by Nia Farrell
“Properties? We need to check every damn one of them. After that…I don’t know. I don’t fucking know.”
Matteo nodded at Marco. “The farmhouse first. It’s the closest.”
Isabella wasn’t at the farmhouse. Or the safehouse. Or the other properties that Reaper owned. It was dark by the time they searched the last one.
Mad Dog was half-sick, and he couldn’t blame it on lingering side effects of being gassed. He’d been so groggy, it had taken another hour for him to have Michael check the security footage from Paradise Found to see what car Reaper had left in. He’d driven away in Lee’s Camaro, with his old lady bound, gagged, and stuffed in the trunk.
Jesus Christ. Isabella’s words now sounded eerily prophetic.
Trauma changes a person. She can’t help it. Once you get her back, she’s bound to have triggers….
She was strong. Like Rose. Like Mama Mare. They’d survived Reaper. Isabella would, too.
She had to. He couldn’t imagine life without her.
Visconti’s crew pulled their weapons and opened the door. A full sweep of the house confirmed that it was empty as well.
“Fuck!” Mad Dog wanted to beat the crap out of something. Anything. He unleashed his fury on Jack. “You did this,” he snarled, drawing back his fist. He wanted to punish Jack for luring them to the shop, for selling out Isabella. “Where the fuck is she, old man? Why the fuck did Reaper take her? What makes him think the McLanahans owe him a fucking thing, let alone a woman?”
The color bled from Jack’s face, not because he was afraid of Mad Dog, but because he was remembering something that he’d tried hard to forget. “Lakeland Motel,” he rasped. “We need to check Lakeland Motel.”
The seedy dump was on the outskirts of Diamond Springs, renting rooms by the hour with no questions asked. By the time they arrived, a cadre of dark-haired men in tactical suits was clustered outside Room 111.
Seeing them, Mad Dog steeled himself for the worst. Marco’s phone rang as Mad Dog found the car door handle, ready to walk what felt like a long, green mile.
Marco reached out and stopped him. “They found her. Alive,” Marco said. “She’s with Pop. Mr. Visconti. His doctor’s checking her out now. Buckle up, cowboy. This is going to be an eight-second ride.”
It was more than eight seconds, but fast enough to surpass every posted speed limit sign by at least twenty miles an hour.
Mad Dog unbuckled as soon as they turned into Visconti’s gated estate. A stone-paved drive curved up to the palatial home. He leaped from the car, not bothering with Uncle Jack. That motherfucker could rot in hell, for all Mad Dog cared. His only thoughts were for Isabella.
But before he could see her, he had to get past Mr. Visconti, who was waiting at the door.
“My office,” he said tersely. Turning, he headed down the hall, with Mad Dog hot on his heels.
Visconti closed the door behind them.
“Before I let you see her, I want to ask you a few questions. I know what you’ve told me. I know what she says. Do you swear, if I give her to you, that you’ll do everything in your power to protect her and make her happy?”
“I swear. That’s all I want.”
“Even if it means leaving your club?”
Luke met his gaze, unflinching. “Yes. If I have to choose between the club and Isabella, there’s no contest. Whatever it takes, whatever she needs, that’s what I’ll do. She loves me. I know how crazy that sounds, but I’m willing to do whatever it takes to make a go of things. I’m already looking for a house for us.”
“I know.” Mr. Visconti pulled a set of keys from his desk and slid them over to Mad Dog. “Four bedrooms. Two-and-a-half baths. It comes with some furniture, enough to get you started, at least. You’ll be close to your sister, but that can’t be helped. And I’m not going to make you leave the Avenging Angels. Your family is there. Isabella will need the kind of support that they can give.”
“Sir…I don’t know what to say.”
“Thank you, would be nice.”
“Of course. Thank you. Thank you. But why?”
“The doctor once suggested that a clean start might be best. Somewhere to make new memories, not relive old ones. I failed to do that with Krissy. I won’t make the same mistake with Isabella. Go on. Take the keys. She’s upstairs. Marco can show you the way.”
