by Raine Miller
He ran his hands through her hair, reveling in the softness against his fingers, as she moaned her desire against his lips. Cradling her face, he held her in front of him and spoke what his heart had hidden since he’d made her one of his own.
“Sasa, you mean more to me than anything in this world. Every day without you was torture, but know that I had no choice. I need you to know that no matter what happens with the Archons, you’re everything to me.”
Closing her eyes, Sasa smiled and kissed him tenderly. “I forgive you. But I need to know you won’t do that again. I want to be a part of this. I know I’m not one of the Sons of Navarus, but I want to stop these bastards as much as you. Let me help you do that.”
Vasilije began to speak, but just then his cell phone began vibrating on the dresser across the room.
Placing a kiss sweetly on the tip of her nose, he whispered, “Don’t move. We’ll pick this up right where we left off.”
Vasilije answered and the voice on the other end of the phone spoke one word and then there was silence. Turning to Sasa, a knot formed in his stomach as he repeated what his spy had reported. They’d chosen the next one of them to die.
“Saint.”
THE END
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Turn the page to read The Invitation by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Janelle Denison writing as Erika Wilde or return to the TABLE OF CONTENTS.
The Invitation By Erika Wilde
THE INVITATION . . .
After months of indulging in some of the hottest sex of his married life, Dean Noble intends to give Jillian a very special gift for their twentieth anniversary . . . an invitation that will take them beyond their wildest, most erotic fantasies.
THE PLAYERS CLUB . . .
Jillian is more than willing to accept her husband’s invitation, and together they enter a provocative world where boundaries are pushed to the limit, pleasure is the ultimate goal, and Dean is able to embrace those darker desires he’s kept a tight rein on all these years. But when Dean’s alpha tendencies extend outside of the bedroom, a battle of wills ensues, and it’s up to Jillian to show her husband that she’s all for submission games in the playroom, but when it comes to her needs outside the bedroom he’ll have to learn to compromise.
Turn the page for The Invitation by New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Janelle Denison writing as Erika Wilde or return to the TABLE OF CONTENTS.
CHAPTER 1
“I can’t believe you’re getting a drink with me instead of going home to your wife. Don’t even tell me that there’s trouble in paradise.”
Dean grinned at his best friend, Brent “Mac” MacMillan, who sat on a bar stool beside him at a local joint they frequented after work to relax and unwind. Though, admittedly, ever since Jillian had shown up at Dean’s office weeks ago and propositioned him with spicing up their sex lives, he’d spent a helluva lot more time at home with his wife, than hanging out with the guys.
“Trust me, the only reason I’m sitting here with you instead of being at home with Jillian is because I have a huge favor to ask.”
“Anything,” Mac said sincerely. “Just ask and it’s yours.”
Dean knew he spoke the truth because they’d always had each other’s backs. They’d met in the Navy and served in the same SEAL platoon and were now business partners at Noble and Associates, the security firm that Dean and Mac had established when they’d retired from the military a few years ago. The two of them had started the company doing oddball security gigs, but with their training and experience they’d quickly become a prominent, multi-million dollar firm specializing in executive protection and corporate threat management.
Becoming a successful, viable corporation had taken a lot of time and dedication on both their parts, but all the blood, sweat, and leaner times had been well worth the sacrifice. Dean couldn’t imagine any other partner than Mac. He was the brother Dean never had, and the one person he trusted implicitly.
Dean took a drink from his bottle of beer before getting to the point of the conversation. “Remember a few years ago when you asked if I was interested in an invitation to The Players Club?” The Players Club, a huge, massive estate located outside of San Diego in the hills of Fallbrook, was an exclusive, members-only society that catered to the erotic and forbidden. The only way to get inside the private, elite mansion was by invitation only by a current member, which Mac was.
“Yeah, I remember,” Mac replied, a hint of curiosity tingeing his drawl. “And I distinctly recall you turning down the offer saying it wasn’t Jillian’s thing. Has that changed?”
“Possibly.” He’d never brought up the subject of The Players Club to his wife, but considering how open-minded Jillian had become, he figured it was a good time to introduce yet another fantasy he’d entertained for years. And with their twentieth anniversary coming up, it seemed like the perfect gift, for the both of them.
Mac studied Dean for a moment before realization dawned. “Does this have anything to do with that day when Jillian dropped by your office, the two of you spent some time alone, and she left with a big smile on her face and looking a bit disheveled?”
“Noticed that, did you?”
A knowing smirk curved the corner of Mac’s lips. “Along with the fact that you couldn’t concentrate on shit after she walked out.”
Dean laughed, unable to deny his friend’s claim. He had very fond memories of that day in his office — the day that changed so much between him and his wife, for the better. “Jillian has decided that with both the boys grown and out of the house, it’s time to focus on us and making our sex life more interesting and daring.”
“And how’s that working out?” Mac asked before finishing off his beer.
“Fucking fantastic.” Dean grinned. He wasn’t one to share details, but he had to admit that even beyond the phenomenal sex, they’d become closer as a couple. Their relationship was more intimate, their interaction on a daily basis more fun and flirty.
