Because when you fall for a Carrington man, you fall forever....
Dallas Carrington has been in love with Lanier Watson ever since they shared a romantic cruise. But she flat out refuses to marry him. What the statuesque beauty doesn’t realize is that the pro baseball star and second-born Carrington son doesn’t give up so easily. Dallas will do whatever it takes…even if it means seducing her all over again.
There’s only one man for Lanier. But before she takes her place among the Carrington women, she wants to make sure she truly belongs in Dallas’s glittering world. She isn’t prepared for his sensual onslaught…and the explosion of passion that brands her Dallas’s woman now and always.
Looking at Lanier adoringly, Dallas massaged lotion into her legs and feet, still excited that she had agreed to spend the night.
Without the slightest hesitation, she had given him an answer to a question he’d feared asking. She had been eager to go home with him. He couldn’t believe his good fortune.
Stretched out on the custom king bed in a sexy black gown, she felt red-hot and sexy.
Lanier stilled his hands. “The massage feels great, but I’m ready for the main event.”
Taking in a deep breath, Dallas tried to calm his heart rate. “I love how you get straight to the point.”
Lanier gave a soft, guttural growl and smiled devilishly. Taking the lotion from Dallas’s hand, she set it on the nightstand. She urged him to come closer, then lay flat on her back.
Placing her hand at the nape of his neck, she guided his head until it rested between her perky breasts. “What’s your pleasure, superstar?” Lanier stroked his face. “Name it.”
“What about boundaries?”
Her eyes gleamed flirtatiously. “Only those you put in force.”
LINDA HUDSON-SMITH
was born in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, and raised in Washington, Pennsylvania. After illness forced her to leave a successful marketing and public relations career, she turned to writing as a healing and creative outlet.
Linda has won several awards, including a Career Achievement Award from RT Book Reviews. She was also voted Best New Writer by the Black Writers Alliance, named Best New Christian Fiction Author by Shades of Romance magazine and Rising Star by Romance In Color. She is also a recipient of a Gold Pen award and has won two awards from the African American Literary Awards Show.
For the past decade Linda has served as a national spokesperson for the Lupus Foundation of America.
The mother of two sons, Linda lives with her husband, Rudy, in League City, Texas. To find out more go to her website, www.lindahudsonsmith.com. You can also email her at [email protected].
Tempted by a Carrington
Linda Hudson-Smith
Dear Reader,
I sincerely hope you enjoy reading Tempted by a Carrington from cover to cover. Many of you have requested more on the hot Carrington triplets and I was only too happy to deliver another story about these popular men.
I am very interested in hearing your comments on the sizzling romance between Dallas Carrington and Lanier Watson. The couple featured has appeared in every novel written about the Carrington triplets…and they’re back to settle the score between them and to recapture your hearts all over again.
Please enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope with all of your correspondence. You can also email your comments to [email protected], and please visit my website, www.lindahudsonsmith.com.
Linda Hudson-Smith
16516 El Camino Real
Box 174
Houston, TX 77062
Contents
Chapter 1
As the mid-August sun peeked through the slightly opened slats of the white shutters in Lanier Watson’s loft bedroom, she turned over on her back. Looking up at the ceiling, she closed her eyes.
Today wasn’t just another ordinary day. It was the day Lanier was to meet with her parents, Barbara and Joseph, whom she hadn’t seen in years. At the age of twelve, she had been placed into protective custody when her parents had gotten into a vicious physical struggle fueled by substance abuse. Lanier had entered the foster care system on that frightening night and had remained there until the age of eighteen. An academic scholarship got her into college, where she graduated at the top of her class. She’d then gotten a job as a social worker and continued her academic studies until she received a master’s degree and became a medical social worker.
Lanier opened her eyes. The ability to relax and let go of her troubles felt good. With all the pain she had endured in her youth and adulthood, she hadn’t found a lot to be happy about. How great she felt now indicated how committed she was to achieving a full mental recovery. It had taken her a long time to come to terms with her troubled life, but she’d done it.
A warm smile curved on Lanier’s full lips. Thinking of Dallas Carrington, the tall, sexy man she loved with every ounce of her strength, always brought a smile to her face. He was one of a set of gorgeous triplets, a member of the prestigious Carrington family. Dallas, the second-born triplet, played baseball, a shortstop for the National Baseball League’s Texas Hurricanes. Austin, first-born triplet, was starting quarterback for the NFL’s Texas Wranglers, and Houston played power forward for the NBA’s Texas Cyclones. These superstar athletes loved playing professional sports before the hometown crowds in their native Houston.
Lanier had met Dallas over three years ago on a Valentine’s Day cruise. He was instantly attracted to her, but she had quickly pegged him as a man with roving eyes. As he hotly pursued her, unwilling to accept no for an answer, Lanier had eventually given in to his indelible charms. Because of her parents’ volatile marriage, she had shied away from long-term commitments. Fear of abandonment was at the crux of her complex problems regarding love and romance. Dallas had been more than patient with her, but she feared his patience would run out long before she had conquered all of her insecurities.
Dallas would be at Lanier’s side for the luncheon date with her estranged parents. His presence would shore her up. Even if he hadn’t been able to attend, she’d made up her mind to go through with it. Putting the reunion off for