One night only, p.1
One Night Only, page 1
One Night Only
A prequel novel in The Extravagant Series
Lauren Blakely
Little Dog Press
Contents
Also by Lauren Blakely
About
One Night Only
His Prologue
Her Prologue
1. Ivy
2. Ivy
3. Callum
4. Stone
5. Ivy
6. Callum
7. Ivy
8. Callum
9. Ivy
10. Callum
11. Ivy
12. Callum
13. Callum
14. Stone
15. Ivy
16. Ivy
17. Ivy
18. Callum
19. Ivy
20. Stone
21. Ivy
22. Callum
23. Stone
24. Jackson
Epilogue
Epilogue
Epilogue
Also by Lauren Blakely
Contact
Copyright © 2020 by Lauren Blakely
Cover Design by Helen Williams.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise) without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book. This contemporary romance is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, media, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners. This book is licensed for your personal use only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with, especially if you enjoy sexy romance novels with alpha males. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.
Also by Lauren Blakely
Big Rock Series
Big Rock
Mister O
Well Hung
Full Package
Joy Ride
Hard Wood
* * *
The Guys Who Got Away Series
Dear Sexy Ex-Boyfriend
The What If Guy
Thanks for Last Night
* * *
The Gift Series
The Engagement Gift
The Virgin Gift
The Decadent Gift
* * *
The Extravagant Series
One Night Only
One Exquisite Touch
One Time Only
One Alluring Chance
One Shameless Secret
* * *
MM Standalone Novels
A Guy Walks Into My Bar
* * *
The Heartbreakers Series
Once Upon a Real Good Time
Once Upon a Sure Thing
Once Upon a Wild Fling
* * *
Boyfriend Material
Asking For a Friend
Sex and Other Shiny Objects
One Night Stand-In
* * *
Lucky In Love Series
Best Laid Plans
The Feel Good Factor
Nobody Does It Better
Unzipped
* * *
Always Satisfied Series
Satisfaction Guaranteed
Instant Gratification
Overnight Service
Never Have I Ever
Special Delivery
* * *
The Sexy Suit Series
Lucky Suit
Birthday Suit
* * *
From Paris With Love
Wanderlust
Part-Time Lover
* * *
One Love Series
The Sexy One
The Only One
The Hot One
The Knocked Up Plan
Come As You Are
* * *
Sports Romance
Most Valuable Playboy
Most Likely to Score
* * *
Standalones
Stud Finder
The V Card
The Real Deal
Unbreak My Heart
The Break-Up Album
21 Stolen Kisses
Out of Bounds
* * *
The Caught Up in Love Series:
The Pretending Plot (previously called Pretending He’s Mine)
The Dating Proposal
The Second Chance Plan (previously called Caught Up In Us)
The Private Rehearsal (previously called Playing With Her Heart)
About
A delicious new After Dark novella featuring a strong, protective bodyguard and the beautiful, brilliant hotel heiress he protects…
* * *
I shouldn’t want my bodyguard the way I do. His job is to protect me. It’s not to fulfill all my filthy wishes.
* * *
And so I resist him, fighting the enticing pull of the strong, powerful man who watches over me.
* * *
Until the night we combust in my penthouse suite.
* * *
It won’t happen again, we say the next day.
* * *
Besides, my mission is singular — pull off the event of a lifetime — a one-night only concert with one of the world’s biggest rock stars.
* * *
A man my bodyguard happens to know.
* * *
And a good bodyguard knows all sorts of things about his client. Turns out he knows my secret desires, and he wants to make them come true. Including a VIP engagement so I can experience both men at the same time…
* * *
I want to say yes, but what if I fall even more in love with the man whose mission is to keep me safe?
* * *
ONE NIGHT ONLY is a red-hot, sexy love story with a toe-curling, sheet-grabbing MFM sequence.
One Night Only
A novel
By Lauren Blakely
Want to be the first to learn of sales, new releases, preorders and special freebies? Sign up for my VIP mailing list here!
His Prologue
Don’t mix business with pleasure.
It’s my one golden rule. A hard line I abide by.
