Knave Of Hearts

She craved more, far more, knowing what heights this man could take her to. Her knees went weak with the memory of a solitary moment of bliss. She wanted the pleasure again. She wanted Stephen.

He broke the kiss, cradled her head against his shoulder. Even through her hard, unsteady breathing she felt him shudder.

Nothing had changed. Not in six years.

“I have to go.” His voice was low and harsh.

It took her a moment to remember he was leaving Branwick for York. But he’d be back, wouldn’t he?

“You will come back?”

“On my honor.”

The second kiss nearly knocked her senseless. Foolishness beyond belief, but if not for the girls napping on their nearby pallets, she’d be sore tempted to pull him down in the dirt and strip him bare…!

Dear Reader,

Harlequin Historicals is putting on a fresh face! We hope you enjoyed our special inside front cover art from recent months. We plan to bring this “extra” to you every month! You may also have noticed our new look—a maroon stripe that runs along the right side of the front cover and an “HH” logo in the upper right corner. Hopefully, this will help you find our books more easily in the crowded marketplace. And thanks again to those of you who participated in our reader survey. Your feedback enables us to bring you more of the stories and authors that you like!

We have four incredible books for you this month. The talented Shari Anton returns with a new medieval novel. Knave of Hearts is a secret-child story about a knight who, in the midst of seeking the hand of a wealthy widow, is unexpectedly reunited with his first—and not forgotten—love. Cheryl St.John’s new Western, Sweet Annie, is full of her signature-style emotion and tenderness. Here, a hardworking horseman falls in love with a crippled young woman whose family refuses to see her as the capable beauty she is.

Ice Maiden, by award-winning author Debra Lee Brown, will grab you and not let go. When a Scottish clan laird washes ashore on a remote island, the price of his passage home is temporary marriage to a Viking hellion whose icy facade belies a burning passion…. And don’t miss The Ranger’s Bride, a terrific tale by Laurie Grant. Wounded on the trail of an infamous gang, a Texas Ranger with a past seeks solace in the arms of a beautiful “widow,” who has her own secrets to reveal….

Enjoy! And come back again next month for four more choices of the best in historical romance.

Sincerely,

Tracy Farrell, Senior Editor

Knave of Hearts

Shari Anton

Available from Harlequin Historicals and SHARI ANTON

Emily’s Captain #357

By King’s Decree #401

Lord of the Manor #434

By Queen’s Grace #493

The Conqueror #507

Knave of Hearts #547

To the Schwagers:

Lady Chris, of the flaming hair and enchanting smile,

and Sir Ron, her dark and stormy knight.

Hark, the summer cometh!

And we couldn’t ask for better playmates.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Prologue

April, 1109

Stephen wished he could cheer his half brother out of his morose mood. He’d tried and failed, probably because by getting angry and confronting King Henry, Stephen bore some blame for getting Richard into trouble to begin with.

Within Wilmont’s richly furnished chambers in Westminster Palace, Richard slumped in a high-backed chair, a goblet of wine dangling from his fingertips, a frown on his face. No wonder. He’d been forced to accept the guardianship over the widow and orphan of Wilmont’s greatest enemy, a man who’d damn near succeeded in getting Richard killed.

Stephen still had trouble believing events had taken such a strange turn, but King Henry was adamant and they must all deal as best they could with this unpalatable situation. For his part, Stephen would leave at sunrise for Normandy, to assess the extent of young Philip’s estates and determine if the boy’s relatives posed a threat. The errand should take a month, or maybe a week or two more, to complete.

Which left Stephen this one night to secure a betrothal bargain with Carolyn de Grasse, the heiress who awaited him in a bedchamber on a lower floor of the palace.

Stephen gave Richard an affectionate shake on the shoulder. “Get some sleep. I will see you come morn.”

“Do try to stay out of trouble,” Richard said.

Stephen didn’t take offense. ’Twas the several goblets of quickly quaffed wine talking. Of his two siblings, Gerard, the eldest brother and powerful baron of Wilmont, was the more overbearing and quickest to censure. Despite his brothers’ tendency to overprotectiveness, Stephen wouldn’t trade either of them for all the riches in the kingdom.

