Deception (Infidelity #3)

He’d said the world would see a princess, but only we would know the truth.

The truth was that Nox’s choice of clothing didn’t make me feel like the Infidelity whore he’d been alluding to at that time. Not anymore. With Lennox Demetri, whether I wore blue jeans and a t-shirt or scandalous undergarments, he made me feel like the woman he’d met in Del Mar, the princess who enjoyed the thrill of being a secret slut.

“Stunning.”

The deep velvet voice thundered throughout the dressing room, pulling me from my imagination-induced trance. I hadn’t even heard the beeps of the alarm or the opening and closing of the door. My cheeks blushed brighter, matching my dress, as I imagined Nox arriving only moments earlier and finding me with only the garter belt, stockings, and my own roaming hands.

Before I could spin toward him, Nox’s embrace surrounded me from behind, and his cologne settled around me in an intoxicating cloud. With his chin above my shoulder he spoke near my ear, the warmth of his breath prickling my skin.

“You are the most gorgeous woman in all of New York City.” His lips found my neck, and soft and slow kisses trailed downward over my collarbone. “No,” he corrected, “in the world.”

My head wobbled as I tried unsuccessfully to stifle a moan.

Nox’s eyes met mine in the mirror. “I trust you’re wearing everything I sent?”

I nodded, my chest rising and falling, the motion making my new necklace bob against the red material.

“And nothing else?”

“Nothing.” The word came out breathlessly, though I was inhaling quicker than I could exhale. “Do you want to see?”

“Oh, I do. I want to do more than see,” he promised.

I veiled my eyes at the timbre of his tone.

“Call me a masochist,” he went on, “but, princess, for the next few hours I want to imagine what you have under that dress. I will touch it and you, but my eyes will have to wait until I have you back here where I want you.” He pulled me closer, my back against his front and my bottom tight against his erection. “Feel what you’re doing to me? But I know it’ll be worth it, because, fuck, seeing you in our bed, your hands tied, wearing nothing but that garter, stockings, and those sexy shoes will be better than any Christmas morning, ever.”

I couldn’t stop the whimper as my body clenched with need. “Sadist,” I said with a lustful smirk. “That’s what you are.”

I opened my eyes in time to see his menacing grin.

“That too, princess. That too.” He gave me one more kiss, this time chastely on my cheek. “The car is waiting, but I need about five minutes to shower and change.”

I reached for his hands, still around my waist. “Don’t change. I love you the way you are.”

His cheeks rose higher. “More. Five minutes.”

And with that, his warmth was gone.

My eyes followed Nox and I bit my lip, watching as he quickly stripped and walked toward the bathroom. His jacket, tie, shirt, belt, and trousers created a trail, like breadcrumbs leading to my pleasure, my ecstasy. With only words and a few kisses, Nox had turned my thighs slick. When the water thundered from the confines of the shower, I considered forgoing our date, stripping out of the dress, and joining him under the warm spray.

However, the masochistic part of me wouldn’t allow it. I wanted everything he’d described from dinner on the town to the dessert back at the apartment. Perhaps I had a hint of sadism, too, because the idea of Nox suffering with blue balls while we ate brought an even bigger smile to my face.

As I was about to walk to the bedroom to find the handbag and light sweater that had accompanied the Saks delivery, I noticed the belt Nox had dropped haphazardly to the floor. My fingers covered my freshly painted lips to stifle a gasp.

I would recognize that belt over any of Nox’s assortment. What caught my attention was the buckle—very distinctive silver with a swirl. It was the same one I’d found in his closet in Rye, the one he’d told me to use, and the one he’d told me to bring back to the city.

Minutes later, his delicious cologne alerted me to his presence in the living room before anything else. It was when I turned that he took my breath away. It wasn’t fair that I’d been getting ready for hours and in five minutes Nox was a walking Adonis. All showered and fresh, his pale blue eyes glowed over the perfect trimmed amount of scruff, while his neck was smooth and freshly shaven. The blue suit he now wore with a silver tie was crisp and clean. However, what caught my attention was the silver swirl of his belt’s buckle. He’d put the same one back on.

Nox’s lips quirked upward as he followed my gaze and touched the buckle. “Yes, princess, it’s definitely become my favorite, but the problem seems to be that you’ve been too obedient.”

I considered confessing my brief stint of self-pleasure, but instead, I squared my shoulders and stepped toward him—this dominant, loving, overprotective dichotomy of a man who towered over me. With mere inches separating us, I lowered my voice and strung out my words, bringing just a hint of my Southern accent back to life. “Oh, Mr. Demetri, give me a chance. I can be very bad.”





DON’T WISH AWAY your todays thinking about tomorrow.

It was something Jane used to tell me.

As Nox and I rode in the back of the black sedan to a small Italian restaurant, as we walked to a booth with a flickering red candle, one apparently reserved for us, and as my high-heeled shoes clicked on the worn wooden floor, I was doing exactly what Jane had told me not to do. I was thinking about what was to come… yes, literally and figuratively.

While my sexy lingerie and Nox’s teasing touches in the car had me wound tighter than a drum, the dimly lit room and the tantalizing aroma of garlic, awakened a new hunger. The growling of my stomach as we sat, alerted the man holding my hand to my newfound desire. With simply a glint in his light blue eyes, I saw his thoughts.

Princess, you’d better eat. You’ll need your strength.

Nox hadn’t said the words, but my two cravings—him and food—converged into one insatiable hunger. I was on the brink of sexual as well as nutritional starvation and my only source of gratification was the man with the knowing gleam.

Standing back, Nox allowed me to enter the booth. As I sat, he surprised me by scooting in next to me. “What?” I asked.

“I don’t like having my back toward the door,” he replied nonchalantly. “This way we can both see the entire restaurant.”

His explanation sounded plausible. After all, he was right. Other than the kitchen, from our vantage point we could see the entire place. I’d never eaten at this restaurant, but with one glance I knew it was one of the establishments that the locals loved—a diamond in the rough hidden from tourists.

“Have you eaten here before?” I asked.

“Many times. Next to my mother’s and Silvia’s, Antonio makes the best lasagna on the planet.”

“I thought Lana’s was amazing.”

Nox’s large hand splayed over my thigh, revealing the real reason for our seating arrangement. I sucked in a deep breath as his fingers slowly moved, lifting the hem of my dress.

“Wait until you taste this,” he said enthusiastically, making no reference to his wandering hand. “It’s like heaven on your tongue.”

As his fingers inched upward, an older man with a chef’s apron and a thick mustache appeared. “Mr. Demetri, so good to have you here. It’s been too long.”

I swallowed as Nox’s hand stilled, staying hidden beneath the red fabric.

“Antonio.” Nox nodded at the man. “What have I said? Oren is Mr. Demetri. I’m Lennox.” He turned my direction. “And this is my beautiful girl friend, Alexandria.”

“Alexandria,” Antonio said, lifting his hand toward me palm up.

I managed to free my right hand from behind Nox’s arm as his fingers stayed fused to my thigh.

Taking my hand, Antonio bowed at the waist and kissed my knuckles. “A beautiful name for an even lovelier woman.”

I grinned. “Thank you.”

“So,” Antonio asked, “what are you doing with Lennox?”