Seized by Seduction--A Compelling Tale of Romance, Love and Intrigue

by Brenda Jackson

  And then, as if dismissing Randi, she turned to Quasar. “How long will you be in town? Have you visited your family yet? Have you seen Lilly?”

  Randi wondered why Kendra would ask him about Lilly. “I’ll be in town until the weekend,” Quasar responded. “And no, I haven’t seen the family yet, but I will before leaving.”

  “Well, I would love to have you over for dinner. What are you doing tomorrow night? Byron is out of town on business, and he will hate that he missed seeing you.”

  Quasar chuckled. “Unless your husband has changed his attitude over the years, I seriously doubt that.”

  Kendra reached out and touched Quasar’s arm. “But you will have dinner with me tomorrow night, won’t you? For old times’ sake. We can catch up on stuff,” she said, batting her long eyelashes at him. “I’m one of your neighbors now. Mom and Dad gave me the cottage when they purchased a bigger place in Pacific Palisades.”

  Quasar held his smile. “Thanks for the invite, but Randi and I must decline. Our visit here is packed with too many activities already.”

  Randi drew in a deep breath. The woman’s invitation hadn’t included her and Quasar had known that. Yet without missing a beat, he’d let Kendra know if he was invited, that meant the invitation extended to Randi. The realization sent a warm feeling rushing through her.

  “Well, maybe next time. I hope this is just the beginning and you plan to come back home more often.”

  Quasar’s smile was noncommittal when he said, “Maybe and maybe not. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Randi and I have plans for the evening. It was good seeing you again, Kendra. Give my best to your parents...and to Byron.”

  “Oh. Yes, of course.”

  Taking Randi’s hand, he led her back toward his beach house.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  “SO WAS KENDRA one of your girlfriends back in the day?”

  Quasar slid another movie into the DVD player. He returned to his seat beside her on the sofa, lifting Randi to place her in his lap as before. He enjoyed having her snuggled close to him like this, where he could kiss her any time he wanted.

  He rested his chin on top of her head, loving the smell of her and the silky feel of her hair. When they returned from the beach they’d showered together, which had taken longer than usual since they’d also used that time to make love. Then she had assisted him in the kitchen. After dinner they got ready for movie night. He was a little surprised she hadn’t asked him anything about Kendra before now.

  “What gave you the idea she’s an old girlfriend?”

  She tilted her head back to look up at him. “She was kind of huggy, touchy and grabby. And you did introduce her as an old friend.”

  “She is. At least she was once, but not that way. In fact, for years she was Doyle’s girlfriend. I was surprised to hear they’d broken up and he’d married Lilly.” At least he had been surprised until Lucinda’s last visit to him in prison. When he’d asked her about it, she’d been truthful. It seemed Doyle had bragged to Kendra that he’d beat going to jail when the old man had persuaded Quasar to be the sacrificial lamb. Kendra threatened to tell the authorities the truth unless they paid her to keep quiet. His father had, to the tune of a million dollars.

  “Oh. I take it that you and her husband, Byron, didn’t get along.”

  Quasar shook his head. “In school Byron and Doyle despised each other. Since I was Doyle’s brother, Byron pretty much gave me grief any time he got the chance.”

  He was glad when the movie began playing and stole Randi’s attention. However, his thoughts remained not only on Kendra but also on the phone call he’d gotten earlier today. Louis again, assuming he was still calling the shots. He had stated there would be a dinner party in Quasar’s honor tomorrow night and all but demanded he bring the woman with him.

  Quasar knew with only three days left in Los Angeles, he couldn’t put off visiting his family any longer. He preferred Randi not meet his over-the-top family. He had to prepare mentally for the reunion himself. But then another part of him felt she needed to meet them to understand the dysfunction. It would be up to her if she wanted to go or not.

  By the time they’d watched two movies, it was close to two in the morning. He couldn’t blame the late night entirely on the flicks since he’d paused the DVDs a few times while they’d made love right there on the couch. Whenever she was in his arms or he in hers, an aura of completeness always filled him.

