Captive Secrets Read Online Free PDF Page A

the railing!” Ramon grumbled as he got to his feet.
    â€œIt wasn’t me,” Fury said, stifling a giggle at the look on his face.
    â€œWhat do you mean, it wasn’t you? There wasn’t a soul out here but us.” His voice carried the full weight of his indignation and bruised pride as he swiped at the crushed petals and leaves on his clothing.
    â€œIt was Gaspar. He’s on the roof. I guess he thought you were going . . . to hurt me,” Fury explained. “You’re lucky, Ramon, he and Pilar could have torn you to pieces. He was playing.” She smiled indulgently.
    â€œPlaying!” Ramon cried. He eyed the huge bird uneasily, afraid to move toward the veranda. Fury linked her arm through his and led him around the garden to the wide, white steps.
    â€œThey kill, and you keep them as pets. It’s insane,” Ramon sputtered. “Their wings alone could crush a person to death and those feet . . . My God, Fury, they’ll turn wild when you leave!”
    Fury sobered instantly. She’d thought the same thing more than once. “They have their little ones now to protect; they’ll miss me for a while, but I don’t think they’ll . . . You’re wrong, Ramon. If the servants continue to leave food for them, they’ll stay here. They’re the way they are because I saved Gaspar once from the talons of a kite. It’s his way of repaying me.”
    â€œAnd you’re scarred for life. Your mother told my mother you almost lost your arm,” Ramon said heatedly.
    â€œWell, I didn’t, and that’s behind us. You’re not hurt, only your dignity is wounded. No one knows but us, and I won’t mention it.”
    â€œWell, I certainly don’t intend to stay here any longer, not with that . . . that vulture guarding your every move! Good night, Fury,” Ramon muttered, and marched toward his parents’ waiting carriage.
    Fury sat down on one of the veranda’s wicker chairs. She supposed she should be upset, but she wasn’t. Ramon was such a . . . boy, even if he was her age. Kissing him would have been like kissing one of her brothers.
    The shadow was ominous as it sailed gracefully into the lantern light to perch on the veranda railing. The bird’s glittering eyes stared at the girl, and one wing lifted slightly in apology. Fury inclined her head and smiled.
    â€œApology accepted,” she said softly.
    The bird soared upward, the white tips of his wings eerie-looking in the yellow light.
    Inside, the musicians were readying the guests for the quadrille. It was her party, and she’d been outside far too long. Fixing a smile on her face, she sailed through the door to join in the dance.
    Â 
    Regan stood on the sidelines and watched his wife and daughter on the dance floor. His eyes sparked dangerously as he noticed Sirena’s partner—a slick, overdressed dandy twenty years younger than his wife—blatantly attempting to seduce her. His wife, he noticed, was flirting outrageously.
    Suddenly he laughed. There was a time when he would have hauled the younger man out to the veranda and whipped him soundly for such behavior, but he’d mellowed over the years. She was his, she always was and always would be. He was the one who sat across the table from her, and it was his arms that enfolded her at evening’s end—he who made wild, passionate love to her until break of day. While he may have mellowed, his passions had not. She still excited him beyond comprehension. All she had to do was look at him, smile or wink, and he wanted to snatch her by the hair and drag her off to his lair.
    He could watch her now and feel sympathy for the man twirling her around the dance floor. No one but Regan van der Rhys would ever taste Sirena’s charms.
    Sirena whirled by again, her tinkling laughter swirling about him like a soft caress. He played the game and scowled, to his wife’s delight. Then he