The Cottage Next Door Read online

  “Yes, but I like hearing it again. I love you too.” She took a deep breath. “But that doesn’t mean I’m okay with being ignored like you did to me the other day. I don’t need you to pay attention to me every minute but—”

  Hunter placed a finger over her lips. She didn’t need to say any more. “I’m sorry about that day. I was trying to push you away. Give you a chance to find a better man.”

  “There’s no better man for me than you.”

  Cool, sweet happiness washed over him. “I’ll write when you’re at work and give you all my attention the rest of the time.”

  “I can live with that.” She brushed her lips over his before she sat up with a groan. “I should probably introduce you to my parents.”

  He pulled her back down beside him. “I met them already. They were sitting on the front porch and told me where to find you.”

  “Ah.”

  Hunter rolled over, stretching along her body. Oh yeah, this was where he belonged. “Do we have to worry about your parents interrupting us?”

  “I don’t know. But they’re bound to get curious pretty soon.”

  He dropped his forehead down to hers. They’d have to wait to use that condom he’d stashed in his wallet. “What do you say we look for a place of our own? Soon.”

  “Very soon,” she agreed. She wrapped her arms around his waist. “How does it feel?”

  “How does what feel?”

  “To be happy again?”

  He knew he was grinning like a fool and he hoped he never stopped. “It’s the best feeling in the world.”

  Epilogue

  Fletcher Gibbs strolled across the dance floor, carrying the small wrapped package in his hands. It had been a perfect day. He’d been proud to stand up as best man at the wedding ceremony of two good friends. Sylvie looked beautiful, Hunter looked happy, and the entire wedding party had been barefoot on the beach. Fletch thought it couldn’t get any better than that.

  The reception was still going strong. Audrey wouldn’t let him slip away for long. His wife loved her dancing. The bride and groom had finally taken a break and were sitting at a little out-of-the-way table. They were holding hands and playing kissy face and probably thought no one would notice them.

  “You guys can’t hide from me,” he said with a grin. He plopped down at the table with them. “You two will have plenty of time to kiss later. I have a wedding gift for Sylvie.”

  “For me? Not for both of us?”

  Hunter took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “It’s actually from both of us. Fletch and me.”

  Sylvie’s curiosity got the better of her and she took the present he handed to her. Her eyes lit up, and her smile matched Hunter’s. There had been a time when Fletcher was afraid he’d never see either one of them smile again. He and Hunter waited while Sylvie slowly peeled away each tiny piece of tape as she unwrapped the package.

  Hunter groaned. “If you’re going to be this slow, I’m going to open the rest of the gifts. I’ll rip the paper right off them.”

  “Don’t be silly, that’s—” The paper fell away and she gasped. “It’s here. The ARC of In a Dark Dream.”

  “I was told you were promised an advance copy,” Fletcher said. He knew it was thanks to her there was a book at all. He leaned over to kiss her cheek. “I want to direct you to the dedication page.”

  Her glance flew to Hunter and then back to the book. She flipped to the page, and her eyes filled with tears.

  To Sylvie, who gave me back the words and showed me how to love again.

  About the Author

  Natasha Moore fell in love with the written word as soon as she could read. As she grew up, she discovered romance and now enjoys the chance to add some extra sizzle to her stories. She lives in New York State with her real life hero who is happy to tell everyone that he’s her inspiration. They travel in their RV whenever possible. The great thing about writing is she can take it anywhere.

  To learn more about Natasha, visit her website www.natashamoore.com

  E-mail her at [email protected]

  Find her on Facebook www.facebook.com/natashamooreauthor

  Follow her on Twitter www.twitter.com/natashamoore

  Sign up for her mailing list here http://eepurl.com/hnwRk

  Look for these titles by Natasha Moore

  Now Available:

  The Ride of Her Life

  The Passion-Minded Professor

  Bound by Design

  Binding Ties

  See Me

  Silken Canvas

  Paolo’s Playhouse

  Flaunt It

  Risk It

  Birthday Girl

  Plaything

  Playing for Real

  There’s no safe word strong enough for this power play date…

  Playing for Real

  © ٢٠١٤ Natasha Moore

  Paolo’s Playhouse, Book 5

  Paolo Mancini’s needs are simple: a committed relationship with a submissive who will let him love and care for her. But after a long, heartbreaking string of relationship failures, he’s beginning to think the perfect woman for him simply doesn’t exist.

  When Julianne Barnes steps into his playhouse for one night of bondage sex, she blows him away with her beauty, sass and bravery. She could be the one…if she will allow him to show her how to weave bondage and submission into her life. And hopefully, into his.

  Julianne keeps her craving for soft ropes, dark blindfolds, and strong fingers apart from “real life”, where this successful businesswoman doesn’t need anyone telling her what to do. Yet Paolo’s lyrical, steel-under-silk voice affects her body in ways that make her want to offer up her soul.

  Slowly, delicately, Paolo tantalizes her closer to the idea that fantasy and reality can live as one. But to convince her it’s safe to open the last compartment protecting her emotions, he’ll have to expose his greatest vulnerability. His heart.

