Sins and Scarlet Lace by Liliana Hart Read Free Book Online Page A

It was more of a dried up riverbed, but there was a good deal of brush and trees sprouting from the banks, making it the ideal hiding place.
    He slowed his steps when the ground beneath consisted more of dead leaves and sticks than damp grass, moving with care so no sounds could be heard. He pushed aside the foliage and set Sophia on her feet, pressing down on her shoulders so she’d know to get low.
    He followed her down and leaned close. “Stay here,” he whispered.
    “Where are you going?” She grabbed at his shirt to keep him from pulling away.
    “To find out who sent them and what they want.”
    “Don’t be stupid. There are a lot of men in there, and only one of you. Let’s just get out of here.”
    “If you keep talking like that, I’m going to start to think you care.”
    “If you die being a macho jerk then I won’t have anyone to help me escape.”
    “You’re all heart, baby.”
    “At least I’m not all asshole,” she hissed.
    Dec shook his head as his dick spiked at the snap in her whispered voice.
    “Baby, these yahoos will be a walk in the park. I’m used to dealing with the worst of humanity on a daily basis. I know what I’m doing.”
    “Fine. If you’re not back here in ten minutes then I’m running like hell and not looking back. I’ve learned the hard way that the only one looking out for me is me.”
    Dec stared hard at her as he heard the shout go out behind him to start searching the grounds. She was in a good location and they’d never find her in the dark. But he needed answers and the only way to do that was to go get them.
    “Stay low and don’t make any sound. Don’t even rustle the branches around you. I’ll be back in half an hour.”
    He unclenched her fingers from his shirt, and then before he could talk himself out of it, he pulled her closer. The sizzle of heat between them was electric, a pulsing energy, the same as it had been so many years before. She was his soul, the one woman put on this Earth for him, and it was time to reclaim what belonged to him.
    “Don’t kiss me,” she said, reading his mind. “It’ll only make things worse.”
    “Sweetheart, I’ve got to disagree with you there. But we can argue about it later.”
    He turned his back on her and ran towards the shadows. The need for the hunt pounded in his lungs and beat through his blood. The sooner he took care of the danger that threatened his woman, the sooner he could claim what was his.

     

CHAPTER FIVE
     
     
     
    It didn’t take Declan long to circle around and head off the men as they made their way across Sophia’s property. It was a large area to cover, and they’d spread themselves too thin, each man taking a different direction.
    He could’ve heard the first man coming from a mile away. He wasn’t even trying to be quiet as he kicked leaves and branches out of the way. Dec moved in behind him and snapped his neck quickly, the familiar scent of death permeating the air as he laid the man gently on the ground and moved toward the next one.
    He’d only counted half a dozen men, but there was always the chance more could’ve been waiting in the wings. He hunted with a single goal in mind—to terminate any threats to Sophia.
    He dealt with each man the same way as the first, until he got to the last. The man in front of him must have had a bad feeling because he let out a low whistle, a signal to the others, and no one answered him back. He stopped in his tracks, his weapon held at the ready, and he listened for movement. He never heard Dec come up behind him.
    Dec kicked out at the man’s knees, and the sickening crunch of snapping bone and cartilage had him crying out in pain as he fell to the ground. Dec followed through with a series of hits that caused numbing in the arms, and the weapon that had been in the mercenary’s hand dropped with a soft thud into the leaves.
    “Who sent you?” Dec asked, gripping the man by the hair and forcing him to look into his