by London Casey
The crowd clapped and cheered as the men bestowed so many kisses on her that she lost track.
“Hey, don’t you boys hog her. I need to be the first to congratulate her.”
The men broke apart, and Nana, still dressed in her jeans and apron, welcomed her with open arms. Emotion choked her. Zoey was finally home.
About the Author
I love to read, write, dream, and connect with people. A book with a happily ever after is a must, as is having characters I can relate to. My men are always wonderful, dynamic, smart, strong, and the best lovers in the world.
I love hearing from readers, too!!
You can contact me at:
[email protected]
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www.velladay.com
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www.melodymonroe.com
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Other Books by the Author
Montana Promises
GENRE: Medical Romance, Contemporary Western Romance, Erotica ménage romance, (MFM)
Promises of Mercy (Book 1)
Killing is wrong. The reason doesn’t matter.
When oncology nurse, Amber Delacroix, learns her reckless brother has been in a paralyzing motorcycle accident, sorrow fills her soul. He’s murdered a few days later, and now she’s utterly devastated. Adding to life’s cruelty, the cowboy cop assigned to her brother’s case brings her in for questioning.
Stone Benson, the paramedic who brought Amber’s brother into the hospital, stays by her side throughout the tragedy. He treats her with kindness and compassion—something she hasn’t experienced much in her life. Amber yearns for more than his comforting words, and they embark on a tremulous journey. Just when she feels that their relationship is at a turning point, he reveals that he likes to share his women with his good friend and roommate, Cade. That turns out to be a huge problem, because Cade is the cop who believes she’s guilty of killing her brother.
As chance would have it, another murder occurs when both Cade and Amber are in the same location. Realizing she’s not the mercy killer, Cade offers a heartfelt apology—one that includes dinner and a sharing of souls. When things heat up between them, she succumbs to his passionate ways. The big question that plagues her now is where does Stone fit in?
Stone knows exactly where Amber needs to be. Right between him and his best friend, Cade. He’ll do whatever is necessary to convince her that she has finally met two men she can trust and build a life with.
Too bad the killer has other ideas. When he goes after Amber, what will the men need to do to save her in time to pursue a loving ménage relationship?
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This adult contemporary romance contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable (double penetration, ménage, violence). Not intended for those under the age of 18.
CAVEAT: But if you love medical erotica with a contemporary western setting, this book is for you.
Foundation for Three (Book 2)
You aren’t free to love until you realize you can’t make someone love you back.
As builder Pete Banks is finishing a remodel for psychologist Zoey Donovan, she arrives home dazed, injured, and distraught. As he calms her down, she draws him in with her halting story of how Thad Dalton, a local cop and Pete’s roommate, saved her life. When Pete learns Thad was shot, he’s torn between staying with a woman in need and being there for his roommate.
Zoey never intended to blurt out to a man she’s never met how she almost died, but Pete’s understanding nature alters something inside her. Usually, she’s the one trying to figure out her clients’ needs, not the other way around. While Pete Banks is one of kind, she can’t tear her mind from Thad, the man who risked his life for her.
Detective Thad Dalton was never so scared in his life when a madman grabs Zoey in the hospital corridor and threatens to kill her if his demands aren’t met. Thad ends up taking a bullet to save her but would do it again if it means having her in his life.
When Zoey, Thad, and Pete attend Thad’s parents’ anniversary party sparks fly. She realizes she wants a more personal connection to these two men. While Thad’s on board, Pete doesn’t think he’s worthy. His self-loathing forces him to retreat and casts doubt on their future together.
Zoey and Thad are justifiably both mad and hurt. It’s going to take a miracle to patch this threesome back together for their happily ever after.
PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This adult contemporary romance contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable (double penetration, ménage, violence). Not intended for those under the age of 18.
Pack Wars
NOTE: These THREE novellas (50K each) were previously released as single titles.
GENRE: Paranormal Werewolf Romance, Paranormal Erotica, Paranormal Menage (MFM)
Training Their Mate (Book 1)
She failed to stop him. Now he’s coming after her.
Liz Wharton has one goal—to kill the man who raped her mother. Had she known Harvey Couch was a werewolf, she never would have tried to take him on by herself.
Determined to put an end to the pest bent on revenge, Harvey sends his goons after her. When two wolves attack her, Liz is sure she’s hallucinating. Good thing Trax Field is there to stop them.
Trax and Dante Field, members of the Pack, have devoted their lives to stopping bad shifters like Harvey Couch. Saving Liz would have been just an ordinary day, but when Trax finds her huddled in an alley, bruised and shaken, he’s convinced she’s his mate.
To keep her safe, Trax and Dante hold her captive in their loft apartment. When they aren’t searching for Couch, Trax and his brother spend the night training their future mate in the art of bondage and sensual pleasures. How will they be able to convert her into embracing not only their lifestyle but also their animalistic side?
