Keep reading for a sneak peek at the next and final book in the Declan and Kara story, Unleashed: Hot Alpha Romance, Volume. 4. All four volumes of Unleashed are available now for purchase or preorder here.
The final volume will be released on Friday, February 12th.
UNLEASHED: HOT ALPHA
ROMANCE, VOLUME 4
The final installment of Unleashed.
Bombs will be dropped.
Declan
I don't let things slip through my fingers. I clutch them to me fast and never let go. The more I desire something, the harder I drive to get it. I fight for what I want, and what I want is Kara Brooks.
She wants to run away. I don’t blame her. It’s probably the smart thing to do.
She can run, but she can’t hide.
I don’t know how this is all going to end. But I do know that sh*t is about to go down. And when it goes down, it’s going to go down big.
Kara
I've let him break my heart. Twice. The first time I was 18. Back then, I could blame him. I was just a kid and he played games with my heart.
Now, I have no one to blame but myself. Sometimes I think that's what hurts the most. Other times, I know that's not the worst. The worst pain of all comes from his betrayal.
I have to move on. I need to focus on getting my life back on track, setting out far, far away from Declan Hunt. During the daylight hours, I know I have plenty to keep me busy.
It’s the nights I’m worried about. How am I going to make it through all those long, dark hours when the memories of our scorching hot nights together are so close I can practically taste them? Every time I close my eyes, it’s his face I see, his fingers I feel, his heat making me quiver and moan. I should hate it, resent the power he still wields over me. Instead, I never want it to end.
NOTE: Unleashed is a four-volume story launching the Beg for It series about the hot, alpha males in Declan's family and the battles they wage with the strong, sexy women who make them finally meet their match.
UNLEASHED: HOT ALPHA
ROMANCE VOLUME 4
Chapter 1
Declan
Had I not been so happy, I wouldn’t have let Courtney kiss me. She got a wet one in before I even registered what was happening.
She’d lured me into a dark, quiet corner in the middle of the gala at the Met. She said she had something important to talk to me about. If I’d thought about it I’d have known what she was up to, but I didn’t. A smile on my face, I was focused on Kara, eager to see her in that gown, searching for her face in the crowd. She hadn’t arrived yet, but she would soon.
Since the one person I wanted to see wasn’t there yet, I decided I could give Courtney two minutes. She was one demanding and relentless woman. The best way to get her off my back would be to give her a bit of my time. Otherwise, she might make a scene. I knew I could handle it, but why go there if you didn’t have to?
Even as she led me back into the hallway, I kept scanning for Kara. I saw no sign. In the last twenty minutes I’d texted and called her but it had gone straight to voicemail. I knew she was fine, just taking her time getting ready, but patience wasn’t my strong suit. I couldn’t wait to see her in that gown with the diamond and ruby necklace I’d given her, and even better, later on stripped down to just the corset underneath.
Courtney dragged me off into a shadowy corner with the subtlety of a tigress. I guess some guys got off on aggressive attack women. I wasn’t one of them. I was all for a woman who knew what she wanted, but this not-reading-my-signals, not-taking-no-for-an-answer bullshit wasn’t going to play. She wanted a piece of me and she wasn’t going to get it. That was final. I belonged to Kara. It was that simple.
But even without Kara, I’d have no interest. Courtney wasn’t my type. She needed a himbo she could drag around to different socialite events. She didn’t need any man for his money, that was sure, she just needed some man candy who could pose for the cameras. There had to be a long line of interested candidates. I just wasn’t one of them.
In the dark hallway she started talking real low so I had to lean into her. She faked picking something off of my lapel so she could touch me. I found it annoying, but didn’t really get pissed off until she planted one on me.
Usually I would have seen it coming, ducked it like a punch in the ring. I knew how women like her worked. Usually, I had my guard up.
But being with Kara had made me soft. I felt all smiley and shit, like I’d start humming any minute, my heart light. And so Courtney got her three seconds in heaven. Until I grabbed her around her boney shoulder and pushed her away, firm and clear.
“Not going to happen.” I shook my head no.
She looked too pleased as she said, “Suit yourself.” Shrugging, she walked off like getting rejected was no big deal. She was up to something, but I honestly didn’t have time for her games. Maybe I’d gotten off easy and she’d lost interest. Maybe she was off to find some other cowboy to ride for the month.
It was time to stand up and address the guests, me and the rest of the philanthropic moneybags. I still found it funny to be counted as one of them.
I’d figured Kara would have arrived by then. I remembered she didn’t have a lot of experience attending these sorts of events. She must be nervous. I cursed myself. I should have made arrangements to meet her. But there wasn’t time for that now.
I got up on the podium, took the mic and said a generic word or two about the importance of the cause, the necessity of funding and improving services for children in the foster care system. I praised the event organizers and thanked all of the guests. Public speaking didn’t phase me. Easy as pie.
What phased me was that I couldn’t see Kara. I kept searching for her face amidst the throng, but no luck. Afterwards, I had to work the crowd, shaking hands with this Rockefeller and that Astor, drinking a high ball with a DuPont and discussing bow hunting in Montana with a Vanderbilt. New York really knew how to pull out the ol
d money. You could always tell, too. Old money never looked as done up as new money. The pearls looked slightly worn, passed down over the generations. The older women might let themselves go grey. The younger ones never, ever flashed even a bit of cleavage. New money had giant fake boobs and perfectly veneered teeth, and new money was out to have a good time. They wanted to write you a big check right there in front of everyone. Old money would head home early. But the next day you’d get an even bigger donation, requesting anonymity.
One classic old-money, silver-haired gentleman spoke to me with a sense of urgency about the cause. He clutched his cane with his boney hand and pierced me with his startling blue eyes as he talked about the plight of foster children and how many slipped through the cracks. He looked frail and somewhat sickly, but he spoke with passion. He wanted to know about my background and what had driven me to become such a dedicated supporter.
Normally, I’d have given him more time. I appreciated the man coming out, especially since he honestly looked like he needed to be resting at home in bed. But it hit 10 o’clock and I had to excuse myself.
Where the hell was Kara? She wasn’t responding to her cell phone and she definitely wasn’t at the party, I knew because in-between all the glad-handing and chitchat, I was prowling the premises like a panther. I called Vladimir and he confirmed that he’d dropped her off almost two hours earlier. Sometimes you needed to stay and host the huge gala benefitting your charity. And sometimes you needed to quit it and hit the road to make sure everything was OK with the one you loved.
Almost at the door, another socialite shark cornered me. I could really use some sort of danger/warning system, maybe something that could cue the Jaws soundtrack so I could prepare myself prior to attack. In alcohol-soaked breathy tones, she clasped a boney claw to my bicep and told me she wanted to make a very special gift to my foundation. She wanted to discuss the terms in private. I’d heard she had recently finalized a divorce with husband number two. With a sigh and a few shreds of remaining protocol, I managed to steer her toward a more interested party so I could finally slip away into the night.