Boy Toy by Rena Marks
Nina has been taught to lessen emotional attachments. A necessary skill to have when a woman intends to stay single forever, with one goal in life—to train men as Boy Toys.
A century-old curse haunts Tristan. For one month out of every year, his birth month, a woman who wears his birthstone pendant can control him sexually. He’s grown to hate the women who hold the reins over his life. But Tristan falls hard for sexy divorcée Nina and knows she’s the one for him. His only problem is to convince her of this.
Until a new issue arises. His hated pendant falls into the hands of the woman he loves.
Forever in Her Eyes by Calista Fox
Rayne has spent centuries protecting the legendary peridot, “The Emerald of the Evening”. It is a priceless antiquity that possesses the gift of immortality. But following a heartbreaking betrayal centuries ago, Rayne—an immortal since birth—has given up on finding her perfect match. Until she meets sexy, seductive Dyson. Dyson is more than just a broker of unique jewels. Priceless gems are his passion, but he’s looking for something that goes beyond his ideal of “distinctive”. The moment he lays eyes on Rayne, he knows he’s found a rare treasure. But Dyson has no idea how much Rayne is really worth… When an old adversary pursues Rayne, she knows the safety of The Emerald of the Evening is threatened. But Dyson just might be the one man who can keep her safe and inflame her desire. Is he worthy of the precious gift she has to offer?
Ring of Seduction by Cash & Alexi Fleming
Mellika’s lusted after Zeb for some time now, mostly because of his exotic good looks. So when he pauses to admire her peridot ring at an Arabian Nights-themed party, she can’t wait to find out what’s under his genie costume. She’s about to get more than she bargained for, though—Zeb is an actual djinni. As in the magic-making kind.
Luckily for Mellika, her ring isn’t the only thing holding Zeb’s interest. The peridot may give them a special connection, but true passion can’t be conjured by magic. Zeb is about to make all her wishes come true, and then she’ll be a believer for good.
Stone’s Soul by Lexxie Couper
When geologist Jordynn Harrison finds an unusual gem on the rim of Hawaii’s Mauna Kea volcano, she gets more than just a pretty stone to study. Touching the peridot makes her body burn—in more ways than one. The stone conjures her dream man, a Hawaiian warrior who fulfills her lustful fantasies with his hands, his lips, his tongue…
Though Jordynn knows Kale is just a creation of her lonely psyche—how else can he know her every desire?—she lets him take her again and again. But as dreams and reality merge, Jordynn begins to wonder if perhaps her masterful lover is more than just a figment of her overworked imagination.
Whatever Maura Wants by Mardi Ballou
Maura wasn’t expecting anything special for her birthday. So when she spots the enormous peridot lying on her coffee table, she’s quite puzzled. But that stone is nothing compared to the present that shows up at her door. Antonio is a tall, smoldering hunk who seems to know her every wish and need—and how to fulfill them.
Antonio arrives at Maura’s doorstep on a mission—to recover a prized peridot. High-level demon that he is, he can’t afford to piss off his boss. But although Antonio’s the one with magic powers, Maura has him under her spell the second he walks through her door. Sure, he’ll have no problem seducing her, but can he swipe the stone and escape with his heart intact?
Excerpt
Copyright © LEXXIE COUPER, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
Jordynn Harrison looked at the small, dirt-encrusted stone in her hand. Something about it puzzled her. It didn’t look right. About the size of a walnut, its rough surface seemed somehow unnatural. Too concise in formation. She raised it close to her face, rolling it between her thumb and fingers, searching for clues in its texture. Hmmm. Definitely not igneous. Maybe evaporitic, possibly metamorphic…
A soft warmth spread through her fingers. A tingling heat.
Jordynn frowned. She brought the stone closer still, studying it intently. No naturally formed stone she knew of conducted heat without a heat source, and despite the humid mid-summer afternoon, she didn’t think the dormant Hawaiian Mauna Kea volcano constituted as a heat source. Nor, for that matter, did her fingers.
She cocked an eyebrow. “Odd.”
