Welcome to Weekend Writing Warriors!
Thank you to everyone who came by to visit last week!
This week I’m changing gears for the New Year, with a snippet from Time Enough to Love, my medieval romance. This scene is from Book 2, Betrayal. After the devastating news that Geoffrey, her betrothed, has married another, Aylse has just been astounded by a proposal from his best friend, Thomas.
She stared at the handsome face, furious, wondering just how far into hell she had to go before reaching its icy core.
“Thomas!” She tried to wrest her hand from his, but he would not loose her fingers. “I had thought your attentions these many days were out of respect for your friend and the love you bear him. I see now ’twas for your own benefit alone.”
“Nay, my lady,” Thomas said as he rose to his feet, still not relinquishing her hand. His voice matched hers, cool and removed. “Not solely for my benefit; indeed, not for my benefit at all.”
Those words jolted her, and she stilled.
He took advantage and pressed her down onto the bench again, asking, “Are you with child?”
An interesting question for an unmarried woman in 1348, don’t you think?
Blurb for Time Enough to Love:
When Lady Alyse de Courcy is betrothed to Sir Geoffrey Longford, she has no choice but to make the best of a bad bargain. The hulking knight is far from her ideal man, and although he does possess some wit and charm, he is no match for the sinfully sensual man she secretly admires, Thomas, Earl of Braeton, her betrothed’s best friend.
From the first, Sir Geoffrey finds himself smitten by Lady Alyse, and, despite her infatuation with his friend, vows to win her love. When Geoffrey puts his mind to wooing Alyse, he is delighted to find her succumbing to his seduction. But when cruel circumstances separate them, Geoffrey must watch helplessly as Thomas steps in to protect Alyse—and falls in love with her himself.
As the three courtiers accompany Princess Joanna to her wedding in Spain, they run headlong into the Black Plague. With her world plunged into chaos, Alyse struggles with her feelings for both the men she loves. But which love will survive?
That’s all for this week. Hope you enjoyed it!
And don’t forget to check out the rest of the Warriors here. There’s some fantastic snippets to be read.
Jenna Jaxon Romance--because passion is timeless. 
Hum, and how would he happen to know that? She should be scandalized! Great snippet! I love Medieval romance 😀
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This makes me wonder why he asked this question … and whether he’s right.
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You’ll have to come back next week to find out more, Ed. 🙂 But those are darn good questions.
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Now that’s a cliff hanger – is it yes? is it no? Does she slap him!
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Tune in next week, same bat time, same bat channel. LOL More will be revealed next week, I promise.
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Well, okay then. He seems like a jerk, and yet… I sense something underneath all this coldness. He doesn’t have to offer marriage, after all, and a lady with a broken engagement could often find herself in big trouble!
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Yes, she could, Caitlin. I think more of his motives will be revealed in the next couple of weeks. This scene is from the second book of the series, so there’s definitely some history here.
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Nice cliff hanger for the snippet. She’s already angry with him, will she slap his face for such a risque question?
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She probably feels like it, but as I said in another comment, there’s a history here and mitigating circumstances. Not a good situation all the way around.
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Quite the situation but I love all the twists and turns. Minor nit – it’s 2016 now LOL (re the blog post headline)! Can’t wait to read more excerpts from your books, really enjoy them.
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Oops! It’s back to the future for me it seems. LOL Thanks for the catch, Veronica! Glad you’re enjoying the snippets!
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Such a great snippet. 1348 was a bad year for unwed mothers, and for just about everyone else, too.I think she should consider his proposal carefully!
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She does, Christina, as you’ll see next week, but they have a history, of course, and then there’s this other guy…you understand. 🙂
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A very interesting question. Waiting to see what the response is 🙂
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It is interesting. So is her answer. 🙂
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What a lovely scene full of passion and conflict. Excellent writing, Jenna
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Thank you so much, Charmaine! Stay tuned. It gets better! LOL
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I suspect our hero has decided to be the fall guy. Intriguing idea! Looking forward to the next piece.
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I think you’re right, Kim!
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That would be an important bit of information to know.
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Definitely in those days.
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That’s an extremely forward and scandalous question for a gentleman to ask a lady! If I were Alyse, I’d be tempted to use my other hand to slap him.
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There is a very good reason why he’s asking, Carrie-Anne. He’s actually being more chivalrous than he sounds. But you have to read the book to see how. 🙂
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