Married young to a guy hand-picked by her father, Becky Petre is a model woman. She has two sons and has served sixteen years of selfless duty in a passionless marriage. Craving a man's loving touch yet committed to her marital vows, Becky is trying to woo her coldly distant husband. But she knows of just one man who can teach her the sexual mysteries of love. The illegitimate son of an English countess and an Arab sheik, Damien Devington was educated to enjoy both Western civilization and Eastern pleasure. Scorned by society and challenged by Prim Becky's request, he undertakes her education in the art of sensuous enjoyment. But as the teachings become a temptation neither can refuse, Becky is forced to choose between commitment and a daring, forbidden desire . . .
Damien would not be blackmailed by any woman, no matter how strong her need for sexual fulfillment.
He leaned against the library door, narrowing his eyes to see the woman standing in front of the half-circle bay of floor-to-ceiling windows. Wispy tendrils of fog connected her to the opening curtains, the former a monolith of black wool and the latter sentry columns of yellow silk.
Rebecca Petre.
He didn't identify her, who was dressed head to toe in a hat and shapeless black cloak and had her back to him. But he wouldn't know her if she was nude and facing him, arms and legs spread wide in shameless invitation.
He was the Bastard Sheikh, the illegitimate child of an English countess and an Arab sheikh. She was the wife of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, and her father was the Prime Minister of England.
She and him did not interact except behind closed doors and between silky beds.
Damien remembered the black-haired woman whose bed he had departed barely an hour before. The Marchioness of Clairdon had met him at the ballum rancum, a whore's ball, where he had danced nude among the other prostitutes. She had used him to fuel her desire for sexual titillation, and for a few hours, he had transformed into the animal she thought he was, thrusting, grinding, and pounding into her body in search of that perfect release where there was no past, no future, no Arabia, and no England-only blinding oblivion.
Perhaps he would accept this lady as well, if she hadn't purposefully pushed her way into his house via coercion and extortion.
With muscles clenched in quiet hostility, he pulled away from the cold press of mahogany and padded over the Persian carpet that covered the library floor. "What do you want, Mrs. Becky Petre, that you invade my home and threaten my citizenship?"
His voice, a raspy purr of English polish covering Arab brutality, bounced off the three sash windows and chased the curving brass curtain pole that rimmed the twelve-foot-high bay ceiling.
He could feel the woman's anxiety, practically smell it through the moist fog.
Damien wanted her to be terrified.
He wanted her to understand how vulnerable she was, alone in the Bastard Sheikh's den, with neither her husband nor father to defend her.
He wanted her to understand in the most basic and fundamental way imaginable that his body was his to gift and that he would not be coerced into having sex.
Damien halted beneath the burning chandelier, waiting for her to turn and face the repercussions of her decisions.
Burning gas hissed and bubbled through the frigid quiet.
"Come now, Mrs. Petre, you were not so reticent with my servant," he gently teased, knowing what she desired, daring her to say the forbidden words, familiar ones, I want to diddle an Arab; I want to rut with a bastard. "What could a woman like you possibly want from a man like me?"
Slowly, slowly, the figure turned, a black swirl of wool framed by glittering yellow silk draperies. The dark veil covering her face did not conceal her horror at seeing him.
Damien's lips twisted in derision.
He understood what she was thinking. What every Englishwoman thought upon first seeing him.
Half-Arab men do not have sun-kissed wheat-colored hair.
Half-Arab men do not wear fitted attire like English gentlemen.
A man who is partly Arab.-
"I want you to teach me how to give a man pleasure."
The woman's voice was muffled by the veil, but her words were clear.
They were not the words he was expecting.
Damien's heart stopped pounding in his chest for a single, timeless second. Erotic pictures rushed before his eyes... of a lady... naked... taking him... in every way a woman can take a man... for both his and her pleasure.
He felt a burning sensation in his crotch. Against his will, he could feel his skin growing and hardening, recalling pictures that would never exist, exiled as he was in this cold, passionless land where women used him for their own needs-or scorned him for his.
His nerves twitched with wrath.
Becky Petre, for invading his house for selfish reasons under the premise of learning how to pleasure a guy.
At himself, who, at the age of thirty-eight, still craved what she had to offer, although knowing it was a lie: Englishwomen were not interested in learning what satisfied a bastard sheik.
Damien deliberately and aggressively reduced the gap between himself and the woman who hid behind a shroud of respectability.
To her credit, she did not flee from his rage.
To his credit, he was fine with simply pulling down her veil.
She could easily see his Arabian ancestry up close, free of the sheer black cloth that obscured her view. His complexion was brown and sunburned, and his hair was sun-kissed.
Now she'd know that his English gentleman persona was simply that: a veneer. He had learnt to be a man in a nation where women are valued half as much as men-a woman might be sold, raped, or killed for daring considerably less than this lady did now.
Becky Petre should be terrified.
"Now, tell me again what you want," he said softly.
She was unconcerned with the stench of whiskey, perfume, perspiration, and sex that he gave out.
"I want you to teach me how to give a man pleasure," she said gently, leaning her head back so she could meet his eyes.
She didn't stand taller than five feet three inches, and she had a long way to gaze up.
Mrs. Becky Petre had extraordinarily white skin, the kind of white that on an Arabian auction block indicated a woman's bondage. She wasn't young. Damien estimated her to be in her early forties. Faint creases extended from the corners of delicate hazel eyes. The face pulled up to his was rounder than oval, the nose more pug than aquiline, and her lips were too thin. Her pupils were dilated, yet her expression was devoid of the anxiety that she must be experiencing.
