“It is,” she answered.
“But it says here that I’ll receive a hundred grand when I sign the contract for the auction, and another four hundred thousand once the deed is done. Bidding starts at—” My eyes bugged out of my head.
“One million dollars,” she finished for me.
“That’s absurd!”
“Why? Because Steve owes significantly less than that?”
“Well, yes. I thought I was doing this to pay off his debt. I thought …” I trailed off, at a loss for words. Honestly, I didn’t know what I’d thought. I hadn’t let my mind travel that far.
“Personally, I’ve always considered it bad form to let a man define your worth; especially a spineless one like Steve Parker. The truth is, a million dollars is nothing to these men. They toss that away on toys they never even play with. But you are something they’ll treasure, an experience they will take to their graves.”
“But a million dollars is a lot of money.”
She shook her head. “Not to them it isn’t.”
I might have been an innocent virgin, but I knew there were sick people in this world. If a man spent a million dollars purchasing my virginity, what else would he expect? Would he want to hurt me—and not the way I was looking forward to?
My belly clenched in sudden fear. “Whoever buys me is going to want certain things, isn’t he? What if they’re things I can’t give?”
“Ah, you haven’t reached the end of the document yet,” she answered, her eyes laced with understanding. “You have more power in this situation than you know.”
Janessa pushed her chair back, and made her way to a door I hadn’t noticed on the other side of the room, her heels clacking on the polished hardwood floor. She pressed a button that blended in with the wallpaper and craned her neck over her shoulder. “When you’re finished reading the contract, ring that bell to your left and I’ll return. We’ll discuss specifics then.”
Without waiting for a response, she slipped through the door, leaving me to learn what other surprises she had in store for me.
And what surprises they were.
Janessa hadn’t exaggerated when she said I was in charge. Everything was laid out in excruciating detail, including what I was willing to do and what I wasn’t. Each box I checked would give the bidder insight into all the ways he could use me.
The problem was I didn’t know what most of the items on the list were. Beyond what I’d read in romance novels, most of this stuff was just words on a sheet of paper. But some of them I did recognize.
My breath came fast as I pictured all the ways the mystery billionaire would claim me. I was a smart girl with an active imagination. And right now that imagination was operating in overdrive.
My nipples hardened, and my clit started throbbing again.
Meet the men of Dublin Rugby
If you love hot, alpha athletes who play hard and love even harder, start reading the Dublin Rugby Romance series today.
COMING HOME
(Dublin Rugby #1)
I grew up surrounded by professional athletes, so I know better than to date one. Which is why when I jump on a plane to Ireland to care for my ailing grandfather, I’m determined not to fall for arrogant rugby star Declan O’Shaughnessy.
But he’s nothing like I remember.
Gone is the boy who used to torment me, and in his place is a sexy, muscled man that I can’t seem to tear my eyes away from. Except it’s not just his hot body that I’m falling for. Underneath all that brash cockiness, he’s kind and generous too.
It’s just my luck that he’s looking for a forever kind of love, and my visit is only temporary. Because when I look at him, it feels a lot like coming home.
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* * *
FIRST COMES LOVE
(Dublin Rugby #2)
I’ve called my best friend Aoife O’Shaughnessy a number of things, but dumb was never one of them. Through all of her mad schemes, I never once thought she was actually stupid—until now. Because I just heard her plan to cash in her v-card, and it’s her craziest idea yet.
So I volunteered to help her out instead.
It might be the stupidest thing I’ve ever done, but now I can’t stop imagining her lips on mine, or the sounds she’ll make when I show her what she’s been missing all these years.
It was only supposed to be a bit of fun between friends; we never planned on falling in love. And that thing that happened next? Neither of us planned on that.
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* * *
JUST FOR NOW
(Dublin Rugby #3)
Playboy. Flirt. Womanizer. I know what they say about me, but none of it is true. Despite the parade of girls leaving my room, I’d rather stay a virgin than wind up with a baby-mama claiming the kid is mine.
But one flirty conversation with Lauren Andrews, a sexy chef from California with curves to die for, and I’m all in. One kiss, and I yearn for something more. Something lasting.
But between our age difference, and the fact that she’s going back to America in a couple of months, convincing her to be with me is harder than I thought. I'm used to women falling at my feet, not pushing me away.
Now I’m in for the match of my life, and I have no intention of losing. Even if it means leaving Dublin—and rugby—behind for good.
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* * *
TAKE A CHANCE ON ME
(Dublin Rugby #4)
All my life, I looked and wondered. Could I? Would I? And then, finally, I did. But when I sampled a taste of that forbidden fruit, my whole world came crashing down.
Now I’m in Edinburgh looking to rebuild my life, but those old temptations are calling to me once again. One look at Chef Lachlan MacLeod’s whisky-colored eyes and the ink lining his forearms, and I’m wondering all over again.
Can I? Will I? My heart says no, but my body says yes.
The biggest question of all though is whether he’s willing to take a chance on me.
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* * *
FOREVER AT LAST
(A Dublin Rugby Short Story)
The day my fiancé left me at the alter for his pregnant secretary, I thought my life was over.
When my sister dragged me to Dublin to get over him, I never expected to meet a sexy rugby player with the body of a gladiator and the soul of a gentleman.
All I wanted was to get over my ex; I never meant to fall in love. I never meant to find my forever.
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Also by Rebecca Norinne
Club Black Series
The Contract
The Billionaire
The Rocky Cove Series
Not Quite Perfect
The Worst Man
The River Hill Series
(Co-Written with Jamaila Brinkley)
The Vintner’s Vixen
The Distiller’s Darling
The Baker’s Beauty
The Barista’s Beloved
Standalones
Hollywood Dreams
Protect Me
About the Author
USA Today bestselling author Rebecca Norinne writes sexy, small-town romance featuring quirky heroines and tough-yet-tender heroes that'll make you swoon.
When not banging away at the keyboard, she is likely watching rugby, playing board games, or drinking a pint of craft beer.
Originally from California, she now resides in New England with her husband and two cats. Together, they are renovating a home built in the mid-1700s and trying valiantly not to be eaten alive by mosquitos.
For more information, please visit www.rebeccanorinne.com. Or, you can sign up for Rebec
ca’s newsletter and never miss an update: http://www.rebeccanorinne.com/newsletter.
Copyright © June 2019 by Rebecca Norinne.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events, or locales is entirely coincidental or meant to lend credibility and authenticity in the story. The use of brand names and locations should not be read as an endorsement of this author’s work.
Secrets and Lies: A Forbidden Mafia Romance Page 11