Tempt Me: A Stark International Novella Read online

  Tempt Me

  A Stark International Novella

  By J. Kenner

  Tempt Me

  A Stark International Novella By J. Kenner

  Published by Evil Eye Concepts, Incorporated Copyright (c) 2017 Julie Kenner ISBN: 978-1-945920-08-0

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights.

  Book Description

  Tempt Me

  A Stark International Novella 1001 Dark Nights By J. Kenner

  Sometimes passion has a price ...

  When sexy Stark Security Chief Ryan Hunter whisks his girlfriend Jamie Archer away for a passionate, romance-filled weekend so he can finally pop the question, he's certain that the answer will be an enthusiastic yes. So when Jamie tries to avoid the conversation, hiding her fears of commitment and change under a blanket of wild sensuality and decadent playtime in bed, Ryan is more determined than ever to convince Jamie that they belong together.

  Knowing there's no halfway with this woman, Ryan gives her an ultimatum - marry him or walk away. Now Jamie is forced to face her deepest insecurities or risk destroying the best thing in her life.

  And it will take all of her strength, and all of Ryan's love, to keep her right where she belongs...

  About J. Kenner

  J. Kenner (aka Julie Kenner) is the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Wall Street Journal and #1 International bestselling author of over seventy novels, novellas and short stories in a variety of genres.

  JK has been praised by Publishers Weekly as an author with a "flair for dialogue and eccentric characterizations" and by RT Bookclub for having "cornered the market on sinfully attractive, dominant antiheroes and the women who swoon for them." A five-time finalist for Romance Writers of America's prestigious RITA award, JK took home the first RITA trophy awarded in the category of erotic romance in 2014 for her novel, Claim Me (book 2 of her Stark Trilogy).

  In her previous career as an attorney, JK worked as a lawyer in Southern California and Texas. She currently lives in Central Texas, with her husband, two daughters, and two rather spastic cats.

  Visit JK online at www.jkenner.com

  Subscribe to JK's Newsletter

  Text JKenner to 21000 to subscribe to JK's text alerts Twitter

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  By J. Kenner

  Click here for an updated Printable Booklist

  The Stark Trilogy:

  Release Me

  Claim Me

  Complete Me

  Anchor Me

  Stark Ever After:

  Take Me

  Have Me

  Play My Game

  Seduce Me

  Unwrap Me

  Deepest Kiss

  Entice Me

  Hold Me

  Stark International

  Steele Trilogy:

  Say My Name

  On My Knees

  Under My Skin

  Steal My Heart (short story - free download)

  Take My Dare (novella)

  Jamie & Ryan Novellas:

  Tame Me

  Tempt Me

  Dallas & Jane (S.I.N. Trilogy):

  Dirtiest Secret

  Hottest Mess

  Sweetest Taboo

  Most Wanted:

  Wanted

  Heated

  Ignited

  Also by Julie Kenner

  Click here for an updated Printable Booklist

  The Protector (Superhero) Series:

  The Cat's Fancy (prequel)

  Aphrodite's Kiss

  Aphrodite's Passion

  Aphrodite's Secret

  Aphrodite's Flame

  Aphrodite's Embrace (novella)

  Aphrodite's Delight (novella - free download)

  Demon Hunting Soccer Mom Series:

  Carpe Demon

  California Demon

  Demons Are Forever

  Deja Demon

  The Demon You Know (short story)

  Demon Ex Machina

  Pax Demonica

  Day of the Demons

  The Dark Pleasures Series:

  Caress of Darkness

  Find Me In Darkness

  Find Me In Pleasure

  Find Me In Passion

  Caress of Pleasure

  The Blood Lily Chronicles:

  Tainted

  Torn

  Turned

  Rising Storm:

  Tempest Rising

  Quiet Storm

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Click here to explore

  FOREVER

  WICKED by Shayla Black CRIMSON

  TWILIGHT by Heather Graham

  CAPTURED

  IN SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  SILENT

  BITE: A SCANGUARDS WEDDING by Tina Folsom DUNGEON

  GAMES by Lexi Blake

  AZAGOTH by Larissa Ione

  NEED

  YOU NOW by Lisa Renee Jones

  SHOW

  ME, BABY by Cherise Sinclair

  ROPED

  IN by Lorelei James

  TEMPTED

  BY MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  THE

  FLAME by Christopher Rice

  CARESS

  OF DARKNESS by Julie Kenner

  Also from 1001

  Dark Nights:

  TAME

  ME by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Click here to explore

  WICKED

  WOLF by Carrie Ann Ryan

  WHEN

  IRISH EYES ARE HAUNTING by Heather Graham EASY

  WITH YOU by Kristen Proby

  MASTER

  OF FREEDOM by Cherise Sinclair

  CARESS

  OF PLEASURE by Julie Kenner

  ADORED by Lexi Blake HADES by Larissa Ione

  RAVAGED by Elisabeth Naughton DREAM

  OF YOU by Jennifer L. Armentrout STRIPPED

  DOWN by Lorelei James

  RAGE/KILLIAN by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright DRAGON

  KING by Donna Grant

  PURE

  WICKED by Shayla Black

  HARD

  AS STEEL by Laura Kaye

  STROKE

  OF MIDNIGHT by Lara Adrian

  ALL

  HALLOWS EVE by Heather Graham

  KISS

  THE FLAME by Christopher Rice

  DARING

  HER LOVE by Melissa Foster

  TEASED by Rebecca Zanetti

  THE

  PROMISE OF SURRENDER by Liliana Hart Also from 1001 Dark Nights: THE SURRENDER GATE By Christopher Rice SERVICING

  THE TARGET By Cherise Sinclair

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Three

  Click here to explore HIDDEN

  INK by Carrie

  Ann Ryan

  BLOOD

  ON THE BAYOU by Heather

  Graham

  SEARCHING

  FOR MINE by Jennifer Probst

  DANCE OF

  DESIRE by

  Christopher Rice

  ROUGH

  RHYTHM by Tessa

  Bailey

  DEVOTED by Lexi Blake Z by Larissa Ione FALLING

  UNDER YOU by Laurelin Paige EASY

  FOR KEEPS by Kristen Proby

  UNCHAINED by Elisabeth Naughton

  HARD

  TO SERVE by Laura

  Kaye

  DRAGON

  FEVER by Donna

  Grant

/>   KAYDEN/SIMON by Alexandra Ivy/Laura Wright STRUNG

  UP by Lorelei

  James

  MIDNIGHT

  UNTAMED by Lara Adrian

  TRICKED by Rebecca Zanetti

  DIRTY WICKED by Shayla Black THE ONLY ONE by Lauren Blakely SWEET SURRENDER by Liliana Hart

  Sign up for the 1001 Dark Nights Newsletter

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  As a bonus, all subscribers will receive a free

  1001 Dark Nights story

  The First Night

  by Lexi Blake and M.J. Rose

  Table of Contents

  Book Description

  About J. Kenner

  Also by J. Kenner

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection One

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Two

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection

  Three

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Discover 1001 Dark Nights Collection Four

  Discover the World of 1001 Dark Nights

  Discover More J. Kenner/Julie

  Kenner

  An excerpt from Anchor Me by J.

  Kenner

  Special Thanks

  Chapter One

  More.

  The word pounds into my head, beating a sensual rhythm in my blood.

  More, yes. Please, please, more.

  I'm neither awake nor asleep. Instead, I'm floating on a cloud somewhere above a horizon of dreams. I feel alive. I feel on fire.

  I feel wildly, incredibly, insanely turned on.

  Mostly, I feel loved. Cherished.

  Arousal tugs at me, pulling me into consciousness. Into a place where I'm aware of the reason for the fire that rips through my body, igniting my skin and settling between my legs, making me achy and needy.

  His lips. His hands.

  They are roaming over me, strong and sure. Each caress like a tongue of flame. Each kiss a cool oasis, keeping me from melting under the heat that he is igniting inside me.

