The Devil’s Desire: A Passionate Romance

by M. V. Kasi

  THE DEVIL’S DESIRE

  The Devil’s Desire

  All rights reserved

  Copyright © 2020 by MV Kasi

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  DEDICATION

  To all the people working tirelessly on the front lines fighting an invisible enemy during the hardest of times.

  A heartfelt thank you!

  And to ALL my readers and my VIPs.

  I love you all!

  MV KASI’s Book List

  DEVIL’S KISS

  UNTIL YOU

  ACCIDENTAL HUSBAND

  THE PROMISE

  THAT SAME OLD LOVE

  THE HOLIDAY AFFAIR

  MISSION SUPERSTAR

  UNTIL FOREVER

  BOUND BY HATRED

  THE CAPTIVE

  SOULLESS

  RUTHLESS

  BREATHLESS

  Short Stories (20-Minute Reads)

  HIS CAPTIVE BRIDE

  THE ROYAL WEDDING

  THE PROPOSAL

  BOUND BY FOREVER

  BILLIONAIRE ESCORT

  RECKLESS LOVE

  PROLOGUE

  It was dark, and the streets were nearly empty as the car sped by.

  Shiv was used to the sight because most of the negotiations he held in the city always took place in the darkness of night. Darkness was when the most powerful players, who were considered criminals in the eyes of the law, preferred to work.

  Shiv was heading to yet another negotiation. As the most powerful illegal weapons dealer, this particular negotiation was something completely different than any of the ones he held in the last decade.

  “When we pull into the mansion, make sure our men scope the area and take their places.”

  “Sure, Shiv.”

  As soon as Shiv gave those instructions to his head of security, the car passed through high-security gates that were already held open for them before coming to a stop in front of the mansion.

  Securing his gun in his holster under his suit jacket, Shiv got out of the car. Most of the lights in the mansion were turned off, but his eyes automatically fell to the first floor, especially at the room in the corner with a balcony next to a large tree.

  A small smile covered his face even as his heart beat with dark anticipation. He had always felt that way when he knew he would win over a seemingly impossible and dangerous deal.

  The guards patrolling outside the mansion watched him warily, their eyes on the ten armed guards he had brought with him.

  “Mr. Jaipal, what a surprise.” Narayan Bhasin, the current Home Minister, received him at the entrance. There was an angry look on the politician’s face even though his words were polite.

  “I’m sure it isn’t that big of a surprise, Mr. Bhasin.”

  The Home Minister’s jaw tightened at the taunt. “I received your brief message only an hour ago, Mr. Jaipal. So it was a bit of a surprise for me.”

  Shiv didn’t reply. He followed the Home Minister into the mansion where he was led to an office area where six other men were already waiting.

  Two of the men were his lawyers, and the other four must have been the Home Minister’s.

  “Drinks?” the Home Minister offered politely.

  The tense atmosphere in the room made everyone except Shiv agree to the offer of a drink.

  Shiv did enjoy drinks. At one point, he enjoyed drinking scotch with his two friends. But a lot had changed in the last year, and now he only drank during celebrations which incidentally included other high-powered criminals’ deaths. He was yet to have the biggest celebration.

  The Home Minister sat across from him with a tight smile on his face. “So tell me, Mr. Jaipal. What do you want from me?”

  There was barely a pause before Shiv replied. “Your daughter.”

  At the blunt reply, the Home Minister looked completely shocked. “M-my daughter… you mean Naina?”

  Shiv’s mouth twisted with a dark smile. “Who else?”

  The Home Minister appeared angry at the taunt. But he controlled himself and looked at Shiv with a forced smile. “Mr. Jaipal, while I feel grateful that a powerful man like you wants to build an alliance with me… at this point, I don’t know if I really can.”

  Shiv didn’t show any outward reaction. He knew the older man wanted to play games. The Home Minister feared him. But like most of the powerful men, the Home Minister also resented the fact that someone half his age was more powerful than him and had the power to destroy him.

  “Why not, Mr. Bhasin?” Shiv drawled, letting the Home Minister play. As a man who thrived on dangerous games, Shiv found the current game rather tame even though the prize was the most desirable one.

  The Home Minister cleared his throat. “My daughter is twenty-one years now, but she still lives in a fancy world. She has set her heart to marry the man she loves. And as her father, I want to grant her that wish.”

  Shiv let out another dark smile. “I see. But you didn’t have a problem before when you were trying to commit your daughter to Anirudh, and later to Solanki, and then to Damodar. You even came to me after Anirudh got married.”

  The older man’s eyes flared at the reminder. A year ago, the Home Minister had desperately approached Shiv to marry his daughter, but Shiv had turned him down.

  “Things have changed drastically, Mr. Jaipal. Except for you, all the men you mentioned just now are no longer alive. I’m taking it as a sign.”

