could have smacked him. Trying to play like I'd had zero effect on him when his c**k was still as hard as stone underneath me. Fortunately, I wasn't that easily deterred. "Yes. Now you give me your phone number." He only hesitated for a fraction of a second before pulling out his cell phone and unlocking the screen. He handed it to me. "Text yourself." I shivered. How could a person make something so innocent sound so naughty? Because he was experienced, that was how. Because he knew things that I didn't. Because he was The Professor. ***
ONE
DYLAN
"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT?!" Weston, my business partner,
exclaimed from the front passenger seat of my service car as we
pulled away from the curb.
Restraining myself from directing the driver-a habit of mine,
surely not useful now when I'd been out of New York City for so long
-I looked behind me out the rear window at the two figures we'd left
behind. Donovan Kincaid, another one of my partners at Reach, Inc.
along with Weston King, was chasing down a girl who worked in the
office-Sabrina Lind.
I had only just met Sabrina this evening. The woman was
pleasant, smart, straightforward. Had a good head on her shoulders.
Weston and I had dined with her and her younger sister and had just
been finishing up when Donovan had come in, all blustering and
noble and knightly.
"Donovan called himself her boyfriend," Weston said
incredulously, recalling the scene we'd just left. "Was I the only one
who heard that? I can't be that drunk."
It had been an out-of-character declaration for the usually tightlipped and brooding Donovan, but I'd seen this side of him before,
many years in the past. The last time he had given a woman his
heart.
If anyone asked me, he was wasting his time with this one.
Sabrina had said several things over dinner that suggested she was
no longer entertained by the circus that surrounded romantic notions.
"I heard it," the young woman sitting next to me answered.
Now this one-Audrey, the younger sister whom I'd volunteered
to see home-a man would have a much easier time trying to woo
her. She'd made that clear over dinner as well.
Too bad she was that kind of girl. The kind of girl who wanted a
man to love her before she lifted her skirt. Otherwise...
I turned my head slightly, imperceptibly, and slid my eyes down
her form, pausing on the sweet curve of her breasts, watching her
chest rise and fall with her breath. My gaze had traveled this journey
several times this evening, but now I was lucky enough to have the
added view of her legs, which had been hidden under the table
before. They were long and toned, a little curve in just the right
place.
"I heard it," she said again, "and it was so romantic."
The swoon in her voice made me chuckle. God, she was young.
Younger than whatever ridiculous young age she actually was. Who
the hell even believed in romance anymore?
"I don't understand," Weston muttered, combing his hand through
his hair. "I'm Donovan's best friend. I knew he was sleeping with her,
but I didn't know he was her boyfriend. I didn't know he was into her.
I was supposed to be into Sabrina. When did this happen? Where
have I been?"
Oh. That was right. Weston King believed in love and
relationships.
He turned his head to look at both of us in the backseat. "I'm
seriously asking here."
I glanced at Audrey. Her expression said that she had been in the
know, but her lips were sealed.
That left me to console my partner. "You've probably been too
distracted with that Dyson pussy you've been banging," I was
definitely still intoxicated. I didn't normally use such crass language
in front of a lady. Especially such a young lady.
"Hey," Weston said, pointing a stern finger in my direction.
"Elizabeth is not just some pussy I've been banging. I'm going to
marry her."
Never mind that their engagement was part of a business ruse.
Despite the fact that it counted for nothing, Weston seemed to have
grown fond of the girl-even as he bemoaned the loss of Sabrina.
It was exhausting."You're exhausting," I told him.
"I'm exhausting?" He seemed baffled by the idea that he would
exhaust anyone.
"The entire lot of you. More exhausting than the flight across the
pond. All of you are intelligent creatures normally. I wouldn't have
gotten into business with partners who gave in to the whims and
fancies of human nature. It takes a clear head, your feet on the
ground, your priorities straight, to be as successful as we have been
with our company.
"But now the lot of you have gone and eaten some fruit from the
tree of temptation. Drank the potion number nine. Watched one too
many Netflix Christmas specials, because you've suddenly all
descended into the ridiculous camp of men who fall in love with
women."
"Wait," Weston halted me. "I never said I was in love with
Elizabeth Dyson. I only said I was going to marry her."