  I know this touch, of course. This man.

  Ryan Hunter.

  I sigh, simply from the pleasure of his name in my mind. Hunter. My Hunter.

  Before Hunter, I'd been with a lot of guys. Like, a lot of guys.

  Once upon a time, that's something I took as a point of pride. That Jamie Archer could fuck around with the best of them, without ever letting anyone get too close. Because if you let them get too close, you could end up getting hurt.

  But then Hunter came along and he broke through my defenses. All of my defenses.

  He tamed me, and now he's always with me. In my heart. In my head.

  Even now--with my eyes still closed, half-in and half-out of sleep--I can picture him. The thick, chestnut-colored hair that he wears short, but with just enough length that I can run my fingers through it. Fathomless blue eyes that see me so intimately. A long, lean body that he uses expertly--in bed and out of it.

  He is so clear in my mind, and yet it's not enough. I want to actually see him. The humor and heat in his eyes. The way his lips twitch when he watches me, as if he can't decide if he wants to kiss me or devour me. The tightness of his jaw as he fights desire, holding back his own pleasure until he's made me explode again and again and again.

  "Ryan," I murmur as I start to open my eyes, unable to wait a moment longer.

  "No." The word is simple, yet firm. Full of the command that comes so naturally to him. And though I whimper, I acquiesce obediently. "Good girl." His voice washes over me like a warm caress, and I bite my lip, forcing myself to stay quiet.

  "I want you lost in fantasy," he continues. "I want to watch your body move under my hand, not knowing where the next touch will be. Not knowing if I'm going to kiss your breast or spank your ass."

  He does neither. In fact, his hands barely move at all. Instead, he simply grips my hips, his hands perfectly still. Only his thumbs move--a gentle back and forth caress that has hardly any more substance than a butterfly beating its wings, but to me is so intense that I can feel the thread of that contact all the way to my clit. I'm hot and wet and needy, and I writhe beneath him, silently begging for a more substantial touch.

  He doesn't disappoint, and I cry out in both surprise and pleasure as his fingers pinch my nipples. Then moan when he crushes my mouth with a bruising kiss.

  He runs his hands over me, his touch hard. Possessive. He palms my breasts, squeezing just enough that I arch up, wanting more. Wanting his mouth on my tit. Wanting him to suck. To tease.

  But he leaves me wanting and instead draws his hands down. Not feather light this time, but with heat and pressure so that he leaves a trail of red hot fire down my body. So that when his hands stop at the juncture of my pelvis and my thighs, I cry out, "Please, Hunter, oh, fuck, please."

  I can practically feel the heat of his skin on my cunt, and yet he doesn't move. Instead, he shifts his position and I feel the mattress dip, and then the warmth of his breath at my ear.

  "I want all that," he whispers as he shifts his thumb just enough so that I feel it graze along the soft skin just above my clit. "Mouth. Breasts. Ass. Pain. Pleasure. And everything in between."

  His thumb dips inside me, and I arch up, willing him to go deeper. To fill me.

  But he's still teasing me, and instead of thrusting his fingers deep inside me, he withdraws them, forcing me to bite my lip simply to keep from whimpering.

  "In other words, kitten," he murmurs as his thumb traces lazy circles around my clit, "I want you at my mercy."

  "I am." My words are a gasp. "You know I am." The bed shifts again as I speak, and my skin feels cool as he removes his warm hands from my body. For a moment, panic rushes through me, and I fear that he's playing a game. That he's going to leave me here, naked and alone, lost with my thoughts of his touch, my skin flushing as I anticipate his return. As I fight the urge to touch myself when all I want is his hands on me and his cock deep inside me.

  "Hunter." His name is a plea, and I reach out blindly, grasping for him.

  "Shhh," he says, and the soft brush of his fingertip over my lips soothes me. "Wait," he says, as the finger moves lower and lower until finally I feel both hands on my hips, and he strokes them down along my outer thigh.