Claiming Their Mate (Book 2)
She saw the killer. Now he wants her dead.
Realtor Chelsea Wilson enters a vacant home she wants to show and comes face-to-face with a dead man—and a killer. Freaked out, she runs, but the killer nabs her.
Ricardo Mendez, a werewolf who runs a drug operation, doesn’t need a witness to the murder. He viciously attacks her, but the dead man’s brother, werewolf Kurt Wendlick and his Pack partner, Drake Stanton stop the final assault.
When Kurt and Drake save Chelsea, they’re certain she’s their mate and will do anything to keep her safe. Her loving ways puts Kurt in a tailspin. He wants to claim her, but first he needs to avenge his brother’s murder.
What can Chelsea do to help the tormented man? Will the three ever explore the world of BSDM together?
Rescuing Their Virgin Mate (Book 3)
She’s sold into slavery. Now she’s on the run.
All Elena Sanchez wanted was to get on the plane to Costa Rica and visit her parents. When the authorities tell her they need to search her, she finds herself drugged and caged by a sadistic bastard who plans to sell her virginity to the highest bidder.
Two Pack members, Clay Demmers and Dirk Tilton, learn that Elena, Harvey Couch’s former secretary, is a victim of a human trafficking scheme. They go undercover and bid for her. As soon as they see her, they realize she’s their mate. More determined than ever to save her, they buy her, but at what cost?
Elena doesn’t know who to trust. They inform her they’re werewolves, but is that any better than being sold into slavery to humans? With care, Clay and Dirk teach her how to embrace her submissive ways. The problem is this good Catholic girl likes it. Will the guilt from her upbringing prevent her from having the best ménage relationship possible or can she find a way to have both?
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PUBLISHER’S NOTE: This adult contemporary romance contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable (double penetration, ménage, violence). Not intended for those under the age of 18.
The Buried Trilogy
NOTE: These books have been published previously under their separate titles.
GENRE: Romance, Mystery, Thriller, Suspense, Serial killer
Buried Alive (Book 1)
When loner homicide detective, Hunter Markum, finds the skeletons of four women in a mass grave just outside Tampa, Florida, he’s distraught as hell. It leaves a bitter taste in his mouth, as it’s a harsh reminder of his own sister’s unsolved murder.
For the first time in his career, the usually detached Hunter feels a more personal connection to this case, and agrees to team up with Dr. Kerry Herlihy, a forensic anthropologist, in the hopes she can decipher the buried bones. Her compassion for these cold case victims draws her to him.
Kerry too finds Hunter’s strong family attachment appealing, as her family abandoned her as a child, but she tamps down her desires. The case must come first.
Against their will, the attraction ignites, and their quest to find the killer soon reveals the identities of the victims and the chilling fact that each woman had been abused. When Kerry’s work throws her directly in the killer’s path, Hunter realizes how much she’s come to mean to him. In a race against the clock, Hunter must apprehend the murderer if he hopes to save the woman he loves once she’s buried alive.
Buried Secrets (Book 2)
When rookie Tampa Police Officer, Jenna Holliday, goes undercover at a local occult store to investigate a rash of grave robberies, she never expects to become the victim of a black magic death spell.
Dr. Sam Bonita, a forensic anthropologist, in search of answers regarding a headless body, visits the store where Jenna works and is enchanted by her.
Believing Sam holds the key to her case, Jenna tries to get close to him. When his house is burned to the ground, with both of them inside, she’s unsure if her cover has been blown or if Sam is the object of some deranged killer.
Only after a series of murders, and a few death threats, do Jenna and Sam suspect a serial killer is on the loose and after both of them.
Buried Deep (Book 3)
When forensic anthropologist, Dr. Lara Romano, first examines the exhumed skeletons of two Native American men buried in Tampa, she has no idea she’s caught the eye of a serial killer who’s intent on dipping her in plaster and covering her in hot wax to complete a twisted ode to his Seminole mother.
Isolated by her profound hearing loss she suffered as a child, Lara jumps at the chance to work in the field and prove she’s as competent as any hearing scientist. Not even the easy-on-the-eyes cop bucking to work with her will distract her from her goal.
Missing Persons detective, Jake Kinsey, needs a high profile case to land him a job in Homicide. Though he suspects the attractive rookie scientist may hinder his success, he believes the cadavers in Lara’s investigation are linked to his current case—eight missing men, all Native Americans, believed to be dead.
What Jake and Lara don’t realize is that the missing bodies have been left in plain sight as part of a tableau constructed by the madman who plans to use Lara and Jake for his final scene.