  Warning: Features a petulant sub looking to live out her fantasies and a sexy Dom looking for love of the forever kind. Contains an intense sex-with-a-stranger fantasy, ropes, chains and a spanking. Or two. Or more.

  Enjoy the following excerpt for Playing for Real:

  “Julianne? It’s Paolo.”

  She shivered simply from the sound of his sexy, lyrical voice speaking her name. She swallowed before she could speak. “I’ll be right down.”

  “Buzz me in, Julianne.” There it was. The commanding tone that made her stomach tickle and her sex clench.

  What had she gotten herself into? “Okay. But I’ll be right down.”

  She grabbed her purse and locked the door to her apartment behind her. She’d walked up and down the narrow flight of stairs hundreds of times, but somehow tonight it seemed longer, narrower, her heels higher, skirt shorter, tighter. She was anxious to see Paolo again but still, she couldn’t help being nervous.

  He was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs in the entryway, frowning slightly. He took the first few steps up, hand outstretched, to meet her. He looked elegant, more than sexy, in a loose black jacket over a white shirt. “I should have come up to get you.”

  She took his hand and his long fingers wrapped around hers, fingers that had strummed over every inch of her body. The electric spark of awareness might have been clichéd, but it was there just the same. She couldn’t let it zap her into submission that quickly. “There was no point in you climbing all these stairs just to come right back down.”

  As soon as they were off the stairs, he drew her close, their bodies not quite touching. He nailed her with his deep blue gaze. “From now on, I will walk you to your door and collect you there as well.” He brushed his lips lightly over hers, only long enough to tease, not nearly long enough to taste.

  She resisted the urge to lean into him. Instead, sh
e shrugged as if her mind wasn’t screaming at her to end this now before he dictated more than how he would pick her up for a date.

  He stepped back then, looked her over, her hand still in his. A lock of his dark, wavy hair fell over his forehead and gave him a softer look. His familiar scent wound around her.

  He wrapped his arm around her waist and led her across the foyer. “Have you been anticipating our evening as much as I have?”

  “I’ve been thinking about it a lot, yes.” She was excited to start their play dates. But she was also a little frightened about what he would want from her. What he would want to do to her.

  He paused with his hand on the door handle and looked over at her. He was so close she could have gotten lost in those eyes. “You sound nervous. Do you want to talk about it before we head out?”

  Hell yes, she was nervous, but she didn’t want to hang around here in the foyer to hash it out. “No. I’m okay.” She tried to keep her smile light. “I think we talked it all to death the other night.”

  He chuckled and she relaxed a little. “Yes. You are right.” He opened the door and they stepped out into the warm Monday evening air.

  Was that really a limo parked at the curb? A tall, broad man in a dark suit stood on the sidewalk. She glanced at Paolo as he led her to the long black car. “This is for us?”

  “Of course.” The uniformed man—was he a chauffeur or a bodyguard or what?—opened the back door for them. Paolo smoothly delivered her into the car as if he’d escorted dozens of women into the spacious backseat of this limousine at one time or another. And he probably had. A man as sexy and charming as Paolo, a man as dominating as Paolo, must have had plenty of women to ravish in the back of a dark vehicle.

  And the thought of being ravished by Paolo was probably more exciting than it should have been.

  The leather seat was soft and warm. Paolo slid in beside her and the door closed behind him, shutting them together in what a moment ago had felt like a huge space. Now that Paolo was beside her, he seemed to be sucking all the oxygen out of the air. Julianne started panting lightly, finding it suddenly hard to breathe.

  He didn’t seem to notice her difficulty. He took one of her hands in his, intertwined their fingers before he lifted their joined hands to his lips. He lightly kissed her knuckles. Tingles shimmered over her body.

  “The Playhouse must do very well,” she blurted out, her nerves getting the better of her.

  Paolo lifted a brow, paused a moment before replying softly, “Yes. I am happy with its success.”

  “I mean…a car like this? A driver like that? I didn’t expect…” She shut her mouth before she shoved her foot any deeper inside. It wasn’t any of her business. She sounded as if she was fishing for information. As if she cared how rich he was. As if she was surprised how rich he was. Even though she was.

  “Why should you expect anything?” Paolo replied smoothly. “I did not pick you up in this car in an attempt to impress you. The truth is that I would rather not have my eyes and hands occupied with driving when I could have them more pleasantly occupied.” He kissed her knuckles again. “Watching you. Touching you.”

  “Oh.” The word came out on a shaky sigh.

  “I have been looking forward to playing with you again,” he told her as the car pulled away from the curb. “I see you wore a skirt as I requested.” Their hands still together, he dropped them down onto her bare knee, then slid them up her leg until he reached the hem of her short black skirt. He caught her gaze, held it. “Did you follow the rest of my instructions?”

  Julianne hesitated, then nodded.

  Paolo slid their joined hands down her inner thigh and she automatically spread her knees as far as she could in the tight skirt, so he could reach under and make sure she’d left her panties in the underwear drawer.

  Since their fingers were still twined together, she felt, as well as he did, the bare flesh between her legs as he dragged their fingers through the wet, sensitive lips. Her sex clenched with the quick touch.