Pocketing their future, he found Marco waiting in the hall and followed him to the second floor. A door to one room opened, and a man came out, carrying a black leather medical bag. “Gentlemen,” he said, stepping out of their way.
“Go on,” Marco told him. “I’ll be down the hall. One more ride tonight should do it.”
Mad Dog paused with his hand on the door knob. He didn’t know anything beyond the fact that Isabella was alive, and his. Anything else, he could deal with.
Sucking in a breath, he rapped once on the door and swung it open.
Isabella was dressed in a pair of sweats. She was sitting on top of the covers, against the headboard, with pillows at her back.
“Babe,” he whispered. “I’m so sorry. I’m so goddamn sorry. I tried to stop him.”
Isabella burst into tears. “I know. I know you did. It’s not your fault, Luke. It’s no one’s fault but his. He’s…he’s—”
“Don’t,” he rasped, rushing to her side and pulling her into his arms. “Don’t think about him. He’s gone. Your uncle will find him, or I will. This time, we’ll make sure he stays that way.”
Thrusting his fingers into her hair, he pressed kisses all over her face. “I thought I’d lost you.” He ground out the words, his throat tight with emotion. “I thought I’d die. But you’re here. And mine. The doctor says that you can come home. To our home. It’s close to Rose and Michael and sounds perfect for us. I’ve got the keys. We can stay the night and get Sophia in the morning. I can bag up your stuff at the clubhouse and have Sam bring everything to our house.
“Slow down!” she gasped. “Just…slow the fuck down. “We need to talk. I need to tell you….”
Isabella choked up. Unable to speak, she turned her head and focused on the bedside table. On top were a half-full glass of water and an empty, tell-tale package that had held a single pill.
“Oh, babe. Babygirl. Come here. Let me hold you.”
She resisted at first, but gradually melted into his embrace. “I’m dirty,” she keened, weeping against his chest and breaking his heart. “You can’t…you can’t….”
“We’ll deal with it,” he crooned, petting her hair and pressing kisses against it. “Whatever it takes. We’ll get through this. We won’t let him beat us, Isabella. Do you hear me? We will fight this, and we will win.”
“H-he took tests,” she sobbed. “I don’t know if he g-gave me anyth-thing.”
Mad Dog wished like hell he could tell her to not worry. “My bet is, he’s clean. I heard he was always careful that way. I’ll cover up until we’re sure. Meanwhile, you need to put that from your mind and focus on things you can control. Getting moved. Getting Sophia. Starting fresh, the two of us.”
Until last weekend, she’d been a girl, really. A dutiful daughter. A virgin. But Saturday night, Fate stepped in and led two paths to cross. Two people to connect. Two lovers to discover a damn-near perfect match.
He refused to let anyone come between them. Not Reaper. Not her parents or her sister. Not her sicko neighbor or her former friend.
Holding her precious weight in his arms, Mad Dog vowed to keep her safe and help her heal.
Whatever it took.
Whatever the cost.
Isabella was his.
For now.
Forever.
Author’s Biography
Nia Farrell is the author of one of The 50 Best Indie Books of 2016 (As Wicked as You Want – Forever Ours Book 1), a Golden Flogger Finalist (Something More – The Three Graces Book 3), and a founding member of the Wicked Pens. A multi-genre author published in nonfiction, poetry, music, articles, and childr
en’s books, with one documentary screenplay under her literary belt, she’s an old soul and a period reenactor who’s been into corsets for centuries, although she wears them more to Civil War events these days.
Nia has been involved in the metaphysical community for over twenty-five years. She is a Reiki Master and crystal healer whose work encompasses this and other lifetimes. In her book Something More, BDSM and submission are tools for healing post-rape PTSD, earning a nomination for Best BDSM Book of the Year, Ménage Category, in the 2016 Golden Flogger Awards.
Her debut books from The Three Graces series, Something Else, Something Different, and Something More, are kink with a paranormal twist. Soul mates, reincarnation, karmic fallout, shamanism, and psychic abilities come into play. Personal experience and extensive research go into crafting her characters, but it’s her sense of whimsy that has made fictional Posey, Minnesota, the ménage capital of the United States, with a Monty-Python-inspired diner that’s central to the plotlines.