  A pounding, liquid heat pools between my legs. I'm beyond aroused--I'm desperate. Wanton. And I move my hips in a silent demand that goes sadly, frustratingly unfulfilled.

  "Christ, that's beautiful," he says as his hands reach my ankles and he slowly--so painfully slowly--spreads my legs. "You're so wet, you glisten. You're ripe, baby, so ripe I think I have to taste you."

  The words have barely passed his lips when his mouth brushes my inner thigh and he begins to kiss me, higher and higher as his fingers trail along, lightly stroking the opposite thigh. I whimper and writhe, but then the intensity of his touch increases and instead of light strokes to my tender skin, his strong hands are holding me down. I'm immobile, trapped in place, my legs spread so wide it's almost painful, and I'm completely open to him. Completely exposed.

  His tongue grazes the soft skin at the top of my thigh and I shudder. I try to squirm, but he's holding me tight. I hear someone begging and realize it's me. A soft "please, please, oh please, yes, please" escaping my lips, barely a murmur, and so much more like a prayer.

  Finally, his mouth closes over my sex and he sucks and teases, playing with my overly sensitive clit as I try to move--to relieve some of this astounding, amazing, incredible assault. But I can't, and I can only endure it as a storm builds inside me, brought on by a pleasure so intense that it crosses over into pain.

  And then, just as my body starts to quake
with sweet release, he pulls back, gently stroking me, his tongue dipping inside me, thrusting hard, and I cry out, because I want more. I want to be filled completely. I want to feel my body stretching, welcoming him. I want him to own me. To use me. I want to break apart under the power that is this man I love.

  "Hunter," I cry out, and as he lifts his hands to let me move, I piston my hips, fucking his tongue as he slides his hands up and cups my breasts, his thumbs teasing my nipples. "Please," I beg, because at this point I am officially desperate. "Please," I repeat as my eyes flutter open. "I want to feel you inside me."

  He lifts his head, his expression a mix of passion and playfulness, then kisses his way up my body with slow, lingering caresses designed to drive me even wilder than I already am.

  "Ryan--" But he silences me with a long kiss, so deep and intimate and claiming that it feels like fucking.

  "Shhh," he murmurs, his mouth brushing mine. Tasting mine. Teasing my lips. Tracing a path along my jaw as his fingers dip deep inside me. "You're so wet," he says as I lose my mind and grind against him. I want him. I want everything. And I'm both frustrated that he isn't yet giving it to me, and deliciously, wildly, insanely turned on by the way he's extending this unimaginable pleasure into an infinite, crazed delight.

  "I don't want to stop," he admits. "I want to keep teasing you. I like it when you beg, kitten. I like hearing how much you want me. Tell me again, baby. Tell me what you want."

  "You." My voice is cracked, as shattered as my body. "I want you inside me. I want you to come inside me."

  "Christ, Jamie," he says, his voice sharp and urgent. "I can't take it any longer. Turn over, kitten. On your knees for me."

  I comply eagerly. Right then I'd hang from the damn chandelier if he asked me to, even though we don't even have a chandelier. I just want him. Want to please him. Want to feel him.

  "Beautiful," he murmurs once I'm on my knees, my head on the pillow and my elbows on the bed. His hand smacks my ass lightly, and I groan, squeezing my legs together to fight the growing sense of pressure in my cunt. I'm so fucking turned on right now that another touch could send me spiraling over the edge, and that's not what I want. Not yet.

  No, what I want is to feel him inside me. I want that connection, that most intimate union, and when I finally feel his cock at my opening, my entire body rejoices. This. This is what I want. This man, one with me.

  "Yes," I beg. "Now, Ryan. Now."

  I'm beyond wet, and when he grips my hips and thrusts forward, his cock fills me. He stays still for a moment, our bodies joined, then pulls out before slamming back into me again and again and again. Wilder and faster, in a rhythm that has me gasping, my hips moving in time with his thrusts so as to make it deeper.

  "I adore you," he murmurs. "Christ, you feel good."

  "Yes," I murmur, because my mind can't come up with any more words. "More."