“Lucky bastard,” Mac muttered begrudgingly.
“What are you complaining about?” Dean asked, amused by his friend’s envious statement. “You always have some hot bombshell ready and willing to warm your bed.”
“Not the same thing.” Mac sighed as he absently wiped away the condensation on his beer bottle with his fingers. “You’re lucky because your marriage has lasted nearly twenty years and you still seem to be enjoying a smokin’ hot sex life. Do you know how rare that is?”
Realizing which road they were suddenly traveling, Dean grew serious. “You tried really hard to make your marriage work, Mac. You just rescued the wrong woman, and you never should have married her.”
Mac’s lips thinned, as they always did whenever they talked about the one woman who’d ripped his heart out and stomped on it for good measure. “I’m done rescuing. Period. It’s not worth the fucking hassle or emotional turmoil.”
Dean didn’t argue, and just hoped that the right woman came along to change Mac’s mind someday. But at the age of thirty-six, Mac was set in his ways and certain he was better off a bachelor who kept things simple and temporary. And being a member of The Players Club offered him easy, uncomplicated sex with a woman who enjoyed the same level of kink that he did.
“So, do you think Jillian is ready for a place like The Players Club?” Mac asked, effectively changing the subject off him and his failed marriage.
“I think she could be, yes,” Dean replied. “She’s become more adventurous lately, so I’d like to give her the option of accepting the invitation, or not, though I’m not interested in swinging or sharing.” As he’d already learned that night she’d taken him to a night club, that point was absolutely non-negotiable.
“Trust me, there’s something for everyone at The Players Club,” Mac said, obviously speaking from his own pe
rsonal experience. “And there are certain basic rules, and everyone abides by them or they’re immediately banned. Nobody’s going to touch Jillian.”
“Not if they value their lives,” Dean said, meaning it.
Mac chuckled and pushed his empty beer bottle across the bar. “Are you sure she’ll be okay?” he asked, concern lacing his voice. “And I’m not referring to just the sexual atmosphere, but the fact that she’ll know people there. Like me, and a lot of our other guys.”
Dean had already thought about that. “You’ve already assured me that there is a confidentiality clause in the contract that everyone signs, so I’m assuming that whatever happens at the club, stays at the club?”
Mac nodded. “Yes, and for those clients who don’t know you, there are no last names exchanged to protect your privacy, as well.”
Which was all very reassuring to Dean. “Then it’s up to Jillian and how comfortable she is with everything.” She would be the deciding factor, because he wasn’t going to put his wife in situation that made her uneasy.
“Fair enough,” Mac said in understanding. “I’ll make a call and you should have the invitation in a few days.”
“Perfect.” Just in time for their twentieth anniversary. “I appreciate it.”
***
Jillian walked into Sugar and Spice, an upscale adult boutique that specialized in selling fun, sexy toys, gorgeous lingerie, and other erotic novelty items. Located in a cluster of other specialty type businesses that catered to a sophisticated clientele, Sugar and Spice had become one of her favorite places to shop lately, and had provided her and Dean with plenty of sensual ideas to help fulfill many of their fantasies.
Ultimately, this store had helped to revive her marriage, had increased her confidence as a woman, and had given her husband the permission to truly embrace that dominant alpha male in the bedroom. Or rather, their newly designed playroom, which was now filled with all sorts of provocative toys and gadgets.
“Hey, Jillian,” a familiar female voice greeted her.
“Hi, Raina,” Jillian returned, smiling at the beautiful blonde haired woman who owned the boutique, and who had also become a good friend.
It was early afternoon, and the store was quiet. Other than Aaron – a good looking, muscular guy who doubled as a bodyguard for Raina, and as a sales person when needed – there wasn’t anyone else in the place. From across the store in the video section, Aaron acknowledged her with a friendly nod before returning to stocking the shelves.
Raina came around the front counter, wearing a pair of white denim jeans, a pink top, and a pair of high heels that accentuated her long legs. The woman had a body of a centerfold, and Jillian had seen many male customers stare at her with obvious lust, but she never returned their interest or flirtatious, persuasive come-ons. Raina had once told Jillian that she never mixed business with pleasure, and considering she owned an adult boutique, dating men always came with certain expectations she had no intentions of fulfilling.
“What brings you in today?” Raina asked, always eager to help.
“I’m looking for some sexy lingerie to wear,” Jillian said.
“I thought I heard Jillian’s voice!” Another woman appeared from the back of the store carrying a few hangers displaying her gorgeous, one-of-a-kind corset creations that she sold at Sugar and Spice, and commissioned for customers. “A lady can never have enough sexy lingerie, that’s for sure.”
Jillian grinned at Paige, a red-head with voluptuous curves who wasn’t afraid to flaunt them, and an outrageous personality that always amused Jillian. “So true.”
Raina looped her arm through Jillian’s and guided her toward the lingerie section. “Did you have something particular in mind?”
“Maybe another corset?” Paige piped in, lifting one of the satin-lined hangers to reveal a stunning bustier made with emerald satin, pearls, and feathers. “I just finished this one this morning, and I have to admit I’m having a hard time putting it on display, instead of keeping it for myself.”
