Seduction Squad: Tainted
By Amanda Stewart
The members of Seduction Squad are beautiful, skillful and deadly. Trained in the twin arts of seduction and assassination, their mission is to discover the darkest secrets of the world’s most powerful men.
Sex, secrets and slaughter
On Christie Mason’s eighteenth birthday, crime boss Theo Ward took her virginity and walked out of her life without a backward glance. She’s quietly nursed a broken heart for ten years, but now, all signs point to Theo having masterminded her father’s downfall. For that, “Uncle Theo” will pay.
In exchange for induction into the Seduction Squad, Christie will gain access to Theo’s lavish floating sex party and take out a powerful Colombian politician—one of the Squad’s untouchable targets.
What she’ll do to Theo is her reward.
Christie hadn’t bargained on her body betraying her, or on Theo still being all she ever wanted. And while Theo can’t get enough of Christie, he’s suspicious—and on borrowed time: Christie’s not the only party guest out for revenge.
This book is approximately 33,000 words
One-click with confidence. This title is part of the Carina Press Romance Promise: all the romance you’re looking for with an HEA/HFN. It’s a promise!
Carina Press acknowledges the editorial services of Lauren Plude
Dear Reader,
As book lovers, no matter how much we want our favorite stories to go on forever, we know that eventually they will come to an end. The same is sadly true of my monthly letter to you. While I know some of you do look forward to this letter, we’ve decided that we can no longer continue to include it for some practical reasons, which I don’t want to bore you with. So this will be my last letter to you all. But never fear, the good books will continue to come every month and that is what’s most important!
Still, I get one last chance to tell you all about the amazing books we have in store for you, and I’m going to take full advantage of the opportunity. Are you ready?
Powerhouse author duo Alexa Riley follows up their bestselling full-length novels Everything for Her and His Alone with a trilogy of spin-off novellas. First up, in Stay Close, a Russian bad boy will do whatever it takes to conquer her headstrong ways and make her his. And don’t miss the next two novellas, releasing later in 2017 and early in 2018, as well as their third full-length novel, Claimed, coming in spring 2018.
At Noble House, a first-of-its-kind hybrid fetish club that blends real life with the online, three lovers reunite to explore role play and high-tech toys as they battle demons from the past that could threaten their future. Sara Brookes’s Get Off Easy is only the first in her supercharged erotic romance series, Noble House Kink.
The male/male romance Ethan & Wyatt trilogy by K.A. Mitchell is now available in one volume in mass market print, audio and digital formats. Opposites attract and ignite on campus as optimistic, open-hearted and sometimes clueless Ethan meets Wyatt, who has plenty of reasons for hiding under his hoodie. Together they face a jealous ex, disapproving parents and the most dangerous test of all: real life together off campus.
Hot in the City author Jules Court is back with her third contemporary romance novella, Tease Me Tonight. Elizabeth Owens spent the last eight years as the responsible and celibate guardian of her little sister, but now Megan’s left the nest, and Elizabeth’s ready to let her wild side out with firefighter Will MacGregor. The only problem is Will wants a connection with Elizabeth that will last longer than one steamy night, and he knows if he gives in too soon to their attraction he’ll lose her. You can also pick up Hot in the City and Enticing the Enemy in digital, wherever Carina ebooks are sold.
In Betrayed by Blood, the second installment in Beth Dranoff’s romantic urban fantasy Mark of the Moon series, covert agent turned bartender Dana is drawn back to her Agency past by an offer she can’t refuse from a guy she never thought she’d see again. Lured by curiosity, and torn between freedom and restraint, Dana has to decide whether she’s ready to look to the future while leaving the scars of her past behind.
Romantic suspense author Katie Ruggle, writing as Katie Allen, joins Carina Press with the first of several erotic romance backlist releases leading up to her fall 2017 new erotic romance release. In her Research & Desire series, we’ll publish Erotic Experiments, Natural Selection, Carnal Chemistry and Double Dose in back-to-back months from July through October. Then look for book one of her new series in November 2017.
Ten years after he rejected her, the Seduction Squad’s newest recruit, Christie Mason, finally has the chance to get her revenge on Theo Ward, but there are some fantasies that are best left in the past and some taboos that should never be explored in Seduction Squad: Tainted by Amanda Stewart.
Robyn Bachar’s Contingency Plan is the next in her sci-fi romance series, The Galactic Cold War. Privateer pilot Lieutenant Jiang Chen searches for the location of a terrible superweapon, but when the mission threatens to reveal the dangerous secrets of her past, Jiang’s only ally is sexy chief of security Ryder Kalani, who is battling demons of his own. Start with book one, Relaunch Mission, today!
Fans of TV show The 100 will want to read Zaide Bishop’s Bones of Eden series. Releasing in three volumes in July and August, these continuing stories have it all, from forbidden love to war to a race for survival. First Fall comes out in early July, followed by Second Heart later in July and Third Wave in August.
