My Blood To Rise by Paula Paradis Page A

left?
    But how could he know she was attracted to him?
    And how could she want someone so bad who she just met?
    She had to fight it. She couldn’t let herself get sucked in by this … spell or whatever it was.
    He was probably just toying with her. Why would he want her? She’d had nothing but a string of bad relationships over the past few years; she worked a dead-end job, and lived in a crappy apartment that had a broken heater.
    It was time to end this game of his. Taking a breath, she gathered her wits.
    “I’m not picking you up. Just get that clear right now. I only sat down here for a minute because I was upset about the phone. In a minute, I’ll get up and walk away, and I’ll never see you again.”
    “What’s stopping you?” he asked. “Get up and walk away. You’ll never see me again.”
    Why didn’t she get up and leave? She couldn’t even shift her weight on the bench.
    He edged closer to her. “You didn’t answer my question. Are you seeing anyone?”
    She gazed up into his dazzling blue eyes. “No. I’m single.”
    His eyes grew wide. “You’re too beautiful not to have a boyfriend.”
    Too beautiful? She flushed at the compliment.
    “I’ve had boyfriends before,” she said, “but they all broke up with me.” Why was she telling him this?
    “Oh?” He leaned in, interested.
    “Jack, my last boyfriend, said I’m too hard to get along with.” Dara felt her stomach tighten. Why did she say that to a complete stranger. Was she trying to sabotage herself?
    But she found herself continuing. “He said all I was good for was sex, but that he could get it from somewhere else, and wouldn’t have to put up with someone as stubborn as me to get it.”
    The man moved even closer. “I’m sorry to hear that. You must be devastated.”
    A sudden rage filled her at the memory of her ex-boyfriend’s words, Dara’s words came out bitter. “If that’s the way he feels, he can go get it somewhere else. There are other fish in the sea.”
    Despite her rising anger, another emotion welled up inside her. Attraction. What was it about this man that made her blurt out intimate details of her life to him?
    He asked, “I didn’t catch your name.”
    “Dara,” she said. “Dara Lachance.”
    He nodded. “That’s an interesting name. What is it—French?”
    Dara nodded. “But I don’t speak a word of it.” She gave a quick shrug of her shoulders, then shifted on the bench to face him. “And you are…?”
    He held out his hand to her. “I am called Andrei Vasile.”
    The moment her fingers touched his, her whole being rocked to its core. A clap of thunder echoed through her, and her head spun. He continued to hold her hand.
    “Andrei?” she repeated, her voice small. She couldn’t take her eyes of his.
    He nodded again. “It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
    When he moved away from her, the overwhelming sensation receded.
    Dara shook her head, trying to clear it of … whatever that was that had happened.
    “Do I know you from somewhere?”
    He smiled. “No. I don’t believe you do.”
    “I…” she began.
    “Would you like to walk with me?” he asked.
    Before she could answer, she found herself standing at his side. The moonlight played off his hair and skin, and when his hand touch her arm, her body was flooded once again with that warm sensation.
    “Where are you taking me?” she asked.
    “What makes you think I’m taking you anywhere?” he asked. “We’re just walking.”
    She shook her head. “You’re taking me somewhere. You wouldn’t walk nowhere.”
    “What makes you say that?” he asked.
    She lowered her eyes. “You just wouldn’t.”
    He tucked her arm through his. “I thought you might be more comfortable walking with me than sitting on that bench.”
    Dara’s mind cleared. “You didn’t answer my earlier question. Do you come here often? You seemed to know your way around the park.”
    “Do I?” One corner of his mouth lifted in a smile.
    “I get the