My Soul to Keep: Calen

By Jennifer Smith

What happens when a hunky Scotsman discovers the woman he's been dreaming of is no dream, she's a witch who lives in a pink and white castle with hundreds of others just like her, and a demon is loose trying to kill all of them?
My Soul To Keep is the story of Clan MacLean told by three brothers, Calen, Caleb, and adopted brother, Arion. In Calen the story begins with The Fortress and its all-female inhabitants. Fantasy, mystery, and adventure are mixed with sensuous details that take our hero, Calen through time to modern day San Francisco to save the love of his life, hopefully saving the entire future of Clan MacLeod. Each additional book, Caleb & Arion, will take the reader farther into the family's rich history with plenty of adventure, love, and romance.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shh Publishing
• Release date: Oct 14, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311646859

Jennifer Smith

Jennifer Smith married Aaron, her best friend, in 2007. Their first few years of marriage were challenging in many ways; however, God helped reconcile their marriage relationship. Jennifer began sharing positive encouragement for marriage through UnveiledWife.com in March 2011. With her husband’s support and help, she has traditionally published The Unveiled Wife and self-published a thirty-day marriage devotional titled Wife After God, as well as 31 Prayers for My Husband, 31 Prayers for My Future Husband, and 31 Prayers for My Son and Daughter. Aaron and Jennifer have been working together as a team for the last decade, using their giftings to produce over ten books and help others draw closer to God through their website marriageaftergod.com. The Smiths are eager to continue working together to fulfill God’s purpose for their marriage by publishing Christian marriage books and resources and hosting a weekly Marriage After God podcast as a means to inspire others in their marriage and faith journey. They live with their five young children in central Oregon.

