by Linzi Basset
“No but it doesn’t matter anymore.”
“And why not?”
“Because by just asking that question, he did ask me. If it didn’t bother him, he wouldn’t have mentioned it. It means that there is a chance for us, Samantha—a chance of a happy marriage. He might even come to love me someday.”
Samantha didn’t answer. She was battling with the same conflict day in and out. She could feel Rhone’s love for her in every kiss, every caring touch and when he made love to her, his body honored hers. But, she was starting to wonder if she was mistaken. That maybe it was all he had to give. Love by way of touch and never by expression. For all she knew his heart might never become invested in their relationship. That saddened her because then, there was no hope left. Love was doomed, if unreciprocated.
“Oh, Samantha, please put this on for me.”
Samantha took the delicate chain and stared at it tearfully.
“Mom’s ruby necklace! It’s still as beautiful as I remember. I’m so glad Keon found it for you. Mom always said the rubies reminded her of your red hair.”
“I’m sorry, sis, I didn’t mean to just keep it. If you want it—”
“Oh no, please don’t. You know I’m not much into jewelry, besides, it was always intended for you.”
Samantha held out the ring that she’d kept since the day Adam had sent her that horrible package. “I believe this belongs to you too.” She rushed over and hugged Lauren. “No crying today. It’s a joyful and happy day. Give me that smile. Gorgeous. You look absolutely stunning.”
Lauren was stumped when she looked at herself in the mirror. The dress was a simple, fitted mermaid dress. The top of the dress was hand crafted lace sewed into flesh tone net which gave it a peak-a-boo appearance, with narrow straps over her shoulders and a very low open back. The slippery, silk skirt was fitted at her hips and thighs, before cascading to the floor. Her long auburn hair tumbled in loose curls over her one shoulder, with a short veil trailing after her. Her face was done up tastefully, with the coppery eye shadow Samantha had used, she appeared mysterious and seductive.
“You’re going to knock his socks off, Lauren.”
Samantha went to the door to answer the sharp knock. “Hi honey. Oh my, don’t you look smashing in your tux.”
“As long as I have your attention, baby. Can’t have my woman’s eyes wander all night long,” Rhone teased as he tenderly ran his hands through her silky hair. “You look beautiful, luv. I’m not sure I’ll be able to keep my hands off you but then, you knew that, didn’t you?”
Samantha’s tinkling laugh filled his heart with warmth and he felt himself drowning in the emotions he saw swirling in her eyes. He sobered. She deserved so much more. She needed someone in her life who knew how to make her happy; love her.
He was selfish in keeping her with him but he couldn’t let her go. Not yet . . . maybe never.
He’d seen the yearning in her eyes when they’d gone wedding dress hunting and the faraway look in her eyes when she’d gazed at the ring on Lauren’s finger. Samantha wanted and needed all those things in her life. She craved to hear the words he couldn’t say to her.
Somehow it didn’t seem such a farfetched prospect anymore. Every time she said the words, they sprang to his own lips. But he wasn’t ready to utter them. Not yet. Not until he had the courage.
“It’s time,” he reminded them and walked away, leaving Samantha to stare after him with confusion.
“Well, let’s get you married, sis. Again,” she said with a forced smile as she assisted Lauren by draping the luxurious white cape over her shoulders.
They walked downstairs and through the front door, following the pathway to the side of the house where everything had been set up.
“Thank you for agreeing to give me away, sis.” Lauren said as she stared in awe at the beautiful setting that Keon had arranged.
The glass roof marquee stood partly over the pool. She could see Plexiglas covered pool, turning it into an unforgettable dance floor. Elaborate round tables were set with ivory linens and adorned with striking centerpieces, all composed of white lilies.
“Oh lord, I’m going to cry. It’s so beautiful.”
“No crying, remember, especially not with your groom defying all orders by marching toward us as we speak,” Samanta muttered irritably.
Lauren could only stare. Keon was formidable and big by all counts but dressed in a form-fitting black tuxedo, he took her breath away. His long hair had been trimmed and hung neatly to his shoulders.
“I need to talk to Lauren, if you don’t mind, Samantha,” he said in a guttural voice. He couldn’t take his eyes of the vision in front of him.
Samantha gave an elaborate sigh. “Very well but no more than five minutes. We have a wedding to attend.”
“You look absolutely breathtaking, my love.”
Lauren’s heart skipped a beat. She stared into his eyes which had darkened to a deep fern color.
“You called me—”
“My love.” His smile was beautiful; a rendition of the feelings he no longer wished to suppress.
“I was lucky to find love with Amelia at a young age. It filled my heart and we had a wonderful life together. When she died, I felt a piece of me die with her. I didn’t believe I would ever be able to fall in love again. I told you many times, I didn’t want to.”
“Keon—”
“But then you arrived on my doorstep. With your sultry looks, your swaying hips . . . God, you seduced me without even trying. I was lost in your seductive innocence, but believed that was it—lust, desire and passion. But when I realized you were out there again, alone and facing Adam, I felt like I was about to go berserk. I realized then that I couldn’t lose you. That without you, my life would be bleak . . . bleaker than when Amelia had died.”