Nia was fortunate enough to meet her soul mate early on. She married her high school sweetheart, raised two children, and began writing at her husband’s suggestion. She has been published in erotic romance since 2015.
AUTHOR LINKS
Nia Farrell & Erinn Ellender Quinn’s webpage
http://bit.ly/NiaErinnWP
Nia Farrell’s Facebook author page
http://bit.ly/NiaFarrellFB
Farrell’s Foxes, Nia Farrell’s Street Team page
https://www.facebook.com/farrellsfoxes
Nia Farrell’s Amazon author page
http://viewauthor.at/NiaFarrell
Nia Farrell’s Goodreads author page
http://goodreads.com/Nia_Farrell
Nia Farrell’s author page at Kinky Literature
http://bit.ly/NiaFarrellKL
Nia Farrell’s Wicked Pens author page
http://bit.ly/WPenNia
Nia Farrell on Tumblr
http://authorniafarrell.tumblr.com/
Nia Farrell on Twitter
https://twitter.com/AuthrNiaFarrell
Nia Farrell on Pinterest
http://bit.ly/NiaFarrellPins
Nia Farrell on Google+
http://bit.ly/NiaFarrellGplus
Nia Farrell on YouTube
http://bit.ly/NiaFarrellYouTube
WRITING AS ERINN ELLENDER QUINN
Erinn Ellender Quinn’s Amazon author page
http://viewAuthor.at/EEQuinn
Erinn Ellender Quinn’s Goodreads author page
http://bit.ly/EEQuinnGoodreads
Erinn Ellender Quinn’s Facebook author page
http://bit.ly/EEQuinnFacebook
Erinn Ellender Quinn’s Wicked Pens author page
http://bit.ly/WPenEEQ
Erinn Ellender Quinn on Twitter
https://twitter.com/ErinnEQuinn
NIA FARRELL TITLES
Something Else (The Three Graces Book One). Three soulmates forge a future from the flames of their pasts in an interracial New Age New Adult MMF ménage BDSM erotic romance. “It’s part paranormal, part BDSM, part love story, but all good.” Released August 25, 2015. Length 17,872 words.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/SomethingElseWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/TG1
Something Different (The Three Graces Book Two). Starving artist Anna James has sworn off men. Rock gods Jackson and Jacob Thomason just promised her the best sex of her life. Does Anna dare submit to the part-Comanche twins who perform as No Mercy? Released September 29, 2015. Length 17,235 words.
Teasers and except http://bit.ly/SomethingDifferentWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/TG2
Something More (The Three Graces Book Three) Finalist for Best BDSM Book of the Year, Ménage Category, 2016 Golden Flogger Awards. Rachel Givens is supposed to be dead. She has post-rape PTSD and a three-year-old autistic daughter, father unknown. When her former lovers—a biker and a porn star—walk into the restaurant where she works, this single mother learns just how much more she can handle. Release October 15, 2015. Length 18,613 words.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/SomethingMoreWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/TG3
The Three Graces Trilogy (paperback) includes Something Else, Something Different, and Something More. Welcome to fictional Posey, Minnesota, the ménage capital of the USA and home of the Three Graces—three young women whose names all mean “Grace.” Three women. Six men. Things are about to get interesting. Released April 2, 2016. Length 230 6x9 pages.
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/TGr
Something Special (The Three Graces Book Six—the sequel to Something Else). When morning sickness hits the house, a Dominant veteran with PTSD and an American Indian musician propose to give their psychic submissive a very special honeymoon. They’re giving Grace the capture fantasy of her dreams at Replay, a BDSM theme resort where patrons role play in the past. Released May 5, 2016. Length 21,578 words/105 5x8 pages. Nominated Best Erotica and Best Romance, 2016 Summer Indie Book Awards.
