She must marry the knight
By order of the king!
Widow Eleanor of Tallany Castle knows her people are broken by the taxes demanded by King John. So when she’s ordered to marry Hugh de Villiers, a knight loyal to the king, she’s furious—even if he is handsome! As gallant Hugh begins to heal the scars of Eleanor’s abusive first marriage, she’s even more determined to keep her secret: she is the outlaw the king wants to send to the gallows!
“It’s not that I envisaged another for a husband, Sir Hugh. I had rather hoped not to envisage a husband at all.”
“I’m sorry for that, my lady, and I know this has been a difficult day, but I will not defy the king and neither should you.” He inhaled before continuing. “I hope that you can get used to the idea of our marriage, and with that, I would ask if I... May I court you?”
Eleanor was momentarily speechless, flummoxed by this man’s question.
“You want marriage and courtship, at the same time?”
Hugh stepped closer and caught her hand lightly in his. “I do...”
He raised her hand to his lips and softly kissed the back of it, sending a ripple of awareness shooting up her arm. He then took a step back, his eyes never leaving hers, inclined his head and turned on his heel and walked out of the solar.
Author Note
King John was not the first nor the last tyrannical, unpopular and frankly incompetent monarch in England’s history. However, what made his reign significant was that his poor governance led to the kingdom’s terrible reversal of fortune. His campaigns against France, especially the disastrous Battle of Bouvines, resulted in a huge loss of his dynastic territory in mainland France, and was never regained. His difficult and often bitter estrangement with his barons culminated in their rebellious revolt and demand he sign the Great Charter of Liberties, better known as the Magna Carta, which he eventually did in the summer of 1215... And which he later reneged on.
It’s in the spring of that tumultuous year this book takes place. A time of division and civil unrest. A time of lawlessness and terrible hardship, when the burden of heavy taxation had taken its toll. And it is in the fictitious area of Tallany in Northumberland that the story is mainly set, reflecting the divide felt throughout the kingdom. It is this that the heroine, Lady Eleanor Tallany, finds herself on an opposing side to, as the hero, Sir Hugh de Villiers, whom she is forced to marry, is unreservedly a king’s man. Can they find a way to come together against the odds, or are their differences too great a challenge?
I hope you enjoy their story!
MELISSA OLIVER
The Rebel Heiress
and the Knight
Growing up in Richmond upon Thames, Melissa Oliver used to walk past the old Harlequin office as a teen and wistfully sigh that one day her dream of writing for them would come true. Amazingly, it finally has and now she can bring all those stories out onto the pages of her books. Melissa lives in southwest London with her gorgeous husband and equally gorgeous daughters, who share her passion for castles, palaces and all things historical.
The Rebel Heiress and the Knight is Melissa Oliver’s debut title. Look out for more books from Melissa Oliver coming soon.
Visit the Author Profile page at Harlequin.com.
To Jack for your love,
support and belief in me.
And also, to my editor,
Charlotte Ellis, without whom none
of this would be possible.
Contents
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
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Epilogue
Excerpt from The Scoundrel’s Bartered Bride by Virginia Heath
Chapter One
North of England, spring 1215
Three days! Three arduous days and nights she had kept him waiting, giving him excuse after excuse as to why she couldn’t grace him with her presence. And still there was no sign of her.
Hugh de Villiers kicked the rushes on the floor of the great hall and exhaled in frustration. No, it seemed more like three long months that Lady Eleanor Tallany had been defiantly ignoring King John’s missive demanding her at his court. To add insult to injury, she’d continued to ignore subsequent demands, resulting in King John dispatching Hugh and his men to these godforsaken northern wilds to meet with the enigmatic heiress.
He’d suspected that the lady would rather leave than face the contents of that missive, and had men posted around the castle keep, but no one had left. If she had been in the castle all this time she was still here.
Inside.
Hiding somewhere.
God give him strength!
He watched the far end of the hall as the steward of Tallany Castle, Gilbert Claymore, walked towards him, wringing his hands and looking grim. Hugh gritted his teeth. This behaviour was both ridiculous and offensive in equal measure. Who did Eleanor Tallany believe she was that she could so insult and flout her Sovereign’s wishes and demands?
For Hugh, it was a matter of unquestionable fealty to King John, and if it meant softening his liege’s somewhat erratic and volatile behaviour. Hugh was honour-bound to his King, his allegiance never in doubt even in these uncertain times, with the country on the brink of civil war. Yet here he was, put firmly in his place, his patience worn thin by this woman for no understandable reason.
‘Well, what is it this time, Claymore?’
‘My lady sends her apology, Sir Hugh, but she cannot meet with you this morn as she has a...a malady.’
‘Another one, eh?’
‘Her head gives her pain today, but she bears it with fortitude and grace.’
‘Indeed. And yet only yesterday you were telling me of Lady Eleanor’s remarkable competence in the running of her estates. Impressive in itself, but all the more so with her litany of maladies.’
Hugh raised his brow. Really, the steward must take him for a fool.
‘My lady is usually
