Dancing with Deception
The Morgan Brothers Book 2
By Avery Gale
© Copyright 2016 by Avery Gale
ISBN 978-1-944472-28-3
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Cover Design by Jess Buffett
Published by Avery Gale Books
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“D
ance with me,
minx.” Brandt knew he’d surprised Joelle when he shackled her slender wrist with his hand. He’d deliberately used the more aggressive move rather than simply taking her hand in his, preferring the unspoken message that he wasn’t going to take no for an answer. Giving the elusive imp the opportunity to refuse would have been foolish. And for once, fate worked in his favor, when he spun her into his arms, the music slowed giving him the perfect excuse to pull her flush against his chest. Tucking her close, Brandt led her around the dance floor in a slow two-step. Keeping her tight against him sent an inordinate amount of blood racing to his cock leaving her little doubt about the effect she had on him.
Damn thing wants to do an entirely different kind of dance.
He waited until they’d been dancing several minutes before he spoke against her ear, “You’ve been avoiding me.” He hadn’t phrased it as a question because he didn’t need to ask. She’d stayed a step ahead of him all evening, but they both knew she’d only been successful because he’d allowed it. For the first part of the evening, he’d enjoyed the chase. But as the festivities proceeded, his amusement turned to frustration.
“Yes, I have.” He knew she’d intended for the clipped answer to fend off the “Come to Jesus” conversation she sensed coming her way, but Brandt hadn’t missed the slight quiver in her voice. The tiny verbal stumble cracked open the door of her vulnerability and he intended to storm though it in typical Navy SEAL fashion. Some lessons, once learned, weren’t easy to forget; it didn’t matter he’d retired from the teams, the “take no prisoners” point of view would always be a large part of who he was.
“Why?” Brandt didn’t have any intention of letting her control the conversation with terse answers. The alpha male part of him was never far below the surface, and everything about her cryptic response brought the sexual Dominant inside him surging forward—finally. Hell, Brandt had worried what had once been a large part of his personality had been suppressed forever. Damn, it was a relief to feel the familiar surge of power moving through his veins again.
He’d only visited his favorite club once since he’d moved back to Pine Creek. It wasn’t that he didn’t enjoy spending time with the like-minded members of Mountain Mastery. Hell, Nathaniel Ledek, the owner of the club, had been a member of his SEAL team until retiring two years before Brandt had finally walked away. Ledek, who’d quickly earned the nickname “Mr. Big” for an obvious reason, had quickly parlayed his interest in kink into some serious cash by opening his own club.
Big had called him several times over the past year, asking him to act as a dungeon monitor, suggesting subs Brandt would enjoy playing with, and in general pushing and prodding at every opportunity. But Brandt hadn’t gotten his feet under him enough to play yet. And he’d realized if he didn’t even have control over himself, he damned well wouldn’t top a woman who’d trusted him enough to gift him with her submission.
Brandt’s last few missions before retiring had stolen far too much of his humanity. And, he was self-aware enough to know there was a very real chance he wouldn’t have the control necessary to play safely—which meant he wouldn’t play at all. Brandt had gone to the club once with Phoenix but spent the entire evening sitting at the bar talking to Big. His friend had understood why he was taking his time getting back into the lifestyle that had been such a big part of his sexual identity, and Big had made a point of encouraging Brandt to visit anytime he needed to talk. There were so many horrific memories of his last eighteen months as a SEAL, and frankly most people couldn’t possibly understand what it was like to be exposed to the darkest side of mankind. But Big had
known
.
Joelle stiffened against him at the question, whatever her reason was for avoiding him it obviously wasn’t something she was particularly anxious to share. Pressing a soft kiss against the sensitive skin behind her ear, he hummed, “Don’t lie to me, minx—I’ll know, and then we’ll have another issue to deal with as well.”
Several seconds passed before she finally spoke. “You’re dangerous. And I don’t think I’m the kind of woman you’d be interested in.” He couldn’t really argue with her first statement, but he would damned well dispute the second.
“Just for the sake of clarification, you don’t think I’m dangerous to you personally, do you?” Brandt tried to cover his concern with amusement, but he wasn’t sure he’d been successful when she pulled back enough to look up into his eyes.
