A gentle giant during peace, a bear on the battlefield... Blake Sinclair is fresh from the battlefield having fought alongside his father, Magnus, and his uncles and cousins. Sent to accompany Sir Andrew of Moray back to Stirling, Blake intends to avail himself of the various entertainments the town offers. But he finds the royal court, absent its exiled king, is far less hospitable to Highlanders than it ever was. Forced to navigate the uncharted waters of royal politics, Blake soon finds himself in over his head. A lady at court, a warrior at heart... Cerys Kerr is making the best of being relegated to serving as a lady-in-waiting to an absent queen exiled in France. Underestimated by the men swarming throughout Stirling Castle, Cerys is both observant and shrewd. When she meets the towering Highlander amidst courtly intrigue, Cerys realizes more than familial ties by marriage bind them as they work together to uncover subterfuge at the highest level. A couple underestimated, soulmates determined to win... Blake and Cerys become embroiled in a plot that could destroy the hard-fought Scottish independence. They must trust one another to escape Stirling with their heads still attached to their necks and help protect the freedom Blake's family spent two generations fighting for.