Radiant Sin

Sometimes the past can bring you to your knees... Brynn LeBreck has dedicated herself to helping women in crisis, but she never imagined how personal her work would get, or where it would take her. Her younger sister is missing, suspected to be hiding from cops and criminals alike at a highly secretive BDSM retreat--a place where the elite escape to play out their most extreme sexual fantasies. To find her Brynn must go undercover as a sexual submissive. Unfortunately, The Ranch is invitation only. And the one Master who can get her in is from the darkest corner of Brynn's past. Brynn knows what attorney Reid Jamison is like once stripped of his conservative suit and tie. Years ago she left herself vulnerable only to have him crush her heart. Now she needs him again. Back on top. And he's all too willing to engage. But as their primal desires and old wounds are exposed, the sexual games escalate--and so does the danger.  Their hearts aren't the only things at risk. Someone else is watching, playing by his own rules. And his game could be murder.

An American teen learns she may have accidentally married the King of England, only to end up stranded on a tropical island with him in Kara McDowell's high-stakes rom-com, Heir, Apparently.Freshman year is stressful enough without accidentally being married to the King of England. Of course, Wren Wheeler can't tell her Northwestern classmates about that; after surviving a narrowly-averted apocalypse over the summer, everyone's had enough excitement for one lifetime. Wren knows she needs to move on from Theo, but she can't forget the look in his eyes when he left her on that island in Greece—and also, he took her dog.When an ill-fated attempt to rescue Comet the Apocalypse Dog turns into a chemistry-fueled reunion with Theo that's caught by the paparazzi, Wren finds herself under the royal spotlight. Suddenly, she's a problem for "the firm" to solve, and in order to be protected from the rabid press, she'll have to fly back to London with Theo. Along...

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved. "Things can be just like they were before," said Caroline warmly, reaching out to squeeze Bonnie's hand. But it wasn't true. Nothing could ever be the way it had been before Elena died. Nothing. And Bonnie had serious misgivings about this party Caroline was trying to set up. A vague nagging in the pit of her stomach told her that for some reason it was a very, very bad idea. "Meredith's birthday is already over," she pointed out. "It was last Saturday." "But she didn't have a party, not a real party like this one. We've got all night; my parents won't be back until Sunday morning. Come on, Bonnie -- just think how surprised she'll be." Oh, she'll be surprised, all right, thought Bonnie. So surprised she just might kill me afterward. "Look, Caroline, the reason Meredith didn't have a big party is that she still doesn't feel much like celebrating. It seems -- disrespectful, somehow--" "But that's wrong. Elena would want us to have a good time, you know she would. She loved parties. And she'd hate to see us sitting around and crying over her six months after she's gone." Caroline leaned forward, her normally feline green eyes earnest and compelling. There was no artifice in them now, none of Caroline's usual nasty manipulation. Bonnie could tell she really meant it. "I want us to be friends again the way we used to be," Caroline said. "We always used to celebrate our birthdays together, just the four of us, remember? And remember how the guys would always try to crash our parties? I wonder if they'll try this year." Bonnie felt control of the situation slipping away from her. This is a bad idea, this is a very bad idea, she thought. But Caroline was going on, looking dreamy and almost romantic as she talked about the good old days. Bonnie didn't have the heart to tell her that the good old days were as dead as disco. "But there aren't even four of us anymore. Three doesn't make much of a party," she protested feebly when she could get a word in. "I'm going to invite Sue Carson, too. Meredith gets along with her, doesn't she?" Bonnie had to admit Meredith did; everyone got along with Sue. But even so, Caroline had to understand that things couldn't be the way they had been before. You couldn't just substitute Sue Carson for Elena and say, There, everything is fixed now. But how do I explain that to Caroline? Bonnie thought. Suddenly she knew. "Let's invite Vickie Bennett," she said. Caroline stared. "Vickie Bennett? You must be joking. Invite that bizarre little drip who undressed in front of half the school? After everything that happened?" "Because of everything that happened," said Bonnie firmly. "Look, I know she was never in our crowd. But she's not in with the fast crowd anymore; they don't want her and she's scared to death of them. She needs friends. We need people. Let's invite her." For a moment Caroline looked helplessly frustrated. Bonnie thrust her chin out, put her hands on her hips, and waited. Finally Caroline sighed. "All right; you win. I'll invite her. But you have to take care of getting Meredith to my house Saturday night. And Bonnie -- make sure she doesn't have any idea what's going on. I really want this to be a surprise." "Oh, it will be," Bonnie said grimly. She was unprepared for the sudden light in Caroline's face or the impulsive warmth of Caroline's hug. "I'm so glad you're seeing things my way," Caroline said. "And it'll be so good for us all to be together again." She doesn't understand a thing, Bonnie realized, dazed, as Caroline walked off. What do I have to do to explain to her? Sock her? And then: Oh, God, now I have to tell Meredith. But by the end of the day she decided that maybe Meredith didn't need to be told. Caroline wanted Meredith surprised; well, maybe Bonnie should deliver Meredith surprised. That way at least Meredith wouldn't have to worry about it beforehand. Yes, Bonnie concluded, it was probably kindest to not tell Meredith anything. And who knows, she wrote in her journal Friday night. Maybe I'm being too hard on Caroline. Maybe she's really sorry about all the things she did to us, like trying to humiliate Elena in front of the whole town and trying to get Stefan put away for murder. Maybe Caroline's matured since then and learned to think about somebody besides herself. Maybe we'll actually have a good time at her party . And maybe aliens will kidnap me before tomorrow afternoon, she thought as she closed the diary. She could only hope. The diary was an inexpensive drugstore blank book, with a pattern of tiny flowers on the cover. She'd only started keeping it since Elena had died, but she'd already become slightly addicted to it. It was the one place she could say anything she wanted without people looking shocked and saying, "Bonnie McCullough!" or "Oh, Bonnie." She was still thinking about Elena as she turned off the light and crawled under the covers. She was sitting on lush, manicured grass that spread as far as she could see in all directions. The sky was a flawless blue, the air was warm and scented. Birds were singing. "I'm so glad you could come," Elena said. "Oh -- yes," said Bonnie. "Well, naturally, so am I. Of course." She looked around again, then hastily back at Elena. "More tea?" There was a teacup in Bonnie's hand, thin and fragile as eggshell. "Oh-sure. Thanks." Elena was wearing an eighteenth-century dress of gauzy white muslin, which clung to her, showing how slender she was. She poured the tea precisely, without spilling a drop... SUMMARY: The Final Conflict...The Last Deadly Kiss Elena Now she rises from the dead to recreate the powerful vampire trio. Stefan Summoned by Elena, he keeps a promise to her and fights the most terrifying evil he's ever faced. Damon Joining the brother he once called enemy, Damon battles this new horror with strength, cunning, and deadly charm.