A young girl steps back in time.
As a child Paige Renner is no stranger to loneliness and sorrow. When her mother dies, she’s left with her grief-stricken father, a man reduced to a shadow of his former self. But Paige discovers the perfect escape.
A hidden and secret place, lost in time – the medieval village of Caistley.
Only Paige can enter the tiny hamlet. There, among the children of the villagers, she finds friendship and affection. As the years pass, she grows into a young woman, and her visits grow fewer. Home from college, Paige decides to return one last time. But instead of finding a peaceful village, she arrives to find it in flames – Vikings are attacking Caistley.
A brutal Viking Berserker leads a raid.
The English town offers Eirik and his men little in the way of booty. A few pigs, a few sacks of grain, some gold and silver. Most of the inhabitants have already fled, but a few remain. One in particular – a woman – catches the warrior’s eye. She’s oddly dressed, but comely, and she seems innocent – as if she’s never known a man’s touch. After a little teaching, the chestnut-haired wench should warm his bed nicely.
But the woman is as frightened as a spring lamb. Her panic and terror of Eirik makes bedding her a test of his patience. To coax her into his arms, he’ll have to be gentle with her, take his time, and show her a more tender side of himself. As the days pass, and his heart softens, Eirik vows to win Paige’s love.
A harsh winter keeps Paige trapped with her Viking captor. The nights are long and cold. As the snow deepens, a fragile truce forms between them. With every tender touch, he claims a little more of her heart. But the memories of her old life linger. She worries about her father and her duty to return to modern times for his sake.
An agonizing choice.
When Eirik is wounded, Paige realizes that without modern medicine, her Viking lover will likely die. Does she dare return to the future and risk never making it back to him? Or does she remain by the side of the man she has come to love, as he fades away before her eyes?