Book preview

My Soul to Keep

-Book 1 Calen-

By: Jennifer Smith

~~~

Smashwords Edition

Copyright © 2014 by Jennifer Smith. All rights reserved

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Book Blurb

What happens when a hunky Scotsman discovers the woman he's been dreaming of is no dream, she's a witch who lives in a pink and white castle with hundreds of others just like her, and a demon is loose trying to kill all of them?

My Soul To Keep is the story of Clan MacLean told by three brothers, Calen, Caleb, and adopted brother, Arion. In Calen the story begins with The Fortress and its all-female inhabitants. Fantasy, mystery, and adventure are mixed with sensuous details that take our hero, Calen through time to modern day San Francisco to save the love of his life, hopefully saving the entire future of Clan MacLeod. Each additional book, Caleb & Arion, will take the reader farther into the family's rich history with plenty of adventure, love, and romance.

Table of Contents

Check out other great books by this author!

1 ~ The Love of a Child

2 ~ The Hunt Begins

3 ~ Scent of a Woman

4 ~ Arianna

5 ~ Fairy Tale Castles

6 ~ Our Past, Our Future

7 ~ The Search Begins

8 ~ A Little Slice of Heaven

9 ~ A Demon Named Damon

10 ~ Old Spark, New Flame

11 ~ Love & War

12 ~ Just a Moment

13 ~ Something not Shared

14 ~ A Sinister Plan

15 ~ The Will to Survive

16 ~ A Moment to Understand

17 ~ A New World

18 ~ Love in Modern Times

19 ~ The Curse of Lust

20 ~ A Timeless Match

21 ~ Chasing a Monster

22 ~ A Moment of Peace

23 ~ Just One More Moment

Check out other great books by this author!

Two's Company

Book Blurb:

Ian James was raised in the lap of luxury, but he was also raised knowing that nothing worth having comes without working for it. Expected to follow in his father’s footsteps and take over the law firm one day, Ian works as an errand boy during the summer months between high school and college. One of those errands sends him to a very young, very wealthy, and very sexy widow who has plans of her own for Ian. When Ian discovers that older, wealthy women will pay him for sex, becoming a lawyer is no longer in his future. Gillian Carmichael needs a vacation, so when her best friend, Sylvia suggests she accompany her back home to Chicago, Gillian accepts. But when Gillian meets Sylvia’s brother, Ian, the attraction is instant. There’s just one little thing standing in the way . . . .

The Many Shades of Love

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Jim Williams is tall, black and beautiful and when he meets gorgeous Steve Wheeler, the attraction is instantaneous and hot!

Steve Wheeler hasn't been with a man in more than seven months, but when he meets his new associate, Steve wants to know more about Jim.

As the two men get to know each other over golf and beer, they realize their chemistry is right on target and when they have dinner together at Steve's house, the sex is hotter still. But when Jim's ex-lover, Alan, comes back into his life with devastating news, will it be more than Jim and Steve's new love can survive?

Love without You

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When Jessica is blindsided by her husband Ben leaving her, his excuse simply being they are no longer compatible. She is left wondering, what did she do wrong and did she miss any signs? Jessica continues on with life as best as she can only to be constantly reminded about Ben and the life they had, life often becomes so unbearable that she resorts to other methods to alleviate the pain. Life seems bleak until Jessica meets Josh, she is instantly attracted to him, who is this mystery man? Is it love at first sight or a heartbreak in the making?

Grounded

Book Blurb:

Patty just recently lost her job due to her company downsizing. Even worse, she has no way to take care of her financial obligations. On her way home from just being fired, things get worse, while Patty is struggling to get together all of her belongings, she looks up to meet Dion. Dion instantly falls for Patty, and figures out a way to see her again. Dion knows this is not allowed, but proceeds with his plan anyways, knowing what consequences may come for such actions.

GRRR!

Book Blurb

Do you like it rough? Rico and Katia are drawn to one another and share a night of passion, then go their separate ways but can’t stop thinking about each other. After a string of one nighters, they meet again, and this time the fur is gonna fly!

Ghostly Touch

Book Blurb

Something strange is happening with Zula. Every time she shuts her eyes to sleep, she’s pleasured in ways she has never known in real life, and she doesn’t know who the dream-lover is either.

When her plumbing goes on the fritz, she calls a plumber, and he turns out to be the most handsome man she’s ever seen. They begin dating but never once does he attempt to woo her into bed. He doesn’t even attempt to kiss her beyond a chaste goodnight kiss and Zula is getting quite perturbed by the lack of affection because she can tell Connor wants her.

And after a visit from great-grandma Zula and her current beau, who looks exactly like Connor, Zula begins to suspect their relationship goes much deeper than either knows. After a strange warning from grandma Zula, that leaves Zula wondering what’s really going on, she winds up in a very unfamiliar place. Trussed up like a hog, Zula is tossed into a pond while the crowd chants, Witch, witch, kill the witch. As the water engulfs her, Zula holds her breath and prays for a miracle. But she’s all alone and every cell in her body is gasping for air. Where is her dream lover now that she really needs him?

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Book Blurb

Gavin Richard Charles Philip Stone III is handsome, rich, and has his pick of any woman he wants. He has no desire to settle down and produce grandchildren for his mother, but after a hundred and fifty years of playing the field, he might just have found the woman of his dreams. Unfortunately, she has no interest in him whatsoever!

Angela Elliott has been confined to a wheelchair ever since an accident killed her husband and unborn child. She detests attending any social affair at all but sometimes her caregiver just won't take no for an answer. Giving in one more time, she goes to the ball only to sit in the back and watch the other young women dance the night away. That is until Mr. Stone introduces himself and asks her to dance. She is polite but has no desire to be pitied and turns him down flat.

But when Gavin is out strolling one night he catches Mrs. Elliott in a very precarious position...

~ 1 ~

The Love of a Child

The little boy leaned against the re-mains of what was once his home. He sat for a while and rubbed his hands over his chubby cheeks, smearing more crud across his face. He drew designs in the dirt and occasionally glanced at the bodies of his parents lying not three feet away. He cried sometimes while he sat by his mother, patting her back and telling her to wake up. He didn't understand why she wouldn't wake up; she had never done that before. Neither had his father, who now continued to sleep next to his mother.