“Yes…but probably not in the way you’re thinking.” They’d danced their way to the back of the room close to the darkened hallway leading to the rear entrance of the pool area. This time, he clasped her small hand in his much larger one and led her through the dark. “Where are we going?”
“I want to talk to you and I don’t want an audience. And in case you hadn’t noticed, we were attracting a lot of attention—it’s one of the hazards of having a large family.
And a job where everybody thinks you are public property and they’re privy to your personal life because you are an elected official.
Joelle’s entire body
was vibrating with sexual awareness, damn, there was something about Brandt Morgan that set her on fire. She’d enjoyed feeling all those rock hard muscles pressed against her and prayed he wouldn’t notice how her body responded to his touch. She’d tried to distract him by complimenting his remarkable dancing skills, but he’d laughed away the compliment. “Mama Morgan made certain we all learned. She insisted she wanted to be able to dance with us at our weddings someday, and she didn’t want us stepping on her feet. I suspect her real motives were somewhat different, but she knew we’d never want to hurt her, so the arguments were few and far between.”
Joelle had almost panicked when he started down the dim hall. She’d never been particularly fond of the dark. Her discomfort was probably a consequence of being left alone in her bedroom by the nannies her father had hired when she was a child. But whatever the cause, it was a fear she’d brought into adulthood. He must have sensed her unease because he’d stopped just outside a door. She felt him studying her even though she could barely make out his features in the dim light. She sensed rather than saw him leaning close and thought for a second he was going to kiss her, but he’d pressed the side of his cheek against hers so his words wafted softly over the shell of her ear, “Do you trust me, minx?”
Trust him? Was he kidding? Right now he was rocketing to the top of her “Most Dangerous People on the Planet” list. Joelle wasn’t a fool, she knew an Alpha Male when she met one, and Brandt Morgan was as Alpha as they came. Pulling in a deep breath, ready to tell him no, knowing it would be enough to make him pull back. But evidently all those “I want to fuck him until neither of us can walk” hormones had taken her common sense hostage because she felt herself nod before her brain kicked fully into gear. “Not good enough, minx. Say it out loud. It’ll help cement it in your mind even if you aren’t as convinced as you want me to think you are.”
Drown him. How had he known when it was darker than the inside of a freaking cat in this damned hallway? It’s not like he could actually see her, but he’d somehow sensed her reticence. Deciding it was easier to answer the question than to puzzle it out, she breathed out the words, enjoying the rasp of his five o’clock shadow against her cheek. “Yes, I trust you. I don’t believe you’d hurt me.”
At least not physically.
She left the last part unsaid but wondered if he’d heard it in her voice anyway.
“Close enough. Come.” She heard him tap in a code on a keypad she hadn’t noticed. Stepping through the door, Joelle noted they’d stepped into what looked like a locker room. He didn’t say anything, just tugged her along as he weaved a path through the lockers and benches. She caught the scent of chlorine a few seconds before they stepped into the pool area she’d barely noticed from the other side of the large glass wall.
“Wow, this is spectacular.” Joelle didn’t even try to censor her response because the Morgan’s pool was absolutely stunning. Having grown up privileged, she was no stranger to beautiful spaces, but this was breathtaking…and much larger than she’d expected. The lush tropical landscaping around the enormous pool provided an illusion of privacy for the various seating areas. Guests would be able to enjoy the intimacy of small groups without feeling completely isolated. Smooth flagstones lined paths wide enough for two people to walk side-by-side. They wove through the colorful foliage that reminded Joelle of the tropical resorts her father had taken her to as a child. God, she’d loved those trips, they’d been rare occasions when she’d had the majority of his attention for a few days.
But it was the enormous rock waterfall that drew her like a moth to a flame. She’d always loved the sound of falling water, it soothed everything unsettled in her heart and mind. She unconsciously changed direction, walking toward the waterfall. She didn’t even realize she was tugging him along until she heard him chuckle. “What is it about that damned waterfall? My mom and Coral are both as enthralled by it as you are, minx.”