Seized by Seduction--A Compelling Tale of Romance, Love and Intrigue Read online

  Doyle frowned. “Yes, I told her.”

  “And?”

  Doyle’s frown deepened. “And nothing. Lilly’s my wife, not Quasar’s. He was a fool to expect her to wait for him. If anything he should be grateful I married her so she wouldn’t be alone. Besides, I give Lilly anything she wants. As far as I’m concerned, she was involved with the wrong brother anyway.”

  Louis had to agree. Initially he’d had his misgivings about Lilly since her family hadn’t accumulated the same amount of wealth as the Pattersons, although they hadn’t been poor blokes. The woman he’d selected for Doyle to marry, Kendra Biltmore, had turned out to be a real piece of work. She had been the only other person besides himself, Doyle, Quasar, Lilly and his cousin Lucinda who knew the truth that Doyle had been the one guilty of land fraud and not Quasar. Unlike Lilly, who promised to keep her mouth shut about the whole thing, it had taken almost a million dollars to get Kendra to keep quiet. He was glad she’d eventually married some rich bastard so she hadn’t needed to hit him up for more money.

  Thank God that Lucinda hadn’t found out the truth until right before she died. By then, Quasar was less than a few months from being released from jail, and Lucinda was at death’s door. There was no doubt in his mind that had Lucinda known sooner or had she lived, she would have done everything in her power to clear Quasar’s name and get the verdict overturned. She’d always had a soft spot in her heart for Quasar, and he knew it was due to a promise she’d made to Elaina.

  “And you’re sure Lilly is okay with Quasar returning?”

  “I’m sure. Of course Lilly has blamed herself over the years since she believes she’s the reason he stayed away.”

  Louis chuckled. “She’s probably right. Quasar loved Lilly. You and I both know that.”

  Doyle shrugged. “Well,” he said, standing, “you win some and you lose some. I won’t be giving Lilly up to anyone. She’s perfect for me.”

  “In other words, she knows to look the other way when it’s obvious you’re having an affair.”

  A smile touched Doyle’s lips. “Precisely.”

  “Well, be careful. You’re about to become a politician. Mayor today and president tomorrow. Start small but think big, which means we can’t afford any scandals, Doyle. No piece of ass is that good.”

  Doyle shoved his hands in his pockets. “I beg to differ with that, Dad,” he said with a smirk. “I happen to think it’s a pretty good damn piece. But seriously, don’t worry about scandals since there won’t be any. I know how to handle my business.”

  “Maybe it’s time for you and Lilly to start a family. Voters like that sort of thing. Pregnant first ladies.”

  “That might not be such a bad idea.”

  “I strongly suggest it,” Louis said, knowing Doyle would follow his directive.

  Doyle glanced at his watch and smiled. “I need to get ready for tonight’s party.”

  “You’re inviting her, aren’t you?”

  Doyle smiled rakishly. “Yes, she’s invited...right along with her husband.”

  Louis shook his head. “It doesn’t bother you to have your whore and your wife under the same roof?”

  Doyle shook his head grinning. “Nope, it doesn’t bother me at all.” He left the room chuckling.

  Louis shook his head. He hoped his son knew what the hell he was doing. Once he announced his candidacy for mayor, the media would be watching him like a damn hawk.

  An angry Louis picked up his phone and called Quasar again. When he didn’t get a response, he called Paul Woodard. “Paul, are you sure Quasar is back in LA? I’ve been trying to reach him.”

  “Yes, I’m sure. I talked to him myself last night when he called. I got the feeling he would here for a while since he asked me to make sure the refrigerator and pantry were stocked.”

  “I was just wondering since we hadn’t heard from him yet.”

  “I might be able to explain that.”

  Louis lifted a brow. “Oh? What’s the reason?”

  “You remember Marion Hoffer? She was Lucinda’s neighbor who lived next door to her in Malibu. I saw Marion earlier today. She says she saw a man fitting Quasar’s description and some woman walking on the beach early this morning. Marion claims that although it’s been years, she still recognized him. If you recall, Quasar hung out a lot on that beach when Lucinda lived there. Her neighbors got used to seeing him, so chances are Marion probably did recognize him. Sounds like Quasar might have a houseguest who’s keeping him busy, if you know what I mean,” Paul said, chuckling. “Delphine and I will see you later tonight at the party.”

  Of course you will, since you like parading around with that younger woman you’re married to. “Fine. I’ll see you then.”

  Louis hung up the phone and rubbed his chin. So Quasar had brought a woman with him to LA. He found that bit of information amusing since it seemed Doyle wasn’t the only one held captive by a piece of ass.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  “DO YOU THINK Riviera and Sutherland will let us know if they’re able to stop the gang war?” Randi asked.

  “Yeah, they’ll call,” Quasar said, opening the door to his beach house.

  After closing the door behind them, Randi was about to move ahead when he stopped her. “Wait here while I check out things.”

  She nodded, watching as he drew his gun from his shoulder holster and moved stealthily forward. From where she stood, she watched him stalk like a panther, going from room to room. She couldn’t help but appreciate the well-defined masculinity of his pectorals and biceps in the shirt he wore. He was solid muscle and, as far as she was concerned, an amazing specimen of a man.

