Ruthless
Book 1 in Masters of Seduction
*This novella is also available in the Masters of Seduction Volume 1 boxed set*
Master of the House Xanthe, has devoted his life to returning his family to their former prominence. When he’s offered a contract to hunt down the missing Sovereign, he’s eager to accept. The last thing he expects is to encounter a stunningly beautiful angel who stirs more than his lust.
Genre: Paranormal
Series: Masters of Seduction, Book 1
Read an Excerpt
PROLOGUE
Jian, the Master of the House of Xanthe stood at the edge of the barren, uninhabited island in the middle of the Arctic Ocean. He grimaced as he studied the jagged mountain of blue ice that soared toward the sky.
Despite the weak sunlight, the breeze was edged with a lethal chill and beneath his feet the ground trembled as the ice abruptly split open. Only his swift leap to the side prevented him from tumbling into the deep fissure that formed.
Not the first place anyone would willingly choose to spend the night.
Not even a demon.
Thankfully, Jian wasn’t just any demon.
As a powerful Incubus, he could not only compel others with the force of his sexual enchantment, but he was physically impervious to the brutal elements. He also possessed the unique ability to see through magical illusions.
Which was why he was the current Master of House Xanthe.
Unlike other Incubi Houses, Xanthe didn’t accumulate their wealth through vineyards, or sprawling hotel chains, or sex clubs.
No, their profitable spice trade had been destroyed, and worse, their lands stripped away, after Jian’s grandfather had stood against the House of Marakel and been labeled a traitor by the Council. Now Xanthe depended on their own skills to rebuild their empire.
Two of Jian’s younger brothers were expert assassins who offered death for an obscene price. And a handful of cousins who sold themselves as mercenaries for other Incubi.
But it was Jian’s ability to gather and collect information that was slowly returning Xanthe to its position among the most respected Houses.
There was nothing in this world, or any other, that paid quite so well as secrets.
A wry smile twisted his lips as he recalled the extremely large fortune that had just been transferred into his account from a human politician who preferred to keep his habit of syphoning funds from his elderly donors from hitting the front page.
“This is a bad idea,” Taka growled.
Jian turned his head to study the large Incubus standing next to him.
The Captain of Jian’s Watchmen, Taka looked exactly what he was…a ruthless killer. Dressed in leather pants and a T-shirt despite the frigid air, he was as large as an ox with bluntly carved features and a smoothly shaved skull. His skin was tanned to a rich mahogany and tattooed with the Xanthe House emblem around his arms that bulged with muscles.
Jian, on the other hand, was built along leaner lines, with the sleek muscles of a trained swordsman.
His skin was a smooth, unblemished honey and his straight blue/black hair cut short on the sides, with the top long enough to fall over his wide forehead. He had a thin, blade of a nose and high, narrow cheekbones that whispered of his Far eastern heritage. His painfully beautiful face was lean with eyes that were faintly tilted and glowed like melted gold in the sunlight.
At the moment he was dressed in the traditional white robe that was expected from a petitioner to the Obsidian Throne. Not that he intended to be seen, but it was always better to be safe than sorry.