Betrayed & Seduced

by Shelley Munro

  Book 1, Middlemarch Capture

  The welcome party was in full swing when Saber walked into the function room flanked by his brothers. His nostrils flared, quivered at the scent of lust thick on the air. His stride faltered as the wave hit him, reminded him he was a healthy feline male who hadn’t had a woman for months.

  Felix gave a soft whistle while Leo cursed under his breath.

  “Everyone seems happy,” Joe said in patent understatement. “Even Laurence is smiling for a change.”

  Music played and several females were dancing with employees. Laughter and excited chatter battled the music, and some of the tension lifted from Saber’s shoulders. Everyone looked happy. In fact, all the men they employed were talking or dancing with their guests. Doing their job, including Laurence, the brother of Saber’s dead fiancée, which marked a change.

  Taking care to keep his breaths shallow Saber said in a low voice, “Go and check out the women on our list. Dance with them, speak with them and come to a decision. We need to cement our plans.”

  As his brothers wandered off, Saber observed the partygoers. A flash of red caught his attention, and he turned to watch a woman progress to the bar. She wasn’t exceptionally beautiful like some of the other women, and was on the skinny side, yet something undefinable kept his gaze stitched in place. The red gown followed the lines of her body, its short length showcasing her legs and cupping her backside. Her footwear consisted of a series of crisscrossed black straps and heels that elevated her height. She chatted with the bar staff, shared a smile with the other women who sat at the bar and politely turned down a request to dance.

  Interesting. He hadn’t noticed any other woman saying no. Most were here to enjoy themselves and interact with the men.

  Saber stalked closer, his mind taking in the small details and matching them against his brothers’ tastes. Honey-blonde hair, swept into some complicated style that made a man think about messing it up. A slight, petite frame. Bright blue eyes the color of the cornflowers his mother used to grow swept over him, dismissed him without pause.

  Saber felt his mouth drop open and snapped it shut. Her rejection rankled. Miffed, he took a step toward her before common sense reasserted itself.

  He wanted mates for his brothers.

  He wanted them settled.

  Happy.

  This was business, and his own physical needs weren’t paramount.

  Saber changed direction and hit the far end of the bar. He signaled for a drink and turned to survey the room before his gaze tracked back to the woman. Another female joined Blondie. Tall and regal with ruthlessly short black hair, she was dressed in a deep-blue dress with a dramatic slit up one side.

  His attention shifted back to Blondie—just in time to see Felix swoop. Minutes later, Leo joined them and started chatting with the friend.

  Saber watched for a few seconds longer, batted back the surge of inappropriate resentment and decided everything was going well. He wasn’t needed. His brothers knew what to do, and for once they were following orders. He downed his drink and stopped to chat now and then, pulling out his rusty social skills to flirt and drag responding smiles from their female guests. Some of the women were stunning beauties, others not so much, yet their smiles and excitement, their enjoyment, made them all rate a second inspection.

  He wove through the guests and employees, the lustful scents starting to get to him.

  “Saber.” His sister Scarlett waved him over to where she was sitting by the terrace doors.

  He dropped onto a seat beside her. “What are you doing here?”

  “I wanted to check out the guests, get a feeling for them.” She delicately sniffed the air and grimaced. “Sucks to be a shifter sometimes.” Her gaze drilled into him. “I didn’t get to spend long on reception because you had me running background checks all day.” She leaned closer, lowering her voice a fraction. “One of the women in chalet twenty-five doesn’t have any family, although there was some scandal about her accusing her in-laws of murdering her husband. Nothing came of her allegations, and I haven’t been able to discover anything recent on the subject.”

  “Pity we don’t have time to visit her residence and ask questions in person. I worry we’ll miss something important,” Saber said. “What about the other one?”

  “She comes from a military background, although sources say she doesn’t spend her leave with her family. She seems closer to an aunt—her mother’s sister. If we grabbed her, the military might become involved. The woman with no family might make things easier.”

  Saber tapped his fingers on his thigh. “True. Or maybe we should scoop up both women. If they both disappeared we’d have some breathing space, rather than leaving one behind who might cause problems and raise the alarm.”

  “Good point,” Scarlett said. “We’re treading a delicate line with our capture plan.”

  Low, throaty laughter came from a neighboring couple. It was sexy and suggestive and the insinuation transmitted with ease. The resort employee stood and held out his hand to the woman, a Dalcon local, Saber thought.

  “Care for a walk along the beach?” the man asked.

  The laughter was a purr of response this time as she accepted his hand and stood.

  Saber shot a glance at his sister. “You shouldn’t be here, Scarlett. It’s not right.”

  Scarlett reached over and rapped her fist against his skull. “Hello? Hello? Is anybody there?”

  Saber ducked out of reach. “Cut it out.”

  “Then stop treating me like a kid. I know what sex is, Saber.”

  “Who told you about sex? Tell me so I can shoot their kneecaps.”

  “Saber!”