Without warning, a blistering heat singed her fingers, like she’d closed them around the molten tip of a fire poker. With a sharp and totally undignified yelp, Jordynn dropped the stone. “Ow!” She studied her stinging fingers. Long, slightly calloused and ingrained with dirt. Typical geologist’s fingers. Yet, despite the pain radiating from their tips, free of any blisters or reddening burn marks.
Jordynn frowned, turning her inspection to the hastily dropped stone at her feet. Gingerly, she picked it up. Small, dull and cold. Hardly anything to make her cry out like a little girl. She turned it over and over, gnawing on her bottom lip as she did so. Something about it looked…wrong.
She spat on the stone’s grimy surface and smeared away some of its crusted dirt.
A chill rippled up her arm, lifting the fine hairs on her skin and making her nipples pinch into tight peaks. Jordynn blinked, staring at the now dullish-green stone in her hand. What the…?
Another chill shot up her arm, followed by a wave of pulsating heat.
Her pussy clenched in response, as though replying to an unknown question.
Do you want to be filled?
Oh yes, please!
“What the hell?” Her muttered words sounded oddly loud in the silence and she blinked.
Unease crashed over her and she swallowed a sudden lump in her throat. Silence? In the forest? She tore her stare from the strange stone to look out at the lush Hawaiian rainforest.
And saw a man standing on Mauna Kea’s rim.
A naked man, with long, glossy-black hair and deeply bronzed skin stretched over hard, sculpted muscles.
A naked man staring at her through thick, black lashes with piercing eyes the color of wild limes.
Jordynn started, dropping the stone again.
The man disappeared. Just like that. One second there, the next, gone.
Jordynn’s throat squeezed tight. “What the hell?”
An Excerpt From: BOY TOY
Copyright © RENA MARKS, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
Tristan had been dating the new waitress for a month now.
He fell hard for her. He was head over heels, but it was unreciprocated. She held him at arm’s length. He knew she wasn’t seeing any of the other men she had vying for her attention in the bar, she didn’t have time. She worked four nights a week, and he saw or spoke to her nearly every day. He planned it that way.
Once in a while he heard her cell phone go off while it was deep in her purse. She never bothered to check the calls when she was with him.
That was a plus. If she was with others, she gave him her utmost attention as if he was it for her. They’d shared more than a few kisses, a little petting, but nothing more.
And how he wanted more.
His mouth watered every time she wore her jeans slung low enough to expose the pale flesh of her flat belly. He had a perpetual hard-on and was ready to do something about it.
Sometimes she wore a boned corset top that cupped her breasts, pushing them up and outward like luscious treats begging to spill from his hands. He’d give anything to unzip the back of that corset and watch her creamy bounty drop out.
He’d bet her nipples were the color of pale strawberries.
Honesty was the best policy, usually. And dammit, he was horny as hell.
He had a date with her that evening, but some issues needed to be resolved. He called her immediately. “Hi.”
“Hey. Are we still on for dinner?” she asked softly. He’d planned on taking her to eat before she headed into the bar for work that night.
“Of course,” he rumbled. “But I want to talk to you about something important. Can I pick you up now?”
It wasn’t too much earlier than they’d originally planned But he held his breath until she decided.
“Sure. Ten minutes?”
“I’ll be right there.”
During dinner, they chatted about inconsequential stuff. Dessert was finally brought out, chocolate dipped strawberries.
Tristan moved to the bench where Nina sat, so they could share the dessert more intimately. She’d nibbled on one, lips kissably juicy, when she looked at him expectantly. The lust in watching her glossy lips suck at the fruit was overwhelming. He was blunt as a result.
“You’re holding me at arm’s length.”
She didn’t answer, just kept those unreadable, smoky gray eyes on him Quite frankly, it was unnerving, so he continued on “We’ve been seeing each other for over a month and we’ve only shared a few kisses.”
“We’ve also held hands.”
He looked sharply at her, wanting to see if she was being sarcastic, but he couldn’t tell. “We’ve held hands,” he agreed.
