Forbidden Seduction Read online

  R.L. Kenderson

  Forbidden Seduction

  Forbidden #6

  First published by R.L. Kenderson 2019

  Copyright © 2019 by R.L. Kenderson

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

  This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

  R.L. Kenderson asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

  R.L. Kenderson has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party Internet Websites referred to in this publication and does not guarantee that any content on such Websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

  First edition

  ISBN: 978-0-9904144-9-0

  Editing by Jovana Shirley, Unforeseen Editing

  This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy

  Find out more at reedsy.com

  Contents

  Blurb

  Prologue

  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

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter42

  Chapter 43

  Epilogue

  Also by R.L. Kenderson

  About the Authors

  Blurb

  She’s always felt like she’s lived between two worlds. He never thought he’d want to share his with her.

  As the only child of a cat-shifter and a human, Demi Cross has always lived between two worlds, always feeling alone. As long as she can remember, she’s been warned to hide her identity from those who don’t want her kind to exist.

  But hiding is easier said than done. With her unique biology, she has needs unlike any human she knows. Once a month, her body requires a partner in only the most carnal way possible.

  And, tonight, she’s on the prowl.

  When Saxon Einar spots the naive human in the middle of Club Seduction, his instinct is to protect her.

  But he senses something different about Demi, and it’s not just her fierce attitude.

  He soon realizes she’s anything but ignorant.

  Passion between the two of them ignites, leading to much more than one night. When danger comes for her, Saxon wants nothing more than to keep her safe—and to show her that she’s always had a place where she belongs.

  Prologue

  Seven-year-old Demi Cross sat at her grandmother’s feet and listened to her monthly talk.

  “Demi, what do you do if you ever come across a shifter?” Grandmother Cross asked from her rocking chair.

  Demi hated these questions. It was the same ones over and over. “I get as far away as possible from them.”

  “Why?”

  Demi looked down at her shoes and fiddled with her laces. “Because I’m half-human, and they will know.”

  “And how will they know?”

  Demi wrinkled her nose up. “They will smell me.”

  “That’s right. We can never be too careful. Until you’re old enough to work on covering up your scent, you need to stay away from shifters. I don’t know what they will do to you if they find out, Demi, but there are ones who speak of keeping the line human-free and pure. We can never let them find out about you.”

  Because of these talks, Demi used to be afraid of shifters even though that was what her grandma was. Her daddy was a cat-shifter, and her mommy was human. But, when Demi was one, her daddy had died in a car accident. Her mommy had been worried about Demi’s shifter half, so they had come to live with Daddy’s mom.

  Demi never understood how Grandmother was her daddy’s mom. She’d seen pictures of her daddy, and he looked young, like her mommy, although Mommy had said he was nine years older. But Grandmother was old. Demi’s other grandma, her mommy’s mom, didn’t look as wrinkly or mean. Demi’s mommy had told her that Grandmother was older when she’d had her daddy, but Demi was never supposed to say that to her grandmother. Mommy had said it would be rude.

  What Demi didn’t say was that there was a new kid at her school who was a wolf-shifter. Demi had tried to stay far away from him, like Grandmother had said, but he was in her class, and her teacher had made them reading partners. She’d been so afraid the boy would point his finger at her and tell the whole class what she was, but he didn’t. All he’d ever said was that she smelled different.

  She always wondered what she smelled like. Demi had gotten an excellent sense of smell from her daddy. She knew what humans smelled like and what shifters smelled like. But she couldn’t smell herself. And she had never met another half-human/half-shifter. She’d asked her grandmother what she smelled like once, but all her grandmother had said was that she smelled like a halfling.

  But the boy at school had said she smelled different. She wanted to ask him more questions, but she knew her grandmother would be mad if she let the boy know that she knew he was a shifter, so Demi kept her mouth closed.

  “What if a new kid joins my class and he’s a shifter?”

  Her grandmother stopped rocking and looked down at Demi. She had the frown on her face that Demi didn’t like. It made her look mean. “Why? Did a new student join your class, Demi?”

  Demi panicked and lied, “No, he joined another class.”

  Her grandmother started rocking again. “That’s good. There is nothing we can do about shifters in your school, but I can make sure they’re not in your class.” Grandmother sighed and shook her head. “If only your mother would homeschool you.”

  Yuck. Demi didn’t want to be homeschooled. She had friends at her school, including her best friend, Siya. Demi was lucky though because her mommy worked two jobs, so she couldn’t stay home with Demi all day.

  Her grandmother looked down at her. “Tell me the rules again.”

