Through the Fire
Authors: Serenity King
Through
the Fire
SERENITY KING
www.beautifultroublepublishing.com
Through the Fire
Serenity King
Copyright © 2010 by Serenity King
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be
reproduced or shared in any form, including but not
limited to: printing, photocopying, faxing, recording,
electronic transmission, or by any information storage or
retrieval system without prior written permission from
the authors or holders of the copyright.
This book is a work of fiction. References may be made to
locations and historical events; however, names,
characters, places and incidents are the products of the
author’s imagination and/or used fictitiously. Any
resemblance to actual persons (living or dead),
businesses, events or locales is either used fictitiously or
coincidental. All trademarks, service marks, registered
trademarks, and registered service marks are the property
of their respective owners and are used herein for
identification purposes only.
Published by
Beautiful Trouble Publishing, LLC
PO Box 61
Colfax, NC 27235
www.beautifultroublepublishing.com
Cover Art: Les Byerley
http://www.les3photo8.com/
Editor: Sonya Mott Young
, http://legacyediting.com/
Proofreader: Novellette Whyte
http://authorgurunovellette.blogspot.com/
Formatter: Savannah J. Frierson
E-book Conversion: Jim & Zetta
ISBN: (e-book) 978-1-61788-031-5
(print): 978-1-61788-034-6
To all who have loved, lost, and found
love again. To my editor Sonya—thank
you so much for all of your kind
words.You Rock!!! To my proofer and
betas...big hugs. And to Baby Jade—rest
in peace, Little One. A special thanks to
Jeanie Johnson and Jayha Leigh. I love
you ladies so much. To God, be the Glory
in everything I do.
—Serenity
NOTE ABOUT EBOOKS
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Beautiful Trouble Publishing.
CAVEAT
This work of erotica contains adult
language and sexually explicit scenes,
which are smoking hot. This book is
intended only for adults, as it is defined
by the laws of the country in which the
purchase is made. Keep this book out of
the hands of under-aged readers.
CHAPTER ONE
She’s more gorgeous than
ever
was the
first thought that entered Brandon’s mind as he
watched Dominique being twirled around the
dance floor by her eldest brother, Xavier.
Dominique was the best-looking maid of honor
he’d ever seen. Her hazel eyes shone and her
milk chocolate skin glistened. The exquisite
black and white strapless creation looked like it
was made for her—probably because it was.
The dress clung to her luscious curves and the
four-inch heels she wore enhanced her shapely
legs.
Dominique’s mass of curls were piled
atop her head. Brandon sighed, remembering
the many nights he’d removed the pins from
her hair. His groin tightened at the memory.
She was a sight to behold. Her laughter rang
out as Xavier spun her around and danced up
next to the bride and groom. Brandon’s
brother, Tristan and his new bride, Alisha, also
twirled on the dance floor. The newlyweds
were rarely separated, especially since the
incident with that fool James Langston, and his
psychotic father, Charles.
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SERENITY KING
Charles had recently been indicted by a
grand jury for various crimes, including
attempted kidnapping and attempted murder.
Even though all parties involved were now in
jail, Tristan was reluctant to let Alisha out of his
sight.
Brandon chuckled at the scowl Tristan
gave Alisha’s younger brother when he tried to
cut in on their dance. Darius simply returned
Tristan’s scowl with one of his own and pulled
Alisha away. Tristan wasn’t left alone on the
dance floor for long as his mother-in-law took
pity on him.
Brandon sighed deeply and switched his
gaze towards the object of his desire.
Immediately, he stiffened. Dominique was now
dancing with a tall, dark-skinned gentleman.
Brandon frowned as the man’s hands ventured
downward towards Dominique’s ass. He
watched as Dominique caught the guy’s hands
as they started to roam south and placed them
back on her waist. Evidently, he didn’t get the
picture because his hands began to wander
again.
Brandon took a step forward but stopped
short when he spotted Dominique’s younger
brother Chad, tapping the gentleman on the
Through the Fire
13
shoulder and leaning forward to whisper
something in his ear. The dude started to
protest, but whatever was on Chad’s face
brought
that
to
an
immediate
halt.
