Ransom for a Prince

скачать книгу бесплатно


SEBASTIAN HAD LOST HER. Even though she stood right there in front of him, she was gone. For a moment she had appeared about to confide in him. Her gaze had warmed and she’d relaxed her grip on the gun.

But now she clutched the shotgun tightly, the stock braced against her slender shoulder as if she were preparing to fire on him. And the brief warming of her brown eyes had cooled.

Disappointment clenched the muscles in his stomach and not just because she wouldn’t tell him about the explosion. He was disappointed that her warmth was gone, and that she was all tense and scared again. He hated that she was so afraid and not just for her sake. Her fear brought him back to a dark place he’d never wanted to go again.

“Let me help you,” he urged.

When she had first greeted him with the gun, he’d thought for a moment that she might intend to shoot him and collect the money that someone had put on his head along with the other royals. But that moment had been fleeting. He’d had only to look into her eyes to know that she was no killer. He didn’t want her to become a victim, either.

“You don’t want to help me,” she replied. “You want me to help you.” She shook her head. “And I can’t…”

“You could,” he said, “if you’d let yourself trust me.”

The color drained from her face, leaving her too pale and fragile looking. “I can’t…”

“My nation—Barajas—trusts me and my brother to rule them and to protect them.”