Gavin Kingsley burst into my life in a sharp and unexpected twist of fate. You know his type—arrogant, dangerously handsome and impossible to ignore.
Something dark within him calls to the shadows inside me. I long for the kind of heart-wrenching passion I’ve only read about, and his tragic past reads like one of my favorite literary classics. Raw. Visceral. Captivating. Together, we’re a perfect mess.
The deeper I fall into his world, the more I crave him like a drug—he pushes every boundary I have, and challenges everything I thought I wanted. I want to unlock his heart. I want his dirty secrets.
But in the end, will he be the blade that cuts me … or the bond that makes my life complete?
Written in the same vein as Kendall Ryan’s New York Times bestselling and much loved international phenomenon, Filthy Beautiful Lies, Dirty Little Secret begins an erotic new series.
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“Emma could be the perfect companion, don’t you think?” I turned to face his desk, where he still sat.
He rolled his eyes, and I swooped in for the kill. He’d had his chance. I’d given it to him on a silver platter. Which meant that the coast was clear. If he didn’t want her . . .
“So, you don’t mind if I take her to the Bennett Foundation gala?” I raised my eyebrows.
Gavin’s brow furrowed but his eyes went ice cold, his pause saying far more than his words. “Of course not. Why would I mind?”
Bullshit.
Maybe this little push was just what he needed to get his head out of his ass.
I nodded. “Good.”
His mouth turned down a notch, and I could tell he was thinking. Processing.
For a moment, I didn’t think he was going to take the bait. But then, I knew my brother. I’d laid down a challenge, questioned why he was so adamantly against the idea of hiring her, and although he didn’t want to open up and share, this topic was far from over. Our calendars were slammed, and we both knew it. His assistant had joked just that morning that it would make her job a hell of a lot easier if we each just found a girlfriend. Gavin had scoffed so hard, I thought he was going to bust an artery.
Gavin heaved out a sharp exhale. “What makes you so interested in her, anyway? I thought they were all a number on a paycheck to you?”
I shrugged. “They are until they’re not. You, of all people, should know—”
“Enough,” Gavin barked.
“Right.” I shoved my hands in my pockets. “Shame, though. Seems like there’s something . . . interesting between you two.” Briefly, I wondered if they had a history. “Anything you want to tell me?”
“No, but I have a question for you,” he snapped back with a lethal smile that didn’t reach his narrowed eyes. “What the fuck are you still doing in my office?”
“Trying to find out whether you’re going to let me have this one, or if we’re going to be fighting for the same prize,” I answered honestly.
Gavin looked up from his screen. “Are you high?” His mouth thinned into a firm, chiseled line. “If you want her, take her. I’m not playing with her like she’s a chew toy.”
“Okay. But that doesn’t change the fact that you need a date to the charity auction. A girl like her on your arm? Imagine the business we could do. She’s like a walking commercial. And when you’re done rubbing elbows with all the fancy people, I’ll take her off your hands for a couple of events of my own. Use your head, man, she’s perfect. The girl every guy wants to be seen with. Sweet enough to bring home to Mother, hot enough to imagine her on her knees, with that mouth—”
“Got it,” Gavin snapped. He stared at a point on the ceiling, then blew out an annoyed sigh. “If I take her to the fucking auction, will you stop, already?”
“Yup.”
“I’ll tell you right now, though, if this is business, neither of us are sleeping with her.”
I bit back a laugh but nodded anyway. If that was what Gavin wanted to tell himself, I wasn’t about to stop him. Fact was, though, if she would have either of us, we’d probably get our dicks caught in our zippers in the rush to get our pants off. Telling him that would only make him change his mind, and I’d gotten what I wanted.
If this girl had my big brother this riled up? She was something special. And no matter what he thought of himself, he deserved something special in his life again. If I had to agree to take her out as well just to get him to go along with it, so be it.
It wasn’t exactly a hardship, after all.
OR Another option if we don’t want to advertise the triangle is:
“Tonight was your evening out with Emma, wasn’t it?” His dark brows drew together as he continued to study me.
“It was. I just dropped her off at home.” Taking another long sip of my drink, I hoped he read my fuck off signal loud and clear.
“How did that go? Did she live up to expectations?”
No such luck.
I shrugged. Maybe he thought I fucked her. I obviously didn’t. Ben could vouch for that. Jesus. “It was fine. We went to the event, and then I took her home. I won the Seychelles trip this year.”
“Oh, good. Another overpriced vacation you’ll never go on. Don’t change the subject.”
I rolled my eyes, adding another measure of bourbon to both our glasses. The bastard was referring to the trip to Tahiti I never took. Not that it went to waste. I gifted it to our highest-earning girl last year. She took her parents. I still had the photo of them on lounge chairs sitting on my desk.
As much as I didn’t want Quinn’s advice right now, I knew he was about to dish up a heaping serving. I bit the inside of my cheek and waited. The dude clearly had something he needed to get off his chest.
“Something’s different with this one,” he said. “I’m just trying to put my finger on what it is.”
He’d figure it out eventually; it didn’t take a rocket scientist. I drank the rest of my bourbon, waiting.
“I’m just trying to figure out if it’s more than just the fact she looks like Ashley.”
Ding, ding, ding.
Fucker.
“Drop it, Quinn. It has nothing to do with that.”
I didn’t want it to, and honestly, as I got to know Emma, the less their similarities seemed to matter. That first time I saw her in the coffee shop, though, I’d been knocked back three years.
Looking at Emma was like staring into the face of my once-upon-a-time. But I knew that wasn’t possible. I’d been there the day they’d lowered her into the ground. I’d said my good-byes, as final as they were.
They shared a few similar features, but Emma was her own woman, and one I was quickly becoming fascinated with.
“I know there’s something different about her. You haven’t even looked twice at a woman in months. Just be careful this time.”
I rose to my feet, my blood pumping fast. “Don’t you think I fucking know that?”
The fucking kicker? Quinn was right. Emma was feisty, yet had all the leanings of a submissive, which I’d always been attracted to.
“I don’t want this to end badly,” Quinn added.
Rubbing my temples, I regretted ever coming into the office tonight. Jacking off alone in the shower would have been much better.
“If you’re through, I’m tired. I’m going to head home.”
“Didn’t mean to piss you off,” Quinn said as I headed out of his office.
“Don’t worry about it,” I called over my shoulder, not bothering to look back.
As fucked up as all this was, I knew it was only going to get more complicated.
Tonight’s foreplay wasn’t nearly enough to satisfy the beast inside me. I wanted the pretty little Emma Bell. And I was going to have her.
A New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of more than two dozen titles, Kendall Ryan has sold over 2 million books and her books have been translated into several languages in countries around the world. Her books have also appeared on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists more than three dozen times. Ryan has been featured in such publications as USA Today, Newsweek, and InTouch Magazine. She lives in Texas with her husband and two sons.
Visit her at: www.kendallryanbooks.com for the latest book news, and fun extras
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A sweet, fun, and sexy stand-alone romance from New York Times bestselling author Aleatha Romig.
Aleatha Romig is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author who lives in Indiana, USA. She grew up in Mishawaka, graduated from Indiana University, and is currently living south of Indianapolis. Aleatha has raised three children with her high school sweetheart and husband of nearly thirty years. Before she became a full-time author, she worked days as a dental hygienist and spent her nights writing. Now, when she’s not imagining mind-blowing twists and turns, she likes to spend her time a with her family and friends. Her other pastimes include reading and creating heroes/anti-heroes who haunt your dreams!