  Saber grinned, silently acknowledging his sister was an adult. She wasn’t a cute kid tagging after him anymore. “We’re going hunting for zylon once this winds down. You wanna come?”

  “You’re on. Bet I catch more cute fluffies than you.”

  “You can try,” Saber said.

  Romantic cooing sounded outside and Scarlett grimaced. “Ugh, I’ve seen enough. I’ll see you later.” She stood and sashayed out the terrace doors. She paused to remove her shoes before stepping onto the sandy beach.

  Saber watched his sister until she blended with the darkness. They had a couple of days to observe and decide. Maybe this capture scenario was bizarre and risky, but he was doing it for his family. Once they were settled the burden of responsibility would lessen, and he wouldn’t need to worry as much about his family’s future. He could relax.

  Does Saber get his brothers settled with mates? Learn more here.

  Excerpt – Interplanetary Love

  Taking love to another planet

  Music rippled through the Starlight nightclub—the latest addition to Earth mogul Tee’s string of on-planet entertainment ventures. The urbane male singer crooned of romance and enticed lovers to take to the dance floor and smooch.

  “Let’s dance, babe.”

  Carly Abercombie sighed and aimed an obligatory smile at her date, Graham. Her grimace must have done the trick because he grinned and seized her hand in response. She trotted after him on her ice-pick heels and let him draw her closer on the dance floor.

  The subdued lighting gave her flashes of euphoric faces, naked flesh due to abbreviated dresses and lovers who were practically doing it in public. If this had been a workday, she could have busted several for indecent exposure, and she’d caught a faint whiff of designer drugs earlier. Probably the new Spanfly or one of the many variations out on the street. They busted one manufacturer and another popped up in their place like fast-growing fungi.

  Her feet moved on automatic, marking time in the same place since the traffic on the floor had deepened and true dancing became impossible. Her new sparkly black shoes rubbed, her feet protesting even this slight motion.

  Two hands clamping onto her butt cheeks jerked her mind from blisters and footbaths. She tensed, attempted to pull back.

  “Stop playing har
d to get,” Graham growled next to her ear. “You know you want it.”

  “Want what?” she asked.

  “My big cock,” he said, a wave of alcohol-laden breath wafting into her airspace.

  Carly bit back a curse. Another idiot. She’d thought this one might be different, but the addition of whiskey had propelled him into stupid.

  “No,” she said.

  “Aw, baby. Don’t be like that. Wait until I’m thrusting inside you. I promise you’ll love it.”

  She put a few inches between them and kept dancing. When would this song end? It seemed to play on a continuous loop with numerous verses and choruses about hot, sexy loving.

  A young couple—obviously tourists from Venuree since they wore the distinctive silver arm jewelry—inserted their bodies into a gap at the rear of Graham.

  A jolt from behind gave her date opportunity, and he reclaimed the precious inches of respectability she’d carved out for herself. Someone elbowed Carly, propelling her against Graham so they resembled the rest of the lovers on the dance floor.

  Quick as a flash, Graham’s hand slid under the hem of her dress. His fingers smoothed over her ass cheek and slid between to grope her pussy. Shock held her in place for a prolonged second—enough for him to wriggle his fingers beneath her miniscule panties into her heat.

  Carly shoved away, using force this time and created space surprisingly easy, given the crush. She managed to maintain a grip on her temper until the creep smirked and made a show of licking his fingers. Rage took control and she kneed him square in the balls.

  Around them couples stopped moving, slithering away so they didn’t become involved in the unfolding drama. Carly stood, weight evenly distributed, in case he decided to retaliate. He didn’t. He writhed on the shiny black floor, his hands cupped protectively over his groin.

  “You crazy bitch. What did you do that for?”

  Whispers floated around her, gossip and a few feminine titters, but the public amusement didn’t put a dent in her acute satisfaction. She glared at yet another Earth dud. That would teach him to grope her on the dance floor.

  Her latest date.

  Another failure.

  “Don’t think he’ll try that again,” her friend Samuel said with a pained expression on his tanned face. Dapper in a black shirt and tight black trousers, his hair slicked back to reveal his high cheekbones and intelligent face, he remained a respectable distance, way out of kicking range with his date angled slightly in front of him. “What did he do?”

  Carly shifted from foot to foot and resisted the urge to tug her bodice up and her hemline down. She wasn’t used to dressing up, but for tonight’s celebratory dinner, she’d made an effort. A figure-hugging black dress that displayed lots of skin clung to her curves. Her feet were crammed in heels high enough to make her feel like a giraffe, and her brown hair was streaked with neon pink and arranged artfully on top of her head.

  “He shoved his fingers inside my panties,” Carly snapped. “Nobody does that without my permission.”

  “You were asking for it,” her date snapped, his tone vicious because she’d made him look foolish. He’d climbed to his feet while she was talking to Samuel, but he too, remained carefully out of range, lurking on the edge of the dance floor.