He just wished they wouldn’t take every opportunity to remind him of his tendency to give in to his whims of fancy, which they considered his weakness. ’Struth, bound by duty, his brothers possessed neither the time nor inclination to follow the flight of an eagle simply to see where it landed. Staid fellows, both. A repugnant fate Stephen intended to forswear.

He chided Richard. “Pray tell, how can I get into trouble by spending the night with the woman I plan to wed?”

For the first time in hours, the corner of Richard’s mouth twitched in amusement. “Oh, I can think of a way or two.”

“Never fear. I have not yet failed to thoroughly pleasure a woman whose good opinion I wish to enjoy,” he boasted, and was rewarded with a wider smile and a grunt of disbelief. “Now I must go. ’Twould not do for me to be late for a tryst with my betrothed.”

“Lady Carolyn is not your betrothed, yet.”

“Give me an hour and she will be begging to marry me.”

To the heartening sound of Richard’s soft chuckle, Stephen left Wilmont’s chambers and strode down the palace passages and stairways, wishing Gerard was here to help Richard.

Unfortunately, Gerard wasn’t on good terms with King Henry at the moment, so he’d sent Stephen and Richard to court at Westminster in his stead. While keeping a careful watch for any shifts of power that always accompanied large gatherings of England’s nobility, Stephen had also taken the time to study the current crop of unwed heiresses.

A man in his position needed to marry, to continue the family line and provide heirs for his holdings. Stephen intended to do his duty, but on his own terms. That he’d finally found a woman damn near perfect for his needs, Carolyn de Grasse, he considered a heaven-sent twist of fate.

A few years older than his own two and twenty years, newly widowed for the second time, Carolyn wanted a young, virile man as her third husband. She wanted a man to pleasure her in bed and sire her children, then otherwise make himself scarce so she could oversee her lands with no husbandly interference.

Stephen kept the “scarce” condition firmly in mind—the best part of the arrangement to his way of thinking. He could fulfill his duty to his family and provide an heir to his estates, all without becoming staid.

Since he’d already proven his prowess to Carolyn yesterday, leaving her languid and sated, he harbored no worries over tonight’s outcome. He would pleasure her once more, explain the need for his upcoming journey, and secure her agreement to accept no other man as her husband in his absence. When he returned from Normandy, he’d present his suit to her father.

From the nearby abbey came the peal of deep-toned bells, announcing the hour of matins. Midnight. Right on time. He tapped lightly on the chamber door and softly called Carolyn’s name. Receiving no answer, he pushed on the latch, and finding the door unlocked, eased it open.

The flame from a thick tallow candle cast enough mellow light for him to inspect the chamber. Sparse, Stephen judged the furnishings. Truly, he’d have thought the room unoccupied if not for the human-size lump curled in the middle of the bed, huddled completely under a wool coverlet.

It didn’t bode well that Carolyn had fallen asleep. He’d expected her to remain awake with anticipation. But then she’d left the door unbolted and a candle lit for him to see by, and she was in the bed waiting for him to come to her.

Planning a seductive awakening, Stephen slid the bolt, then shucked his tunic and sherte and tossed them onto the small oak table. As he sat on the only stool in the room and removed the first of his boots, a soft gasp came from the direction of the bed.

Bare-chested, boot in hand, Stephen stared at the woman propped up on an elbow. Within the space of a heartbeat he noted hair of sable brown, not auburn. Skin of ivory, not porcelain.

Hellfire. Not Carolyn.

He recognized the woman who stared at him with eyes the color of polished pewter. He hadn’t seen her in five, no six years, but he knew the lovely lady’s name as well as his own.

Marian de Lacy.

They’d lost their innocence together, he and Marian, in her father’s stables. During secret trysts filled with eager, exploring touches, in a fever of sense-banishing youthful lust, they’d discovered the thrill of robust, if unskilled, coupling.

