Fairy
Tales Unleashed
By Naima Simone
Genre: Erotic Contemporary Romance
Release
Date: July 25, 2017
In the
world of fairy tales, being wicked has never felt so good…
Bargain with the Beast
Desperate to keep her neighborhood community center open,
Gwendolyn Sinclair seeks out Xavier St. James, her childhood friend…and brother
of her dead fiancé. Xavier possesses the funds necessary to keep the center
open, but he offers another bargain—a devil’s bargain: submit her body to his
pleasure for seven days and the building doesn’t close its doors.
Left scarred from an accident, Xavier is bitter, resentful
and alone. When Gwendolyn reappears in his life, need and loneliness overrides
conscience and he proposes an arrangement she can’t afford to refuse. With the
woman he has always wanted—but could never have—finally in his bed, he hungers
for more. Her heart. But could she come to love a beast?
A Perfect Fit
For no-nonsense, less-than-warm Rowyn Jeong, being labeled the
plainer, wicked stepsister has never bothered her…until Darius Fiore reappears
in her life. Months ago, they indulged in a hot one-night stand, and the sexy
business tycoon branded her like no man had before. But his return threatens
her position within her stepfather's company, and he’s the man her stepsister
Cindy has within her sights—and hands.
Behind closed doors, Daruis discovered more lay beneath Rowyn’s
hard exterior than the ice queen she presents to her family. Now, he understands
the aloof reserve. Her family’s disregard has left her hungry for love and
acceptance. But breaking down her walls will be no easy task. Especially since
his presence threatens everything she’s worked so hard to achieve.
Beware. These aren’t your mother’s bedtime
stories…
Author Note: The
erotic romance novellas included in this set--Bargain with the Beast and A
Perfect Fit--have both been previously published in 2013. I haven't changed
them, except to combine the two novellas into one set. If you’ve read them
under the titles Loving the Beast or Stroke of Midnight, then they're the same
books.
“What are you
willing to do to save the center, Gwendolyn?”
Surprise
snatched the air and words from her throat. An image swam before her—a cat with
emerald eyes batting its paw at a mouse, toying with the unlucky rodent that
bore an uncanny resemblance to her.
Leery and more
than a little suspicious, she studied Xavier. “I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“Exactly what I
said. What are you willing to do—to sacrifice—to save the community center?”
The better
question would be what hadn’t she sacrificed to save the center? She’d agreed
to a cut in salary, had extended her hours to compensate for the teachers’
shorter shifts. She opened the building at seven a.m. and locked the doors well
after seven p.m. When she dragged into her small Dorchester apartment each
night, her feet ached, her stomach grumbled and her head usually throbbed with
worries about parents, bills and funding.
But right on the
heels of those sacrifices came the rewards. The laughter of the children as
they played kickball. The pride straightening the shoulders of the older teens
as they walked across the stage to accept their high school diplomas. The
gratefulness in a parent’s eyes as they picked up their child after work,
knowing their son or daughter had been safe instead of in trouble on the
streets.
“Anything,” she
vowed. Yes, she was long on hours and short on pay, but the rewards couldn’t be
numbered…or lost. “I’ll do whatever it takes to keep it open.”
A calculating
gleam entered Xavier’s eyes and she almost retracted the pledge.
Oh God. So
that’s what the devil looks like when he buys a soul.
“I can’t
interfere with the grant application process at this late date,” he said,
drawing his hands from his pockets and crossing his arms. “Whether the
committee’s actions were right or wrong, to step in now would penalize the
recipient and, regardless of how the decision came to be, that’s not fair.”
Tough shit. She
snorted and Xavier arched an eyebrow.
“There’s another
alternative.” He paused and she resisted the urge to glance over her shoulder
and measure the distance to the door. Once again she was the mouse to his cat.
Except he’d surpassed the toying stage and was licking his paws in preparation
for dinner—her. “I’ll personally fund the community center for a year. I’ll
donate a check in the exact amount of the grant.”
Joy soared in
her chest even as relief flooded her veins, washing away the stink of
desperation she’d worn for months. She hadn’t expected him to—
Suspicion
delivered a ringing reality slap. Wait a minute. She narrowed her eyes. The
offer was generous yet the man she’d encountered this evening didn’t strike her
as the magnanimous kind. Niggling doubt warned her a booby trap loomed one step
after her agreement to his gift.
“That’s generous
of you,” she hedged. Then paused. “What’s the catch?”
“You,” he
murmured. “You spend seven days and nights with me…in my bed.” His lashes
lowered and he stared at her from under a hooded gaze that promised sex and
sin. The timbre of his voice had deepened, conjuring images of dark, hot nights
and naughty acts she’d read about, dreamed about…touched herself to. “In other words,
Gwendolyn, give me your body for the next week and your precious community
center remains open.”
USA Today Bestselling
author Naima Simone’s love of romance was first stirred by Johanna Lindsey,
Sandra Brown and Linda Howard many years ago. Well not that many. She is only
eighteen…ish. Though her first attempt at a romance novel starring Ralph
Tresvant from New Edition never saw the light of day, her love of romance,
reading and writing has endured. Published since 2009, she spends her days—and
nights— writing sizzling romances with a touch of humor and snark.
She is wife to
Superman, or his non-Kryptonian, less bullet proof equivalent, and mother to
the most awesome kids ever. They all live in perfect, sometimes
domestically-challenged bliss in the southern United States.
Email: nsimonebooks@aol.com
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