Very Wicked Things

by Ilsa Madden-Mills

  My somedays were all coming true.

  I’d wanted to fly and I had. In more ways than one.

  I gazed at Cuba. He immediately put down his bowl and came over to me.

  He titled my chin up, hitting me with those drop-dead gorgeous eyes. “What is it?”

  I shook my head, emotional. “You’re never going anywhere other than right here, are you?”

  He smiled softly and brushed his lips against mine. “Never. I can’t imagine being anywhere else but right here with you and my new family. And someday, I’ll be a doctor, and you’ll dance as a principal. Best part is we’ll be married. We’ll have babies, of course, maybe four; at least three.”

  I gaped, and he chuckled.

  “Babies,” Sarah called out, and oh, I laughed.

  Yes, yes, yes. Someday.

  The End

  Bonus Scenes available at http://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/

  Want more Spider or Sebastian? Let me know which one you want. :)

  Read Very Wicked Beginnings, a prequel novella to Very Wicked Things

  All Proceeds benefit the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22024061-to-be-announced-may-5th

  For more information about the next book, please visit my social media sites:

  http://www.ilsamaddenmills.com/

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  ILSA MADDEN-MILLS WRITES about strong heroines and sexy alpha males that sometimes you just want to slap. She spends her days with two small kids, a neurotic cat, and her Viking husband. She collects magnets and rarely cooks except to bake her own pretzels. When she’s not typing away at a story, you can find her drinking too much Diet Coke, jamming out to Pink, or checking on her carefully maintained chocolate stash. She loves to hear from fans and fellow authors. Drop her a line on her website or Facebook page.

  THERE ARE SO many fantastic people in the indie world that made this journey possible. Please know that my gratitude in no way lessens as the list continues.

  For my mom who always believed in me. Since I was small, she told me to fly.

  For my father, the ultimate storyteller, who although he is gone, I know he looks down from his perch and chuckles at the scenarios I’ve managed to come up with in my writing.

  For my husband who has stood by me every step of the way even when I couldn’t get one stinking agent to look at my work. Now, it’s been six years running, and I made it on my own. You and me, babe…against the world. Forever.

  For my author friend Lisa N. Paul who kept me laughing through our daily phone conversations. You are my touchstone in the indie world.

  For all the people who sacrificed time to make my cover one of a kind: Toski Covey of Toski Covey Photography, a sweet girl I stumbled across when I admired her work on another novel; Sommer Stein of Perfect Pear Creative who designed my incredible graphics and always answered my one million and one emails; and Elizabeth Copeland, the gorgeous girl who graces the cover of Very Wicked Things. You all rock!

  For Rachel Skinner of Romance Refined, my awesome editor: You gave me so much more than just an edit. I love your friendship. For Kristin Anders of The Romantic Editor: my other editor who drove home my goals and motivations…someday I’ll learn. Ha. And for Rachel Russell: my copy edit person. Thank you, ladies!

  For Ellie at LovenBooks for a wonderful cover reveal; for Stephanie DeLamater Phillips of Stephanie’s Book Reports who took my blog tour and buzz event and made it fabulous; for Heather Davenport of Naughty and Nice Book Blog who worked tirelessly with me on my Release Day and cover reveal for the prequel. Thank you so much for being available to chat with me at the drop of a hat. You have no idea how glad I am that I found all of you!

  For Miranda Arnold of Red Cheeks Reads: my wonderful and talented PA. So happy we connected through our love of Very Bad Things. Thank you for all your hard work.

  For Julie Titus of JT Formatting: the best formatter out there! I love what you did for Cuba and Dovey. Thank you for being patient and walking me through the steps.