He brushed his lips lightly over hers.
“That was the reason I resisted for so long, my love. I knew that once I gave in to the demand of my heart and soul to give you full access, I would come to love you so deeply that nothing could ever compare.” He smiled gently. “Not even the love I felt for Amelia.”
“Keon, I—”
His fingers on her lips stopped the revelation she was dying to make.
“I know, Lauren. I’ve known from the first time you felt it. And do you know why?”
“Why?”
“Because I felt it too and now, I can say it. I love you, Lauren. With my heart and soul, my whole being and I stand here in front of you, offering myself to you; to have and to hold, to cherish and to love, from now . . . until eternity and a day more.”
“I do, LeLuc” she said with a beauteous smile that brightened her entire face.
“That’s twenty.”
“Twenty! You’re kidding, right?”
“No, the additional amount is because you answered the wrong question.”
“Oh?” she queried.
“Yes. Now, I better do this right, or I’ll never hear the end of it.”
He took a step back and went down on his knee. He took her hand in his and placed the other over his heart.
“Lauren, my love and keeper of my heart, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife? Will you marry me and my dangling bits?”
Lauren threw her head back in pure joy and laughed. She answered with a resounding, “Yes”.
“Yes! Yes! Daddy, you did it right! Whoohoo!” Beckie cried as she stormed closer.
Keon’s lowered his head until his chin touched his chest but couldn’t keep from chuckling at their daughter’s exuberance.
Lauren tilted back his chin and leaned closer to kiss him with tiny pecks from the one side of his mouth to the other.
“Aaaand we have touchdown everybody! Let the lanterns fly!” Beckie shouted.
Lauren gasped and leaned into Keon’s embrace as hundreds of sky lanterns were released and filled the sky. Their flickering lights each a powerful message of love found and cherished.
A haunted past conque
red with love.
Conquered with love - A poem by Linzi Basset
Gazing upon the sky, its luminescent glow eerily beautiful in the dawn of the day,
Reminiscing about ghosts of the past,
hounding, forever lurking in the dark passage of remembrance,
never to be abolished.
Regrets, disillusionment and hurt all culminating in one pocket of waste,
wondering what life would have been like without those moments,
those demons that still torment a soul tyrannized, hankering and desperate for the ultimate path
to find absolution and forgiveness
for compromising and sacrificing a heart
that only ever craved to be fulfilled.
Searching for that one true love
that would abolish all and liberate the glow from within.
Gazing upon the sky,
Its luminescent glow eerily beautiful in the rise of the day.
Bowing down to a love in all its grand creation, transported to another dimension
where love happened within,
unexpectedly,
beautifully
and erasing all the past demons.
Now it’s within,
it’s the way you are,
it’s just you and the lost soul smiles
as the heart beats with abundance and joyfulness
in tandem with another,
meshing them in an embrace of unconditional promise.
A promise to be honored as when the vow is made,
it’s with another’s heart,
I love you.
The End
Club Alpha Cove
The series where my journey began.
It’s a series that takes place in an exclusive BDSM club where Ruark Greer and his friends all find that one sub who clipped their wings for the very last time.
Club Alpha Cove is a BDSM Club series based on David's Island. David’s Island is a 78-acre island off the coast of New Rochelle, New York, in Long Island Sound. Ruark Greer is the owner of the Island and it has become his home as well.
Along with his friends that he grew up with, they created an Exclusive BDSM Club for Executives on the privately-owned Island. Their lives were fermented by a powerful Syndicate that wanted the Island as their base. Ruthless and emotionless the powers that be at the Syndicate targeted their loved ones – the subs they claimed as life mates – only to find they would always protect their own, mercilessly if need be.
In between it all, we get to know each of the Senior Masters and their kink once they find the one they love. They love hard and they punish hard. The scenes and punishments are intense and meant to drive home the full trust and control the couples have over each other.
The Syndicate drives the storyline throughout the series, and to enjoy the full experience, the books should be read in sequence, but could be read as standalone as well.
Be warned, this series is only for the brave.
All the books in this series have reached the Amazon top 10 Bestseller list for Erotica BDSM and/or suspense, with Books 7, 8, and 9 making the top 5. Books 10 & 11, reached number 1 and it was the ‘cherry on top’, to end the series. His Forever Sub and His Cherished Sub were both nominated for the Golden Flogger award with His Cherished Sub reaching the honor of being a finalist. His FBI sub was a nominee in the 2017 IRC Book awards.
Watch this introductory video to wet your appetite: http://bit.ly/2ePBfUU
Find the entire series in e-book and paperback format on Amazon if you’re looking for some hot Doms and sizzling scenes: http://amzn.to/2wSmBnQ
Excerpt – His FBI Sub
Club Alpha Cove Series – Book 1.
Chapter One
“He took me to a BDSM club last night. I did not sign up for this shit, Agent Forrester! A BDSM Club for fuck’s sake!”
Sloan laughed and his naturally arched eyebrows rose meaningfully in the direction of his partner, Hagan Cullum.