He was alone, and he was afraid. Everything looked different to him at night, and the forest sounds scared him. He lay between his parents in the dark, sucking his thumb and crying until he finally fell asleep. He had dreams of the men who came into the forest on their big, black horses. He had been in the hut with his mother when they came; his father was outside chopping wood. His mother had grabbed him up, wrapped a fur around him and hid him in the deep, dark corner in the back of their home. She had been very stern with him when she told him to stay there and not make a sound, then she had gone outside, where his father was speaking with the strangers. He remembered the shouts, the sound of the horses' hooves, the ring of steel against steel in the air. He remembered his mother's scream, and that was when he'd crawled out of his hiding place and peeked through the crack in the logs of the hut.

He had seen his father lying on the ground with blood running from his head. And he saw the men ripping his mother's clothes until her skirt hung in shreds, baring her from the waist down. They had tied her hands and threw her over the chopping block and fell on her one by one.

The little boy didn't know what they were doing as they slapped her, shouting and laughing all the while; her cries and screams scared him, and he covered his ears. The men were strangers to the child, but one stuck in his memory. Tall, with long, dirty hair, he wore all black and had whiskers all over his face, and this man hurt his mother more than the others. The little boy cried as he watched the men, and he saw the flash of a silver ring on the tall man's finger as his sword plunged through his mother's back. The blood ran down her body, down the chopping block onto the dirt.

The boy ran then. He ran back to the place where his mother had hidden him in the dark, secret corner of the hut and made himself as small as he could under the furs. He heard the men come inside, and heard their laughter as they tore up the place. They broke what they could, kicked over the table and stools, and cursed when they didn't find anything of value to steal. Then they laughed and began tearing the hut apart, knocking down the logs.

Burn it! one of the men shouted.

Nay, the man with ring said. We don't want to attract attention. Leave it be and mount up. We have to find the boy!

The little boy was so afraid he stayed hidden under the furs all the rest of the day until it was nearly full dark. But as night fell, his full bladder drove him out of his hiding place. He had to climb under and over logs that once made up the walls of his home.

That was when he found his parents lying on the ground. He stood there crying, and pee ran down his leg. He went to his mother first and shook her, patted her back and called to her over and over, but she wouldn't answer him. He then turned to his father and shook him harder, but he didn't answer either.

As the full moon rose over the forest, he sat down and wailed. After a while, he fell asleep, and when he awoke, it was still full dark. He shivered and used the moon's light to find his way back into the hut.

Dragging the furs behind him, he went back out to his parents' sides. He covered his mother first, lay between them and shared a fur with his father. When he woke in the morning, he search-ed until he found some bread and dried meat to eat. With no concept of time, the child slept, ate, played in the dirt, and waited for his parents to wake up.

The next morning, the child awoke to the sounds of horses and men shouting. Fearing the mean men had returned, he ran into the remains of the hut and slid under the fallen logs to the secret corner hiding place. He heard the horses snorting and the men talking. Their voices sounded grim and low, not like the loud laughter of the ones who'd hurt his mother.

Shaking with fear, he lay still and tried to make himself very small so they wouldn't notice him. He heard them as they walked around the hut, and the sound of the fallen logs being moved around told him they were inside. A very big hand picked him up and strong arms held him close, but he was too afraid to open his eyes. The man went outside and called out to another man.

Caleb!

Caleb turned to find his brother holding a dirty, disheveled child with his eyes squeezed tightly shut. He must've seen the whole thing, Calen. Poor little guy. What do we do with him?

Calen shrugged. Can't leave him here; he'll starve to death. Or worse. Take him back to Margaret. She'll take care of him.

Caleb took the boy from his brother. He gently lowered him to the ground, where the child sat, cross-legged in the dirt. Caleb patted his head. You wait right here and we'll take care of your ma and da.

The boy squinted, opening his eyes just enough to see. Caleb and Calen buried the boy's parents then bowed their heads and made the sign of the cross. After a brief consult with Caleb, his brother went to the boy and sat in the dirt right in front of him. He cleared his throat and looked back at Caleb. At his brother's nod, he cleared his throat again.

My name is Calen, boy. This is my brother, Caleb. Neither of us will hurt you, so don't be afraid.

The boy stared silently at the dirt. Calen looked over his shoulder at his brother and raised a brow. Caleb shrugged. He didn't know how to deal with a little boy any more than his brother did. Calen tried again.

I know you've seen some bad things here with your ma and da, and no babe should be seeing that, but we're going to take you home with us and you'll be taken care of. So come on now and we'll get to it.

The little boy didn't move. He didn't speak, nor did he give any sign he had heard or understood. Caleb squatted down beside his brother.

Maybe he's deaf. Can you hear me, boy? No reply.

Caleb looked at his brother then picked up one of the furs, wrapped it around the boy and hauled him up on his shoulder. After they'd both mounted their horses, Caleb settled the child in front of him.

When the sun set, they stopped again, built a fire and laid out a bed for them-selves with the boy between them. They shared a supper of oatcakes and dried meat from a pouch, and Calen offered some to the boy. He accepted the food without looking at either of them and drank from the skin of water they offered, but still he said nothing. They finished eating, put the rest of the food away, then the three of them lay down before the fire. The child fell asleep in minutes.

~ * ~

By noon the next day, the three of them rode into Ballencroft, the village settled in a valley surrounded by mountains. Lush and beautiful, the small village was impenet-rable, just the way their laird, William of Castle MacLean, liked it. He made sure his people lived and prospered and none of them worried about invasions.

They had not been involved in battle in nearly a decade. Not that they weren't trained and ready in the event they needed to be, but theirs was a peaceful land, and Calen knew that William planned on keep-ing it that way.

The small boy, tucked in front of Calen now, appeared interested in his surround-ings. His eyes grew big and round, and he stared in open-mouthed wonder. Calen followed his gaze, imagining what it might be like to see all of this for the first time through the eyes of a child.

They passed the blacksmith, and the boy seemed intrigued with the way the men beat on steel, shoved the metal into fire and then into buckets of water. The child grinned as they passed the horses at the stables and fidgeted in his seat when they came upon a group of children kicking a ball back and forth to one another across the dirt road.

They continued on, climbing the trail up the mountain to the castle gates. Caleb glanced at his brother, then addressed the boy. "This is Castle MacLean, little one, where you'll be