  For my Briarcrest Academy Chicks: as my street team, you picked me up when I got knocked down and you made me laugh when I needed it the most. And for the all the serious pimpettes out there, I can’t thank you enough for the time and energy you put into getting the word out. Stephanie Locke of Rude Girl Blog; Sandy Roman Borrero, Lesley Hoffman, Jennifer Noe of The Book Blog; Kimberly Kimball and Bobbie Kirby of Two Crazy Girls With a Passion for Books; Ann Moore, Kellie Montgomery, and Carrie Richardson-Horton of Eye Candy Book Store; Stephanie DeLamater Phillips of Stephanie’s Book Reports (who also was my fantastic blog tour organizer); Jennifer Wolfel and Toski Covey of Wolfel’s World of Books; Stacy Nickelson of It Started with Book Blog; Jess Danowski of Inside the Pages of a Book; Selene Malik and Heather Orgeron of The REAL Housewives of Romance Book Blog; Phoebe Lane, my dear friend, Vegas is waiting for us; Jennifer La Rocca, my sprint buddy; Denise Milano Sprung of Shh’s Mom’s Reading. Thank you for sharing the story of your brother with me. I never knew him…but I know him; Kahlen Aymes, an author friend and fellow soul mate I met in New York. Thank you for being my age. Ha; The Rock Stars of Romance blog for believing in my work and supporting me; Andrea Booker; Nasha Lama, my foxy friend; Bethany Castaneda; Kandace Lovesbooks; Lori Lovesbooks; Erin Griffin of Lit Slave; Lydia of HeaBook ShelfBlogger; Kerri Mclaughlin of Six Chicks and Their Love of Books; Brandi Franklin of Sugar and Spice Book Reviews; Lisa Pantano Kane of Three Chicks and Their Books; Ali Hymer of Ginger Reads Reviews; Tanya Childress of Bookhooking; Amy at Turn the Page; Gina Alwine; Jennifer Given Leary of Love Between the Sheets; Sarah Griffin of Books to Breathe; Debbie Reads and Blogs of Keep Calm and Read Romance; Jennifer Singh of Bestsellers and Beststellars; Erin Marie Fisher, the girl who read it first in the team; Author Missy Johnson who is always there for me; Sue Stewart and Lisa Rutledge who have both been with me since Day One. Love you, girls; Lisa Marie Kreinheder of Because I Said So Blog; Melanie Marino-Luna of We Like it Big Book Blog; Tori Shriver of Give Me Books; Alexis at Reality Bites; Claudia Juarez of I Love My Book Nerds; Yvette Cervera of Nose Stuck in a Book; Jessica Carter, always a bad-ass chick; Jessica Ramirez of The Lovely Books; Rachel Kee; Jenn Diaz of Sassy Divas Book Blog; Kristine Radgman; Gena Garrard for medical info; and lastly to Shanta Faulkner, a fan I met in New York, and I fell in love with her spirit and enthusiasm.

  Thank you all for every shout out, sweet word of encouragement or post. Very Wicked Things is my love letter to you. Mwah!

  If I’ve left anyone out, please forgive me. I promise to make it up in Book 3. And yes, it will be Sebastian’s book!

  I love you all, girlies. :)

  STAY TUNED FOR SOME EXCERPTS

  FROM SOME OF MY FAVORITE AUTHORS:

  Discover Missy Johnson in

  Out of Reach…

  MY BEST FRIEND was dying and I was in love with his girl. Andy and I had been best friends since we were eight-years old. Watching him slowly fade away, ever closer to his final breath, made me so incredibly angry. I knew there was nothing I could do to change it—I had given in to despair, but Andy had not. He had one last hand to play. He wasn't going to simply sit back and wait for Death to claim him—not Andy. He was going to live life until he couldn't hold his eyes open any longer. Andy didn't want to die in some sterile hospital and asked me to take him and Emily to the beach. It would be our last road trip together.

  Emily. Emily was a problem for me. I harbored a secret that would have torn our friendship apart. I was in love with Andy's girl, and had been since she'd walked into our sixth grade class, so many years ago. So what kind of person am I? My best friend is dying, and it's awful—but my heart still aches for his girl. I hate myself for thinking beyond Andy's death and whether there could ever be a future for Emily and I, but I can't help it. I'm in love with her
.