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For one final time, fellow readers and book lovers, here’s wishing you a wonderful life of books you love, remember and recommend.
Happy reading!
~Angela James
Executive Editor, Carina Press
Contents
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Also by Amanda Stewart
About the Author
Chapter One
Christie
There may have been easier ways to get my revenge. Public humiliation. Hire someone to slit his throat. Or better still, keep him alive. Leave that big, beautiful body broken. I’d considered all the options. But I wanted to get up close. I wanted to look into his eyes. Wanted to watch him suffer. Easy wasn’t an option.
Sex, secrets and slaughter. The unofficial motto of the Seduction Squad. I had been trained in the twin arts of seduction and assassination. Had it been easy? No, it had been hell. But I was ready for him now.
Ten years ago, he had seared my body with his touch. He had reached into my chest, torn out my heart and cast it aside without a backward glance. Six months ago, he had crushed my world bene
ath his heel. Now I was coming for him. I wanted to leave my mark on his soul.
* * *
“Remember, this is just the start.”
The caution in the Signora’s voice was a reminder that there was a long way to go before I could say I had succeeded. But, as I sank onto the luxurious bed and listened to the sounds of the crew on deck preparing for departure, I allowed myself a tiny sigh of relief. Just one. When I started out on this venture, I hadn’t seriously believed I would get this far. Hoped, maybe. Schemed to make it happen. Even gone through a fast-track induction into the Seduction Squad, that exclusive, hand-picked group of women whose mission was to seduce or kill—and sometimes seduce and kill—the most powerful men in the world. Now I was here. I was on board the luxury yacht called The Dark Side and, for the first time, I felt a surge of anticipation. Soon I would be face to face with Theo Ward for the first time in ten years. How would he react? I almost laughed out loud. How the hell was I supposed to answer that question when I had no idea how I was going to react?
“Ferran Garcia will be boarding The Dark Side in four days’ time for one of Theo’s private parties. It is your job to ensure he doesn’t leave that boat alive. What you do in the meantime is your business. It’s too dangerous to call again. Message if you need help.” The Signora paused before ending the call. “And be careful, Chris. I know you and Theo Ward have history, but that man is not a normal client.”
The other squad members all used aliases. In my case it had hardly seemed worth the effort. Theo already knew my real name. In the end, the Signora and I had compromised, shortening my name from Christie to Chris.
As I slid my cell phone into my purse, there was a knock on the cabin door and I hesitated. What if it was him? If Theo saw me before we sailed, my plan was over before it had begun. The element of surprise would be lost. There was a good chance I would be off this boat so fast my designer heels wouldn’t touch the gangplank.
I rose from the bed and looked through the spy hole in the door. The wide-angle view showed me a man in uniform. I recognized him, although he hadn’t been in uniform the last time I’d seen him. Forcing my breathing into a semblance of normality, I opened the door.
“I am Paolo, the Chief Steward. I have brought the clothing you will be required to wear for the evening’s entertainment.” He handed me a garment bag and a shoe box. “There are instructions included on how to do your hair and makeup. Please follow them precisely.”
I had first seen Paolo a week ago when, along with a number of other young, blonde women, I had turned up at a bland office two floors above a computer games store. I had filled out a questionnaire and had my photograph taken, before being shown into a room for an interview.
Yes, I was responding to the advertisement I had seen online. That was a lie. The Signora had done her research and found out how Theo selected his onboard companions.
No, I had not been on board The Dark Side before.
Yes, I understood that the job would require me to perform sexual favors in return for payment.
Yes, I was willing to act as a hostess at the client’s private party.
Paolo had been seated in a corner of the room, watching me closely as I answered the questions. Although he didn’t speak, I got the feeling the final decision was his. His expression now as he handed me the items was neutral. If he had a problem with being Theo’s pimp, he didn’t show it.
Since I didn’t know how many garment bags Paolo had distributed before he had reached me, or how many he still had to give out, I knew nothing about the competition. How many other women had gotten through the interview process? I got the feeling Paolo wouldn’t be open to answering questions on that subject.
Still, it couldn’t hurt to try and get him talking. “When do we sail?”
“Soon.” He turned away. It was a clear signal that our conversation was over.
I returned to my cabin and locked the door behind me. Not that I seriously imagined Theo was going to come bursting in on me. And, if he did, what was I going to do? Refuse to let him in? He was paying a hell of a lot of money for my services. Services I was well trained to deliver. Ten years was a long time and a lot had changed. Maybe this time he would like what he saw enough to see it through.
I told myself that once we sailed this feeling of nervousness would disappear. This was what I had planned. I was here. On Theo’s boat. Even if he didn’t choose me to share his twisted little games tonight, I was determined to force a confrontation.
But he was going to choose me. I would make sure of it.