  “You’re thinking too hard,” Randi said, interrupting his thoughts and sitting straight up in his lap to massage his temples.

  “I have a lot to think about.”

  She lifted a brow. “Do you?”

  “Yes. Louis called today. He’s planning a dinner party tomorrow night to welcome me home.”

  “That’s nice.”

  He ran his fingers through the tendrils of hair that fanned her face. Were her lips still wet from their earlier kiss? Certainly looked that way. Seeing evidence of his desire increased his longing for her even more. “He asked me to bring you,” he said, trying not to think too hard about kissing her again. Especially when they needed to talk.

  A look of surprise shone in her eyes. “Me?”

  “Yes.”

  “He knows about me?”

  He continued to run his fingers through her hair. “He knows I’m here with a woman, thanks to one of the neighbors.”

  She was peering at him intently. “And what do you want, Quasar?” she asked softly.

  He fought back the urge to say, To kiss you again. All over. Taste you. Especially between your legs. Then make love to you all night long. Instead he removed his fingers from her hair and said in a frustrated tone, “Honestly, I’d rather you didn’t get caught up in my father’s manipulations and his craziness, but you were invited. Whether you go is your decision. But if you do accept his invitation, don’t be surprised when the place is filled with all that negative energy you told Kendra about today.”

  He watched her nibble on her bottom lip, followed by a sweep of her tongue. It was a purely innocent yet erotic gesture that had even more desire twisting his insides.

  She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I’ll go. I want to be there for you. Besides, I want to meet the man who fathered you.”

  “Why?”

  “I just do, so yes, I will attend the dinner party with you.”

  He searched her face. “You sure?”

  “Yes, I’m sure.”

  “Okay,” he said, pushing her hair back from her face. “Tomorrow we’ll go to the dinner party together.”

  * * *

  HOURS LATER, RANDI felt content lying naked in Quasar’s arms. She had enjoyed their time together last night. The movies they’d watched and all those naughty activities in between. A part of her could feel their relationship shifting. He had accepted her invitation to attend Trey’s birthday celebration, and he had asked her to attend his good friend’s wedding. She saw that as a promising start to something beyond what they were sharing here in LA.

  Tomorrow she would meet his family, and she couldn’t stop the tingles of excitement flowing through her. What she’d told him earlier hadn’t been the total truth. Yes, she looked forward to meeting his father. But more than anything, she couldn’t wait to meet Lilly. The woman who’d promised to wait for him but had married his brother instead. Randi didn’t want to form negative opinions of the woman who’d broken Quasar’s heart but was finding it difficult not to do so.

  Since she hadn’t brought anything dressy enough to wear to a dinner party, especially one held in Beverly Hills, she intended to go shopping tomorrow. She wanted Quasar to be proud to be seen with her.

  And speaking of Quasar...she felt his body shift and the arms around her tighten. She loved sleeping nude with him with her back brushing against his hairy chest. And
she definitely liked the way his leg was thrown over hers and his hand rested mere inches from her sex. More than once she’d come awake during the night with his hands stroking her down there.

  He’d awakened. She knew it from the sound of his breathing. And then there was that telltale sign of his huge erection poking into her backside. After all they’d done last night, she would have thought sex was the last thing on his mind at six in the morning.

  Their normal routine in the mornings had been to watch the sun rise while sitting on the beach, drinking coffee. But not this morning after going to bed so late. And then, once they’d gotten into bed, they hadn’t gone to sleep.

  “You’re awake?”

  His husky voice close to her ear sent desire racing through her loins. She couldn’t help but smile at how quickly her body responded to him. “Who wants to know?”

  “My friend down there. Feel him?”

  Yes, she felt him. He seemed to have gotten bigger and harder. Quasar was such a virile man, and his libido was unlike any she’d ever heard about. “Yes, I feel him.”