Straightening his suit jacket, he practically ran
off the dance floor.
Brandon didn’t know who the man was,
but he did notice that two men from Rafe’s
security team discreetly followed the gentleman
back to his table. He wished they would just
kick the S.O.B. out of the wedding, but he knew
they were under orders to avoid major
disturbances if at all possible. The security
team had been put in place to keep the
reporters out. Knowing they were part of Rafe’s
crew, he knew things would be handled. They
were as serious about their job as his friends
were about their women…as serious as he was
about Dominique.
But at that moment, Brandon could care
less about the reporters who stalked the A-
listers present, including the Indy car driver
Alanya Torez and several of Diamond and
Asia’s supermodel friends. He had eyes for one
woman only—Dominique.
The brown-eyed beauty had been
intentionally avoiding him all day. He’d tried
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SERENITY KING
several times to speak with her. Each time,
she’d given him the slip. She’d been using her
family as a shield, which was a pretty bratty
trick, since none of their family knew they’d
ever had a relationship. Anyway, the hell with
family, he needed to talk with her. Not here,
not now, but soon. Like, tonight soon.
Brandon looked down at his watch. This
reception would be in swing for at least another
hour. Why the hell were receptions so damn
long anyway? He was sure the bride and groom
were anxious to be gone. He would’ve been.
Brandon was brought out of his reverie by
a woman’s hand on his shoulder. He turned
and looked into the face of a gorgeous red-head
with beautiful, sea-green eyes. She gave him a
look he immediately recognized. It was a look
that said they could leave here right now and go
burn up somebody’s sheets. In a different time
and a different place, he might’ve taken her up
on the offer. Hell, he
definitely
would’ve taken
her up on the offer. But that was then and this
was now, and he wasn’t interested.
“Would you like to dance?” the red-head
purred through pouty lips.
He smiled up at her, shaking his head no
before his lips actually formed the words
Through the Fire
15
rejecting her offer. “No. Thanks, though.” He
let his tone make known the fact that he knew
she was offering far more than just a dance.
“You sure?” The pout increased.
“Positive,” he said in a firm tone.
The woman frowned at him as if to say,
I
know you didn’t just turn me down
.
He lifted his brow at her. “I’m not
available.”
Her eyes blazed. “Your loss,” she said,
with an angry flip of her head that sent her hair
flying across her shoulders.
Not in the mood to play games, Brandon
barked out a laugh. “I don’t think so,
sweetheart.”
Maybe he should have handled that more
tactfully, but he wasn’t in the mood to placate
anyone. He was tired, having spent the past six
months since the fire working nonstop in an
effort to get his office back in some semblance
of order. He and his partner David had spent
weeks going through all of Langston’s prior
cases. Some they’d been able to reassign, but he
and David had kept most of them. It was a
tedious process, but necessary.
It might’ve gone faster if David and Nadia
didn’t have a new baby at home. His
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SERENITY KING
namesake, David Brandon LaSalle was an
adorable, plump-cheeked little boy with a head
full of dark, curly hair. While David hadn’t
requested less work, Brandon made sure to
take on the bulk of the cases himself.
But work wasn’t the only reason why
Brandon was so tired, Dominique was the
primary reason. She was killing him. He hadn’t
been able to get her out of his mind. The
woman had dominated his thoughts ever since
he’d seen her at Tristan and Alisha’s wedding.
His vivid dreams had been filled with the many
ways he would take her body. His mornings
had been filled with many cold showers.
He was barely functioning. His parents
and his brothers thought it was the stress of
everything that had happened. They’d offered
to help and, in many ways, they had. The truth
was that the only person who could really help
him was the sexy little package on the dance
floor. His frustration level was at an all-time
high. The only thing that had alleviated some of
his agony was the knowledge that he’d see her
today, and the possibility that he would take
her in his arms and kiss her senseless. The
thought of making love to her caused his cock
to stir behind the zipper of his pants.
Through the Fire
17
Damn!
He needed to get himself under
control right now, because the thought of
throwing her over his shoulders, taking her up
to his room, and fucking her senseless was
looking pretty damned good. Not even the risk
of Rafe kicking his ass for messing up his