"You spent the entire dinner pining after her. Pining, Weston King.
Surely pining is a sign of love." I turned to the audience member that
I knew would be on my side.
"Yes, indeed," Audrey nodded, with a bob of her head that was
somehow both girlish and sexy as hell. "Pining is Love 101. If a girl
came to me and said the guy had told her he was pining after her?
That's like popping the question." "Exactly like," I said straight-faced. I was being sarcastic, of
course, but the girl did make me want to smile.
Among other things.
I stretched my arm across the back of the seat bench, casually,
making myself comfortable. Not making a move. No, not that.
"I am not in love with Eliza-"
"And on top of your pining..." I said, speaking loudly over
Weston. His denial, which he was surely about to deliver in full, was
infuriating and, frankly, patronizing, and I refused to listen to more
than a second of it. "We have Donovan, who declares a relationship
with a woman on a public street, for crying out loud, in front of his
partners. I thought for sure that man, of all of you, had reason." He
must have forgotten how miserable he'd been the last time he'd
given his heart, albeit ten years ago.
Soon enough, he'd remember.
"And then we have Nate," I continued. A man of varied sexual
pleasures and interests, Nathan Sinclair had been another fly I'd
never expected to drop. "When I'd had drinks with the man last night,
he was talking about one particular woman like she hung the moon.
Soon it will just be me and Cade."
I leaned closer toward Audrey, since she probably didn't know
anything about our fifth partner who headed the Tokyo office. "No
one will ever love Cade, even if he goes pansy on us. That's a man
that even a mother wouldn't love. He's one of my best friends. I
ought to know."
Weston harrumphed from the front seat, completely indignant,
but I noted a hint of optimism, as though he hoped I were right about
his future, and that he'd be leaving the bachelor life for good.
He really had gone bananas over that Dyson girl. Poor sucker.
I stole another glance at Audrey, curious at how badly I'd
offended her with my speech, love-cheerleader that she was.
But when I turned in her direction, I hadn't expected that she'd
already be staring at me.
Our lips stayed locked as we grinded and humped, a tight ball of tension growing deep in my belly. I’d never been so intimate with someone during a first kiss let alone the first night we’d met. Never felt so close to orgasm with all of my clothes still on. Never been on the verge of begging for sex from a near stranger—The sound of a throat clearing brought me tumbling out of ecstasy. Dylan broke his mouth from mine and peered around me. “Yes?” The driver. Oh my God, I’d forgotten about our driver. **** British ad exec Dylan Locke isn't looking for love. He isn't looking for fate. He's definitely not looking for Audrey Lind. She's pretty, far too young, and overly romantic--in short, exhausting. But when the girl, young enough to be his daughter, literally lands in his lap and asks for his expertise, he'd be lying if he said he wasn't interested. But Audrey isn't looking for love either--she's looking for lessons, and she's certain Dylan knows everything she needs to learn. If he agrees to play the teacher can he keep his heart? Of course he can. Then again, he might be lying.
Are You Sure You Want To Delete This Contact? He hesitated. Maybe he was overreacting. Just because his parents hadn’t worked out… “Christ, Brad, divorced?” Stu said into the phone. Until now, Stu hadn’t said much and his sudden outburst drew Micah’s attention. “I knew that chick was just after your money.” Stu paused. “Look, I’m real sorry to hear that. I’ll get Pam to spin it to the press however you want me to. It’s funny, I was just saying to another client that relationships in Hollywood are tough.” Stu gave a knowing wink and Micah’s mind was made up. He looked back at his phone. Are You Sure You Want To Delete This Contact? Micah pushed Yes. And Maddie from the party was erased from his phone. Erased from his life. *** On the night of her graduation from film school, straight-laced Maddie Bauers fell completely out of character for an oh-my-god make-out session with a perfect stranger. Complete with the big O. Seven years later, that romantic interlude is still fresh in her mind. That stranger is now a rich and famous actor. And she’s one very distracted camera assistant working on his latest production. She might consider another tryst…if he even remembers her.
