Prologue
Kiera lit a candle scented with her special blend of essential oils then filled the room with music. From a scarred old mahogany box brimming with an array of crystals and stones, she chose a silvery blue fragment of kyanite, renowned for unlocking past-life memories. Fingering the stone, she closed her eyes.
Nightfall was near but the flagstone path under her feet still captured the warmth of the tropical sun.
The melody around her changed, morphing into a low chant, accompanied by a strangely compelling drumbeat. Though the words were in an unfamiliar tongue, her body responded to the primitive beat, swaying to the rhythm as she headed down the path.
Ahead stood an ancient adobe building framed by hot-pink bougainvillea.
She ran her palm over the carved wooden panels of the massive door then opened it and stepped over the threshold.
Ornate candlesticks tall as her shoulders lined the entryway. The room beyond glowed with soft light. She heard the faint rustling of wings and glanced up at the dome soaring above her head but saw nothing.
The vast chamber was empty, save for a heavy wooden table and chair under the center of the dome. Wooden shelves filled with row upon row of fragile scrolls lined the walls.
She circled the room, gently touching them at random. As she did, images poured into her head, accompanied by snatches of long-forgotten melodies and the faint scent of exotic spices.
She whispered an invocation for guidance, then selected a scroll. Taking it to the table, she unrolled the fragile parchment and began to read.
***
Kiera sauntered into the bedroom in a black satin bustier that barely covered her nipples. The twin mounds of her breasts spilled out over the top, offering themselves like an exotic feast.
Below it, she wore a flouncy red skirt cinched at the waist by a leather belt. A ruffled white petticoat peeked out underneath, short enough to reveal the garters hooked to her black stockings. Knee-high leather boots with stiletto heels completed her outfit.
Though they were in the mountains, he caught the tropical scent of night-blooming jasmine wafting through the room in her wake.
She perched on a leather stool at his feet.
“Do you remember the night we first met in St. Thomas?”
Her voice was low and sultry, her long dark hair a wild mass of curls waiting to be tamed. She wore bright-red lipstick in a shade matching the vivid color of her skirt.
Reid gazed at her as though seeing her for the first time. God, she was beautiful, this woman of his. For a moment, he relished the image of burying his hands in her tangled mane, tugging her head down between his legs so she could put those red lips to good use.
She handed him a pewter tankard topped with a sprig of fresh mint. He took a sip. Mojito – made with Caribbean rum.
“St. Thomas? Hmmm…”
He paused, leaning back in his chair. There would be plenty of time to play out his scenario. First, he’d let his arousal build, listening to one of Kiera’s erotic tales. To Reid, his wife of twenty years was sexier and more desirable now than on the day he’d first laid eyes on her.
For most of those years, she kept dark secrets from him, hungers she’d never dared to confess. Only recently, through the stories she wove, had she begun to expose her most wicked desires. He found this hidden side to the woman he thought he knew so well enthralling. Inside her lived a brazen temptress with hot fantasies – dirty fantasies that got his cock hard. Sometimes only the thought of these nights gave him the strength to go on.
Reid wasn’t sure if Kiera truly was uncovering memories of past lives they’d spent together or whether weaving naughty tales of love and lust gave her the courage to be honest at last about her sexual needs. For him, it didn’t matter. All he knew was that he loved the new Kiera more and more every day, loved the freedom her honesty had given both of them. After listening to one of her erotic adventures, he’d find a way to bring it to life, satisfying needs neither of them had ever dared to admit.
Through her stories he discovered Kiera’s most shameful secret. She hungered for the thrill of submitting to a stern alpha male. Reid was determined to give his woman what she desperately craved.
After she finished tonight’s tale, he’d command her to bend over across his lap. He’d slowly raise the saucy flounced petticoat all the way to her waist and expose the black garter belt and stockings framing a curvy naked bottom.
Then he’d deliver a firm spanking to her bare ass while telling her exactly how she would be required to please him. She’d squirm on his lap, grinding against the bulge in his pants. He could almost hear her low throaty moan when he ordered her to spread her legs. He’d dip a finger into the wet heat between her legs while warning her she’d better do a good job of pleasuring him …or she’d get a longer, harder punishment.
The sound of ice cubes clinking in the tankard he held pulled Reid out of his reverie. He took a long swallow.
“Do I remember the night we met in St. Thomas? No, I don’t think I do.” He gave her a wicked grin. “Why don’t you tell me about it.”