Teasers and excerpt at http://bit.ly/TG6WP
Amazon e-book buy link http://mybook.to/TG6
Amazon paperback buy link http://mybook.to/TG6p
Audiobook buy link http://mybook.to/TG6a
Dark Moons Rising. On the most dangerous night of the year, a daughter of light finds unexpected sanctuary with two dark lords, handsome as men, stunning as centaurs. An otherworldly sword-and-sorcery paranormal shifter ménage erotic romance novelette. Released March 10, 2016. Length 9,210 words.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/DMRWP
Amazon e-book buy link http://mybook.to/DMR
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/DMRp
As Wicked as You Want (Forever Ours Book One). It’s a past life for The Three Graces’ Nico, J.T., and Grace, a Victorian erotic romance BDSM MMF ménage with a bisexual British history professor, his American stepsister who’s been living as a man since serving in the Civil War, and her Irish messmate who serves as apprentice in her art studio and who has been fighting his attraction to “Lane.” Released August 1, 2016. Length 155,467 words / 609 pages. Voted #1 Erotica and #10 overall, The 50 Best Indie Books of 2016. Nominated Best Erotica, Best Historical, and Best Romance, 2016 Summer Indie Book Awards.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/AWAYWWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/FO1
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/FO1p
Audio excerpt, read by the author
http://bit.ly/WickedAuthorReadsYT
“Pride and Prejudice meets 50 Shades of Grey” in Pride and Punishment – An Erotic Retelling of Jane Austen’s Beloved Classic by Nia Farrell and Jane Austen. A Dominant Mr. Darcy must find a way to win the submissive heart of a woman who abhors him. Released June 1, 2016. Length 91,133 words/344 pages. Voted Best Historical Romance, 2017 Ménage Romance Readers Favorites. Nominated Best Erotica, Best Historical, and Best Romance, 2016 Summer Indie Book awards.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/PunishWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/Punish
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/Punishp
Amazon Large Print http://mybook.to/Punishlg
Gift shop http://www.cafepress.com/prideandpunishment
Wicked Lady. In Restoration England, a lady highwayman who demands more than money from her victim must answer for her crimes. A sizzling tale of dubious consent times two! Released July 1, 2017. Length 5,147 words.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/WLadyWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/WLady
Goodreads http://bit.ly/WLadyGR
Replay Book 1: VIKING RAID. A curious virgin makes Replay resort’s Viking Dom an offer he can’t refuse. Released July 1, 2016. Length 20,051 words/99 pages. Nominated Best Erotica, 2016 Summer Indie Book Awards.
Teasers and excerpt at http://bit.ly/RB1WP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RB1
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/RB1p
Replay
Book 2: TRIPLE PLAY. A celibate sex addict meets a Scottish Dominant who’s determined to be the exception to her rules. Released September 1, 2016. Length 20,232 words / 100 pages.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/RB2WP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RB2
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/RB2p
Replay Book 3: HONOUR BOUND. A psychologist interested in BDSM experiences it first-hand with the owner of Replay resort. Released November 1, 2016. Length 19,946 words / 97 pages.
Teasers and excerpt http://bit.ly/Replay3WP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RB3
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/RB3p
Replay Set 1: Viking Raid, Triple Play, Honour Bound
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RSet1
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/RSet1p
Replay Book 4: HOOKED. During pirate weekend, a curious librarian explores BDSM with a Dominant veteran amputee. Released January 1, 2017. Length 21,950 words/ 121 pages.
Winner, Favorite Leading Lady, 2017 Our Book Stars Awards
Teasers and excerpts http://bit.ly/Replay4WP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RB4
Amazon paperback http://mybook.to/RB4p
Audiobook http://mybook.to/RB4a
Replay Book 5: NIGHT MUSIC. In an updated version of Cyrano de Bergerac, bisexual Replay resort psychiatrist Sir Josef plays matchmaker with a blind concert pianist and her mentor and falls for them both. A MMF ménage. Released March 1, 2017. Length 19,438 words / 104 pages
Teasers and excerpts at http://bit.ly/RB5NightMusicWP
Amazon e-book http://mybook.to/RB5