He’ll get what he wants—even if I’m already taken. Holt Sebastian is royalty in our world. As CEO of the Sebastian News Corp, he’s the man with all the power. The man who decides if I’ll always just be a local television anchor or if I’ll be the rising star of my own show. I make it my mission to be noticed. Make him see my potential. But soon, it's clear he's the one in charge. His possessiveness is brutal. His eyes own everything they touch. I feel his gaze on me when he's in the room. The heat of them as they rake down my body, taking me in, marking me as his. He doesn’t just want me on the screen—he wants me in his bed. And Holt Sebastian gets what he wants. No one will stop him, no one will get in his way. No one can protect me from his desire. Not even the man who promised nothing would come between us and his ambition—my husband.
“He’s never going to go for you,” a voice came out of the dark in front of me. “Not while you’re a virgin.” I squinted, and when I looked closer, I saw there was another bedroom at the end of the hall with the door wide open, and though I couldn’t quite make out the figure, I could see there was someone sitting in an armchair, smoking a cigarette. Or a cigar maybe. I took a step forward. Surely he wasn’t talking to me, but there didn’t seem to be anyone else around. “Excuse me?” “Weston never goes for virgins. It’s one of his rules.” Heat rushed up my neck and flooded my cheeks. “Uh…” “You’re offended.” **** When I met Donovan Kincaid, I knew he was rich. I didn’t know he was filthy. Truth be told, I was only trying to get his best friend to notice me. I knew poor scholarship girls like me didn't stand a chance against guys like Weston King and Donovan Kincaid, but I was in love with his world, of parties and s*x and power. I knew what I wanted—I knew who I wanted—until one night, their world tried to bite me back and Donovan saved me. He saved me, and then Weston finally noticed me, and I finally learned what it was to be in their world. And then what it was like to lose it. Ten years later, I’ve found my way back. Back to their world. Back to him. This time, I’m ready. I've been down this road before, and I know all the dirty, filthy ways Donovan will try and wreck me. But it’s hard to resist. Especially when I know how much I’ll like it.
I hated how he said my name, like he had all the power because he knew that bit of information about me. Hated it and loved it. I also hated how his eyes drew up my body, long and slow. Sensually touching my every curve, my every angle. Hated and loved it. Hated that I loved it. I sat on the chair that was still behind me, not trusting my legs to keep me steady for much longer. “What exactly is this deal you have? And who are you?” “I,” he paused, “am JC.” I’d never heard of him. “JC…?” “Just JC.” He said it like it answered everything. Two short syllables to put me in my place. “As in Jesus Christ?” JC chuckled as well, his expression brash and sexy. “I’ve been called that. But usually only when my face is pressed between a woman’s thighs.” Ew. Also, hot. —— The only reward Gwen Anders got from her rough childhood was a thick skin and hard heart. She’s content with her daily grind managing a top NYC nightclub—Eighty-Eighth Floor. So hers isn’t a happily ever after. She doesn’t believe in those anyway. Then she meets J.C. The rich, smooth talking playboy is the sexiest thing that Gwen has ever encountered, but she’s not interested in a night-in-shining latex. But when a family tragedy pushes her to the brink, it’s J.C. who’s there to teach her a new method of survival, one based on following primal urges and desires. His no-strings-attached lessons require her to abandon her constant need for control. Her carefully built walls are obliterated. Gwen discovers there’s a beautiful world outside her prison. Freedom is exhilarating—and terrifying. When she starts to feel something for J.C., she fears for her heart. Especially as she realizes that he has secrets of his own. Secrets that don't want to set him free.
“I don’t need your money.” She stuck out her chin. Insistent. “I do fine.” “‘Fine,’ but you’re getting kicked out of your hotel room—” “Fine doesn’t mean I can spare the money for an impromptu trip to NYC and a fancy hotel room. Regular people don’t have gobs of cash lying around.” The comment about regular people hit me in the gut. Because I’d always been the regular one, and she’d never been anything close to “regular.” But I understood what she was saying. She wasn’t desperate. She could take care of herself. She just couldn’t take care of this, and to make matters worse, the reason she’d splurged on this was because she’d put all of her hope in me saying I’d help her out, and I refused. ___ We were supposed to run away after graduation. When she didn’t show at our meeting place, I got brave and went after her. It was a mistake. I left bloodied and bruised. I had no choice but to walk away. Years passed. I traveled, settled halfway around the world, made enough money that I didn’t have to look back. But I never got over her. Then, out of the blue, she calls. And, what she asks for, the favor that she wants? I never thought I'd be willing to take a life. But the truth is, and always has been: I'd do anything for her.
