The Blacksmith's Daughter: Stolen Highland Hearts, #0.5

By Jayne Castel

Nothing ever stays the same. Could taking the leap from friends to lovers risk a beautiful friendship?

 

Cait and Kennan have been friends since they were bairns. Now they both want more—yet neither has dared to reveal their change of heart to the other. 

 

To complicate matters, Cait's over-protective father jealously guards his daughter. He scares off all potential suitors. But Cait and Kennan can't deny their hearts. And in the midst of a long, hot summer, their relationship is about to change irrevocably.

 

THE BLACKSMITH'S DAUGHTER is a prequel short story set in the same world as the STOLEN HIGHLAND HEARTS series. It takes place three years before Book #1, HIGHLANDER DECEIVED, commences.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Jayne Castel
• Release date: Nov 21, 2021
• ISBN: 9798201048662

Book preview

Nothing ever stays the same.

Could taking the leap from friends to lovers risk a beautiful friendship?

Cait and Kennan have been friends since they were bairns. Now they both want more—yet neither has dared to reveal their change of heart to the other. To complicate matters, Cait’s over-protective father jealously guards his daughter. He scares off all potential suitors.

But Cait and Kennan can’t deny their hearts. And in the midst of a long, hot summer, their relationship is about to change irrevocably.

THE BLACKSMITH’S DAUGHTER is a prequel short story set in the same world as the STOLEN HIGHLAND HEARTS series. It takes place three years before Book #1, HIGHLANDER DECEIVED, commences.

CONTENTS

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2

3

4

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

All characters and situations in this publication are fictitious, and any resemblance to living persons is purely coincidental.

The Blacksmith’s Daughter, by Jayne Castel

Copyright © 2021 by Jayne Castel. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, recording, or otherwise—without the prior written permission of the author.

Published by Winter Mist Press

Edited by Tim Burton

Cover design by Winter Mist Press

Cover photography courtesy of Shutterstock

Dagger vector image courtesy of Pixabay

Visit Jayne’s website: jaynecastel.com

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For all my loyal readers—enjoy!

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"The magic fades too fast

the scent of summer never lasts

the nights turn hollow and vast

but nothing remains...nothing lasts."

—Sanober Khan

1

Farr Castle

Strathnaver, Scotland

Summer, 1423

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SHE WATCHED HIM strip off his lèine—and tried not to stare.

Tried and failed.

Heat flushed through Cait as her gaze lingered on Kennan Mackay’s lean torso. She noted how the water he splashed over his neck and chest gleamed in the afternoon sun.

It was as if she were looking upon him for the first time. Strange really, for they’d known each other their whole lives. He’d been a skinny lad, all freckles and vivid red hair—but the years had filled him out, had given him broad shoulders and a hard-muscled physique. He wore his hair long these days, although it was now a rich auburn rather than the bright-red mop of the past.

Flicking his wet hair back, and spraying droplets around him, Kennan straightened up.

His piercing green eyes settled upon Cait, and he favored