A Measured Risk
Natasha Blackthorne
© Copyright Natasha Blackthorne 2012, 2013
Edited by Jon Rauch
Cover Art by Seductive Designs Copyright June 2104
Photo: Jenn LeBlanc / Illustrated Romance
All characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Publishing History
Second Edition published by Hearts Aflame Press September 2013
First Edition published by Total-e-Bound Publishing April 2012
Languages
All rights reserved. No part of this e-book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form, including email or IM, without prior written permission from the author, Natasha Blackthorne, at [email protected].
WARNING: The unauthorized reproduction, sharing, or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to five years in federal prison and a fine of $250,000.
This e-book contains explicit erotic scenes and graphic sexual language. Some readers may consider such content offensive. It is for sale to adults ONLY, as defined by the laws of the country and/or state where this e-book was purchased. Please store your files where minors cannot access them.
DISCLAIMER: Natasha Blackthorne writes romantic fiction for entertainment purposes only. Please do not attempt to use this book as a “how-to” book for any topic. Her works are not meant to be guides or representations of modern BDSM practices or lifestyles. Please seek the guidance of an experienced practitioner and/or your personal physician before trying any new sexual practice. The author, Natasha Blackthorne, will not be responsible for any loss, harm, injury or death resulting from use of the information contained in any of her titles.
A Measured Risk is published with British spelling.
Character dialogue and thoughts contain quotes and concepts from the works of:
Baruch Spinoza (1632-1677)
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)
Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller (1759-1805)
Regency Risks
A MEASURED RISK
By Natasha Blackthorne
Book one in the Regency Risks Series
He is her most dangerous temptation, the only man she has ever trusted and now he is demanding her submission. Dare she take the risk?
Emotionally scarred in the horrific accident that took her husband’s life, Lady Cranfield is imprisoned by her lingering terror of horses and carriages. She longs to be closer to the fascinating Earl of Ruel, as she senses intuitively that he might be able to teach her how to overcome the terrors that hold her in bondage.
And now she’s willing to risk almost anything—her reputation, even her virtue—to find out.
But what Lord Ruel proposes startles her.
When the shy, studious and socially awkward young widow approaches him, Lord Ruel instantly senses she will be the sweetest, most submissive experience of his life—but first he must gain her complete trust. Lord Ruel makes Lady Cranfield a non-negotiable offer: His help in return for her submission and obedience.
But Lady Cranfield grew up neglected by her ducal parents, raised by servants and then later ignored by her handsome, charming husband. She’s learnt to protect her heart at all costs and she trusts no one but herself.
How can the jaded Earl of Ruel break through Lady Cranfield’s self-defences and show her how to love when he himself has spent his life avoiding that tender trap?
Dedication
To all those who suffer from invisible illnesses. This is a work of historical fiction. It is not intended to be a guide to how people recover from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, nor is it intended to be an accurate portrayal of modern BDSM or D/s practices or lifestyles.
Prologue
Suffolk, England
August 1818
“Things are going to be different in Mayfair this time, Anne.”
Anne Bourchier, the Countess of Cranfield, continued to watch the rain pelting the window as the carriage rolled on through the night. Their rain-dampened clothing made the interior too humid to be borne. Sweat trickled down her cheeks and she used her fan to cool her face with long, deliberate motions.
“I mean it. You’re going to be active in Society and make me proud for once.”
His uncharacteristically terse voice made her pause and appraise the fiery red glow of his curling hair and his boyish, almost pretty handsomeness. Tonight, he’d been
so harsh, so resolute, so unlike himself. He hadn’t even taken a moment to let the servants bring their wraps but had practically dragged her down the steps of Whitecross Hall, out into the lashing downpour to the carriage. Now here they were, with no escort and no luggage. They didn’t even have any watered wine to refresh themselves.
This whole time, he hadn’t ceased lecturing her. She understood the indignity of his position and how he might feel a need to assert himself as a man in some part of his life. But this farcical attempt to play the husband, after having appeared to have long forgotten that he even had a wife, was growing tedious. It wasn’t her fault his long-term mistress had found another interest. She flicked him a disdainful glance. “And who will see to the running of our estate now?”
“I do keep a bailiff on staff.”
“His incompetence costs us too much. Since you refuse to dismiss him, someone needs to be there to keep an eye on him.”
“He’s my half-brother, Anne. How can I dismiss him?”
“You let your sentiment and your passions rule you.”
“Oh, always so cold, so in control, aren’t you, my darling? I meant what I said earlier about the other, too. You shall welcome me to your bed every night, except when nature inconveniences you. And you’ll at least pretend to be happy about it.”
Her chest went tight and she slapped her fan closed. “I have never locked my door against you.”
“I mean that you shall reside with me until the deed is done. Else I shall be forced to take more extreme measures. I’ll have my heir or die trying.”