Stephen searched for a way to end the shocked silence, but came up with nothing better than a nod and her name.

“Marian.”

She glanced at the door, then at his discarded garments.

“Sweet heaven, Stephen. What are you doing here?” she asked in a loud whisper.

Knowing women as he did, Stephen suspected that blurting out the truth might not be wise. A man did not tell a former bed mate that he’d come to make love to another woman and hope to escape unscathed.

“I…um…”

Marian shushed him, then eased out of bed while arranging the coverlet into a jumbled heap. When she stood, her sable hair tumbled over her shoulders and down to below her rump, only partially veiling her lush curves. She wore a chemise of cream linen, without sleeves, cut low to her bosom and high on her calves.

Her hips were more rounded than he remembered, her breasts fuller. She padded toward him on bare feet, sleepy-eyed and delectable. All the vision wanted was a stray piece of hay caught in her tumbling, wavy tresses and they could be right back in the stables enjoying each other’s bodies.

His loins stirred, a familiar and natural reaction to seeing a near naked woman, especially when remembering how he’d hastily divested this female of a similar filmy chemise to fondle her firm, dusky-tipped breasts. To press her smooth skin against his. To ease his aching member into Marian’s slick, velvet softness.

Stephen dropped his boot and stood, his arms rising to invite an embrace. Marian stopped beyond his reach and pointed to the door.

“Out,” she whispered, the command as clear as an angry shout.

So much for a tender reunion.

Stephen placed his hands on his hips, drawing her gaze downward to his waist and below, where evidence of his thoughts now strained at his breeches. She stared at the bulge long enough for him to know she remembered well what they’d been doing, in boisterous fashion, when last together.

“Is that any way to greet an old friend?” he asked.

“Shh!”

He failed to understand her insistent hushing. “Why must we whisper?”

Marian glanced over her shoulder at the bed. “So we do not wake my daughter.”

Stephen noted the heaped coverlet, under which must lie a child, a little girl. He banished a moment of unease by recalling, with great relief, that his and Marian’s union hadn’t borne fruit. For a while after their affair he’d wondered over that particular consequence, fearing Marian’s father might come roaring into Wilmont demanding a wedding—or Stephen’s head. It hadn’t happened. He’d been spared.

He’d also taken the incident as a warning and forever after been careful about where he spilled his seed.

The bundle on the bed shifted, the child the result of another man’s spilled seed.

Marian must now be married. No wonder she was so angry at his intrusion—and he had intruded. He’d taken it upon himself to enter the chamber in search of Carolyn.

Was it possible that sometime after he and Carolyn had arranged this tryst, the palace seneschal had moved her into another room, giving this one to Marian? And Marian’s husband? Was that why the door hadn’t been bolted?

Stephen sat and pulled on his boot. He’d never been caught in a compromising situation with another man’s wife and didn’t intend for that to happen now. Too, he had yet to find Carolyn and secure the betrothal bargain tonight.

Dare he ask Marian if she knew where Carolyn had been moved to? He stood and shrugged into his sherte and tunic, preparing for a hasty escape if Marian took his inquiry badly.

“My pardon for the intrusion, Marian. I obviously mistook your chamber for that of another. Do you happen to know where its former occupant might be?”

She stared at him, long and hard. “You look for Carolyn?”

Wary, he nodded.

Without a hint of surprise or anger, which might be expected of a former lover, she said, “Then you are in the right chamber. Unfortunately, my cousin is not here.” She waved at the door. “Kindly wait without.”

Marian and Carolyn were cousins? They shared these quarters? Stephen pushed aside further questions. Those were for Carolyn to answer, not Marian.

“As you wish. Truly, I did not mean to disturb you, Marian, only talk to Carolyn.”

Marian scoffed. “Talk?”

“Aye, talk,” he said. “If you will recall, you and I managed to do some of that, too.”

“You talked. I listened. For all my devoted attention you dismissed me without so much as the courtesy of a farewell.”

