Gideon [The Marujan Brothers Series] Book Two Read Online Free PDF Page B

so
intensely. If she was one of those weak women--and she most
certainly wasn't--she would have squirmed. Instead she swallowed
and allowed her gaze to wander elsewhere.
"So you were just contacted with this.....message?"
Amanda looked up and nodded. Perhaps her reverie had caused her to
miss out on the introductions.
"I'm sorry; you are?" she asked.
The man's eyes narrowed as he answered evenly though irritatingly.
"Hadaen Maruj. Lord Hadaen Maruj."
She didn’t miss the way he emphasized his title. Neither did she
care. "Ah. My apologies. I fear my mind had been elsewhere."
Hadaen and Gideon exchanged glances while the woman stepped
forward, extending a hand.
"I'm Amelia," she said, smiling easily. "It's very nice to meet
you, Amanda of the Alexanders. Esyth is a dear friend of mine
and..." Tears clouded her eyes for just a moment and Amanda felt a
twinge of the woman's pain. How odd. "We must find her."
Finally releasing Amelia's hand, Amanda blinked and stood, the thin
skirts of her dress falling just over her knees where the top of
her leather boots ended. "I believe the woman who contacted me must
be in some real deal of trouble," she said, eyeing everyone in the
room. "She might be in pain as well."
Gideon stepped forward, his face stricken. " Because ...?"
"The signal was done very well," Amanda admitted. "She's good, very
good at it. But I cannot say the same for the energy I had sensed
around it. That message had been sent out of desperation. She needs
help. Urgently."
Gideon ran a hand down his face and started pacing the room.
"You should leave as soon as possible," Amelia suggested. "If Esyth
really is the sender of that message then we cannot keep her
waiting." She looked at Gideon and Faolan and then touched the one
standing next to her. "Hadaen?"
"She's right. You might as well leave right away."
Amanda glanced in Faolan's direction and he straightened his
posture, moving forward. "Well then... Gideon? You heard the man.
Let's go!"
Gideon nodded and inhaled a deep breath, tilting his head to the
side, and gesturing with his chin. "She's coming with us."
" What ?"
The word came out in a combined gasp and grunt from Amanda and
Faolan. Hadaen raised a brow at him and Amelia's lips twitched with
amusement.
"It's best in case Esyth tries to communicate again," Amelia
offered.
"B-But I can't..." Amanda stammered. "My father... I must get back!"
"I'm sure your father will understand," Gideon said.
    She wanted to say that he,
Carlisle of the Alexanders, would in fact not understand. That neither would
Ewan of the Luthers…but she didn't. She had been given strict
instructions to deliver the message and return home. Nothing else.
Amanda glanced at Faolan Maruj once again and swallowed her words
for a reason she could not yet explain. Defying her father would
bring hefty consequences...so why was she doing precisely
that?
Amanda swallowed thickly as she thought it out. She had always
sought after a grand adventure but the rules governing her village
had—would never allow it. But she wasn't in Liguanea Villa now, was
she? A mischief filled thrill ran up and down her back, tingling
like the right kind of wrong. So could this be her chance at last?
She knew that she'd eventually have to return home...and that her
father would only speed her nuptials with Ewan along even faster
just to punish her but it would be worth it, wouldn't it? One
chance to rebel and be reckless before she committed her life to a
man who would think her no more but a slave to his marital
obligations. She'd made her decision. In fact, it was no decision
at all.
Amanda cracked a smile—one her mother would describe as far too
sultry—and glanced at Faolan before nodding her agreement.
"I will accompany you on your journey," she stated firmly. "But
only under one condition."
Gideon groaned while everyone else remained still, eager to know
what this 'condition' was. This time it was Faolan who spoke, his
voice reminding her of the first crack of