Seduced in Shadow by Stephanie Julian Read Free Book Online

What ? What do you— Wait, you’re running? When did you start that?”
    It figured her knucklehead brother would pick up on that. “Just a few weeks ago.
    What, you don’t think I can?”
    As the younger sister, she’d always been trying to catch up to her big brother. She’d been competitive enough as a kid to think she could, even with a five-year age gap between them.
    Guess that’s what landed me in this mess in the first place. Wanting to follow in Justin’s footsteps.
    Before she’d left her job, she’d been on the fast track as a corporate fundraiser for the Children’s Foundation. She’d wanted to work with a company that made life better for kids who’d had a rough time—abandonment, illness, abuse. But after four years, the 40
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    pace had gotten to her, as had the politics, the constant glad-handing and the corporate game. She’d wanted to make a difference but at the Foundation, she’d just felt overwhelmed.
    Justin had been the one to encourage her to quit, to use her talents elsewhere.
    “Hey, brat, come on. You know I think you can do anything you put your mind to.”
    He sighed so loud she could hear him through the phone. “But if I’d known you were heading out by yourself to run, I would have…”
    He sighed again.
    “Would have what, Justin?”
    “Shit.” His frustration came through loud and clear. “I wanted to do this… Well, hell, I didn’t know how I was gonna tell you this.”
    The tightness in her chest was back. “Justin, you’re starting to scare me. What are you talking about?”
    “Let me talk to Antonin for a second, hon.”
    “Oh no, Justin. You’re not getting out of this—”
    “I’m not getting out of anything. I’ll tell you everything you want to know…in person. But first I need to talk to Antonin.”
    “Justin—”
    “Ellie, I promise. Just give the phone to Antonin.”
    “Oh! Here.” She practically threw the phone at Antonin. “He wants to talk to you.”
    Antonin blinked once and she saw something like unease cross his expression.
    Pushing his dark hair behind one ear, he took the phone and turned… But not before she got a good glimpse of that ear.
    It was pointed. And not just humanly, slightly pointed. It was Tinker Bell pointed.
    It was the size of a regular human ear but where a regular ear had a curve, his had a definite Spock thing happening.
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    Why hadn’t she noticed that before? Well, there were probably a few reasons—
    explosive sex being one of them. But the main reason was because his ears were hidden under his long hair. They didn’t stick out like Spock’s but seemed to be contoured to the curve of his head.
    When Antonin put the phone to his ear and said, “What’s up, Justin?” she couldn’t see it anymore.
    But it was there.
    Her brain pushed a memory to the forefront. Back at the forest, Antonin had seemed to disappear and reappear at another spot…at will. She’d thought she had imagined it at the time. Had she actually seen that or had it been a trick of the eye?
    She also remembered the doe telling her she’d seen an elf. Had the animal been talking about Antonin? Elves?
    No, that was just too weird. Justin and their father had always believed there were beings in the world other than humans. Mythological creatures like fairies and elves and trolls. Even though Ellie could talk to animals, she’d never believed in tiny little girls with wings on their backs and pointed ears.
    What the hell was going on?
    She dropped onto the edge of the bed and drew in a deep breath. Wearing Antonin’s shirt, sitting on his bed, she was surrounded by him. His scent, his stuff. It was all alien and yet she didn’t feel unwelcome or uncomfortable.
    She heard Antonin talking to her brother, though all he said was “Yes”, “No” and
    “Uh huh”.
    He kept his gaze carefully off her.
    Then he snapped the phone shut, grabbed something from another drawer in the chest and walked back