Read Online The Hidden Heart by Sharon Schulze - Free Book Online Page A

upon her arm, kilted up her trailing skirts to avoid the underbrush and wove her way through the trees.
    Eventually she came to a clearing nestled deep within the older trees, an island of peace and beauty not visible from the castle walls. ’Twas a sylvan glade straight from ancient lore. A sparkling waterfall emptied into a small, flower-bedecked pool, blending its restful murmur with the solitude of the forest.
    A smile upon her lips, Gillian set aside her basket under a towering fir and made her way over the smooth carpet of new grass and spring flowers to the moss-covered stones scattered around the edge of the water.
    Perhaps here, in her childhood retreat, she might regain her composure, settle her thoughts.
    She settled onto a mound of rocks beside the pool that formed a seat of sorts, and stared down into the water. Clearing her mind of all thought, all fear, she let it roam where it would.
    But the journey she took in her mind’s eye was not one she’d have chosen to relive. ‘Twas Rannulf she saw there, a Rannulf younger than the man who’d arrived at I’Eau Clair the day before.
    Younger in more than years, for that other Rannulf FitzChfford bore the glint of laughter in his eyes, and an expression of joy upon his handsome face. They’d been so happy that day, carefree and innocent. They’d escaped Lady Alys’s vigilance and gone seeking adventure and privacy. Closing her eyes, she felt again the warmth of his hand holding hers, heard the laughter in his voice as he led her headlong through the forest to this very glade.
    The sun had shimmered on the water that day, sparking rainbows from the mist at the base of the falls, lending a magical glow to the air. How could she forget the cool water lapping against her body as she waded, clad only in her thin linen shift, into the depths of the pool, the heat of Rannulf’s gaze as he joined her there all she needed to warm her?
    Opening her eyes, she reached down and trailed her fingertips through the water, sending ripples coursing over the smooth surface and distorting her reflection. She stared at the wavy surface until the water stilled, then started at the new image mirrored there.
    â€œRannulf!” she gasped, whirling to see if he was there behind her in truth, or naught but a creation of her imagination.
    â€œGood day to you, milady.” He stepped away from her, but reached out a hand to steady her when she wavered on her rocky perch. The touch of his fingers on her arm was firm, impersonal... and lingered a moment too long for her peace of mind. “I didn’t mean to startle you. I thought you would have heard me coming through the forest,” he said with a glance to where his huge chestnut warhorse stood tethered to a tree.
    â€™Twas a wonder she hadn’t noticed, a measure of how deeply enmeshed she’d been in the past.
    â€œWhat do you here, milord?” she asked, her voice as cold as she could make it, given the heated memories still lurking in her brain. “Are you lost?”
    â€œNay, Lady Gillian. I sought you in the village. When I couldn’t find you there, a lad told me he’d seen you head this way.”
    â€œAre you following me, milord?” If that was his plan, for her own sanity she must set him from that path at once.
    For how could she survive his constant presence, the continual reminder of what had been?
    And what could be, whispered a taunting voice within her traitorous mind.
    He raised an eyebrow in inquiry. “Following you? Why should I do that, milady?”
    Gillian felt her temper flare. “I know of no reason, sir, none at all.” The trembling that had beset her since she noticed him behind her disappeared, replaced by a wave of determination.
    She’d show him his error! She would not permit him to torment her any longer.
    Her legs firm beneath her, she stood, shook out her skirts and threw back her shoulders in a deliberate display of