True enough. She’d listened, fascinated by his tales of the many places he’d been, and especially about those he yet wished to visit. He’d forgotten how good a companion she’d been, but then, he truly hadn’t thought about Marian in years. He’d been too busy traveling to all of those exotic places he’d told her about. She was wrong about dismissing her lightly, however. Surely, someone had explained to her why he’d left her father’s estate so quickly.

“We were denied the chance to part company as we should. I am sorry for that,” he said.

He took a step forward, knowing he shouldn’t touch her, yet reached out to brush at a lock of silky hair that threatened to cover Marian’s eyes. She jerked back and looked away. Her recoil hurt, sharper and deeper than it should. His offending fingers curled into his palm.

“Rather too late for apologies, is it not?” she asked.

Apparently so, and for that he was sorry, too.

“Fare thee well, Marian.”

Chapter One

July, 1109

Marian didn’t have to look up from her embroidery to know which of her twin daughters entered the hut. Audra’s leather sandals slapped the hard-packed dirt floor with the purposeful steps of someone much older than five summers. Had it been the other twin, Lyssa, the footfalls would have landed light and quick.

Flipping her raven braid behind her, Audra sat at the table and propped her chin in her hands. Well acquainted with her daughter’s pout, Marian pursed her lips to withhold a smile. Apparently, Lyssa was doing something Audra didn’t approve of. Not unusual.

Bowing to the inevitable, Marian asked, “Where is Lyssa?”

“Playing on the stone fence.” Audra’s tone suggested Lyssa receive a scolding, which Marian wasn’t about to do. Though she didn’t completely approve of Lyssa’s daring, she could hardly deny the girl one of the few joys in her life.

As different as night and day, were her girls. Though they looked so alike most people couldn’t tell one from the other, their temperaments distinguished them as no physical trait could. Audra would never scramble up on the stones and walk along the top of the fence, not for fear of falling off but out of disdain for such unladylike behavior. Lyssa inevitably forswore dignity when a fence wanted climbing, a mud puddle must be run through, or a twin sister needed irritating.

Most often the twins balanced each other. Lyssa sometimes heeded Audra’s cautions, which prevented the bold twin from courting disaster. Audra sometimes got caught up in Lyssa’s gleeful view of life, which kept the solemn twin from becoming dour.

Usually, as happened last night, when Lyssa’s headaches stole away the sparkle in her eyes, Audra sat next to her twin’s pallet, quietly holding her sister’s hand.

With an inward sigh, Marian acknowledged that the long, vexing trip to Westminster with Lyssa had proved a failure. They’d endured the journey’s physical hardships, the sorrow of leaving Audra behind and the annoyance of Carolyn’s almost constant company, all for naught. Marian had so hoped the London physician would provide a cure for Lyssa’s headaches. Though Lyssa obediently downed the powders and herb mixtures the physician claimed would help, the headaches still struck hard and without warning. In the three months since returning home, Lyssa had suffered two bouts of pain no treatment seemed to ease.

If Lyssa felt well enough to walk along the fence this morn, Marian wouldn’t call her down until necessary.

She slid the needle into the pristine white linen, wishing she could set the altar cloth aside and join her girls out of doors. Unfortunately, the altar cloth she decorated—a gift from her uncle, William de Grasse, to the Archbishop of York—must be completed and taken to Branwick Keep today.

So she’d comply. Uncle William asked so little of her in return for his protection. ’Twas the least she could do for the man who’d seen to her welfare when she’d desperately needed shelter and succor.

“Do not fret, Audra. Lyssa will come down from the fence when she is ready. You have finished your chores?”

Audra’s head bobbed. “Aye. I fed the chickens and Lyssa tied the goat to graze. Truly, Mama, when you finish the altar cloth we can leave for the keep. Shall I tell Lyssa to come in to make ready?”

“Not quite yet.” Marian again stifled a smile, this time at Audra’s sigh. “Go out and enjoy the sunshine. I shall call you both when I am finished.”

Audra got up and slowly headed for the door. Then she stopped and turned. “Mayhap we should gather eggs for his lordship. He enjoys them, does he not?”