“You still want more,” she said simply.
“Yes.” How could he not? He was a normal, hot-blooded man.
“Okay.”
“Excuse me?”
She spoke slowly and succinctly, as if he were an idiot. “You can have more. Slide your hand up my skirt and you can feel me up.”
He thought his jaw would drop.
“You’re making me wait, Tristan.”
Hell.
Underneath the table, he rested his hand on her knee. She turned her head to look directly into his eyes and pursed her lips, challenging him to do something more.
He slid his hand up smooth skin, up to mid-thigh, where he paused and let her feel the warmth emanating from his palm.
Her eyes darkened He could almost see the desire drift like smoke across the gray of her iris.
His thumb began to stroke small circles against her skin, comforting little tingles to warm them both.
She parted her legs eagerly and she tilted her head, daring him to go further.
An Excerpt From: WHATEVER MAURA WANTS
Copyright © MARDI BALLOU, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
When she opened her eyes, the hunk was practically in her face. He was even hotter close up. She didn’t know where to look first. There was a strange man—a big, strong one—in her living room. Her condo had been filled with people earlier, but now she and he were abso-friggin’-lutely alone. Then he grabbed her in his powerful arms and dragged her down off the wall.
At which point she screamed again. Mr. Perfection’s big, strong hand clamped down over her mouth. She had fleeting thoughts of getting sufficient purchase to bite him, but he held her much too tightly.
“If you cooperate, I will not hurt you.” His voice was deep with just a hint of rasp and a foreign tinge that, damn it, turned her on. Of all times for horniness to strike and turn her thinking processes to mush. A gorgeous man with an erection tenting his pants that made her mouth dry and her cunt wet had his hand clamped over her mouth. Could she believe him the he wouldn’t hurt her? What choice did she have?
“If I release my hand, will you refrain from screaming?”
She nodded. Sometimes lying was justified.
As soon as he’d freed her mouth, she shrieked. Before she got out enough noise to matter, the hand was back.
“You lied. I hate liars.” His cock evidently didn’t share this negative opinion. But his eyes fired icicles, and his mouth formed a cruel tight line. Man, was he strong. Maura tried to swallow and couldn’t. She was in major trouble.
“Unlike you, I do not lie. I told you I wouldn’t hurt you, which is the truth. We need to talk. Can I trust you not to scream again this time if I remove my hand?” The hint of threat sufficed to convince Maura not to scream. She’d have to think of another way to save herself. He said he wanted to talk. She was good at talking. Once she engaged him in conversation, she’d find a way to save her life.
His eyes were nearly black, and he sure could sustain a stare. She could drown in those eyes. He warily removed his hand, holding it near enough to cut off any noise she might make. Maura managed to swallow, then took the deepest breath she could manage. Her mind raced.
“I am Antonio deLuc. What is your name?”
Were they going to shake hands? She eyed his cock, still huge, still pointing at her, and she fantasized shaking it instead of his hand. Sheesh. She had to get a life. She needed to hold on to her hard edge of panic to keep alert and alive, though she realized the peak of her terror had abated.
“I’m Maura Fox. Why are you here in my condo? No one invited you. Leave immediately. If you do, I won’t call the police.” Her voice hardly quavered.
He smiled, which did funny things to her heart. “You are wrong there. I am evidently your designated birthday gift. When no one answered the door, I let myself in to surprise you.”
He was her birthday gift? That card hadn’t been a joke? Holy moly, what the hell was going on? “Who sent you?” she managed to whisper.
His shoulders sketched an elegant shrug. “I don’t know. I merely accepted the assignment, and here I am.” He devoured her with his gaze. When he spoke again, his voice sounded husky, giving her full-body goose bumps. “Now why don’t you tell me exactly how you want to celebrate?”
An Excerpt From: RING OF SEDUCTION
Copyright © LYN CASH & ALEXIS FLEMING, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
Suddenly, a large hand snaked around Mellika’s right side and lifted her arm, turning it palm down. “You have no need for a lamp, my lady. You wear the ring of the sultans. That will bring you your heart’s desire.”
Mellika cast a quick glance over her shoulder. Zeb! Madame Lila’s nephew, and the real reason she’d allowed Madame to talk her into attending the party.
“Hey, is that the old ring you bought at Madame’s store?” Tracey cut in.
Mellika tried to concentrate on the ring on her right hand, but she was too conscious of Zeb brushing against her back. His heat seeped into her, streaking through her blood and lodging between her thighs. Without meaning to, she leaned back, allowing him to take some of her weight.
He stroked his finger gently across the top of the ring. “It’s a peridot, a prized gem of Turkish sultans in the Ottoman empire. Set in gold, it’s said to ward off evil and the terrors of the night. But when set in a combination of silver and gold, it becomes something else.” He slid his hand under hers, supporting her palm, his thumb rubbing sensual circles on the sensitive flesh.
She shivered. Resisting the urge to turn into his arms, she focused on the ring. Fashioned of silver, with a gold bar either side of the yellow-green stone, it seemed for a moment as if it glowed every time Zeb’s finger touched the gem. At the same time, warmth seeped into her finger where the silver banded her.
She jerked her hand upward, clenching it into a fist. How weird. When she flattened her palm out again, the illusion disappeared. It was nothing but an old ring she’d found in Madame’s junk jewelry shop. No glow. No heat. But for a moment there…
Zeb slipped both hands around her from behind and cupped her hips. His head dipped and his breath whispered against her cheek. “Now that you know the power of the ring, do you dare risk what it may offer? A night of pleasure such as you’ve never imagined?”
An Excerpt From: FOREVER IN HER EYES
Copyright © CALISTA FOX, 2008
All Rights Reserved, Ellora’s Cave Publishing, Inc.
“I’d hate to see such a beautiful woman make such a costly mistake.”
The deep, intimate voice that came from behind her was as erotically stirring as the warm fingertips that suddenly grazed Rayne Gerard’s bare forearm. They brushed lightly over her skin, brazenly moving down to her wrist. Her flesh tingled from the stranger’s electrifying touch as his large hand covered hers. Giving it a gentle squeeze, he silently implored her not to write her bidder’s number on the sheet lying on the table before her.
Glancing over her bare shoulder, Rayne’s eyes landed on the wide chest of a very tall, extremely well-built man, dressed in a designer tuxedo. Her gaze moved slowly over his perfectly knotted bow-tie and up his neck, taking in the bronze skin as she made her way to his rugged yet well-sculpted face. Finally, her eyes locked with cobalt blue irises fringed by long, sooty lashes.
Rayne’s breath caught in her throat.
Her pulse kicked up a notch or two and a long-forgotten awareness suddenly jolted her to the core of her being, making her pussy ache in a way she hadn’t experienced in longer than she could recall. One scorching hot look from this gorgeous stranger and Rayne felt her composure slip as easily as tiny granules of sand through her fingers.
Rising above the desire that washed over her and infiltrated all the hollow spaces within her took more effort on her part than Rayne had expended in a long time.
She crooked an eyebrow at the man, feigning a sense of detachment she didn’t feel.
“You believe you know something about this diamond that I don’t?” she asked. Her soft British accent made her casual comment sound more like a challenge. This seemed to amuse the stranger, whose hand was still wrapped around hers, his heat and stimulating touch making her insides thrum with excitement and her pussy throb with a natural need she’d long since dismissed. One corner of his very tempting mouth lifted. It hardly constituted a smile, but it was damn sexy and it sent wicked pulses of energy through every inch of her.
He was more than devastatingly handsome.
He was her most erotic fantasy come to life.
The ends of his obsidian-colored hair dusted the collar of his crisp white shirt and the thick, too-long locks gave him a rather roguish look, despite his impeccable appearance. Chiseled cheekbones and a slightly squared, determinedly set jaw told her he was a man accustomed to getting what he wanted.
Perhaps he might this time.
Then again, perhaps not.