Placing the garment bag on the bed, I undid the zipper and removed the clothes. And—oh, shit—this was even more screwed up than I had imagined it would be. As I stared down at the familiar items, the powerful engines kicked into life and I staggered slightly with the roll of the boat as we began to move. There really was no going back.
This was the outfit I had worn on my eighteenth birthday. Not something similar. This. Exactly. Every item was perfectly replicated. Theo must have a photographic memory. Even the panties were the right make and color. And they had been ripped off before he’d really seen them...
I laid each item out on the bed. Denim miniskirt. Navy-blue bra top. Black lace blazer. Those white lace panties that hadn’t survived the onslaught of his rough hands. A shudder ran through me at the memory. Inside the shoe box I found a pair of black, knee-high boots. God, I’d loved those boots. The size was perfect. At the end of the interview, when I’d been informed that I was successful, the guy who called himself a “recruiter”, had taken down details of my measurements.
I took a moment to consider the implications of what I was seeing. How many times since I’d last seen him had Theo handed out one of these replica outfits? How many women had pretended to be me? Erotic images crowded in on me and I shoved them aside, alarmed at how they made me feel, not wanting to give way to an emotion so strong it threatened to bring me to my knees.
Although my mind was a jumble of wild notions, some clear thoughts gradually began to emerge.
Ten years later, and he still wants his women to look like me. I probably shouldn’t like it that I was his fantasy. It shouldn’t make me hot. But it did. I had been eighteen, he had been twenty-six. Now, at last, the balance of power had shifted. Maybe I should be creeped out. I wasn’t. If I was honest, I was unbearably turned on at the thought of Theo paying women to dress up in the clothes I’d worn that night.
I had spent the last ten years believing Theo had forgotten me right around the time he ruined my life. The knowledge I wasn’t the only one who had spent a decade reliving that night soothed my hurt pride like an emotional orgasm. Our dark, shared kink made me feel dirty and strong at the same time. I was energized by the realization that I could do this. I could hit Theo where it hurt. Right in his near-incest powered hard-on. I didn’t need the instructions on how to do my hair and makeup. Every second of that night was imprinted on my mind. Memories of the party I’d gone to were hazy. Not because I’d been drinking. The couple of beers I’d had at the start of the evening had worn off long before I’d returned home. No, the things that had lingered in my memory were to do with Theo. The look in his eyes when I walked into his bedroom. How his lips felt on mine. His tongue in my mouth. His hands rough on my breasts as he tugged down my bra top. The hot, heavy weight of his cock against my thigh as I straddled him.
I shuddered with remembered hunger. But this wasn’t about that night. No matter how much my mind—and the throbbing in my clit—tried to take me back there. This was about now. It was about redressing the balance. Once that was done, the Signora had given me a job to do. When I walked back down that gangplank, I was going to do it with my head held high.
Chapter Two
Theo
I tossed my jacket and tie onto the bed in my cabin and went over to the bar. As I reached for the bottle
of my favorite 40-year-old Scotch, I rolled my neck to relieve the coiled tension in my muscles. I had spent the last few days in my own special hell, and I had earned this break. The Dark Side was my escape from reality. Seven years ago, I had bought it from a Saudi Arabian prince for that purpose. When your reality looked like mine, a fantasy world was a necessity.
So what if my fantasies were so fucked up even I didn’t want to examine them too closely? Luckily, I was rich enough to be able to keep that aspect of my personality hidden. I paid my staff well. They didn’t share my secrets. Even so, there were rumors. There were stories about the sort of parties I held on my yacht. Probably some of the women had talked about how much I paid them and what I asked them to do. The details of the small talk remained hazy and I ignored the speculation. Fuck it. Like the whiskey that was warming its way down to my gullet, I had earned my luxuries. And there was always scandal attached to me. Much of it was true. I didn’t believe in boundaries. In any aspect of my life. A little more gossip didn’t make any difference.
The crew had been waiting for my arrival. I heard the engines kick into life and heaved a sigh of relief. Too often lately, some last-minute crisis managed to crop up and I wasn’t able to call my life my own. In the past, I’d been able to trust Cora with some aspects of the business, but lately, she’d become increasingly unstable. Was it my imagination, or could I trace that back to Oliver Mason’s imprisonment? For some reason, Cora—my mother—had become obsessed with Oliver and the details of his trial.
Thoughts of Oliver inevitably turned my mind to Christie. It didn’t take much. Ten fucking years and she still occupied too much space inside my head. I had followed the details of the trial, of course. The downfall of the man who was my stepbrother, who had once been my friend, was always going to be a big event in my life. But my focus had been on Christie. How had Oliver’s very public humiliation affected her? The press accounts were frustratingly inadequate. They concentrated on Oliver, not his daughter. Part of me wished I could go to her. To be the Uncle Theo I had been during her childhood. The rift between us didn’t allow for that. And, of course, there was the ever-present memory of that night.
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