Authors: Natasha Knight
Epilogue
“Alys seems happier, a bit more at ease. Do you agree?” Gemma asked. They walked the fields around their now finished home, Gemma’s belly swollen to an extreme, their first child being already two weeks overdue.
“I do,” he said, holding her hand with one hand, supporting and guiding her with the other at her back.
Worry creased her brow. He had finally told her what Alys had told him.
“What will we do when this strange man comes to collect his debt?” she asked.
Galahad inhaled a deep breath. “Gemma,” he began, sounding like it was the hundredth time he was having to say this. Which perhaps it was. “Her destiny is hers—neither you nor I can affect it, nor should we try to. Do not forget that this man was kind to her while she was a prisoner. He did no harm. On the contrary, he comforted her, and he helped us.”
“It’s strange she couldn’t remember more about him. I just wish we knew more…”
“More what?” he asked, stopping and turning her to look at him. “How many times can we discuss this?” he asked.
She watched him, knowing he was right. There was nothing she could do, and worrying accomplished nothing.
“Finding Arthur’s scabbard was my destiny. The consequences of not returning it to him were also mine to live with. That has not been easy for me, but I do understand it now. I was meant to find it to give it to you, to protect you. If I had not, if I had given it to Arthur, we most likely would not be standing here right now. If Alys truly did make a promise to this man, well, that will be her destiny. She will have to face her consequences. We will stand with her, we won’t let her go alone, but it is not for us anymore. She is wise enough, Gemma. Young, yes, but wise as well. Her eyes show her soul, and her soul is old. Older than yours, perhaps.”
“I see that too. She has always been older than her age. And you’re right. We won’t let her face it alone. I know that.”
“Good. Come, let’s walk another round. If this child doesn’t come soon, you’ll be bigger than me,” he said, teasing.
She narrowed her eyes at him and, as if on cue, clutched her belly as the first truly sharp pain came.
“Oh…” she said. She’d been having pains all day but nothing like this one. Galahad held her as she squeezed her eyes shut and managed it. When it subsided, she straightened. “I think the exercise is working.”
They began to walk back to the house, and before they were even inside, she had to double over with the pain of the next contraction.
“Gemma!” Alys came running toward them. “It’s time, isn’t it? I felt it.”
Gemma nodded, her eyes filling with tears. When another contraction came on, Galahad lifted her up and carried her to their bedroom.
“Stay with me, Alys,” Gemma said as he settled her on the bed.
Alys took her hand and sat down beside her.
“I’m scared. If anything happens…” Gemma began.
“Nothing will happen. You will have a beautiful baby, and that is all,” Alys said firmly.
The next contraction took her breath away. The nurse came into the room at the end of it.
“Let’s have a look,” she said, her voice calm.
Alys remained on Gemma’s one side and Galahad on the other, each holding her hands.
The birth was long and painful, but when the nurse handed Gemma her baby, her healthy, plump little girl, all she could do was look into the child’s emerald eyes and cry.
“She’s beautiful,” Alys said, touching her face lightly.
“Like her mother,” Galahad said, kissing first Gemma’s cheek then the baby’s.
Alys and the nurse quietly left, leaving the new family alone. Gemma turned to find him gazing upon the small child’s face, his eyes wet with tears.
“I’d like to call her Catalina, after my mother,” she said to him.
“Then Catalina it is,” he said.
“She has her eyes. Exactly her eyes.”
He touched a hand to the child’s neck, turning her a little. “And the same mark as you used to have.” The tattoos had remained upon Gemma’s arms, and she no longer tried to hide them. Quite the opposite, they gave her pride and strength.
Galahad smiled at Gemma just as the baby made a small noise signaling she was waking and hungry. When she opened her eyes, neither Gemma nor Galahad could do anything but smile down at her.
“I’m happy,” Gemma said to him as he hugged them both closer. “I never thought I’d have all this.”
Galahad smiled down at her. “Me too, Gemma.”
The child turned her head in the direction of Gemma’s breast, and Galahad guided her to it. The two watched as she latched on, her eyes open, studying Gemma’s face as she drank.
“I love you,” Galahad said to Catalina and reached to lightly kiss her forehead. “And you,” he said to Gemma as he sat just a little closer, holding his family just a little tighter. And at this moment, Gemma was sure there was nothing they couldn’t face together.
The End
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More Books by Natasha Knight
Taught to Kneel
Throughout her life Gabrielle has wanted a strong man to take her in hand, and two years ago her growing need for something her husband could not provide led her to make a terrible mistake that ended her marriage.
After his wife cheated on him years ago, Julian learned all about the pain caused by infidelity. When he sees that same crushing guilt in the eyes of a beautiful woman at the B&B where he is spending a quiet vacation, he is compelled to help her.
Gabrielle is drawn to Julian from the moment she first sees him. His easy, direct manner forces her to face her guilt, and when he suggests that she take the punishment she’s needed for so long, she can’t help but say yes. It soon becomes clear to them both, however, that it will take more than just a bare-bottom spanking to allow Gabrielle to finally let go of her guilt—she will have to be very thoroughly chastised.
But to fully satiate her need, she longs to experience more than just punishment from Julian—she needs to be completely dominated by him, to be made to kneel and ask him to take her in any way he pleases, and to blush bright red with embarrassment even as she begs for more. But is it all just a fling, or will what began as a chance meeting change both their lives forever?
