Entranced: Spellbound (Book Three) Read Free Page A

to weep. There was something about the shape of his face, the way his goatee framed his full mouth, the way his hair fell to his shoulders, that made me want to serve him for the rest of my life, just so I could look upon his beauty. He smiled at me, his face in front of the Gothic castle. It was a dream. It had to be a dream. I stepped toward him and kissed his cheek and then nestled into his shoulder smelling his body. I never wanted to leave.
    We walked back and went to lunch at an outdoor cafe. I watched the sea birds dance on the breeze. Alexi excused himself to make a phone call, and I sat under the patio umbrella feeling the joy of life’s pleasure seep through my skin. When he returned, a wicked smile curved on his lips. He took my hand and lead me back to the Range Rover.
    “ We will visit an ancient castle now, and then I will take you to meet one of my oldest friends. Does that sound good to you?”
    “ Yes. It sounds fantastic,” I said climbing into the passenger seat of the Range Rover.
    We drove about two hours along the coast , listening to music from my iPod. I sang along and looked at the sea as it passed, dreaming that my life was always this easy and perfect. Alexi gripped the wheel and smiled at me when I looked at him.
    When we arrived at the next castle, we parked and got out of the car. The sun was high in the sky and warm on my bare legs. I was wearing black short-shorts, and a screen printed tank top. Alexi moved along the path that led through the park. Beyond the entrance gate, spanned an ancient castle from the middle ages. It’s stone walls trust into the sky above the cliff face overlooking the sea. The ancient fortress walls of weather worn stone crumbled in places. I was awe struck by the seer presence of the fortress. It was the oldest structure I had ever seen. I was from Seattle. The oldest buildings in that part of the world were from the Gold Rush era.
    “ Oh my God,” I said trying to take it all in. I felt a little stupid. There were old buildings in Venice and Budapest, but nothing had impressed me as much as this fortress. Perhaps it was because those buildings had been retrofitted and restored so many times, they no longer seemed old. The fortress wasn’t a building that could be used for anything other than what it was, a defensive military structure from the middle ages. I slowly walked out into the interior courtyard and began to snap photographs. I caught Alexi with his hair blowing in the wind, in front of the back drop of the stone walls. He seemed to belong in this fortification, as if he was from another age, another lifetime.
    There were cannons mounted along the walls and a small museum with artifacts from the Byzentine era in the 6th century. It was mostly earth colored clay pots and sword hilts. Alexi watched my c hildlike fascination with at the remnants of his ancient culture with an air of detachment. He seemed to enjoy my enjoyment at least. Looking at him standing there waiting for me, made me feel so… American. I sighed at myself. I couldn’t help it. I was American— a wild west, pioneer, capitalist, tourist. I couldn’t help it. That's who I was.
    “ We will have our supper at Victor’s house,” he said holding his arm out for me to take.

Chapter Four
    We arrived at Victor’s house as twilight fell. We pulled up into the front drive of what had to be described as a Gothic castle. A full moon peeked out behind the many decorative finials. I suddenly felt entirely under dressed. I swallowed hard.
    “ Your friend lives here?”
    “ This is his summer home, yes.”
    “ Summer home?”
    “ Dear Julia, close your mouth.”
    I sat back in my seat and waited for Alexi to park the car. I put on my best impression of cool that I possibly could. It might have helped if I had been a little dr unk. When we parked, a butler came out and opened the car door for me. Ok… I stepped out of the car and saw that Alexi was directing them to bring in our bags. I