But as I stare across the office at the blue-eyed goddess in front of me, I’m tempted.
No. Tempted isn’t a strong enough word.
I’m compelled.
I’m compelled to sweep her notepad to the floor, to taste those luscious red lips, and to wrap my fist in those long blonde curls as I lower her to her desk. My hand twitches, aches to feel the softness of her skin, to caress the curves of her body.
But I’m not a weak-willed man.
I don’t act on compulsions, no matter how strong.
I act according to what’s right. What I need.
And what I need is to focus, to nab this job that could be the golden ticket for the men and women I employ.
“Thank you for coming in today, Mr. Blackwell,” Ivy Carmichael says in a sensual voice as she stands and strides around her desk, offering her hand to shake.
Her skin is soft, like the finest satin sheets, and a frisson of lust jolts through me as I imagine what being between her sheets would be like.
Exactly what I shouldn’t be thinking.
I’m here for business.
“The pleasure’s mine,” I reply with a too-easy smile. “And please, call me Callum.”
“Callum,” she says, releasing my hand, and my name has never sounded so damn provocative. She gestures to the seat in front of me. “Please, sit down.”
I ease into the office chair as she moves back behind her desk. To my right, a large window beckons, showcasing the glitz and glamour of the Strip far below. “Great view.”
“It is. My parents were lucky to secure this prime piece of real estate when they opened the casino.” A note of wistfulness enters her voice.
“I was sorry to hear about their passing,” I offer.
“You knew them?”
“No. But when you asked to set up this meeting, I did my research.” I always do my research, and the story of the twins who’d become hotel proprietors overnight about two years ago had been easy to gather intel on.
It should have also warned me how beautiful I’d find Ivy Carmichael—but photos on the Internet simply failed to do her justice.
She crosses one long leg over the other, all business as she meets my gaze. “I appreciate you meeting with me. I’m looking for someone, or a team of someones, really, who can provide security detail for me around the clock. They need to be able to act on a moment’s notice, but also be discreet. I don’t want patrons in The Extravagant to think there’s a need for extensive security here, or that this is the sort of place where they have to check over their shoulder before pulling out their credit cards.”
I nod, understanding her implicitly. “You want someone who’s subtle, but skilled. Who won’t take their eyes off you.”
&n bsp; “Yes.” And her blue eyes gleam. “I want attention to detail without the bells and whistles. And honestly, I’m not anticipating that this will be a high-pressure job.” She glances to the closed door of her office then back to me. “In the few years I’ve been looking after the image of the hotel, there’s only been one time that I’ve really needed protection.”
“And what exactly did that entail?” I frown, leaning forward. Of course, I know already. Like I said—I do my research. But I want to hear it from her.
She bites her plump red lower lip. “Can I trust you, Callum?”
I don’t hesitate. “Absolutely.”
“This isn’t public knowledge. We kept it from the media. I don’t want word of this getting out in case it affects the hotel’s reputation.” She glances to the window, the lights of the Strip flickering on as day turns to the seductive hour of dusk. “I had a stalker. I didn’t think much of it, to be honest—just a few notes and emails at first. Nothing, really.”
“That’s not nothing.” I frown.
“I know that now.” She grips the pen on her desk so hard the whites of her knuckles show through. “Contact escalated. More notes. Some phone calls. And he ended up rushing me last week as I waited at the elevator bank.”
“That should never happen.” My blood boils, turns to lava as vulnerability flashes in her eyes.
“It’s fine now. He was there for a few minutes, ranting in my face, before he was escorted out and arrested. He said some things about me, about my parents—things he couldn’t have known unless he’d been following me for a while.” Her voice recites the fact as if she’s reading it from a list, but I don’t miss the tremble in her hand or the aversion of her gaze, as if she’s ashamed she let things get that far.
I seethe at the thought of anyone putting that look in her eyes, at the prospect of someone getting near her, scaring her. All my protective instincts kick into high gear. So does my need to reassure her.
I lean across the desk and inject every ounce of sincerity I can into my words. “That wasn’t your fault.”