Taming Emma
Emma had always been interested in exploring the world of BDSM, and given her desperate circumstances, this sounded like the perfect opportunity. One weekend of complete submission to the highest bidder among a select group of wealthy men, and her financial troubles would be over. Emma wasn’t really sure what to expect when she agreed to the deal, but one thing she definitely did not expect was Luke Roark.
The moment Luke removed the blindfold and recognized the beautiful, nearly-nude young woman standing before him as Emma Lawson, his best-friend’s little sister, he knew what he had to do. However, after buying her contract with the intention of giving her a firm lecture and taking her home, he cannot help but imagine the things he could teach her.
Emma spent many years as a teenager fantasizing about Luke, and when he is suddenly thrust into her life again she is torn between her fears and her desires, but her need to submit wins out. Emma chooses to stay and honor her contract, and she quickly finds herself on her knees before him, bare, bound, helpless, and forced to take whatever he wishes to give her… and he wishes to give her a great deal, relishing the chance to play Emma’s naked, trembling body like a finely-tuned instrument until she is blushing red and begging for more.
It is not long, though, before both Luke and Emma can feel that something much more than just physical attraction binds them together, but can they put aside their painful pasts and embrace a future together?
Taken by the Beast
Elijah had watched Kayla for years, serving as a hidden protector for this beautiful young woman—until the night an abusive boyfriend sought to do her harm. Afterwards, he knew that there could be no hiding what had happened, and she would have to come with him whether she liked it or not.
Try as she might to convince herself that her eyes had deceived her, Kayla knew that she had seen a giant wolf toss men about like ragdolls and then shift into the human form of her neighbor Elijah. Then, before she can even begin to process what she has seen, she finds herself thrown over his shoulder and carried from her apartment against her will.
In spite of Elijah’s insistence that their flight from the city to a cabin deep in the woods is for her own safety, Kayla attempts escape at every opportunity, but she finds that he is more than prepared to compel her obedience and he will not hesitate to spank her soundly when she makes it necessary. Worse, she soon learns that repeated defiance will earn her a punishment far more shameful than just a bare bottom spanking.
As the days pass, however, she begins to see in Elijah a kind of loving care and concern that no man has ever shown her before. Stranger still, as she stands before him naked and blushing, waiting to be thoroughly chastised for disobeying him yet again, she begins to want him in a way that is so fierce it terrifies her.
Elijah swears to himself that he has taken Kayla only to keep her safe, but in his heart he knows that is not true. His instinctual need for her—the overpowering urge to claim her as his own—grows stronger with every passing hour, and it is only a matter of time before he loses control and takes her. But can he keep her safe from those who would use her to get to him, and even if he can, can the primal lust between them ever grow into an equally powerful love?
Captive’s Desire
Olivia has spent years training to hunt and kill the dangerous savages who live outside the dome which protects her city, and she stands ready to carry out her mission with pride… until the day she is shot down and her life is changed forever.
Pulled from the wreckage by a man unlike any she has ever seen—a massive, gruff, yet strangely handsome brute who is not afraid to bare her bottom and spank her soundly to compel her obedience—she is brought into the midst of the people she once sought to wipe out, and her rescuer becomes both her captor and her protector.
From the instant he sets eyes upon her, Hayden is certain that there will be a special place in his heart for Olivia. He knows the struggle she will face as she breathes the clean, free air outside the dome and the drugs in her system wear off, leaving her exposed to desires more powerful than she can imagine—desires that he will be more than prepared to fulfill when she is ready.
As the days pass, Olivia grows more and more disturbed by what she sees around her—husbands and wives, children and families, all healthy and unharmed by the supposedly poisoned air. Far more disturbing, though, are her growing feelings for Hayden. She finds herself wanting him in a way that she cannot understand, and her need for him grows stronger with every passing hour. She knows that soon she will ask for him to take her, and that when he is finished it will not be long before she kneels at his feet, blushing with shame while begging for more.
Aching to Submit
Though deeply in love with her husband Michael, for years Sophie has longed to give him not only her love, but her submission as well. In spite of her yearning to kneel at his feet, fear of rejection keeps her from sharing the truth with him. Though she would never give her body to another man, her need to submit drives her to seek out others like herself and learn more… until Michael discovers her deception, and she fears her marriage may be over.
Despite the anger and sadness which tear at his heart when he learns that his wife has kept such an important secret from him, Michael is not going to give up the love of his life without a fight. It will take time, but he is more than ready to be the man she needs, the man to whom she will gladly submit. First, though, she must be firmly disciplined for her betrayal of his trust…
Standing naked before her husband, awaiting a punishment which will bring her to tears and leave her bare bottom red and sore, submission suddenly feels truly real to Sophie for the first time. As Michael asserts his dominance more and more with each passing day, Sophie begins to see him in a way she has never seen him before, and her desire for him seems to know no bounds. But is this just a second honeymoon of sorts, or will Sophie’s submission endure through the trials of everyday life?
Natasha Knight Links
You can find author interviews, excerpts of upcoming books, and general thoughts from Natasha Knight via her blog, her Twitter and Facebook pages, and her Amazon and Goodreads profiles, using the following links: