LucienHe was preoccupied with the arrangements for the Fight that was to happen that weekend. He glanced at his young wife as they ate their breakfast. There were dark bruises under her eyes and he could see a small mark on her chest where the knitted shirt she was wearing revealed as she shifted.He smiled. Even after five years, he still longed to tame her. She had the ability to hold him in the palm of her small hand, dangling, wanting more. He was an alpha male, a dominant man who expected complete submission from his partner. But this woman, with her fierce independence, her excellent management skills at work and at home, she merely allowed him to dominate her in bed. And that made him want her all the more.Yes, he thought in mild astonishment, he respected her. For Lucien Delano, it was a first!*He had never found a woman worthy of being taken seriously before; all the others were merely bodies to satisfy his lust. This woman with her warm brown eyes, her curvaceous body t
ProserpinaWhen I reached home, it was to discover that chaos ruled over the Delano kingdom.Nothing new, I thought with a sigh.Little Claude had poured water over one of Ria’s precious dolls. She had dunked him in soapy water in retaliation, aided and abetted by her twin. The maids were almost in tears and Beatrice was threatening anyone and everyone she saw.“It’s high time I packed you off to some residential school, kids.’ I said in a steely voice as I supervised Claude’s cleaning up and scolded the twins.Ria’s head went up, her golden curls bobbing.“In the mountains, please!’ she cried clapping her hands, eyes dancing. She began to waltz around the room, arms raised in joy.I shook my head in exasperation. The girl would turn a punishment into a party.*I noticed young Philippe at the kitchen door, shifting uncertainly from one foot to the other when I entered the kitchen later to take care of lunch and set dinner preparations going.‘For you,’ he said, his ears turning pink i
SophieJose listened to her, They were on their second coffee. Paddy was sitting, huddled beside his aunt, humming and singing in a tuneless way under his breath. Obviously, the hearty breakfast had settled him. He was even sliding furtive looks at Jose when he thought the man was not watching him.Now Jose looked at Sophie and asked quietly,‘Are you sure about this?’Sophie burst out, furiously.“My sister was killed by that PIG, don’t you see?’ And taking a deep breath, she went on, ‘She was captured and handed over to Worthington on the orders of Proserpina f*cking Delano.’ And then, triumphantly, she added, brandishing her trump card,“Worthington told me as much.’ she declared.Seeing the disbelief in Jose’s face, she stood up, almost making poor Paddy fall down. Leaning across she sneered,“Oh, I see. So you are as besotted by her as the rest of them!’And she turned to march out, dragging her startled nephew by the arm. Jose hurried after her.“Hey, hey, listen,’ he said gentl
ProserpinaI sat there, my heart pounding as the rage flooded through me. A hand went to my stomach protectively. I knew enough to know that for all his street smart wiles, Lucien could be quite dense at times.I had also seen how manipulative Catalina could be at first-hand as well.The woman had never been able to get over the fact that I was the only woman who was going to be in Lucien St.Claire’s life. Well, I thought, clenching my fists, I was damned if I was going to wait for her to walk all over me.Coming to a decision, I stood up.*I was now three months along and was constantly in touch with the doctors, following Lucien’s strict instructions. In fact, I had an appointment scheduled with the doctor for this week. This time around, it was with a new doctor who was from India, a friendly woman named Dr Priti Agarwal. She was small and cheerful and was quite friendly. She had assured me that everything was going on just fine, after examining me last month. Since she put me a
LucienThere were glitches and then some. Nothing seemed to be going on the way he wanted it to. He scowled and swore at the men who were overseeing the final touches on the cage. He wanted it to be just so; enabling the audience a good view of the action, no matter where they were seated. The giant screens erected on the walls were also not functioning well. Some circuit trouble, stammered the electrical crew foreman, sweating profusely although the huge hall in the basement had the air conditioning working well. he avoided meeting the eyes of the Boss who looked angry enough to throttle him.All the men there were afraid of Lucien Delano. They were all familiar with his reputation; he was like a dangerous lion, prowling around, roaring and creating fear in the men who were working.Even though he was dressed like a gentleman, they knew he was an uncivilised thug when it came to things going wrong.Every man in the room wanted to leave the hall alive, not in a body bag.*Danielle mar
ProserpinaAs I entered the foyer of the Club, the cold air hit me and I shivered. It was cloudy and I squinted up at the sky. It might rain; I hoped that young Philippe would take in the baskets of chopped vegetables we had left to dry in the sun. I was trying out a recipe for an Indian pickle and I needed to have sun-dried vegetables for that.The cool interior of the Club was dark after the brightness of the day and it took me a minute to recognise the woman who had appeared before me. Shrugging, I walked forward and entered the elevator. The men with me had dropped back; this was after all, Lucien Delano’s territory. No harm could come to me if I was making my way alone to my husband’s rooms.Before the door slid shut, Sophie stepped in and I glanced at her in surprise, but having been at the receiving end of her machinations for far too long, I did not feel the need to exchange pleasantries with her.I frowned as she stepped forward, blocking my way.Startled, I met her eyes, as s
LucienHe heard the blood whooshing in his ears, and then he was on Sophie.Grabbing her hair, he hit her across the face. Before she could scream, he gripped her jaw painfully. “Where is my woman?’ He snarled, and then, “TALK!'There was a menace in his tone.His hand snaked to her throat, but Danielle stopped him.‘Boss,’ said Danielle urgently, and Aiyana stepped forward, gripping his arm.‘Leave her,’ said Aiyana softly.“There are people around. We do not draw unnecessary attention.’She nodded at the bodyguards, who had created a tight circle around the group, effectively obscuring the view of many interested spectators.‘Hey ya, folks!’ Cried Danielle,’ You could move on. We gotta get a little thief into the room to ask her a few questions, is all, okay?’Her commanding tone and the glare she gave everyone as she stood, surveying them, hands on her hips, made the few people who had stopped squirm uneasily and caused them to scurry away.Lucien was on the phone, desperate but ic
LucienHe was like a man on fire, a man possessed, although his mind was now moving coldly and clinically. He was reaching out to all the people he knew—the ones who had any idea about Dmitri Rudenko’s whereabouts, the ones who had agreed to stand with him if a gang war broke out.But he kept drawing blanks. Raking his hand through his grey-white hair, he turned sharply as the door was flung open.First things first, he thought as he nodded at Schwartz, who had run in, straight from the airfield. The younger man looked dishevelled and heartbroken.He snapped at the person on the other end of his phone coldly.“Yes. Keep me posted.’'Proserpina...' whispered Schwartz, and Lucien saw the pain and anguish, the fear that he was controlling with a superhuman effort, mirrored in his underboss’ eyes. Both men were bound with feelings for the same woman, who was lovely, kind and generous ProserpinaHe had known all along that Schwartz loved Proserpina. Lucien enfolded the other man in a bear