She stills, her big blue eyes on mine. “I know. It was his—his and the security firm I’d hired before. They shouldn’t have let him get that close.”
She’d had security, and they’d just let that happen?
Not on my watch.
That would never have happened on my watch.
And I know I can’t know that for sure—but another compulsion takes hold of me, one I’m all too eager to indulge. “If you hire my firm, I’ll personally make sure I’m the one with you for the majority of the time. And I’ll never, ever let anything like that happen again.”
Her Prologue
I feel his eyes on me—I’ve felt them ever since he darkened the doorway of my office. And my God, the intensity in those deep brown irises does things to my body that it shouldn’t.
I’m minutes away from hiring this man, but I can’t help thinking how delicious it would be to lean across my desk, grab the collar of his shirt, and draw his lips to mine instead. Chemistry sizzles in the air between us—it tastes like champagne on the tip of my tongue, little bubbles of excitement that will leave me giddy.
But I’m not about to throw away a chance at working with one of the most promising up-and-coming security firms in Vegas simply because of a pair of bedroom eyes.
Because those eyes don’t merely make me want to strip naked before him—they make me feel safe. And when he says he won’t let anything happen to me again, I know he means it.
I trust that he’ll deliver.
“You came with excellent recommendations,” I say, tapping the paperwork on my desk. “For a new firm, you’ve worked with some pretty big names.”
“I have contacts in the music industry. We’ve been lucky enough to provide services when needed,” he says humbly, downplaying a résumé that includes Grammy Award winners and hip new indie acts. “And while my team will keep doing contract work like that, the appeal of a job like yours, where the hours are regular, holds undoubtable allure.”
I’m a little chagrined that I undressed him in my head when he’s likely taken. Of course—he wants stability for his personal life. His family. “You want to know you’ll be home by seven for dinner with your wife.”
A small smile plays on his lips. “No wife.”
No wife.
Interesting.
But not relevant to the position.
I continue on. “I’m looking for a long-term hire. I don’t want to have to go through the interview process every few months. We have a big renovation coming up with lots of exciting changes planned, and I need someone I can rely on.”
“You can count on me,” he says. “And long hours aren’t a problem. I’ll make it work.”
We talk a little more, outlining the details of the job, the hours, the specific requirements. He’s easy to talk to—too easy—and at the end of the fast-passing hour, I know without a doubt. Callum is the perfect person to lead my security team.
“Well, your résumé is certainly impressive. And I’m confident you’ll do all that’s needed to keep me safe.” I stand and hold my hand out across the desk. “I think we’ll make a good team.”
He pushes back from his chair and takes my hand again, his big, warm palm enveloping mine. “We will.”
When he leaves my office a few minutes later, that feeling of safety remains—like he’s going to protect me whenever I need him.
Sure, we might have some kind of crazy chemistry, but I’m certain it will go away once I see him every day and the novelty wears off. This kind of lust is a short-term thing—something that I’ll feel one time only.
That’s what I tell myself, anyway.
And on day one, it isn’t that hard. He follows me as I walk from an afternoon meeting with an architect to cocktail hour with my book club. While I might occasionally appreciate the intensity of his eyes, it doesn’t disrupt my day.
A few weeks on, and he’s a regular fixture as I stroll out of my suite late at night. A fixture I look forward to. I like talking to him. I enjoy our conversations. I adore his company. I ask him about his day, and the weather, and how his business is going. He makes me laugh and inspires new ideas for the hotel, but it’s barely been a month, and I’m sure those butterflies I feel for him will stop soon.
Surely, they must.
As the weeks turn into months, our professional relationship thrives. I’ve never felt so safe, as well-protected as I do every time he’s near. Those initial fireworks of lust might still light my body, but I can handle them.
Truly, I can.
Fine, some occasions are harder than others.
Like when I catch him all hot and sweaty in the gym, the strong lines of his arms bulging as he wipes a towel over his face. And when his leg brushes against mine as we share takeout after a long shift, and I feel his touch not only against my thigh, but all through my body. And like I do every time I see him for the first moment each day, when pleasure blooms in my belly like a flower unfurling toward the sun.