“So, what did he do to you? Is he a Dom?”
“Apparently, he is. He fucking spanked me! Can you believe that?”
“Hmm, is that all? Nothing more . . . exciting happened?”
The red flush appearing on her cheeks was telling and their raspy chuckles filled the air. She scowled at them, completely exasperated.
“Somehow, I get the feeling that it was not all bad, Agent Sears. You’ve been in a relationship with him for three months, surely you’ve become intimate already?”
“No, I most definitely have not!”
Sloan looked at her in surprise. Courtney Sears was a beautiful woman. Small, compact, sexy and tempting as hell. Add to that a razor-sharp brain and incredible intelligence and you were given a woman who was both breathtaking and challenging. She packed a mean punch on any man’s libido when she walked into a room. Tough as nails, she was one of the best agents he had ever come across. He could only imagine what was hidden beneath her usual work clothes of baggy cargo pants and a loose shirt.
“How have you managed that?”
“I’ve played the beguiling little kitten who wanted to get to know her man better.”
“And it worked?” Hagan asked in disbelief, his eyes brushing over her beautiful face and sensual body. That man was either stupid or made of stone.
“Don’t look at me like I’m some kind of an alien! Of course, it worked.”
“Somehow I find it difficult to picture you as a . . . beguiling little kitten.”
She glared from one man to the other, incinerating them with the fire flashing in her eyes. Sure, of course these guys would find this situation funny. Both were huge, muscled and gorgeous. If they were not her bosses, she might have been interested in them, but she had a strict rule to never mix business with pleasure. She studied their confident demeanor, the way they held themselves, the speculative looks in their eyes and she clenched her jaw.
I’ll be damned. They are Doms! I would bet my annual salary on it!
Those forceful looks and the confidence, Courtney had seen it before - from the Doms in the BDSM club the previous night. It was the epitome of what Sloan and Hagan exuded. A small shiver tingled down her spine.
“How far am I expected to go with this farce?”
Sloan glanced at Hagan, then back to her. He sat, with his elbows propped on his knees, leaning forward slightly.
“You know how important this bust is, Agent Sears but as we told you from the start, the ball is in your court. We’re not going to make demands on you that make you are uncomfortable. If it gets too much and you want out, just give us the word, and you’re out.”
Hagan also leaned forward, his eyes narrowed.
“What are you worried about? The BDSM scene?”
Courtney got up from the chair and went to stand in front of the window, gazing thoughtfully outside. Her sister was in the BDSM scene, even engaged to a well-respected Dom. Having her first taste of it, the previous night, excited her more than she cared to admit.
“Not the scene so much,” she turned to face them again. “But, there should be absolute trust between the Dom and sub, right?”
They both nodded affirmatively and she spread her hands with raised eyebrows.
“Need I say more? He told me it was time to take our relationship to the next level and he thinks we should join a club . . . more specifically, Club Alpha Cove.”
“Alpha Cove? You’re shitting me!”
“Nope. Now, I don’t see myself willingly helpless in that bastard’s hands, not even for this bust.”
Sloan nodded.
“Besides . . . the first time he does something seriously painful, I will kick his ass all the way to the kingdom come. Everyone will see I am no submissive and my cover will be blown.”
“No? You don’t believe you have an ounce of submissiveness in you?”
Courtney snorted and waved the question away as if it were a bothersome fly. Sloan had a small smile around his mouth. His voice lowered and became forcefu
l. “Sit down, Courtney.”
She flopped down in her chair so quickly she was still forming the words to brush him off. She considered him with amazed surprise in her eyes.
“What the fuck . . . !”
“You, my dear, are a natural sub.” Sloan and Hagan chuckled at her aggravated expression.
“Like hell I am.” She mumbled, rose regally from the chair and glared at the two laughing men.
“Do you see Devlon Sanders as a Dom, Courtney?”
She silently compared him to these two and to her sister’s fiancé, then shook her head. “I guess he has the makings of one and he most definitely wants to be one. I get the impression he has played at clubs and at home, but never fully transformed into a legitimate Dominant.”
Sloan glanced back at Hagan. He nodded and Courtney shook her head. She was always amazed by their ability to know what the other one thought.
“There is a way to keep him out of your pants a bit longer, without you compromising your sense of . . . submissiveness.”
Courtney glowered at Hagan from the obvious dig at her. “How?”
“We are standing members at Club Alpha Cove. In fact, we are Senior Masters.”
“I knew it!” Courtney fisted the air victoriously, then cleared her throat and sobered, “Whatever that may mean.”
They chuckled. “The club offers newbies to the BDSM scene a set of training programs to ease them into it safely. If you pass the evaluation, that is. You could demand that the two of you join the full three-month program,” Hagan continued to explain.
“What does that entail?”
“Basically they are sessions to become the perfect sub or Dom, dos and donts, techniques on how to use equipment . . . that sort of thing.”
“Who offers this training?”
“There is a training Master, Quinlan Shaw. All of the Senior Masters assist with the training as well.”
“And how much does it cost?”
“Initially, only the startup fee. You have to complete the three months training and then pay the annual membership fee.”