  “Coast clear,” Quasar said, returning and placing his gun back in the holster, drawing her attention to his shoulders, even more impressive evidence of his strength. Annoyance filled her. Her mind should have been off him and on the danger at hand.

  “Any reason you’re frowning, Randi?”

  Quasar was studying her features with penetrating dark eyes. During the drive home he had released the band holding his hair, and now it flowed in a mass of glossy strands around his face, making him look wildly sensual and heart-stoppingly gorgeous.

  “Randi?”

  And why did she feel a pull in her midsection whenever he said her name? “A part of me feels frustrated, Quasar,” she finally answered him. “More than anything I wish I could get a reading on the person who ordered the hits on me, Ms. Emiliano and those two gang members.”

  He came to stand directly in front of her and reached up to massage her temples gently. She wondered how his large, callused hands could feel so gentle as his fingertips caressed her skin. “Don’t worry about it. You might get one later. Personally, I think you accomplished a whole hell of a lot today. You located the murder weapon and convinced Emiliano the Revengers weren’t responsible for his mother’s death.”

  “I wish I could have done more. I haven’t met with Overstreet yet to give him his mother’s message.”

  “But you will. Sutherland and Riviera had to cut out quickly to defuse those gangs from going head-to-head. I’m glad Emiliano admitted to you what was about to go down.”

  “I’m glad he did, too,” she said, noticing how Quasar’s fingers had shifted from her brows and had moved downward to trace across her cheeks. “I hope Sutherland and Riviera will get there in time. I wish I could have gone with them.”

  “It was too dangerous. Besides, you needed to come back here and get some rest.”

  I’d rather get some of you, she thought, feeling the heat of Quasar’s gaze shifting to her mouth. It surprised her how a woman whose sexual activities were limited to her college days could become such a sexually needy person around Quasar. But then, she really shouldn’t have been surprised. She doubted very many women could resist such a pr
ime example of raw, male power.

  “You’ve got another busy day tomorrow,” he interrupted her thoughts to say. “Ideally you’ll get to talk to Overstreet. I heard you ask Riviera about going to the crime scene where those two gang members were murdered.”

  “Yes, maybe I’ll be able to pick up on something there.”

  “Maybe.”

  Was she imagining it or had his head shifted closer to hers? She knew she hadn’t imagined it when his mouth was right there, so close she could almost feel his breath on her lips.

  Her chest was heaving laboriously, like she’d been sprinting on the beach for over an hour, and her nipples felt hard, like pebbles pressing against her shirt. And she didn’t want to think about that throbbing ache at the juncture of her legs.

  “Quasar?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Are you going to kiss me or are you just going to stand there and do nothing?” she asked boldly and watched the corners of his lips ease into a wicked, feral smile.

  “It’s not that I’m not doing anything, Randi. What I’m doing is thinking really hard about what will happen if I kiss you the way I want.”

  She swallowed deeply as the ache between her thighs intensified and her nipples seemed to get even harder. “And what do you think might happen?”

  He chuckled softly, and the sound lightly stroked across her skin. “What I know will happen is that I won’t be able to stop with just a kiss.”

  Bring it on, she thought, tempted to lick across the lips that were so close to hers. “And you think that’s a bad thing?”

  “Not for me, but considering how much I want you, it might be for you.”

  She lifted a brow. “How so?”

  He shifted, and she could actually feel him. His hard erection was pressing against her, right at the juncture of her throbbing thighs. “Remember our discussion this morning in my kitchen? You suggested we wait until all this was over before we...indulge.”

  Yes, she had suggested that, and at the time she’d figured she could wait. Preplan their bedroom activities for a future date. Only thing was, she no longer wanted to wait. She wanted to indulge now.

  She shifted her body to press even closer to his. “What if I said that I don’t want to wait any longer and that you couldn’t possibly want me more than I want you?”

  She could tell her words had the intended effect when his eyes darkened even more.

  “In other words, Quasar,” she continued, “my body is ready for that pleasure oil.”

  And then, leaning up on tiptoe, she pressed her mouth against his.

  * * *

  QUASAR’S ARMS TIGHTENED around Randi the moment her mouth touched his. It was like a match igniting a keg of dynamite. Never had he felt this obsessed with a woman, filled with this degree of sexual need. The luscious taste of her tongue was drawing everything out of him, making his desire for her intensify, enthralling him to the point that even his shoulders burned in agony for wanting her.

  And speaking of shoulders...

  He suddenly broke off the kiss, and she looked at him with questioning eyes and dewy lips. “I need to take this off,” he said, sliding the holster and gun from his shoulders and placing both on a table within reach.

  “Now, where were we?” he asked, pulling her back into his arms and lowering his mouth to hers in an openmouthed, deep-as-you-could-go wet kiss. He preferred going slow for starters, but his hunger for her overrode any thought of dawdling. Especially not when rushes of desire were clutching and clawing at his insides. His hands spread wide across her backside as their tongues mingled and mated in a way that had blood whooshing through his veins.

  Quasar felt his erection throb hard against his zipper. He felt it expand to the point that it was almost painful. The only comfort was in the way it felt pressing against her.

