Jackie Collins - The Power Trip

Clare was the darling of the family, while Sean was the dark side. Sierra was somewhere in the middle.

At thirty-two, Sierra was still not sure where she fitted in.

She was Archibald and Phoebee Snow’s daughter. She was Hammond Patterson’s wife. She was Clare Snow’s sister. But who was she really?

Every morning, upon waking, she asked herself that question.

Who am I today ?

Am I the politician’s wife ?

The dutiful daughter ?

The loving supportive sister ?

Who am I ?

It was a question that haunted her, because she honestly didn’t know the answer.

Her illustrious parents disapproved of Hammond; although they’d never actually said it out loud, she knew that they did. When Radical had appeared on the scene, the expression on her mother’s face had said it all: we always suspected that Hammond was a rogue . Now we know for sure .

A rogue who harboured aspirations to eventually become President of America. With her by his side.

The very thought made Sierra shudder. She’d been married to Hammond for eight years and didn’t love him. She’d started off thinking that she did, but after a while she’d realized that she’d married him to get over a broken heart, and that he’d married her because of her impeccable pedigree and family connections.

Hammond was not the man he’d pretended to be.

He was a psychopath. A very clever psychopath.

To the world he presented a smiling honest face, a nice-looking man filled with empathy and caring. With his brown hair, regular features and captivating smile, he seemed like such an open book. However, Hammond’s public persona was way different in private. Sierra knew for a fact that he was a bigot, a misogynist, and hated gays. He had a cruel tongue and a nasty sadistic streak. He talked about everyone in a disparaging way, including her family, and he loathed his own father. He was forever voicing his wishes that the man would drop dead of a sudden heart attack.

At first she’d tried to dig into his psyche, discover where all this anger came from. It was a lost cause. The charming attentive man she’d married had turned into a secret monster who actually scared her, which was why she hadn’t left him.

Two years into their marriage she’d realized what a fraud he was, and she’d threatened to divorce him. Very calmly he’d informed her that if she ever left him, he’d arrange to have her entire family killed, and that he would make sure she was maimed for life.

Shocked and horrified, she’d considered going to the police. But who would believe her story? She was Sierra Patterson, wife of the up-and-coming politician, Hammond Patterson, a man who fought for everyone’s rights — including those of gays and women.

It was an impossible situation, and to make it even worse, Hammond was continually unfaithful, sleeping with any woman he could get his hands on.

When she confronted him about his indiscretions, he’d sneered at her. ‘What am I supposed to do?’ he’d said with cold indifference. ‘Fucking you is like fucking a dead fish.’

Sierra knew she should leave, but Hammond’s threats were all too real, and she simply couldn’t summon the courage to get out. What if he went through with them and actually harmed her family? She knew without a doubt that he was capable of anything.

So Sierra stayed and threw herself into helping people. She visited children’s hospitals, formed a rape prevention group, rallied for battered women, and did everything she could to take her mind off her miserable life at home.

Hammond was pleased. He’d been right about Sierra, she was the perfect politician’s wife. A beautiful and gracious woman who was also a do-gooder.

What could be better for a man on his way to the top?

Bianca reached for a towel, wrapping it around her smooth gleaming body as she moved closer to Aleksandr.

He seized a corner of the towel and roughly pulled it away from her. The towel fluttered to the ground.

‘You are so beautiful,’ he said, his voice a throaty growl as he began rubbing his thick fingers against her extended nipples. ‘Such a fine woman, and all mine.’

Bianca experienced a shiver of delight and responded accordingly. Whenever Aleksandr wanted her, she was ready.

Early on in their relationship she’d learned from Aleksandr that his wife was a sexually cold woman who’d informed him shortly after they were married that his very touch repulsed her.

Apparently his money hadn’t.

Bianca didn’t care that he was so enormously rich. She genuinely cared about the man, and the way he was able to turn her on with nothing more than a glance. His dark eyes were deeper than a glacier, she could never tell what he was thinking. His touch was strong and manly. As for his equipment — perfection. Long and thick and solid, the best she’d ever experienced. Plus he knew what to do with it — a true bonus after a series of famous men who considered erectile dysfunction totally normal.

Aleksandr pushed her to the ground and dropped his pants. He never wore underwear, something they had in common.

The cold tile against her skin made her shiver even more as she spread her long legs for her lover. Glancing up, she noticed the red light on the security camera and wondered if they were being watched or filmed.

It didn’t matter. Aleksandr controlled everything; he would never allow anyone to use her or anything bad to happen.

His solid body crushed her beneath him as he entered her. He was a big man, big and powerful. She took a deep breath, inhaling his overpowering masculine scent.

‘Oh… my… God…’ she murmured. ‘You feel so amazing, so damn hard…’

‘Only for you, my little Kotik . Only for you.’

‘Yes,’ she sighed, shifting her body to accommodate him. ‘You know, Aleksandr, you’re the only man who has ever truly satisfied me.’

He was heavy on top of her. She didn’t care, the sex was that exciting. She got off on the way he thrust himself inside her as if he was determined to own her.

Nobody had ever owned Bianca. She was a free spirit. Yet with Aleksandr she had no desire to be free. She yearned for him to possess her in every way, and possess her he did with his strong arms, full body weight and hard penis.

At the beginning of their relationship she’d tried to assert herself in the bedroom. Aleksandr was having none of it. He expected total control. Sex would take place his way or not at all.

Bianca was cool with that. She was so used to calling the shots with men, it made a refreshing change to allow someone else to be in charge.

Groaning with pleasure, she flexed her thigh muscles, causing Aleksandr to grunt his appreciation.

He made her feel like a little girl, a naughty little girl. It turned her on in a big way.

Sometimes Taye Sherwin’s mind wandered, especially when Ashley was in one of her haughty moods — a personality trait that seemed to emerge every time they had dinner with Jeromy Milton-Gold. It pained Taye to watch his wife try so hard to act as if she’d been born in Mayfair as opposed to the modest seaside city of Brighton. Ashley tried desperately to shrug off her roots, even though everyone knew she was not to the manor born. On the other hand, Taye was proud of where he came from: the Elephant and Castle. He’d done well for himself, and was happy to tell anyone and everyone about his not-so-fancy beginnings.