Love in Flames Read Online Free PDF Page A

was so easy to picture it all…
     
    Seven hundred years ago.
    The Samhain fire had been lit.
    Esther watched as the flames climbed, engulfing the wood that was piled almost as high as her. The rich harvest of barley, oats, wheat, turnips and apples was stored against the oncoming winter. The hay was stacked in the barns to feed the cattle and sheep during the harsh snows, and the animals that were destined for the table had been slaughtered. Now it was time to celebrate their bounty.
    She loved this time of year when the labor of summer was past and the air was crisp and ripe with promise. This year, she had worked even harder, all her spare time spent helping James build their tiny one-room cottage at the end of the village where they would begin their new life together. The itinerant priest was due in the next few days, and when he arrived he would perform the ceremony that would bind James and her together forever in marriage.
    A shiver caught her by surprise and she wrapped her arms around herself, rubbing her hands over her upper arms to ward off the sudden chill. Samhain was also the time of year that the veil was thinnest between the earth and the world of spirits. Esther tried to shake off her feeling of unease, but it persisted, as it had for days now. She was so close to having all her dreams come true and was so happy that she almost expected something to go wrong.
    “What ails you, my love?” Strong, familiar arms wrapped around her from behind. James. His strength and caring surrounded her, driving back the darkness of her thoughts. It had been this way all their lives. From the time they were children, they’d known they’d been destined for one another and they had never wavered in all the long years it had taken them to grow into adulthood.
    “I am fine.” She patted his hand when he squeezed her tighter. “Just a fleeting shiver is all.”
    “I will keep you warm for the rest of our lives.” His breath tickled her neck as he whispered the sensual promise in her ear. She shivered again, but this time in anticipation. They had been lovers since the summer solstice, neither of them seeing anything wrong in their actions. They would have been married already except that the priest had missed his early summer visit because of illness. In their minds, they were already husband and wife. “But for now we shall join in the dance.”
    Esther laughed as he released her and stepped back to join the circle of men forming on the outer edge of the fire. The women were already forming the inner circle. She hurried forward, joined hands with her friends and began to dance around the fire to the music of the flute and drum. As they rounded the fire, each spinning in an opposite direction, she caught glimpses of James through the shimmering flames.
    She’d known him all her life, both of them born in the same small village, and yet he never failed to stir her heart. Taller than most, his shoulders were wide and strong due to the hard labors in the fields. His light brown hair always seemed to be a trifle too long and he kept it tied back at his nape. The twinkle in his golden-brown eyes invited all to smile with him. He was liked by all, always willing to lend a hand or a listening ear when needed. His heart was as large as he was, and she thanked God every day that he was hers.
    Her heart lightened as they continued to spin around the fire. Laughter, music and chatter filled the field on this festive occasion. She found her mind drifting forward in time, imagining her wedding and the feast that would follow. Her feet moved by rote in the familiar dance, her mind spinning with dreams. She glanced through the flames, hoping to steal another peek at James. He passed from her sight as the dancers quickened their pace.
    A shiver raced through her and her heart began to pound. James passed through her sight again. It was him, but not him. The man she saw this time was hideous, his skin charred almost beyond recognition,