Ela'na. Damn. Why didn't she reveal it?
Aria, a young omega of the Silver Moon pack, has always dreamed of being chosen as the mate of Liam, the pack's powerful alpha. But on the sacred night of the mating ceremony, Liam publicly rejects Aria, shattering her heart and dreams. Devastated, she flees into the forest, only to be saved from certain death by Ethan, the alluring alpha of the rival Golden River pack. As Aria takes refuge in the Golden River pack, she discovers that Ethan is her second chance mate, a gift from the moon goddess herself. Embracing her new path, Aria trains to become a formidable warrior and a true Luna. But as she navigates the complexities of her new life, a shocking betrayal threatens to destroy both packs, forcing Aria to confront her past and unlock the hidden strength within her. Can Aria rise above the pain of rejection and become the leader she was destined to be? Will her love for Ethan, her second chance mate, give her the courage to protect her new pack and forge a brighter future?
In order to fulfill her grandfather's last wish, Stella entered into a hasty marriage with an ordinary man she had never met before. However, even after becoming husband and wife on paper, they each led separate lives, barely crossing paths. A year later, Stella returned to Seamarsh City, hoping to finally meet her mysterious husband. To her astonishment, he sent her a text message, unexpectedly pleading for a divorce without ever having met her in person. Gritting her teeth, Stella replied, "So be it. Let’s get a divorce!" Following that, Stella made a bold move and joined the Prosperity Group, where she became a public relations officer that worked directly for the company’s CEO, Matthew. The handsome and enigmatic CEO was already bound in matrimony, and was known to be unwaveringly devoted to his wife in private. Unbeknownst to Stella, her mysterious husband was actually her boss, in his alternate identity! Determined to focus on her career, Stella deliberately kept her distance from the CEO, although she couldn't help but notice his deliberate attempts to get close to her. As time went on, her elusive husband had a change of heart. He suddenly refused to proceed with the divorce. When would his alternate identity be uncovered? Amidst a tumultuous blend of deception and profound love, what destiny awaited them?
Joelle thought she could change Adrian's heart after three years of marriage, but she realized too late that it already belonged to another woman. "Give me a baby, and I'll set you free." The day Joelle went into labor, Adrian was traveling with his mistress on his private jet. "I don't care whom you love. My debt is paid. From now on, we have nothing to do with each other." Not long after Joelle left, Adrian found himself begging on his knees. "Please come back to me."
After two years of marriage, Sadie was finally pregnant. Filled with hope and joy, she was blindsided when Noah asked for a divorce. During a failed attempt on her life, Sadie found herself lying in a pool of blood, desperately calling Noah to ask him to save her and the baby. But her calls went unanswered. Shattered by his betrayal, she left the country. Time passed, and Sadie was about to be wed for a second time. Noah appeared in a frenzy and fell to his knees. "How dare you marry someone else after bearing my child?"
Rena got into an entanglement with a big shot when she was drunk one night. She needed Waylen's help while he was drawn to her youthful beauty. As such, what was supposed to be a one-night stand progressed into something serious. All was well until Rena discovered that Waylen's heart belonged to another woman. When his first love returned, he stopped coming home, leaving Rena all alone for many nights. She put up with it until she received a check and farewell note one day. Contrary to how Waylen expected her to react, Rena had a smile on her face as she bid him farewell. "It was fun while it lasted, Waylen. May our paths never cross. Have a nice life." But as fate would have it, their paths crossed again. This time, Rena had another man by her side. Waylen's eyes burned with jealousy. He spat, "How the hell did you move on? I thought you loved only me!" "Keyword, loved!" Rena flipped her hair back and retorted, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, Waylen. Besides, you were the one who asked for a breakup. Now, if you want to date me, you have to wait in line." The next day, Rena received a credit alert of billions and a diamond ring. Waylen appeared again, got down on one knee, and uttered, "May I cut in line, Rena? I still want you."
The day Raina gave birth should have been the happiest of her life. Instead, it became her worst nightmare. Moments after delivering their twins, Alexander shattered her heart-divorcing her and forcing her to sign away custody of their son, Liam. With nothing but betrayal and heartbreak to her name, Raina disappeared, raising their daughter, Ava, on her own.Years later, fate comes knocking when Liam falls gravely ill. Desperate to save his son, Alexander is forced to seek out the one person he once cast aside. Alexander finds himself face to face with the woman he underestimated, pleading for a second chance-not just for himself, but for their son. But Raina is no longer the same broken woman who once loved him.No longer the woman he left behind. She has carved out a new life-one built on strength, wealth, and a long-buried legacy she expected to uncover.Raina has spent years learning to live without him.The question is... Will she risk reopening old wounds to save the son she never got to love? or has Alexander lost her forever?
If there was something very significant the Aquila's were known for, it is the ability to get whatever they set their eyes on. Fate has been cruel to them recently since the diagnosis of an ailment on the heir of the Aquila family's , Enzo Aquila, leading to the impromptu blind date organized by his mother for him to an unknown girl, Camila, a young vibrant college drop out residing with her grandmother since the death of her parents. Life hasn't been fair to her either, so when her grandmother comes home one day and announces to her about a blind date with a certain wealthy goon, she knew she had no choice but to accept or risk being thrown out of her comfort zone. What has fate designed for these two people who met due to unfortunate incidents thrust at them by fate? And how are they going to endure to break down every barrier to reach their happy ever after?