  Demi held in her sigh, so her grandmother wouldn’t get mad. “Number one: stay away from shifters. Number two…”

  Chapter 1

  Twenty-Five Years Later

  Saxon Einar leaned against the wall of Club Seduction, hands in his pockets and one foot crossed over the other. He was watching the clientele move throughout the large space as he looked for the right kind of female when he spotted her instead.

  She was not the kind of female he was looking for. Not for him and not for this club. While most female patrons wore little clothing—one, because it attracted attention, and two, because it was hot in the club—this p
articular woman looked like she was coming home from work. Her skirt was too long, her blouse too buttoned up, her blonde hair pulled back too tightly, and her heels too low. And she was too young and too alone.

  She stood out among the rest of the crowd and not in a good way. Saxon told himself to let it go. She was a big girl. But then he saw a group of young guys looking and pointing at her.

  He sighed. The sentinel in him was too ingrained, and he couldn’t leave her vulnerable even if she wasn’t a shifter.

  He pushed off from the wall and pulled his hands from his pockets. “Excuse me. Miss?” he said from behind her.

  She spun around, and Saxon felt his heart skip a beat. He rubbed his chest. Her scent. It was…different. She was definitely human, but she didn’t smell like any human he’d met before. She also smelled flowery and feminine.

  “Yes?” she asked.

  He dropped his hand and squared his shoulders. “You really shouldn’t be here.”

  She laughed.

  “Miss, it’s not funny. You don’t belong in a place like this.”

  She put her hand on her hip and narrowed her brown eyes. “The name is Demi, not miss, and how do you know where I belong?”

  Jesus. Full of attitude, this one.

  Why he’d thought she’d be grateful that someone was watching out for her, he didn’t know.

  “This club is not your usual scene. If you’re looking for a glass of wine and a nice guy to chat up, this isn’t the place.” He debated on whether or not to say the next part, but he figured she needed a reality check. “People come here to fuck. You’re not going to find your next boyfriend here.”

  Demi pulled the clip out of her updo and let her hair fall down across her shoulder.

  Ah…

  That felt so good after a long day at work.

  She looked at the tall, large man in front of her. He had unusual brown-and-blond-striped hair, intense green eyes, and a soul patch under his thick bottom lip. She hadn’t known guys even sported those anymore, but it worked on him.

  She took a deep breath. Shifter. Cat-shifter to be exact. He smelled like the woods her grandmother would take her to when she was a girl.

  Her hormones surged, and the male’s nostrils flared.

  She was already crawling out of her skin with the need to have sex, and her cat liked the strong, virile man in front of her.

  But she knew what he saw. She wasn’t dressed right, and everyone always thought she was a lot younger than her thirty-two years.

  “Listen, you have no idea what I want.” Or what I need.

  And she needed to get laid. Due to her human DNA, she ovulated and got her period every month, like any other human woman would. But, because of her shifter DNA, she also went into heat. It wasn’t as bad as a heat that a full shifter female went through, but Demi’s body still demanded she have sex, or her cravings would become painful.

  There were ways around it. She could medicate herself, but she really only needed to get laid once a month, and she was fine. Her heat didn’t last for days, like a shifter, which was a blessing. And, thanks to birth control, she didn’t actually ovulate, and her heat was a little less intense. It would be nice if it went away altogether, but that wasn’t going to happen until menopause.

  She’d just settled into a good routine with her last friend with benefits. Friend was a generous term. They were more like acquaintances with benefits. He’d finally stopped asking to go to her place because she didn’t let anyone come over. He’d let her drop by whenever she called. She hated to use the term for a human, but she’d had him trained. Then, he’d had to go and meet someone, and now, their once-a-month hook-up was off the table.

  That was what had brought Demi to the club to look for a replacement. And she didn’t need this guy getting in her way.

  He stepped closer. “You don’t understand. You could get hurt here.”

  She put her hand on his strong chest, and he clenched his jaw.

  “Look…what’s your name?”

  “Saxon.”

  “Look, Saxon, I appreciate your concern. But I’ll be fine. I’m a lot stronger than I look.” She took a step back. “Now, if you’ll excuse—”

  The only reason Saxon pulled her into his arms and kissed her was because she couldn’t seem to get it through her thick skull that this wasn’t the place for her and someone might take advantage of her. If he had to be that someone, then so be it.

  But he sure hadn’t expected her to taste so damn good. Or for her mouth to open under his and for her to suck on his tongue. His cock went hard, and it took all his willpower not to rub it against her.

  Goddamn it. He wanted to fuck her now. This was not how this was supposed to go down.