Jillian could understand why. The corset was exotic and seductive, yet fun, too. “My husband loved the red leather corset you custom made for me,” she said, thinking back to when she’d played the dominatrix to her husband’s slave in the playroom a few weeks ago. “But I think I want something more elegant.”
Raina raised a curious brow. “Special occasion coming up?”
“Yes, my twentieth anniversary,” she said as she looked through a rack of baby doll nighties – all pretty and sexy, but nothing that wowed her.
Paige’s green eyes rounded in shock. “Oh my God, did Dean rob the cradle with you?”
“You don’t look old enough to be married twenty years!” Raina added, equally stunned.
Jillian laughed. “Thanks for the compliment, but I’m thirty-eight.”
Paige arranged one of her corsets on a display mannequin. “So, you were eighteen when you got married?” she asked, obviously having done the quick math in her head. “And you’re still married?”
“Yes, and yes,” Jillian said in answer to each question. “Happily so.”
“And clearly, Dean is still crazy about you,” Raina said, a soft, wistful sigh escaping her. “Whenever he comes in here and mentions your name, he always gets this crazy-sexy grin on his face.”
Yes, she was very fortunate to have a husband who still adored her.
“What do you think of this?” Raina asked, holding up a sheer red chemise trimmed in black lace for her to see.
“Too short and revealing,” Jillian said with a shake of her head, knowing if Dean saw that on her he’d be way too distracted. She wanted to tease him, not turn him into the uncontrollable sexy beast he became whenever he saw her naked. That outfit would be like waving a red flag in front of a perpetual horny bull, she thought in amusement. “I’d like something sexy, yet subtle and romantic,” she told Raina.
“Gotcha. You want to leave a little to the imagination.”
Jillian grinned. “Exactly.”
Raina nodded in understanding and headed toward a rack displaying more luxurious, high end lingerie. “So, what made you get married so young?” she asked curiously as she looked through the selection of rich silks, clearly looking for something specific.
“I got knocked up,” Jillian replied.
A startled look transformed Raina’s expression, and embarrassment pinkened her cheeks. “Oh, God, I’m so sorry . . . I didn’t mean to be nosey . . . it really isn’t any of my business.”
Jillian chuckled at Raina’s flustered composure. “It’s not a big deal. I was young, in love, and it was hard to resist Dean’s bad boy charm,” she said honestly, though it had been more than just his tough, sexy image and cajoling ways that had led her to give Dean her virginity at the age of seventeen.
She could clearly recall that fateful night, when she’d seen such agony in his eyes and discovered just how wounded he was on the inside, that beneath his rough, I’m-a-rebel personality was a boy who was scarred by a father’s verbal and physical abuse. And despite being a good girl who always followed her parent’s strict rules, she’d ignored their disapproval of Dean and followed her heart.
That dark, stormy night, his pain had become her own and all she’d wanted was to let him know that he was loved, so she’d replaced his torment with the deepest, most intimate thing she could give him. Her body and innocence.
Getting pregnant certainly hadn’t been part of the plan, but twenty years later she could look back and know that it all happened the way it was supposed to. Dean was her soul-mate and there wasn’t anything up to this point that she’d change about her life.
But now that the kids were grown and gone, a part of her was starting to feel restless and sometimes even bored —– not with her marriage, but her daily routine. There was nothing to fill her time while Dean was at work, nothing that gave her a reason to wake up excited in the morning or left her with a sense of accomplishment at the end of the day. Her entire world had
revolved around her husband and boys for nearly twenty years, and now that she had too much time on her hands she was beginning to crave something for herself.
Even if she did have an idea in mind, she wasn’t sure how Dean would react to her taking a job when he was a man who’d made it very clear that he would take care of his wife and family — in all the ways his father never had. Dean had always been determined that she’d never have to work and prided himself on being the sole provider. For her, it wasn’t about the money, but she wasn’t sure that he could differentiate the two in his mind, considering the emotionally painful dynamics between his own mother and father.
Jillian shook those thoughts from her head, and redirected her mind to the conversation at hand between herself, Raina, and Paige. “I know getting pregnant wasn’t an ideal situation for a teenager in high school,” Jillian admitted. “But I have two great boys and a husband who is-”
“Hotter and more sinful than the devil himself,” Paige interrupted with her own interpretation of Dean.
“Paige!” Raina said, scolding her friend for her candid outburst.
“What, it’s the truth,” Paige replied unapologetically, her hands on her curvy hips. “That man is sex on a stick and there is nothing wrong with me visually appreciating that fine body of his. Isn’t that right, Jillian?”
Jillian couldn’t argue with Paige’s logic. “Hey, the ‘you can look but don’t touch’ rule certainly works for me.” Actually, she found Paige’s description of Dean flattering. It was nice to know that other women were envious, and Jillian was secure enough in her relationship and marriage to feel no threat whatsoever.
“Ah, here it is,” Raina announced as she pulled a hanger from the rack. “I think this is exactly what you’re looking for. Subtly sexy, but soft and romantic.”