  Excerpt

  “ARE YOU WARM enough?” I tugged at the blankets covering Andy. I was cold. I wasn’t sure how he couldn’t be. He rolled his eyes and pushed the blankets back down.

  “I’m fine, Em. Stop stressing,” he said. He reached up and traced along the side of my cheek. “You’re the one who’s cold. You’re shivering. Maybe you need some Andy loving to warm you up,” he teased. I leaned down to kiss him, forcing myself to smile at his joke.

  “No,” I said, putting my hands up to stop him as he tried to push one of the blankets onto me. “Just do what you’re told for once,” I muttered, kissing him on the nose.

  “Right, because you always do what I tell you to do,” he laughed.

  “That’s different,” I replied smugly, folding his hand into mine. “You’re skin and bones. It’s not like you could stop me.”

  “Harsh,” he said, a faint smile on his lips. “Em? Thanks for this. What you and Seth are doing for me means a lot.”

  “I know it does.” My voice dropped. The tightness in my chest became more apparent. It was always there; a gnawing feeling, like I was just waiting for something bad to happen. And I guess I was.

  I remember the day of his diagnosis like it was yesterday. I remember sitting in that surgery with him and Deb as the doctor explained how the melanoma they’d found between his little toe had spread to his pancreas. The prognosis wasn’t good, but it could have been worse. There was hope.

  Until there wasn’t.

  Terminal. Even hearing that word, I still clung to hope that a miracle would happen, and somehow the cancer would shrink. I’d lost my parents; surely life couldn’t be this cruel, could it? I felt awful even thinking about myself. I couldn’t imagine how he must have felt. He’d fought so hard for so long, and to be told there was nothing more they could do…how do you process that?

  “Em,” Andy said, “Good thoughts, remember?”

  I smiled, blinking back tears as I reached inside my jacket pocket and touched the small leather binder. Good thoughts. When it was obvious I wasn’t coping, I’d began writing down a list of memories, forcing myself to only focus on the good. It had been Andy’s idea, a way for me to remember time we’d had together. The time we had left. It was my way of staying strong for him, because the last thing he needed was for me to be a broken mess.

  “Good thoughts,” I mumbled, squeezing his hand.

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  Discover Lisa N. Paul

  and her Contemporary Romance

  Storm Front…

  THE DARKER THE Storm, The Deeper the Pain…

  Love knows no bounds when two people are destined to be together. One fights to maintain the distance; while the other battles to close the gap.

  The Brighter the Light at the End…

  Will they move forward together or finally close the last remaining door to their past?

  It’s time for Ryan and Ashley to decide. But once that decision is made, there will be no going back…

  Always Reach for the Light…

  A Neighborhood bar where old wounds heal, friends become family, and some...become lovers...

  Danny's on Main is where their story continues… Where they all shelter each other during the …

  Storm Front

  Excerpt:

  “ASHLEY.”

  Her name was a breathy whisper as his hand glided up to her shoulder. The backs of his fingers scorched a trail where skin met skin. A soft moan escaped her lips and thousands of tiny goose bumps spread across her flesh. Her familiar response to his touch sent currents of electricity through her blood.

  “Ash, let me come in. Nothing has to happen. I just want to spend more time with you.” Inhaling sharply, Ashley stepped away, disconnecting from his touch and shaking her head to clear the lust that threatened to cloud her good judgment.

  “Romeo, do you honestly think I don’t remember your allure? Please, I know exactly what will happen if I let you in my house. Do you know how I know?” She watched his face, his eyes burned with lust, yet he still shook his head in denial. “I know because I look at you, I see you, and even after all this time, even after everything that happened, I still want you. I still burn for you. I remember what it was like to have your hands on my body and I want more. I want it all.”

  “I want you to inhale me, consume me, and devour me. I want to come apart knowing that you’ll be the one who puts me back together. And when you do, I want to watch you drown in the desire you once had for me. So you see,” her eyes ran the length of his body as she tried to keep her thoughts from scattering, “I’m not sure it’s a good idea for you to step through my door, because there is no way the reality can hold a candle to the fairytale my memories have created.”