  He let himself have one last taste before he put his hands on her biceps and gently set her away from him.

  “Next time, the guy is going to want more than a kiss. I suggest you find somewhere more suited to your needs.”

  Then, he spun and walked away. He had planned to spend the night relaxing before taking someone home at closing, but now, he needed to find a female. He adjusted his aching erection. The sooner, the better.

  Good riddance.

  Saxon was a jerk who thought he knew what was better for her than she did. He didn’t even know her, and he’d assumed what kind of person she was.

  Demi knew she looked out of place, but she hadn’t had time to go home and change. Her need was getting stronger, and contrary to what Saxon thought, she wasn’t looking for a boyfriend. Who cared how she looked?

  She set off in the opposite direction to find someone to take her home. There were couples, threesomes, and groups even larger than that making out around the room, but it didn’t faze her.

  Demi knew she looked like a librarian because she actually was one, but that was her job and only one part of who she was. She’d been to Club Seduction before, and there wasn’t anything she hadn’t seen.

  She went over to the bar to get a drink. Maybe that would cool her head. Saxon’s kiss still lingered on her lips, and she could feel where his soul patch had scratched her chin.

  Damn. It wasn’t fair that he was such a good kisser.

  Her traitorous mind began to wonder what else he could do with his body if he could kiss like that.

  A guy sitting on a barstool at the counter smiled at her, and she smiled back.

  “Hey,” he said.

  “Hey.”

  “You need a drink?”

  “I do.”

  “What can I order for you?”

  She paused and then shouted to the bartender, “A rum and Coke, please.” She looked back at the guy and held out her hand. “I’m Demi.” And I can order my own drink. She didn’t want this guy to think she owed him something.

  “I’m Brad,” he said and shook her hand.

  The bartender brought her drink over, and she set her money on the counter before Brad could pay.

  Demi studied him to see what he’d do. If he got mad, she was out of there. But Brad smiled and nodded his head as if he was saying, Good for you.

  The stool on the other side of him opened up. “Would you like to sit?”

  “Sure.”

  Demi took a drink as she tuned Brad out. Not on purpose, but, man, he was boring. And, every time there was movement off to the side, she would look to see if it was the Saxon guy.

  It was time to bail on Brad. Her cat wanted nothing to do with him, and truthfully, neither did her human half. He might be in a club that was notorious for one-night stands, but that didn’t mean he was good at it.

  She picked up her glass and swallowed the rest of her drink. She set it down and hopped off the stool. “Sorry, Brad. I gotta go.”

  “But—wait—I mean—”

  She patted him on the shoulder. “Good luck tonight,” she said and walked away.

  She made her way to the back of the club, toward the dance floor, keeping her eyes out for someone to rock her world.

  Her eyes lan
ded on Saxon talking intimately with a female, and her cat practically purred.

  Demi rolled her eyes and thought, What the hell? It wasn’t like she was going to marry the guy. She’d come here to get laid, and she was positive that Saxon could help her out with that.

  She approached the couple, and Saxon straightened.

  He raised an eyebrow. “Can I help you with something?” He nodded at the female he’d been speaking to as if to say, Can’t you see I’m busy?

  “I’m sorry,” Demi told the woman with much sincerity. She was pretty. She’d find someone else. “But I need Saxon.”

  The woman looked to Saxon and back to Demi and shrugged. “Okay. We’d just started talking anyway.”

  The female left, and Saxon scowled at Demi. “What the hell do you want?”

  “I need you to fuck me.”

  Chapter 2

  As Saxon pushed Demi into his studio apartment that he kept just outside of Minneapolis for his nights off, he concluded that he was crazy.

  He had meant to tell Demi to go find someone else when she asked him to fuck her, but her scent had been wild and…open. It was the only way he could describe it.

  He was going to regret this in the morning. This female screamed long-term relationship, and he’d have to let her know that this was a one-time thing, but right now, he didn’t care so much.

  His cat was one hundred percent on board with fucking this female, and Saxon knew better than to fight his beast. The reason he was a damn good sentinel was because of his instincts—his animal instincts—and if he got out of sync with his cat, he couldn’t do the things he needed to do to be efficient.

  But he wasn’t going to coddle Demi either. She wanted him to fuck her. That was exactly what he was going to do.

  He pulled his shirt over his head, and she began unbuttoning her blouse. He pulled her into his arms and kissed her as she worked on her top, and he maneuvered them back toward the bed. Finding the zipper on her skirt, he yanked it down, and the material fell to her feet. She kicked it away without any hesitation.