The Gilded Cuff
Every passion has its price . . .
Journalist Sophie Ryder has been following Emery Lockwood’s story since she was a little girl. There has always been something in his haunted eyes that she couldn’t resist and now, when she’s certain he holds the key to solving a string of kidnappings, she’ll do anything to speak to him. Even if it means venturing deep into the seductive world of the Gilded Cuff, a luxurious BDSM club on Long Island’s Gold Coast and Emery’s personal playground.
From the moment Sophie enters his shadowy, sensual domain, Emery Lockwood knows this tantalizing new little sub was meant to belong to him. However, Sophie wants more from Emery than just pleasure . . . she wants his past. And that is something he isn’t willing to give—no matter who is asking. But every moment he spends with Sophie, Emery feels his control slipping and he knows it’s only a matter of time before he surrenders to her heart, body, and soul.
Journalist Sophie Ryder has been following Emery Lockwood’s story since she was a little girl. There has always been something in his haunted eyes that she couldn’t resist and now, when she’s certain he holds the key to solving a string of kidnappings, she’ll do anything to speak to him. Even if it means venturing deep into the seductive world of the Gilded Cuff, a luxurious BDSM club on Long Island’s Gold Coast and Emery’s personal playground.
From the moment Sophie enters his shadowy, sensual domain, Emery Lockwood knows this tantalizing new little sub was meant to belong to him. However, Sophie wants more from Emery than just pleasure . . . she wants his past. And that is something he isn’t willing to give—no matter who is asking. But every moment he spends with Sophie, Emery feels his control slipping and he knows it’s only a matter of time before he surrenders to her heart, body, and soul.
The Gilded Cage
Passion that takes no prisoners, and love that tests the limits of ecstasy . . .
Fenn Lockwood comes alive in the shadows. Though he might have physically survived the kidnapping that stole his childhood, the trauma and pain he lived through have marked him forever. Now the only place where Fenn can be himself is within the walls of his private BDSM world—a place of erotic obsession, where desire isn't just captured . . . it's bound.
Hayden Thorne knows that behind Fenn's hardened exterior is a man worth fighting for. Yet to save him from the past that still haunts him, Hayden will have to abandon every inhibition she's ever had and venture into Fenn's intoxicatingly sensual world. Each tantalizing second she spends in Fenn's searing embrace is more delicious than the last and soon Hayden begins to think that she may never want to leave such torturous bliss . . .
Fenn Lockwood comes alive in the shadows. Though he might have physically survived the kidnapping that stole his childhood, the trauma and pain he lived through have marked him forever. Now the only place where Fenn can be himself is within the walls of his private BDSM world—a place of erotic obsession, where desire isn't just captured . . . it's bound.
Hayden Thorne knows that behind Fenn's hardened exterior is a man worth fighting for. Yet to save him from the past that still haunts him, Hayden will have to abandon every inhibition she's ever had and venture into Fenn's intoxicatingly sensual world. Each tantalizing second she spends in Fenn's searing embrace is more delicious than the last and soon Hayden begins to think that she may never want to leave such torturous bliss . . .
The Gilded Cage Read
Along Ch 5-8
Short Overview of Chapters
In this set of chapters Hayden the rich socialite, and Fenn
Lockwood the bullrider meet up with Hayden’s brother Wes. Wes was childhood
friends with Fenn before Fenn was kidnapped and it has been 25 years since the
two men have seen each other. The three of them have a discussion about whether
or not Fenn will return to Long Island to see the family he’s lost and he
doesn’t want to go. Instead, he chooses to ignore the issues staring him in the
face and he goes to a neighboring town to buy some supplies for the ranch.
Hayden goes with him, hoping to soften him up about the fact that he was born
to another life, one far from the one he’s been living. She and Fenn have
several conversations about his twin brother Emery, and his parents and the
life he would have had and she starts to realize what his life here in Colorado
means to him.
Favorite Lines:
-
There was nothing better in the world than
waking up with a beautiful woman in your arms.
-
Fenn had always been a dominant lover, but there
was something about Hayden—the way she pushed him, defied him. He wanted to
dominate her that much more. Not break her, never that, but the fire she
possessed, especially toward him, fueled his own arousal beyond anything he’d
ever felt. The need to brand her as his was overpowering.
-
Fenn clenched the edges of the wooden table
until his knuckles were white. Did no one understand what he was going through?
His whole world was crumbling to dust around him. His belief in who he was as a
person was fracturing like cracks across the surface of a mirror. A thousand
new faces seemed to be staring back at him, forcing him to consider that the life
he had lived up until now was an absolute lie.
-
Fenn was lounging against the wall by the bed,
holding up her red dress as though scrutinizing it. There was something sinful
about the sight of him next to the bed. It made her think of all the things
they could do together…She swallowed hard and tried to ignore the flush on her
skin.
“How you women fit into these little things
is beyond me. This thing barely covers your assets.” He looked at her and
grinned. “And I do mean assets.”
“Ha, ha. Hands off my Valentino, cowboy.”
-
Outside, Fenn was near the old red pickup truck
and Hayden’s breath caught in her throat. There was something incredibly
seductive about a tall man in blue jeans, the wind making his shirt hug his
trim waist and broad shoulders. So much about him was a mystery, and that made
him all the more enticing. A secret part of her had loved it when he’d held her
close, but she didn’t want a man controlling her. Anyone with that kind of
power was dangerous to her, especially to her heart.
-
Surrender. He would take it, and it would be
sweet, so incredibly sweet for both of them. He also knew things would never be
the same again if they both gave in to this passion that kept building between
them. Like an unstoppable force, an avalanche, they would get swept away, but
afterward everything would be different and he wasn’t sure if he was ready for
that. Any man who was with Hayden for more than a few minutes would know she
wasn’t a woman you’d walk away from. She was a woman worth keeping.
Fun Facts and Challenges of writing these chapters:
-
One of the funniest parts of this set of chapter
is the humor I got to write into the story. Hayden falls asleep in Fenn’s
trailer and Wes comes in to find her and Fenn spooning. He and Fenn get into a
fistfight which is reminiscent of when they were boys and used to tussle. Even
though Fenn doesn’t fully remember who Wes is, he gets glimpses of the boy he
once knew and it’s a bittersweet moment for them both after the rather funny
fight scene.
-
This is also where Callie and Jim the Taylors,
the family that has been part of Fenn’s life really get to shine through as
Characters and I had the chance to set Callie and Wes’s future romance up as
well so readers will be excited about The Gilded Chain when it comes out in
October of this year.
-
Another fun part of the story is when Hayden
insists she’s going to accompany Fenn to the store for supplies and she is so
eager she just leaps into his truck seat and squishes his favorite hat and as
she later learns, it’s his only hat. She then gets to tease him about being
grumpy. It’s fun to see both of these usually tense characters at ease.
-
A fun bit of trivia for these chapters is that
one of the stories Flint & Sons they visit for supplies and clothing is
inspired by area western outfitters store in Steamboat Springs where I loved to
visit and try on cowboy boots just like the type Hayden wants to try on when
she goes to the store.
Buy Links:
The Gilded Cuff
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
The Gilded Cage:
Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/
About the Author
Amazon best-selling author Lauren Smith is an attorney by day, author by night, who pens adventurous and edgy romance stories by the light of her smart phone flashlight app. She’s a native Oklahoman who lives with her three pets—a feisty chinchilla, sophisticated cat and dapper little schnauzer. She's won multiple awards in several romance subgenres including being an Amazon.com Breakthrough Novel Award Quarter-Finalist and a Semi-Finalist for the Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley Award.
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