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First Samhain Publishing, Ltd. electronic publication: December 2008 www.samhainpublishing.com Seducing Jane Porter Dominique Adair Dedication For Carol—girl, it’s time to turn up the heat! Chapter One Being a sexual submissive was similar to Double Dutch jump roping, once you learned to navigate ropes, you never forgot the rush. Both nervous and excited, Jane shook her head at her bad pun. Damn, she hadn’t been this energized in a long time. She was as giddy as a child on Christmas morning. Her palms were damp as she pulled on the narrow black strips of cloth that masqueraded as her panties. When the soft lace grazed her inner thighs, her sex tightened. It had been exactly one year since she’d participated in a scene and her body yearned to break her self-imposed drought. Twelve months without sex was more than any woman should have to endure. She reached for the matching garter belt. This time last year she’d been doing almost the exact same thing, getting ready to meet her master for dinner and hopefully more, much more. When they’d met, Peter Ellington had literally swept her off her feet. She’d been dazzled by his charisma and panty- dampening smile. He’d showered her with gifts, expensive dinners and mastered her with a firm hand. In short, he was everything a submissive would desire in a Dom. Her lips twisted. As far as she was concerned, there was nothing more dangerous than being in love. In her case she’d been so blinded by the sheer romanticism of his actions that she neglected to realize he was a complete and utter bastard. He’d used her love to his advantage only to leave her with a broken heart and a perpetually bad taste in her mouth. Men! Before entering into a master/submissive relationship, the sub needed to know the potential partner was trustworthy. The last thing any sub wanted was to be bound and helpless only to learn that their master was a psycho. Being vulnerable was both a turn-on and a potentially dangerous situation, so complete trust was important. After Peter’s betrayal, would she ever be able to garner that same level of trust for anyone again? Picking up a silk stocking, she slid her thumbs inside the band to gather the delicate fabric between her fingers. Anticipation had been high that night as she’d prepared herself for Peter. For months he’d been hinting at making their union more permanent so when he’d setup the date, her imagination took flight. They spent three to four nights a week together and he’d practically moved into her apartment. The only situation that could be more permanent was marriage. Easing the stocking onto her foot, Jane shook her head at her own folly. How wrong she’d been. Blind, foolish and in love, she’d missed all the signs. He’d planned a wildly romantic evening. They’d gone to an exclusive restaurant where the chef had created a menu of fresh seafood and decadent chocolate desserts. Champagne flowed like water and she’d been delightfully tipsy by the time they were finished. After dinner the limo picked them up at the restaurant, and they’d necked like teenagers in the back seat. Upon arriving at his apartment, he’d cracked open more champagne and they’d spent long hours of bondage play before tumbling into bed, utterly exhausted and thoroughly sated. During those quiet moments curled around one another, she’d thought he’d pop the question. She’d laid in his arms wildly content and dreaming of their future together…until he announced he was already married. Her lips quirked. It was amazing how two little words—“I’m married”—could rock someone’s world to the very core. Rather than asking her to be his wife, a position already filled by the current Mrs. Ellington, he expressed his desire to set her up as his mistress. She’d have her own apartment in an exclusive area of Denver and all of her bills would be paid without question. The only requirement of this arrangement was for her to be available to him whenever he called. Jane snorted as she secured her stocking with the garter belt. Like that would ever happen. She reached for the other stocking. For a long time she’d repeatedly kicked herself for not realizing he was married. Then again there hadn’t been a pattern to their dates. When they had seen each other it was usually for all-nighters, not just a few hours in the afternoon. He’d been very generous with his time and lavish gifts that there’d simply never been any inkling of a wife. Peter was a powerful attorney to the rich and shameless; that automatically made him an accomplished liar. Most recently he’d managed to keep a young starlet out of prison after she’d been caught with both narcotics and liquor in her car. In reality it wasn’t a stretch of the imagination that he’d managed to conceal his marriage and three children for the two years they’d been together. Shaking her head, Jane tightened the clasps on her stockings. The frustrating part was she wasn’t a stupid woman by any means. She had a master’s degree from Harvard for crying out loud. She was thirty-six years old and a world traveler. She’d lived in Europe for several years in her late twenties and she’d experienced more than her share of lying, cheating men and still Peter had slipped past her defenses. Her friend, Lily, had once said Peter had pussy power, the ability to draw women to him from across a crowded room. Prior to hooking up with him, Jane had had another dry spell in which the sprint up the corporate ladder had consumed her every waking moment. An overabundance of hormones after a nearly two-year deficit was enough to dull any woman’s bullshit detector. Picking up her corset, she wrapped it around her back then began the tedious process of closing the myriad of tiny hooks. The only good thing that had come from her relationship with Peter was he’d convinced her to leave the corporate world behind and go into business with her best friend. Wasn’t it funny that she had that bastard to thank for helping her make the best move she’d ever made? She bit her lip. Even a year later, their final moments together were still fresh in her mind as if it had happened only yesterday. One year ago… “What do you mean, you’re married?” “You know, marriage, rings, kids—” “You have children?” Jane’s body tensed and her hands fisted against his broad chest. “Yes.” A gleam of amusement entered his gaze. “Three.” Stunned, Jane looked away from his handsome face. A sharp pain lanced her chest and she was sure her heart was breaking. He wasn’t going to ask her to marry him as he was already married. And with kids! When her gaze met his, he didn’t look nearly as handsome as before. “Let go of me.” Her voice was low, urgent. “Whatever you say, babe.” He released her. “I cannot believe you’d enter into a relationship with me when you have a w-w-wife and children waiting for you at home.” Flinging off the sheets, Jane rose from the bed. “So, what’s the big deal? It’s not like you socialize in the same circles.” “Big deal?” She found her panties and pulled them on with shaking hands. “It isn’t a big deal, it’s a huge deal. What the hell ever gave you the impression I would have sex with another woman’s man?” Her dress lay near the door and she stalked over to grab it. “I’m not that kind of woman.” “Obviously you are, you’re here.” His dry tone tore across her nerves like a scythe. “You were hungry for it, starving in fact.” “Only when I thought you were single,” she hissed. “I don’t believe that, babe. You were so hot that night you’d have fucked whoever found you first. Count yourself lucky that I hooked up with you rather than some seriously twisted individual.” “Of course you don’t consider yourself to be even a little bit twisted.” Her laugh was harsh. “Of course not. I’m a healthy male who is at his physical and mental peak. It takes a strong man to handle a woman like you.” Just what the hell did that mean? With the dress in her hand, Jane could do little more than stare at the man sprawled in the bed. Only a few minutes before she’d been ready to give him everything, heart, body and soul and now she was so sickened by the sight of him she couldn’t get out of the room fast enough. She pulled the garment over her head then yanked it down. “One of the many things I’ve enjoyed about you is your unusually high sex drive. I’ve never met a woman who craves sex as much as you do.” The lazy smile vanished. “You’re very lucky that I came along when I did or who knows what could’ve happened. A woman, with needs as strong as yours, you might’ve taken up with any man to come along. Any dick in a storm, eh, babe?” Her breath left in a rush as if he’d physically punched her in the stomach. “You delusional bastard,” she whispered. “You never knew me at all did you?” “What else did I need to know, babe?” He flung back the sheets and rose from the bed. “You have a body made for sex and you’re hot for it all the time. You’re what any man would want in a mistress, a lady in the living room and a whore in the bedroom.” “Keep dreaming as it will never happen.” She grabbed her handbag. Searching for the rest of her clothing, she stuffed each piece into the bag. Her hands shook so hard she could barely accomplish her task.