Lori Wilde - Lethal Exposure

Sebastian knew she could deny it all she wanted, but Julie was the happily-ever-after type. So why had she propositioned him out of the blue?

Just then, there was a knock at the hotel-room door. Grateful for the distraction, Sebastian went to answer it. “Yes?”

“Package for Mr Black.”

Sebastian opened the door, tipped the bellman generously and accepted a large box with a fancy ribbon. He removed the lid and peered inside. He laughed at the pair of black cowboy boots, matching black stetson and brand-new lasso.

At the bottom of the box was a folded note.

“I’m naughtier than you could ever guess, cowboy. Wear this outfit and meet me at Lone Star riding stables on Sunday at 10:00am. That is, if you have the balls.

J

PS Expect the unexpected…”

Lori Wildeis the author of forty books. She’s been nominated for a RITA® Award and four Romantic Times BOOKreviews Reviewers’ Choice Awards. Her books have been excerpted in Cosmopolitan, Redbook and Quick & Simple. Lori teaches writing online through Ed2go. She’s a registered nurse trained in forensics and she volunteers at a battered women’s shelter.

By

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To Brenda Chin, for helming the Blaze® line to great success

Cover Page

Excerpt What was he afraid was going to happen if he had sex with her? Sebastian knew she could deny it all she wanted, but Julie was the happily-ever-after type. So why had she propositioned him out of the blue? Just then, there was a knock at the hotel-room door. Grateful for the distraction, Sebastian went to answer it. “Yes?” “Package for Mr Black.” Sebastian opened the door, tipped the bellman generously and accepted a large box with a fancy ribbon. He removed the lid and peered inside. He laughed at the pair of black cowboy boots, matching black stetson and brand-new lasso. At the bottom of the box was a folded note. “I’m naughtier than you could ever guess, cowboy. Wear this outfit and meet me at Lone Star riding stables on Sunday at 10:00am. That is, if you have the balls. J PS Expect the unexpected…”

About The Author Lori Wilde is the author of forty books. She’s been nominated for a RITA® Award and four Romantic Times BOOKreviews Reviewers’ Choice Awards. Her books have been excerpted in Cosmopolitan, Redbook and Quick & Simple. Lori teaches writing online through Ed2go. She’s a registered nurse trained in forensics and she volunteers at a battered women’s shelter.

Title Page Lethal Exposure By

Dedication To Brenda Chin, for helming the Blaze® line to great success

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Epilogue

Preview

Copyright

“SEX SCANDALS, insider media leaks, Mafia connections and homicidal nurses running amok in a hush-hush, celebrity boutique hospital in Austin, Texas? How are you planning on spinning your way out of this one, Sebastian?”

Sebastian Black grinned at his stern secretary, Blanche Santini, like James Bond smirking at Moneypenny. “I’m not a spin doctor,” he said. “I’m a highly trained public-relations specialist adept at repairing the tattered reputations of the social elite.”

Blanche snorted.

“I’m shocked that you doubt me, Blanche, shocked.” He loved teasing her just to see her get bent out of shape. He’d hired Blanche because she reminded him of the doting aunt who’d raised him. He kept her on—even after he discovered she was nothing like his permissive aunt Bunnie—because she was the most efficient secretary he’d ever employed.

“Confidential Rejuvenations’ latest disgrace made the front page of the Inquisitive Tattler. It’s the fourth time this year. Tough case, even for a man with your silver-tongued talents.”

“Have you ever known me to fail?”

“First time for everything,” Blanche said crisply and dropped the Confidential Rejuvenations file on his desk.

With his smile still firmly entrenched, Sebastian cradled the back of his head in his palms and propped his feet on his desk. Blanche frowned at his shoes, which were polished to a high sheen. It was all he could do not to settle them back on the floor. The woman worked for him. He wasn’t about to let her dictate his behavior.

“Why, Blanche,” he drawled. “If I didn’t know better I’d think you wanted to see me fall on my ass.”

“Charm, poise and sex appeal will only get you so far in life, Mr. Black.”

He hated when she called him Mr. Black. It made him feel like his father and he was nothing like his old man. “Don’t forget my razor-sharp wit.”

Blanche rolled her eyes. “Mark my word, one of these days you’re going to get your comeuppance.”

“Comeuppance? Which millennium is that from?”

She ignored his comment. “At some point the wine, women and song have got to come to an end.”

“It still works for some,” Sebastian said.

She waved a hand at the file. “You have a first-class seat booked on the ten a.m. flight to DFW. With the time difference and plane change, you should arrive in Austin on schedule for your dinner appointment with the Confidential Rejuvenations’ owners. I checked the weather in Austin, storms are expected this evening so I packed your raincoat. Would you like me to drive you to the airport, sir?”

“No, thanks,” Sebastian said. Blanche had driven him to the airport before and she followed the speed limit as if it was one of the Ten Commandments. “I’ll get Linc to do it.”

“As you wish.”

He chuckled, but the minute Blanche was out the door, he dropped his feet to the floor, leaned forward and flipped the file open. Truth was, he loved a challenge of this magnitude.

Sebastian saw himself as a modern-day knight in shining armor. Swooping in on his fire engine-red Ferrari, saving the day with a glib turn of phrase, a wink and a grin for the media and then swooping out again, with money lining his pockets and kudos ringing in his ears. Returning to his lavish 90210 area code and bachelor lifestyle. It was the kind of life he’d daydreamed about as a poor kid growing up on a run-down farm in Bakersfield with his little brother Lincoln, his ditzy, hippie aunt Bunnie and all the other eccentrics at the commune.

He was just about to buzz Lincoln’s office when his brother appeared in the doorway, jangling his car keys. Even though Linc was the younger brother, he was a good two inches taller than Sebastian’s own six-foot height, and where Sebastian had black hair and black eyes, Lincoln possessed green eyes and auburn hair. They had the same mother. Different fathers. But being half brothers hadn’t affected the close bond between them.