Captured by Desire Read Free

he found his gaze drawn to her full breasts. If he’d thought bringing her along was going to be hell, what stood before him now would test his resolve more than anything before.
    He turned his back on her and lifted his bag onto his shoulder. “We’ve got a long day. Let’s get moving.”
    They were at the base of the Carpathians, and one glance at Jules’ men told him they were getting more nervous the deeper into the mountains they went. He had thought the men might come in handy if something attacked, but now Cristian wasn’t so sure.
    If anyone was going to watch over Jules, it seemed he was now the man to do it.
    The day was bright and warm, and the foothills were alive with animals. Several times as they walked, Cristian spotted deer, squirrels, and birds. Four hours later, he halted and looked around him.
    “What is it?” Jules asked in a soft voice as she came to stand beside him.
    An uneasy feeling came over him, a feeling that only someone such as himself could understand. “Do you hear that?” he whispered.
    She glanced at him then looked around the forest. “Yes, I hear nothing. Absolutely nothing. What happened to all the animals?”
    “I don’t know.” Cristian’s instincts came alive. His heightened hearing told him there was some type of creature out there, but what exactly, he didn’t know.
    Then he remembered Jules had said her father had written to her about his find. By the look of fear in her hired men, Cristian decided to wait before he asked her about it. The last thing he wanted was for her men to leave, because the more members of their party, the better.
    It was entirely too easy for the creature to capture two people traveling alone than it was to take them from a fairly large group.
    “This isn’t natural,” one of the men said in Romanian.
    Jules looked over her shoulder at him, then turned to Cristian. “What did he say?”
    Cristian looked down into her sherry eyes to see the uneasiness and fear lurking in her depths. Strands of dark hair hung about her face, making her look more irresistible than ever.
    He inwardly shook himself. She put her trust in him, and he wouldn’t betray her now, not when there was evil so close.
    “He said it isn’t natural,” Cristian finally answered.
    She blew out a nervous breath and shook her head. “No, it isn’t. Can we leave?”
    As she started forward, Cristian reached out and grasped her arm. She turned to him, her brow furrowed in worry. “Jules, it would be a lot safer for you back in Brasov.”
    “I know.” She attempted a smile and failed. “But my father is all I have. I can’t leave until I know where he is. He may be injured and in need of help.”
    Cristian released her reluctantly. He’d liked the feel of her softness, her heat. Her nearness. “I don’t know what’s out there.” He leaned in to whisper so the men couldn’t hear him.
    “Neither do I, and if my father was searching for it, I can guarantee it’s not something we want to encounter.”
    He longed to touch her again, to gather her close and inhale her soft fragrance of mint and lilacs. “Stay close to me,” he warned.
    She nodded and fell in step behind him as he moved deeper into the eerie mountains. There wasn’t a need for him to carry a weapon, not when he was a weapon himself. But he never thought to make sure Jules had one. Though, if she ever saw what he really was, she might decide to use the weapon on him instead.
    And that wasn’t a chance he could take.
    He might not be human, but he wasn’t evil. Most people didn’t see the difference, and he didn’t have time to figure out if Jules was like most people.
    The deeper into the mountains they went, the more whispers he heard from the men. Their fear ran in a thick, swift current around them, and he wasn’t surprised when one of them turned around and headed back down the mountain without a word to anyone.
    Cristian hurried after him and tried to tell him it was safer to stay in a