Audra knew very well William did, and Marian thought her daughter’s ploy to get Lyssa down from the stone fence just might work. That William would be delighted with the gift of the eggs only made the offer more appealing.

“He will be well pleased, Audra.”

The girl wasted no time in grabbing a basket and scurrying out of the hut, calling her sister’s name.

Marian gave in to both her mirth and curiosity. She set aside the altar cloth and took the few steps necessary to see out the open door, yet not be noticed easily.

Lyssa took the bait of an egg hunt and scrambled down off of the fence. Their black braids bouncing on the backs of their brown tunics, the girls hurried toward the long grass beyond the garden where an egg or two would likely be found.

Sweet heaven, how she adored the tykes, despite the trials of raising them on her own. Now, she couldn’t imagine life without them, when once, as a young and naive girl, she’d envisioned her life far differently.

Marian shook her head. What was past was past. She usually managed to get through weeks on end without thinking of those days before the twins were born—until lately. The memories came more often, she knew, because she’d seen Stephen again.

Stephen—standing before her in the palace bedchamber, partially disrobed, his arms outstretched.

The knave. He’d fully expected her to step into his embrace as if the years gone by had never happened, as if they’d parted on the best of terms. Knowing full well the impact of his charms, and having heard tales of his recent amorous exploits from Carolyn, Marian didn’t doubt Stephen simply accepted female adoration as his normal due.

Thankfully, she’d been too shocked at seeing him and too concerned over protecting Lyssa that she hadn’t done his bidding. Under other circumstances…No, never again would she willingly court such heartbreak.

Marian took a steadying breath, fetched the altar cloth and resumed stitching. The last gold cross was nearly done.

The motions she was sure she could do in her sleep soon lulled her into a familiar calm, heedless of all but the slip of needle and slide of thread through linen. So intent was she on finishing the cross she didn’t hear the jangle of horses’ tack until the travelers were nearly at the front gate.

The girls called a greeting to whoever was passing by. The altar cloth put aside, Marian got up to observe.

Stunned, her feet rooted to the floor when she saw him. Panic swelled and threatened to clog her throat. Breathe! her body shouted. She could barely obey.

Stephen of Wilmont, mounted on a magnificent black horse, smiled down at the twins who gave him their rapt attention.

Marian squelched the urge to scream at the girls to come into the safety of the hut, or to shout at Stephen to be on his way. Neither the girls nor Stephen would understand her panic at seeing the three of them together.

The threat he presented nearly overwhelming her, Marian took refuge in glancing over his escort.

Two chain-mail-clad knights rode horses of brownish red, of the same renowned Wilmont stock as Stephen’s. Six helmeted foot soldiers, carrying spears and shields, flanked two wagons pulled by teams of sturdy oxen. As did most nobles when traveling to a keep where they intended to visit a long while, Stephen arrived bearing crates and barrels—filled with his belongings, extra food, gifts for his hosts—and furniture. Above the sides of the last wagon she spied the half moon of a round table. Towering above it all were the thick, unmistakable four posts of a huge bed. Stephen’s bed.

The girls giggled. Lyssa climbed up onto the wall, the better to talk to the man who beamed down at her. Audra dared a couple of stones to rise higher, to get a better view of the noble lord who, for whatever reason, stopped to speak with them.

Marian remained rooted, not daring to go outside until she brought her fears under control. Stephen had no reason to harm the girls, or to suspect they were other than the daughters of a peasant. The realization calmed her some.

She wished she could hear clearly what they spoke of, but all that reached her ears was Stephen’s deeply timbered tone and the girls’ high trills.

Why couldn’t he have found some other adventure to pursue to keep him away longer, or better yet forever? After a month had passed, then two, she’d been sure another woman had caught his fancy, enticing him to forget about marrying Carolyn.

Now, a full three months after their meeting in Westminster, Stephen arrived in full splendor, apparently intent on winning Carolyn, so sure of his welcome he planned on a prolonged stay and brought along his bed.