  When was the last time he’d been this aroused? Sizzling heat was flowing through them, and she had to feel it to the degree he did. Then there was the feel of her nipples pressing hard against his chest.

  And as if his sanity being tested wasn’t bad enough, she shifted her stance to part her legs, cradling his erection between them. At that moment, need for her thickened his blood and sent shivers of desire plowing through him.

  He momentarily broke off the kiss and rested his forehead against hers. He’d become a man drowning in the taste, scent and feel of her. A man caught between the edges of too much and not enough. “If you keep this up,” he whispered close to her wet lips, “you’re liable to get more from me than pleasure oil.”

  “What else will I get? Spell it out for me.”

  He did.

  While holding her gaze, he told her in explicit terms while intermittently placing kisses around her mouth. He told her exactly what he intended to do, how he intended to do it and for how long. The heated licks and greedy strokes of his tongue around her mouth only added to the narrative.

  He felt her quivering in his arms from his descriptive words. She even moaned a few times, when he told her how he planned to go down on her, use his tongue to taste her between her legs and make her come. And when he told her how he would enter her body and just how deep he intended to go. And when he told her that he wanted to get her from behind and tilt up her ass at just the right angle to pump inside her while thrusting hard and hearing the sound of flesh slapping against flesh. Repeating the process over and over. The sinfully erotic movement of her hips against his middle indicated she was able to picture it and was turned on by what he was telling her.

  He soon discovered his own body wasn’t exactly immune to what he was saying, either. He could feel his erection get harder, and the need to make love to her was hammering sensations all through him. This was the first time he’d ever done such a thing—tell a woman his sexual plans. He was typically an I-will-show-you sort of guy. However, with Randi he wanted to tell all, show all and do all.

  “You’re planning on every bit of that, huh?” she asked in a breathless whisper.

  Quasar couldn’t help but smile. She evidently hadn’t expected his candidness. Instead of answering, he continued to use his tongue to lick across her lips, cheeks and jaw before leaning in close to nibble her earlobe a few times. He whispered, “I’m planning on every bit of that and then some. This will be a night you’ll remember for a long time, Randi Fuller.”

  With that said, he swept her up into his arms and headed for the bedroom.

  * * *

  RANDI SHUDDERED WHEN Quasar placed her on the huge bed—one that neither of them had slept in the night before. If he did even half the things he’d told her moments ago, she figured her entire body would collapse in pleasure to an extent she wasn’t certain she could bear.

  “Whatever you’re thinking, hold those thoughts for a second. I’ll be right back.” He moved quickly to the door. Before reaching it he stopped and added, “Don’t remove your clothes, because I want to do it. Stripping you naked is something I’ve dreamed about for months.”

  And then he was gone. A rush of desire raced through Randi at what he’d said. He’d dreamed of stripping off her clothes for months. Her pulse kicked up a notch...not that it needed any more jolting. Sitting up, she removed her shoes and pulled the band from her hair before lying back down. He’d blatantly painted all those erotic scenarios, and lying here waiting for him to return was filling her with sexual excitement. Anticipation was curling in her stomach.

  After such a hellish day, she would have given anything for a night to remember in Quasar’s arms. The intensity of her need for him should have blown her away, definitely rocked common sense back into her brain. But the only thing rocking was the buildup between her legs. When it came to her desire for him, there was no restraint or control, just a convulsion of sexual energy that couldn’t be contained. It had been that way from the first, and three months later, not
hing had changed. If what he’d said was true, it had been the same for him.

  Their mating would’ve happened eventually. He didn’t know all the things that she knew about them. What the future could hold. In a way, she could say it was for her to know and for him to find out. It would be up to her to earn his love, but she knew at that moment he had already earned hers. She had fallen in love with him.

  Suddenly all those what-ifs tried clamoring to the forefront. She deftly pushed them to the back of her mind as she said softly to herself, “I want my night to remember.”

  “And I intend to give it to you.”

  She gasped and quickly pulled herself up in bed. Quasar was standing in the doorway with his hair around his shoulders, looking wild, untamed and so powerfully male that she had to fight back a groan. “How long have you been standing there?”

  “Not long,” he said, moving toward the bed with his gun and holster in one hand and packs of condoms in the other. She pointed at the latter. “Thinking to use all of those?”

  He gave her a grin as he placed the gun and holster on the nightstand and dropped the condoms beside them. “A man can hope.”

  He sat on the side of the bed and surprised her when he said, “I think I covered a lot earlier...about what I want to do to you and all the pleasure I intend for you to get out of it. But if there’s something I said that you’re uncomfortable with, then...”

  “No,” she quickly said. “I’m not uncomfortable with any of it.” She knew some men would not have cared one way or the other, and that endeared him to her even more. If he hadn’t earned her love before, this doubly swung the pendulum his way.

  She scooted closer to him and looked into the dark eyes staring at her. Eyes belonging to the man she’d fallen in love with. “I want you to make love to me,” she said softly. “I want you to do all those things you said, Quasar.”

  A smile touched his lips as he stood and pulled her up with him. “And tonight you’ll get all you want.”