  “He wants you again.”

  “He’s greedy,” she said, feeling his erection enlarge even more.

  She heard a soft chuckle. “Yes, he’s greedy. But only when it comes to you, nena.”

  Now that he knew she understood Spanish, he spoke it more often. Mostly while making love. There was something about talking naughty in Spanish. Especially when the words came from Quasar’s lips. The thought that he found her so desirable, that she was a woman who could stoke his fire, only made her savor her time with him even more.

  “Te echo de menos,” he whispered hotly, shifting his body and hers to straddle her.

  She smiled up at him. “How can you miss me when I haven’t been anywhere but right here, lying beside you?”

  He returned her smile, and her heart pounded in her chest. Randi loved his unshaven look and the way his hair looked tousled around his face. She reached up and pushed a few strands out the way so she could see his eyes. His sexy brown bedroom eyes.

  “Can’t explain it, but I do.”

  She didn’t say anything but inwardly wondered if he would miss her as much after they parted ways. Would she remain in his mind? His thoughts? When he lowered his mouth to hers, she hoped that one day she would somehow wiggle her way into his heart.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  “I’M READY, QUASAR.”

  Quasar’s gaze slid over Randi as he rose from the sofa. For the longest time all he could do was stand there and stare. What had she done to herself? She was a beautiful woman, but now she looked even more so. Her hair was no longer straight but was styled in bouncy curls that framed her face.

  And her outfit...

  He’d gone shopping with her today and was with her when she picked this particular dress off the rack to try on. But she hadn’t wanted him to see her in it until now. All he’d known was that it was red. The color suited. The dress fit her figure perfectly, molding to all her luscious curves in a sexy yet not too provocative way. The hem hit her just above the knees and showed off the beauty of her legs in a pair of high heels. A wrap was draped across her shoulders, covering up skin he loved to lick.

  “What do you think?” she asked, slowly twirling around so he could see her from front to back.

  He shoved his hands into the pockets of his dress slacks. “I think maybe we should cancel and stay here and do other things.”

  She laughed. “Honestly, what do you think?”

  A smile curved his lips. “Honestly, I think we should cancel and stay here and do other things.”

  She waved off his words dismissively. “We can’t disappoint your father.”

  Quasar snorted. “Trust me, I can and wouldn’t lose any sleep over doing so. You look beautiful. I’m tempted to strip this dress off you right now. But I’ll be patient. Consider yourself forewarned.”

  “You have patience?” she asked jokingly. Now it was her gaze roaming over him. “You look awfully handsome.”

  He glanced down at himself and chuckled. “Just a little something that I threw together.” He’d purchased a dinner jacket to go with the dress slacks he’d packed.

  “And you threw it together so well,” she said, looping her arms through his. “But then, Mr. Patterson, I’ve discovered you have a knack for doing things well.” She leaned up and placed a kiss on his cheek. “I’m looking forward to the evening.”

  As they headed for the door to leave, Quasar was surprised to realize he, too, was looking forward to the evening. Why not? He had a beautiful woman by his side. One he trusted and knew would have his back regardless of what went down tonight. Over the past few days he’d compared Randi to Lilly and knew there was no comparison. The thought that she was beginning to mean a lot to him didn’t bother him as it once did. His thoughts then shifted to Louis. He intended to get some answers tonight and would not be putting up with his father’s bullshit anymore.

  * * *

  RANDI SHOULD NOT HAVE been surprised at the sprawling mansion they pulled up to an hour later. After all, this was Beverly Hills, and every estate they’d passed had circular driveways and similar massive structures. During the drive, Quasar had told her that both he and his brother had been born in this house and had grown up with a household staff, various on-premise cooks, gardeners and the like.

  “It seems a lot of people were invited this evening,” she said when he came around to her side of the car to open the door for her. There were a number of other cars and valet parking.

  “I’m not surprised,” Quasar responded dispassionately when the valet attendant arrived. “I haven’t been home in ten years and he intends to put me on display.”

