Seducing the Ruthless Rogue
Publication Date: October 19, 2014
Also in this series: Taming the Wicked Wulfe
Genres: Historical, Romance
Synopsis:
As Director of The War Office, Stuart McKenzie, has proven himself capable of making difficult decisions in times of crisis and keeping government secrets safe. When he walks in on someone ransacking his study he quickly moves to apprehend them, only to be tossed on his back as the burglar escapes into the night.Cassie’s father has become a pawn in the fight against Napoleon. When the enemy kidnaps him, she will do anything it takes to get him back – including stealing government secrets from Stuart McKenzie, the Director of the War Office.
When Cassie is caught, she reluctantly agrees to Mack’s assistance as there is something far more sinister going on. As Mack embarks on his mission, he will find that enemies are often closer than one would think and that sometimes your ally will come in the least likely form. When passion erupts between Mack and Cassie, they find their lives forever altered. But just as they believe their lives to be free of danger, a new threat is lurking about, promising to rip their happiness away from them. Will they be able to trust each other enough to defeat this new threat, or will they be torn apart for all eternity?
EXCERPT:
Never
in his life had Mack been more angry than when he heard Cassie slam that bolt
into place. Not when his father had disowned him. Not even
when Cassie had called him a
bastard. No, when he had heard that telling snick, he had
seen red. Before he knew what he was
doing, he had raised his booted foot and slammed it into the
door near the doorknob. Mack had
felt great satisfaction when the door flew open, and even
more when he witnessed the stunned
expression on his wife’s face.
“You’re
not going to get away from me,” he stalked her across the room.
“Don’t
make me hurt you,” she threatened.
“I have
studied your moves, Cassie darlin’. You’ll not be hurting me anymore.”
Cassie
made a sharp move and found it countered. She tried another one and found the
same. He moved on her like a jungle cat. He pinned her
against the wall, her hands above her
head. He felt her breathing grow fast and labored and knew
she was not unaffected by his touch.
Mack forced her legs wide so he could wedge himself between
them. At first he did it to keep
her from attempting to unman him, but as he settled against
her, he felt some relief as his
throbbing erection pressed against the span of softness
between her pelvis.
“Do you
feel what you do to me?” he whispered. He placed a soft kiss on her forehead.
Mack pulled back and saw that her eyes were tightly closed,
and her lips were pursed shut. He
dropped gentle kisses over each of her eyes, then her
cheeks, and finally the upturned tip of her
nose. His lips caressed hers, lightly, teasingly, but she
remained the same, trying to block out
what he did to her. Mack let the tip of his tongue glide
against the seam of her lips and though
her eyes flew open, her delectable mouth remained tightly
shut against his invasion. She left him
no choice. “Forgive me, darlin’,” he said before crushing
his lips roughly against hers.
***
“Ow!”
Cassie managed to get out before she found Mack exploring the recesses of her
mouth. Her lips throbbed where he had ground them against
her teeth, but somehow he seemed
to soothe even that small injury. She felt her heart beating
heavily in her chest. Cassie would be
lying if she said she was not the least excited about what
her husband was doing to her.
Husband, she thought. She had never thought she would find
herself married. The boys in the
village had always thought her much too strange and learned
for them. Then when their little
family had moved to London after her mother’s death, she had
not gone about looking for a
husband or friends.
“Where
are you?” he asked, resting his forehead against hers.
Cassie found herself staring into a pair of smokey silver
eyes, rimmed with dark lashes.
Dark brows formed a ‘V’ from the way he scrutinized her.
Cassie flexed her hands that were still
pinned above her head because her fingers ached to rake
through his short, dark hair. She
wanted to test the texture. Was it silky or coarse? “Do you
know you have flecks of silver in
your hair?” she asked curiously.
“I
would say half of them have been caused by you.”
“Me? We
haven’t even known each other that long. How dare you accuse me…”
“Did you know your eyes flash when you’re angry? They look
like they are lit from
within.”
“Let go
of me.”
“Not on
your life,” he said.
Cassie
didn’t fight him as he plundered her mouth like a marauding pirate. This time
there was no way her mind drifted. The things he was doing
to her were making her insides
melt. She began to respond, and she heard a deep groan.
“That’s
it,” he said before returning to her mouth once more. This time he nibbled at
her
lips as if they were a fine delicacy. “You look so bloody
beautiful,” he whispered as he moved to
nibble on her right earlobe.
“No, I
don’t,” she replied breathily. “I’m just plain.”
“Whoever
told you that was a liar.” Mack bent down and lifted her up in his arms.
“What
are you doing?”
“Taking
you to bed.”
She
started wiggling in his arms. “Put me down. You were going to sleep elsewhere.
Besides it’s afternoon, you said so.”
“You
put paid to me staying in another room when you bolted that door.” He held her
tight in his arms. “As for the time of day, I can see you
better this way.”
“That’s
improper!” Cassie was flabbergasted at what he proposed. She knew what
happened between a man and woman, but assumed it happened in
the dark of night.
“Nothing
is improper between a husband and wife.”
He
sounded almost wicked and shivers ran up and down her spine. She found herself
placed on her feet next to the bed and spun around so that
her back was to Mack. Cool air hit her
heated skin as buttons were slipped free.
“I
don’t know whether to thank Mikala or murder her.”
“Why’s
that?” Cassie licked her dry lips, her breath raspy.
“Because
she picked the most exquisite dress, but it also has too many bloody buttons.”
Cassie giggled.
“Did
you just giggle? The staid and always serious Cassiopeia Elizabeth Graham
McKenzie giggled?”
“No,”
she denied, attempting to keep a straight face. She jumped when she felt his
lips
brush her nape, and then lower until he reached the edge of
her chemise. She tried to take a step
away from him, but he just followed her.
“You’re
not going to escape me, Cassie.”
She felt his lips brushing along one shoulder, then her nape
again, and finally her other
shoulder. His hand brushed along her spine, only the fine
cloth of her chemise keeping her from
fully feeling his touch on her heated skin. “Copulating will
not erase the issues between us.”
“I
agree, but it will ease some of this tension we feel around one another.”
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