  Disbelief raised Carly’s eyebrows. “So it’s all right for me to play with your dangly bits in a public place?” She shot him a look of disgust. Aside from the fact the man needed the name of a good dentist, he’d been passable until he’d started drinking straight shots of whiskey. “Forget I said that. Of course you’d get off on being groped in public.” She swiveled on her giraffe-shoes and stalked off, leaving Mr. Octopus to do his worst on the dance floor.

  Silence fell as she approached her table. Her fellow cops, who were mainly men, wore identical expressions to Samuel. Pained and wary.

  “Shit,” Carly snapped. “I only do that to men who grope me in the middle of the dance floor. Coworkers are safe unless they try to cop a feel.”

  “Good to hear,” her partner, Bart, drawled. He’d tamed his wavy hair in a stubby tail, highlighting the stark planes of his face while his muscular form wore a gray suit with sexy ease. “We’re cops, but we don’t feel.”

  His laconic remark broke the silence and everyone started talking at once.

  “You okay?” Bart’s wife whispered, her blue eyes full of compassion. Although the woman’s intentions were good, Carly didn’t want sympathy.

  “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” Hellfire. She winced at her behavior toward a woman who was trying to help. But Carly knew if she started to cry, she wouldn’t stop. She snapped her fingers at a passing waiter. “Whiskey.” Perhaps she’d drown her sorrows. The evening was young, and she had to stay for another hour at least for this work celebration.

  It was gonna be a long night.

  How does Carly get out of her dating funk? Learn more here.

  About Shelley

  USA Today bestselling author Shelley Munro lives in Auckland, the City of Sails, with her husband and a cheeky Jack Russell/mystery breed puppy.

  Typical New Zealanders, Shelley and her husband left home for their big OE soon after they married (translation of New Zealand speak – big overseas experience). A twelve-month long adventure lengthened to six years of roaming the world. Enduring memories include being almost sat on by a mountain gorilla in Rwanda, lazing on white sandy beaches in India, whale watching in Alaska, searching for leprechauns in Ireland, and dealing with ghosts in an English pub.

  While travel is still a big attraction, these days Shelley is most likely found in front of her computer following another love – that of writing stories of contemporary and paranormal romance and adventure. Other interests include watching rugby (strictly for research purposes), cycling, baking bread and curling up with an enjoyable book.

  Visit Shelley at her website.

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  Other Books by Shelley

  Paranormal

  Sea of Change

  Price of Love

  Lynx to the Pharaoh

  Curse of Brandon Lupinus

  Fiona’s Mates

  Dragon Investigators

  Blue Moon Dragon

  Blood Moon Dragon

  Middlemarch Capture

  Snared by Saber

  Favored by Felix

  Lost with Leo

  Spellbound with Sly

  Bundle

  Middlemarch Capture

  Middlemarch Shifters

  My Scarlet Woman

  My Younger Lover

  My Peeping Tom

  My Assassin

  My Estranged Lover

  My Feline Protector

  My Determined Suitor

  My Cat Burglar

  My Stray Cat

  My Second Chance

  My Plan B

  My Cat Nap

  My Romantic Tangle

  My Blue Lady

  My Twin Trouble

  Bundle

  Middlemarch Shifters 1 – 3

  Middlemarch Shifters 4 - 6

  House of the Cat series

  Sampled & Seduced

  Captured & Seduced

  Claimed & Seduced

  Merry & Seduced

  Stranded & Seduced

  Seized & Seduced

  Hunted & Seduced

  Festive & Seduced

  Bundle

  House of the Cat

  Contemporary

  Wild Child

  Cat Burglar in Training

  One Night of Misbehavior

  Blindside

  Fringe Benefits

  Lovers at Last

  Ain’t Misbehaving

  Playing to Win

  Summer Encounter

  Reformed Bad Girl

  Stranger Things Happen

  Fancy Free

 
Protection

  Romp

  Buzz

  Friendship Chronicles

  Secret Lovers

  Reunited Lovers

  Clandestine Lovers

  Part-Time Lovers

  Enemy Lovers

  Military Men

  Innocent Next Door

  Soldiers with Benefits

  Safeguarding Sorrel

  Bundle

  Military Men

  Sci-fi/Futuristic

  Interplanetary Love

  Sex Idol

  Alien Encounter series

  Janaya

  Hinekiri

  Alexandre

  Bundle

  Alien Encounter

  Gay Romance

  No Defense

  Best Man

  Last Wish

  Curse Across Time

  Eye on the Ball

  Fallen Idol

  Lone Wolf

  Seeking Kokopelli

  Historical

  The Spurned Viscountess

  Evening Tryst

  Unforgettable

  Mistress of Merrivale

  Copyright Page

  Betrayed & Seduced

  Copyright © 2018 Shelley Munro

  ISBN: 978-0-473-43672-8

  Cover: The Killion Group

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer’s imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without the prior written permission from the author except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews.

  Shelley Munro