  “Very good, Julianne.” There was enough light left in the twilight to catch the flash of pleasure and arousal in his eyes. Julianne felt an unexpected matching pleasure at his approval. And then the resulting dismay.

  How could she declare she wasn’t submissive when she’d followed his instructions to the letter? When she felt a rush of pleasure simply from pleasing him? Was her denial only an attempt to pretend it wasn’t true?

  Paolo drew their hands out from under her skirt. “Do not put your knees back together,” he said softly, his lips brushing against her ear. “I like knowing you are bare and open for me. I like to catch the scent of your arousal in the air around us.” He lifted their hands to his lips and he licked her moisture from their skin.

  She trembled with the light touch of his tongue and the erotic words that flowed from his lips so easily. She looked out the tinted window at the buildings flashing by. It was time to get real. She was aroused. She was incredibly attracted to this man, but she was so far out of her comfort zone it wasn’t funny. Should she insist they stop now?

  While the rational part of her mind whispered that was exactly what she should do, her body burned and sizzled and ached to be under his control again.

  She couldn’t imagine never again feeling the incredible way she had when he’d tied her up in his fantasy room and played with her body. She couldn’t deny the feeling of rightness that snapped into place when he’d bound her and controlled her and—

  “Julianne?” Paolo caught her chin and turned her to face him again. “Are you thinking too much?”

  “I have a lot to think about.”

  “I know.” He cupped her face, ran his thumb along her bottom lip. “I am tempted to tell you what I have planned for our play date tonight, but I think it is better for you not to know.”

  “How can that be better for me?”

  “Anticipation can be sweet, Julianne,” he said in that lilting Italian accent.

  Revenge wasn’t supposed to be this sweet…

  If You Want Me

  © 2014 Cassi Carver

  The Ashford Legacy

  Sara Castillo has sworn never to get sucked into the world of the rich and famous, not after billionaire Benjamin Swayne broke her heart and left her carrying the burden of their shared secret.

  Now Sara has a successful career working with her dear friend, Kyle Ashford, and her life runs like a well-oiled machine—until Kyle chooses Ben as his best man. No way will Sara let the renowned bad boy turn Kyle’s bachelor party into a front-page fiasco. She’s going to plan the party herself…even if she has to blackmail Ben into agreeing.

  Ben isn’t thrilled about working with a woman who’d like to shank him and dump his body in a roadside ditch. But he’s willing to let Sara meddle, if only to teach her a lesson. And if the sight and scent of his old flame still makes his head swim…well, tough.

  After Kyle’s party is wrapped up, Ben may finally be able to put Sara in the past. That is, if their time together doesn’t convince them they have a future.

  Warning: This book contains a woman who likes being in control, a billionaire who likes to make her lose it, and enough sex toys to satisfy an army.

  Enjoy the following excerpt for If You Want Me:

  Ben had been tossing in his bed, unable to do much more than ache for Sara, when a strange sound startled him. After a few seconds, he realized it was probably Sara’s electric toothbrush. But then came the toe-curling moan through the wall, and he knew exactly what that sound was.

  He sat up in bed, almost indignant that his ex-lover would use a toy so…so callously when he was in the very next room. Was she trying to hurt him? Hell, was she trying to kill him? Because he was sure at the instant filling of his cock that no blood remained above his shoulders, and that must be dangerous, right?

  And what the hell kin
d of toy was that, anyway? From the sound of it, it was either a dentist’s drill or she was being bred by some sci-fi kinky-ass aliens. Like an alien orgy. Maybe he should check on her to make sure she was okay…

  He caught himself before he made it to the door and lay back down on the bed, his cock so full it felt as if it might rupture. He ran a hand down his length and hissed in a breath. He heard the slight sound of her bed moving and didn’t appreciate the visions of her hips moving along with it. Yeah, she was punishing him all right. Problem was, he knew what for, and he sure as hell didn’t deserve it.

  The rhythmic pulsation of her toy buzzed in his ears like a swarm of cicadas. He sat up, braced his feet on the floor and buried his face in his hands. Sara was all he’d ever wanted. She was his first love and his last. Giving her that much power over his heart had been the worst mistake of his life, followed closely by agreeing to make this trip to Montana with her. He might have to sit beside her in that car and make small talk, trying to crush all thoughts of her engagements to other men, but this, this having to listen to her fantasize about only God knew who, was fucking ridiculous.

  When her breaths started coming faster and faster, he rose to his feet and began to pace, his rock-hard cock bobbing with every step. Maybe he should give her something better to fantasize about than some starched-shirt college professor. Maybe he could make her remember why she’d loved him once.

  He froze when her first panted cry echoed through the walls. He knew Sara—would never forget the sounds of her pleasure—so he knew she would only get louder. But suddenly, she shrieked. “What? No!” And then something smacked into the wall between their rooms.

  He was at her door before he’d even had a chance to consider his next move, but his fist rocked to a stop just an inch from the door. He was so hot for her, but so pissed at the same time, that he was starting to sweat. He blew a breath out between pursed lips and forced his knuckles to rap lightly when what he wanted to do was slam his palm against the door in frustration. “Sara? You okay in there? Did you…throw something?”