not to mention the scruffy boots, since the
road was mud. Should she inform him that
she was the daughter of the laird? Better
to give nothing away. She affected a
contrite expression. “I dinna think to
be in danger. I do thank ye again.”
His look intensified as he stepped toward her
and leaned over. Brenna had a fleeting thought that he would extract his thanks
with a kiss and her heart fluttered. Odd.
No man had ever elicited that kind of response from her before. Usually she kept her distance, yet something
made her step closer to this man, as if mesmerized.
Instinctively, she raised her face, but he
merely took her arisaidh and adjusted it over her shoulders, his hands brushing
against her slightly. A tingle slid down
her arms. He stepped back, a corner of
his mouth twitching as though he were trying not to laugh. Brenna felt her face grow warm. She had all but made a fool of herself,
almost asking for a kiss. As if she
hadn’t learned that kisses led to other things that were unpleasant.
About Cynthia Breeding:
I
wrote my first novella at age eleven about a young girl who was horse-crazy
(just like me!). I found that manuscript
when I was cleaning out my mother’s house in 2013. Interestingly, the plot was intact enough
that, with revision, I turned it into a young adult/coming-of-age novel, Nostalgia Road, for Highland Press.
The Arthurian legends have always intrigued me and, as a
high school English teacher, they were part of the sophomore curriculum. After doing approximately three years of
research in the non-fiction area of King Arthur, I wrote a series of Camelot
books: Camelot’s Destiny, Fate of Camelot, Camelot’s Enchantment and Prelude to Camelot.
My first trip to Scotland in 2010 sealed my fate. I absolutely fell in love with the country
and its history, particularly the era of Robert the Bruce and that of the
Sinclairs of Roslin who, legend has it, aided the Knight Templar as they
escaped from France.
Connect with Cynthia
Breeding:
To see all of Cynthia’s books on Amazon, CLICK HERE and type Cynthia Breeding in the
search box.