  Ryan moved closer to her. That one step brought him close enough that his scent once again surrounded Ashley. His warmth embraced her, desire assaulted her. She knew then and there that her self-promise was about to be a thing of the past. “Princess,” his voice raspy as the words finally freed themselves from their prison, he growled, “There is nothing wrong with your memory. Now, invite me into your fucking house.”

  Amazon: http://bit.ly/1fxAruP

  http://www.lisanpaul.com

  Discover More With You

  a New Adult romance

  by Kaylee Ryan…

  Excerpt:

  “I WAS WORRIED about you, angel.” I tell her honestly. Well as honest as I can be.

  “Aiden, we were fine. Those guys were just being friendly.”

  “You don’t know them. Hell, they could have taken you both and did God only knows what to you.” I swallow back the emotion of just the thought of her being hurt.

  “I’m not yours to worry about,” she whispers.

  And there it is the knife that is twisting in my chest. She’s right, I know it and she knows it, but fuck if I like it.

  I pull back and bring both of my hands to her cheeks. “Angel, I care about you. You may not be mine, but I will never let anything happen to you. Do you understand that?” I ask her. I really need her to know how special she is.

  “One big brother is enough, Aiden. You don’t have to feel obligated to protect me.”

  “Who said I wanted to be your big brother?” I ask trying to keep my voice calm. This is truly a daunting feat with all of the rage boiling inside me. She thinks I want to be her big brother? Fuck that!

  “Don’t you? Why else would you go all alpha Aiden and try to keep me from them?” she asks me.

  I watch her closely as she waits for my answer. This beautiful girl has no idea the war I have fought these past few months. She has no idea how she affects me, how much I want her. This is killing me. Wanting something this much, something that I can’t have. She licks her lips and now all I can think about is tasting her. I don’t even realize that I’m going to do it until our lips meet and I’m consumed with her sweetness. Lips of an angel, I tell you.

  I move one hand behind her neck and the other is holding her cheek. I angle her head back and deepen the kiss. Hailey opens her mouth and I take full advantage to slide my tongue in and hers immediately duals with mine. She moans and my desire is fueled. I can’t get her close enough, can’t get enough period. Hailey slows the kiss and pulls her lips from mine. I tug her into a tight embrace.

  “I need for you to always be safe. Not because I feel like your older brother, but because you are important to me. I couldn’t handle it if something happened to you.”

  I feel her nod against my chest. “Let’s go, they’re going to wonder where we are.” I whisper in her ear.

  She slowly pulls away from me. “Thank you, Aiden.” With that she turns and heads back to the beach house.

 
; I stand there and watch my heart walk away from me. I place my hand over my chest and rub the ache that is throbbing. No girl will ever mean to me what Hailey MacCoy does.

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  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18683442-more-with-you

  Discover Temporary Bliss

  by BJ Harvey…

  *DISCLAIMER: There is absolutely no cheating in this book. However, this book does contain descriptive and super hot sex scenes that will make you blush and leave you hot and bothered. Make sure you have you husband, partner, boyfriend or significant other nearby when reading, or else batteries. Lots and lots of batteries*

  MAKENNA LEWIS CRINGES at any mention of the word commitment. She doesn’t want or need a relationship, but she does like sex (who doesn't). That explains Noah, Sean, and Zander, her three 'friends with benefits'. They know the score, they know they're not the only one, and each of them provide her with a different physical need that she craves and enjoys. Until a late night encounter with the delicious Daniel Winters turns her preconceived notion of no-commitment completely on its head. Soon she finds herself feeling things she vowed never to feel again, and when Daniel pushes for more than she’s willing to give, she falters. What do you do when something that you’ve known to be so wrong in the past feels so damn right? If you’re Mac, you run and hide. But is Daniel the type of man who takes no for an answer?