The tears fell harder again, and though she didn’t sob, still, the ones she tried to contain had her breathing with harsh, ragged sounds. It was just hard enough, just enough to cover the sound of the intruder sneaking into the room.
“My God! What have you done to yourself?” Falcone’s enraged exclamation had her coming up in the bed, her weapon clearing the pillows before she could halt the action.
Before she could actually aim the gun at him, she dropped it to the bed instead and just stared back at him, her shoulders jerking with a contained sob as she met his gaze.
She knew what he saw.
Tears poured from her eyes as she looked around at the long strands of her hair thrown haphazardly on the comforter. The scissors lay somewhere on the floor where she’d thrown them.
“Summer. All your beautiful hair,” he whispered, sounding grief-stricken. “Baby, what have you done to yourself?”
The long midnight black curls were gone. Her hair was a slick, black cap that ended at her nape in a shaggy cut that testified to the haphazard snips she’d made with the scissors.
“Leave, Falcone.” There wasn’t a hint of the accent everyone found so distasteful.
She’d taken voice classes at Margot’s insistence. She’d learned how to not sound as though her mouth was full of chewing tobacco. But Margot had heard it the first time and declared she wasn’t Summer without her unique drawl. But only Margot had liked it.
Rising from the bed and quickly drying her tears she turned back, hating that look of icy emotionlessness on his face. She’d always hated it. She would flirt, joke, become completely outrageous until it cracked.
His pale blue eyes moved over her nearly naked body, taking in the black boy shorts and black sports bra she wore. The only tattoo she had was thankfully covered. God wouldn’t it be a mess if he saw it. He would be so regretful of course, but probably so amused.
“You have let her destroy you,” he said coolly. “I did not think anyone could do that to you.”
She snorted at the statement. “She didn’t break me, Falcone,” she assured him. “She merely drove home the fact that a few changes needed to be made, nothing more.”
She hadn’t broke her, but Gia had broken her heart. She’d damaged a part of her that Summer had no idea how to heal.
He didn’t say anything for long moments. Those icy blue eyes kept moving over her, becoming colder by the minute.
“Get dressed and get your gear,” he snapped. “We have an assignment.”
“I’m not ready…”
“Then fucking get ready.” He was in her face so fast she didn’t have time to jump back. And he was furious. Madder than she’d ever seen him. “Get dressed and get your gear now! You will get ready to go out on assignment and you will get your head out of your ass immediately. Because if you don’t, I will call Caleb and answer every question he’s ever asked me. Do you hear me?”
Her eyes widened. “Caleb would kill you.”
His smile was filled with anticipation. “Let him try. You want to risk it?”
No, she didn’t. She knew her brother, and she knew Falcone. They would kill each other if Caleb ever learned some of the assignments Falcone had taken her on.
“Bastard,” she hissed.
“Oh, baby, you haven’t seen the bastard in me yet,” he assured her. “But you’re getting ready to. I promise you, you’re getting ready to.”
www.loraleigh.com
About the Author
New York Times bestselling author LORA LEIGH is the author of the Navy SEALS, the Breeds, the Elite Ops, the Callahans, the Bound Hearts, and the Nauti series. You can visit her at www.loraleigh.com. Or sign up for email updates here.
ALSO BY LORA LEIGH
THE BOUND HEARTS
Forbidden Pleasure
Wicked Pleasure
Only Pleasure
Guilty Pleasure
Dangerous Pleasure
NAVY SEALS
Dangerous Games
Hidden Agendas
Killer Secrets
ELITE OPS
Wild Card
Maverick
Heat Seeker
Black Jack
Renegade
Live Wire
THE CALLAHANS
Midnight Sins
Deadly Sins
Secret Sins
Ultimate Sins
ANTHOLOGIES
Real Men Do It Better
Honk If You Love Real Men
Real Men Last All Night
Men of Danger
Legally Hot
Taken
Hot Alphas
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Love Verse
Part 1
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Part 2
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Epilogue
About the Author
Also by Lora Leigh
Copyright
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
SECRET PLEASURE. Copyright © 2015 by Lora Leigh. All rights reserved. For information, address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10010.
www.stmartins.com
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The Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.
ISBN 978-0-312-57625-7 (trade paperback)
ISBN 978-1-25003267-6 (e-book)
e-ISBN 9781250032676
First Edition: August 2015