  Shiv raised an eyebrow. “I didn’t know you were a superstitious man, Mr. Bhasin.”

  At Shiv’s amusement, the anger in the Home Minister’s eyes grew. “I’m not superstitious. It’s just that I realized my daughter’s happiness is more important than any powerful alliances I make.” There was a gleam in the Home Minister’s eyes that Shiv interpreted as victorious. “And besides, my daughter is secretly engaged to someone.”

  A sudden bolt of dark fury along with disappointment pierced Shiv, but he continued to keep an indifferent look. “Who?”

  The Home Minister faked a regretful look. “A family friend’s son. Someone the same age as her, and they have known each other for a long time.”

  “Name.”

  At the soft, dangerous demand, the Home Minster’s face paled. He stared at Shiv. Maybe some part of what Shiv felt showed because slowly Home Minster’s face paled. “It was you!” he said in shock.

  Shiv raised an eyebrow not saying anything.

  “You killed Solanki and Damodar!” the Home Minster more or less shouted. “I knew their brutal deaths were not self-inflicted or even natural!”

  A year ago, after Shiv had turned down the Home Minister’s proposal to marry his daughter, the older man had forced his daughter into different marriage alliances. Unfortunately, one after the other, the two men died brutal deaths within days of agreeing to the alliance.

  Shiv neither accepted nor denied the Home Minister’s allegations of him being responsible for those men’s deaths. He looked at his watch and saw that it was an hour past midnight.

  “Call your daughter, Bhasin. I would like to get the signatures on the contracts my lawyers have prepared. The
wedding will take place in two hours.”

  “No! You can’t force me to do this!”

  Shiv relished the desperation and fear on the Home Minister’s face. “Stop wasting my time. Most of the people in your circles are being hunted right now. It’s only a matter of time before you are hunted and taken down too. If you need my protection, you will do as I say.”

  The Home Minister’s face paled once again. The older man knew what Shiv said was true.

  The dark side of the business and political world was unraveling. With one of the biggest exposés that resulted after the death of a powerful criminal, even people who were once considered influential in the criminal world were being hunted and taken down by the law. And if those influential people weren’t arrested, they were killed by other powerful criminals who were once considered allies.

  The Home Minister’s position was on the right side of the law. But the man was involved in too many shady deals and was known to have done business with powerful criminals. They had even funded his election campaigns.

  “W-what do you want exactly?” the Home Minister asked.

  Shiv knew the older man was beginning to realize that he had no choice other than to bow down.

  “I want your daughter and unrestricted access to law enforcement.” Shiv pointed his chin towards the desk on top of which were papers prepared by his lawyers. “Contract documents agreeing to all of my conditions.”

  The Home Minister looked angry and defeated. Taking in a deep, shuddering breath, the older man turned to look at one of the security guards. “B-bring in Naina.”

  ***

  Naina’s heart pounded in breathless anticipation. She was going to have her very first kiss.

  She stared at the man who was going to kiss her. He had just broken into her bedroom a while ago, so he could meet her in secret. He was stunningly handsome, sweet and charming. His dimpled smile made her want to pull him closer and kiss him senseless.

  “What are you waiting for? Kiss me,” she demanded.

  The man’s eyes flared before he did as she asked. He pulled her closer before his mouth met with hers.

  The kiss was nothing like she had expected. She kept her lips closed, expecting the kiss to be a soft brushing of lips. But it was more than that.

  In reality, the man’s kiss was rough, passionate and demanding.

  His tongue thrust between her closed lips and slid inside, causing an explosion of fire to burst inside her. The fire spread through her veins and her entire body. Her fingers grabbed the material of the man’s shirt and let out a moan.

  The man increased the grip behind her neck while his tongue continued to slide inside her mouth. His other hand wrapped around her hips and pulled her closer emitting a deep, rough sound from his throat.

  At their close contact, she felt the heat of his body and the force of his arousal which stole her remaining breath and mind.

  She wanted him. She wanted the man to pick her up and take her to the bed behind them and show her all there was to such passion. She wanted to beg the stranger to take her virginity right then.

  She was just about to beg him when there was a loud knock on the door.

  “Naina! Open the door!” her father’s voice shouted from outside.

  Immediately, she pulled away from the stranger and began to panic. It was her father! Her father would not only punish her, he would hurt the stranger.

  “You must hide!” she urgently whispered to the stranger.

  The knocking on her bedroom door continued. “Open this door right now!” her father roared out. “I know there’s someone inside! I’m going to kill him!”

  Naina jerked awake with her heart pounding.

  She opened her eyes to the familiar semi-dark bedroom. Slowly, her groggy brain cleared and registered that she had been dreaming. It was a recurring dream she had been having for over a year. But most of the time, her dream ended sweetly and passionately.

  Why did her dream turn into a nightmare all of a sudden?

  She found her answer when she heard the sound of knocking. Someone was really knocking on her bedroom door!