Everyone was shocked to the bones when the news of Rupert Benton's engagement broke out. It was surprising because the lucky girl was said to be a plain Jane, who grew up in the countryside and had nothing to her name. One evening, she showed up at a banquet, stunning everyone present. "Wow, she's so beautiful!" All the men drooled, and the women got so jealous. What they didn't know was that this so-called country girl was actually an heiress to a billion-dollar empire. It wasn't long before her secrets came to light one after the other. The elites couldn't stop talking about her. "Holy smokes! So, her father is the richest man in the world?" "She's also that excellent, but mysterious designer who many people adore! Who would have guessed?" Nonetheless, people thought that Rupert didn't love her. But they were in for another surprise. Rupert released a statement, silencing all the naysayers. "I'm very much in love with my beautiful fiancee. We will be getting married soon." Two questions were on everyone's minds: "Why did she hide her identity? And why was Rupert in love with her all of a sudden?"
Julia and Evan were the perfect couple-or so she thought. But everything changed when Evan abruptly ended their relationship, leaving her heartbroken and unable to tell him she was carrying his child. Years later, Julia has built a life for herself and her son, Andy, while Evan has risen to unimaginable wealth and success. Their paths cross again at a chance meeting, but Julia soon discovers Evan has moved on with someone else. Julia is done with the pain. She's fought battles alone, raising a son who deserves the truth about his father, even if Evan doesn't deserve her forgiveness. When Julia told Evan years ago she had something to say, he didn't listen. Now, it's time for him to listen. But is it too late to reclaim what he lost? "We should break up," he'd said, the words cutting through her like glass. The pregnancy test in her pocket stayed hidden, just like the child they would never share. Now, it's Evan's turn to hear the truth-and to face his deepest regret.
Lyric had spent her life being hated. Bullied for her scarred face and hated by everyone-including her own mate-she was always told she was ugly. Her mate only kept her around to gain territory, and the moment he got what he wanted, he rejected her, leaving her broken and alone. Then, she met him. The first man to call her beautiful. The first man to show her what it felt like to be loved. It was only one night, but it changed everything. For Lyric, he was a saint, a savior. For him, she was the only woman that had ever made him cum in bed-a problem he had been battling for years. Lyric thought her life would finally be different, but like everyone else in her life, he lied. And when she found out who he really was, she realized he wasn't just dangerous-he was the kind of man you don't escape from. Lyric wanted to run. She wanted freedom. But she desired to navigate her way and take back her respect, to rise above the ashes. Eventually, she was forced into a dark world she didn't wish to get involved with.
To the public, she was the CEO's executive secretary. Behind closed doors, she was the wife he never officially acknowledged. Jenessa was elated when she learned that she was pregnant. But that joy was replaced with dread as her husband, Ryan, showered his affections on his first love. With a heavy heart, she chose to set him free and leave. When they met again, Ryan's attention was caught by Jenessa's protruding belly. "Whose child are you carrying?!" he demanded. But she only scoffed. "It's none of your business, my dear ex-husband!"
Joelle thought she could change Adrian's heart after three years of marriage, but she realized too late that it already belonged to another woman. "Give me a baby, and I'll set you free." The day Joelle went into labor, Adrian was traveling with his mistress on his private jet. "I don't care whom you love. My debt is paid. From now on, we have nothing to do with each other." Not long after Joelle left, Adrian found himself begging on his knees. "Please come back to me."
Elena, once a pampered heiress, suddenly lost everything when the real daughter framed her, her fiancé ridiculed her, and her adoptive parents threw her out. They all wanted to see her fall. But Elena unveiled her true identity: the heiress of a massive fortune, famed hacker, top jewelry designer, secret author, and gifted doctor. Horrified by her glorious comeback, her adoptive parents demanded half her newfound wealth. Elena exposed their cruelty and refused. Her ex pleaded for a second chance, but she scoffed, “Do you think you deserve it?” Then a powerful magnate gently proposed, “Marry me?”