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Return of the Warrior
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Royal Lockdown
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Chase felt his heart twist inside his chest as he heard Julienne's broken voice. She had said that she didn't know if she could let a man touch her. But her next words humbled him.

"I came here because I wanted to be near you. Maybe that's not fair of me. But here I am."

She looked so fragile. So lovely. He wanted to go to her then, take her in his arms. "Chère, I want to be closer to you," he said. "If I come over there, will I frighten you?"

"No," she answered, but he heard the quaver in her voice.

Carefully, he eased himself up, then moved to the floor beside her chair. He touched the back of her hand and felt her jump. Then she seemed to relax as he folded his fingers around hers. He held her hand for long moments, then brought her fingers to his lips and kissed her.

"Chère," he murmured, his lips moving against her flesh, "I give you my word, anything you and I do together, it will be because it's what we both want. Okay?"

"Okay," she answered, her voice still uneven, her eyes telling him she couldn't believe how much he was offering her. She looked quickly away, and took her lower lip between her teeth, but he sensed that there was still something she wanted to say.

"What?" he asked softly, stroking his thumb across her knuckles.

She swallowed, then whispered, "You mean you still might want…me, after what I told you?"

His chest felt so tight that he could hardly breathe. "How can you even ask that question?"

"Because Hugo and Wyatt..." she gulped. "They said I was looking for trouble. That I never should have been at the office that late." Again she came to a halt.

He felt a surge of anger at the two men who couldn't even stand up for their sister in a time of trouble. But then, Hugo and Wyatt had never impressed him as being interested in helping anyone besides themselves. "You mean those no good bastards blamed you?"

"People were talking about me. My brothers didn't like it. I can understand why."

He swore under his breath. "You get attacked and those jerks feel as if their honor's been tarnished. I'd like to kill them."

"That won't do either one of us any good."

He nodded tightly.

"I had to get away. Then I knew you were coming back, and I was hoping you'd let me stay here. Until I get on my feet."

"That's all you want? To stay here for a little while?"

"I...want more than that," she said in a small voice. "But I don't dare let myself think about how much I want."

"You can dare anything! You always had guts. You got together with me when we were teenagers — when you knew your grandfather would whip your hide if he found us together."

"It didn't work out, did it?"

"It will," he said with conviction.

"How can it? I told you I can't stand being touched."

"I'm touching you now."

He saw her eyes widen. "You are. I guess because it's you, and I didn't even think about it."

He squeezed her hand, but he didn't ask for anything more. Not yet. "So what about your brothers?" he asked. "What are their plans?"

"They didn't confide in me. I think they'll try to take this place away from you."

"I'll be ready for them."

"I hope so. But they're...dangerous."

"I know. I'm not going to get careless." Before she could continue with the subject, he said, "You should get some sleep." His hand moved to stroke her beautiful golden hair, but he thought better of it and pulled back at the last minute. "Things will look better in the morning."

"They already look better."

"Good."

He left the oil lamp where it was and switched on the nine-volt flashlight he'd brought. It wasn't as charming as the lamplight, but it was more practical for moving around in the dark. He'd come back later and put out the lamps.

Stepping into the hall, he followed Julienne toward the stairs. He was only a few paces behind her when he heard her scream….

To be continued...



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