  She didn’t say anything as he took her hand and gathered her close and they began walking toward the massive front door.

  A dismal-faced butler opened the door and smiled when he saw Quasar. The man had to be in his seventies, or even close to eighty. “Mr. Quasar, it’s so good to see you.”

  Randi saw the huge smile that touched Quasar’s lips before Quasar reached out to hug the man. “Barnes, I can’t believe you’re still here. I figured you would have retired by now. And how’s Queenie?”

  The smile on the older man’s face sobered, and Randi saw the flash of pain in his eyes before he said in an anguished tone, “I lost Queenie to cancer three years ago.”

  The smile left Quasar’s lips, as well. “I’m sorry to hear that. Queenie was a special woman.”

  A slight smile returned to the older man’s lips. “Thank you.”

  Turning to Randi, Quasar said, “This is Barnes, and his wife, Queenie, used to be head of housekeeping here. Barnes, this is Randi Fuller.”

  Randi smiled as she offered the man her hand. It was easy to see Quasar thought a lot of the people employed by his father. She could imagine how difficult it had been to cut ties with them, as well. Whether he’d done it to protect himself from his father and brother or to protect the staff really didn’t matter. Either way, he’d had to separate himself from people he cared about. “It’s nice meeting you, Barnes, and I’m sorry for the loss of your wife.” Although his handshake was strong, Randi thought his hand felt frail in hers.

  “Thanks, Ms. Randi. Queenie and I had fifty-eight good years together.”

  “You still think it’s okay to fraternize with the hired help, I see.”

  Randi turned when she heard the booming masculine voice. Standing less than ten feet away was the same man she’d seen on television, Quasar’s brother, Doyle. Even if she hadn’t known the relationship between the two beforehand, it would have been easy to tell they were brothers. The two had the same stature and build, although Quasar seemed to have outgrown his older brother by a few inches. And they had similar facial features and skin coloring. However, in her opinion,
Quasar was more striking.

  Her gaze moved from the man to the woman standing by his side, whose arm he seemed to be clutching possessively. The woman stared at Quasar with what appeared to be both regret and remorse in her eyes. This was Lilly. And in Randi’s opinion, she was even more stunning in person than she had been on television. She was absolutely, positively beautiful.

  “And evidently you haven’t been fraternizing enough,” Quasar said. “Still consider yourself above others, I see, Doyle.”

  Quasar’s biting words cut into Randi’s curiosity about Lilly. She had to agree that Quasar’s theory had been right. She was unable to read Lilly or Doyle due to the negativity surrounding them. In fact, she’d picked up on it the moment Barnes had opened the door. She had a feeling this had not been a happy place for Quasar while growing up, and his brother had had a lot to do with it.

  She watched as the couple moved toward them, their every step in sync as if the measured movements had been choreographed.

  When the couple came to a stop in front of them, Randi noticed the woman’s gaze hadn’t moved off Quasar. She decided not to check whether Quasar was studying Lilly just as intently. Up close Randi saw that, like Kendra, Lilly had blond hair and blue eyes. But Lilly’s beauty appeared more natural, and unlike Kendra’s, it hadn’t been enhanced with Botox.

  “Welcome home, Quay,” the woman said softly, effectively slicing into the tension surrounding Quasar and his brother.

  “Thank you, Lilly. You’re looking well.”

  “And so are you.”

  Randi continued to watch the scene played out before her. The two brothers had yet to shake hands, fist-bump or bear-hug. They stood facing each other as if adversaries.

  After a long moment, Quasar finally stretched out his hand as if it took him a lot of effort. “Doyle, you’re looking well, also.”

  It seemed as if Doyle had no intention of accepting the hand Quasar offered, but then he did. “No reason why I shouldn’t.” And then, without as much as returning Quasar’s compliment, he looked at his watch. “Glad you’re on time. Had you been late, the old man wouldn’t have been happy.”