Read Online When Lust Rules by Virginia Cavanaugh - Free Book Online Page A

that.
    He patted the seat next to him. “Don’t tempt me. We need to
talk. After, I’ll make you scream again.”
    A shiver of delight ran down her spine as she walked over to
him. She took a seat next to him, folding a leg beneath her as she turned,
facing him. “I don’t even know where to begin. I have so many questions.”
    He cupped her cheek lightly and leaned forward, rubbing his
lips against hers in a gentle kiss. Julie moved toward him, wanting to deepen the
contact. Already her body hungered for his again, but he pulled away.
    “You’ll have to wait to question me on my wolfish ways.” He
skimmed a finger down her cheek and across her jaw before turning serious. “I
need to know if there is any possible way your ex could be stalking you.”
    Julie blinked, sitting back and keeping her gaze fixed on
him. He’d switched gears so fast that she had to give herself a slight mental
shake. “Why?”
    “The other night when I went into the woods when we were at
Harry’s, it was because I caught the scent of another male.”
    Her head began moving back and forth as her pulse climbed.
“No.” She stood up, retreating from the sofa. “No. It can’t be.” Her mind
whirled as she stumbled over the coffee table. Before she hit the ground strong
hands seized her upper arms and she was brought up against Luken’s hard, warm
chest.
    “Whoa, Julie. You have nothing to fear. I promise I won’t
let anything happen to you.”
    “No, you don’t understand.” She pushed against his chest so
that she could meet his gaze. “Ivan’s in jail. They have evidence against him.
They promised me they’d put him away for a long time.”
    Luken ran his hand down her back in an effort to sooth her.
“Okay. So is there someone out there who might follow you or stalk you other
than Ivan? Maybe a guy who came into the bar or something?”
    Her gaze fell to his chest as she thought back. She couldn’t
think of any patron from the bar who would fall into the stalker category.
Yeah, most of the guys got drunk and would occasionally try to grab her ass and
such, but she couldn’t see any of them being a stalker.
    Arik . Oh God. What if he’d found out about the money?
She shivered as a wave of nausea rolled through her belly.
    “What is it?”
    She swallowed back the bile that threatened to choke her.
    “You just thought of someone, didn’t you?”
    “Arik Markovic,” she rasped. Her throat suddenly felt raw.
    “I have a feeling Arik isn’t a very nice guy.”
    She swallowed hard again. “He’s Ivan’s boss. And cousin,
albeit distant. If it’s him I’m screwed.”
    Julie pulled out of Luken’s embrace and made her way to the
bedroom. If Arik had found out about the money she was a walking dead woman.
She heard Luken’s footsteps behind her, but she didn’t slow. This couldn’t be
happening. She flung the closet door open and grabbed the duffle bag in the
bottom. The only thing she could do was run.
    Luken grabbed her arm, halting her. “What are you doing?”
    Julie tried to free her arm but he held her steady. “I have
to go. He’ll kill me.”
    Luken pulled her back into his arms. “Just calm down for a
second and explain things to me. I can keep you safe.”
    She wanted to believe him. Wanted to trust the security she
felt in his embrace, but these weren’t just your run-of-the-mill bad guys.
These guys had caused deaths for years and got away with it. They made it a
practice of making others disappear. “I want to believe you, but I’m scared.”
    He slid his hands up to cup her face. “I promise you can
trust me. But you have to let me know what we’re dealing with. Tell me about
Arik.”
    She sighed, leaning into his body. He wrapped his arms
around her and it felt so nice. Safe. “I don’t want to endanger you.”
    He laughed. “Baby, you have no idea. Nothing is going to
happen to me and nothing is going to happen to you.”
    “How can you be so sure? This isn’t just one bad man.