  She turned on the bedside light and got out of the bed hurriedly. Then wrapping a thin robe over her nightdress, she answered the door. It was one of her father’s security guards.

  “Madam, your father has requested your presence in the office. We have some unexpected visitors.”

  Naina frowned. “Now?” She looked at the clock, and it was an hour past midnight.

  “Yes, madam.”

  “Why? What happened?” She wondered if something happened to her stepmother, and the doctors had to be called in secretly. Monica was used to being hospitalized at home because of a drug overdose. But lately, after one of the biggest illegal drug busts in the entire nation, everyone including her stepmother, couldn’t get illegal drugs from their usual suppliers. Things got so bad that Monica had to be hospitalized due to withdrawal symptoms.

  “Your father didn’t say anything to me, madam. He just asked me to bring you along.” There was fear in the security guard’s face. “Please hurry, madam. He will not like it if they are kept waiting.”

  Naina felt furious. She hated how her father used bullying helpless people to get her to bend to his will. “I’m coming. Let’s go.”

  She followed the guard down the stairs towards the office area. As she neared the office room, she could hear a buzz of conversation.

  The conversation paused when she knocked before pushing the door open. She was too annoyed to wait outside politely until she was permitted to go inside.

  She was taken aback seeing the men in the room. She recognized a few of them sitting near the desk because they were her father’s lawyers. The other two men were strangers, but based on the neat folders and a stack of documents, she assumed they were lawyers as well.

  She turned to look for her father. He was seated at the far end of the room with someone. She saw her father’s angry face. Wondering what had caused his anger, she shifted her eyes to look at the man seated across him. As soon as she saw the man’s face, she froze in shock.

  Oh my God!

  Even though she was seeing him again after nearly a year, she recognized the man instantly. She had dreamed of him so often and so frequently that she could never forget his face. She had even been dreaming of him barely a few minutes ago!

  Suddenly, panic began to crush her as she feared for his life.

  The man must have found out she was at her father’s home, and he must have attempted to break into her bedroom again to see her. And unlike the last time, he must have been caught by her father’s guards.

  Tearing her eyes away from him, she looked at her father. “Papa, please. Let him go. He didn’t mean any harm. He is innocent! We only—” She suddenly broke off in between her desperate pleas, not wanting to give any details of the stranger that might endanger him further.

  She expected her father to be furious and braced herself to face his fury. But strangely, there was no longer any anger, only a look on confusion on her father’s face.

  “What are you rambling about?” her father asked. “I called you to let you know that you are getting married.”

  For a moment, her brain drew a blank. She heard what her father said, but she couldn’t connect the words to her pleading. “What?”

  “You are getting married to Mr. Shiv Jaipal. He is here to meet you before you sign the marriage contract.”

  Naina’s eyes flew back to the stranger. She had initially only looked at his face. But now, she took in the rest. The two times she had met him, he wore casual clothes. And now, he was wearing a dark, expensive three-piece business suit. Power and danger oozed out of him.

  Her heart began to thud harder, trying to connect her stranger with the man. “Who are you?” Her voice was barely a whisper.

  The man remained quiet, and her father was the one to reply. “Mr. Shiv Jaipal is one of the most powerful businessmen in our country. His family owns several
construction companies and businesses. In exchange for my political power, he will marry you and provide us with the protection we need during these hard times.”

  Shock hit her hard. And this time, the force of it almost knocked the breath out of her lungs.

  Naina stared at the stranger who was watching her with an unreadable face. The dark suit and the unsmiling face with his missing dimples made him appear utterly different and unreachable. He looked too far removed from the man she had almost given her heart to a year ago.

  Why did he not tell her the truth about himself? Why did he break into her room and kiss her, letting her think he was simply an admirer? Did he know all along that she would be forced to marry him?

  He must have been playing a sick game with her, knowing she would be fooled into softening her heart towards him and wouldn’t protest if asked to marry him.

  Clenching her jaw, she looked at Shiv Jaipal with utter betrayal and anger on her face.

  “No. I will not marry him.”

  There was a shocked silence at her angry statement.

  “We don’t have a choice, Naina,” her father’s furious voice cut in. “Just do as you are told!”

  Naina looked at her father with determination. “No.”

  Her father’s eyes flared in anger and frustration. Getting up from his chair, he came towards her and raised his hand. She barely flinched while waiting for the slap. Her father had slapped her many times before whenever she had rebelled. The last time he had slapped her was when she had refused to marry the man he wanted her to.

  “Don’t.”

  At the soft command, her father’s hand froze a few inches from her cheek. Slowly, her father fisted his hand in frustration before lowering his arm.

  Naina supposed she should be grateful that Shiv Jaipal had stopped her father from slapping her. But she didn’t feel grateful. She felt humiliated and resentful while feelings of utter betrayal and anger continued to grow.