Psychologist Kai Ferguson has had his eye on
Kori Williamson for a long time. His assistant is everything he’s ever wanted
in a partner—smart, caring, witty, and a bit of a masochist. More than a little,
actually, but that’s the problem. Kori won’t admit her own desires. She’s
afraid of him and what he has to offer. Luckily for her, helping patients face
their fears is one of his specialties.
Kori knows she wants Kai. Her boss is the
most amazing man she’s ever met. She’s also smart enough to stay away from him.
Having been down this road before, she knows it only leads to heartache. She’s
just found a place where she can belong. Another failed relationship is the
last thing she needs. It’s better to guard her heart and let Kai think she’s frightened
of his dark, dominant nature.
When Kai is recruited for an operation with
McKay-Taggart, everything is turned upside down. Kai’s brother, international
superstar Jared Johns, is in town and Kai must juggle his family issues along
with a desperate hunt for a serial killer. The investigation throws Kori and Kai
together, and they quickly discover the chemistry between them is undeniable.
But even if their newfound love can survive his secrets and her lies, it may
not be enough to save them both from a killer’s twisted obsession.
~*EXCERPT*~
Kori heard some movement and then
felt the whoosh of air caress her skin right before something thin and hard
thwacked against her flesh. A gasp made her chest pulse as pure fire licked
over her backside.
“This is a cane,” Kai explained.
“It’s bamboo, nice and not too flexible. It leaves a mark if you apply enough
force.” He brought it down on her again, this time on her thighs. Again, she
struggled for breath. “Are you bored now, Kori?”
“No, Sir.” She barely managed to
get the words out of her mouth.
“Excellent, then we’re making
headway.” The cane came down again and again. “Where are we on the stoplight?”
“Green.” She didn’t even
hesitate. The pain was doing its job, heating her up and making her soft. Each
strike of the cane lit her up and then brought her back down, sinking deeper
and deeper into that soft, fuzzy place of submission.
“Now we’re getting some truth.”
He kept up his punishing pace. “She didn’t take her time trying to find a way
out of what she didn’t want to say.”
“Why would she lie?” Jared asked.
“That’s a good question.” The
blows continued, making her ache as Kai spoke. “I suspect she didn’t want
anyone here to know that she’s a naughty masochist who can’t get off without a
little bite of pain. Or a big one. She hasn’t accepted her nature. Or she has
and expects that no one else will.”
“I accepted my nature a long time
ago,” she managed to say.
The caning stopped and suddenly
Kai’s boots were in view again. He dropped to one knee, that hard hand in her
hair again. “Then tell me why.”
She couldn’t tell him. It was too
much. “I’m yellow now, Kai. Don’t make me safe word out over an explanation I’m
not ready to give.”
“Fine.” His hand moved from her
hair down, skimming over her skin until his fingertips found her breast. Kai
Ferguson was touching her breast. God, he was cupping her and she couldn’t
breathe. “How about I put a scenario forth and you think about it for a few
days. I think the reason you didn’t mention your utterly beautiful and sexy
inclinations is me. You didn’t want me to know because you were perfectly aware
that I’m the only one here who can possibly give you what you need. You knew
that once I found out, I wouldn’t be able to help myself because you’re the
only one who can do the same for me, baby. Do you know how fucking good I feel
right now? How good this makes me feel?”
He rolled her nipple between his
thumb and forefinger and twisted with a vicious bite that left her panting.
She squeezed her eyes closed
because she couldn’t look at him, couldn’t see how beautiful he was. “It won’t
work, Kai.”
Another nasty twist got her
squirming. “It’s working right fucking now. Darling girl, your ass is up in the
air and that means I can see how wet your pussy is. Tell me some other Dom here
got you wet and ready.”
“You know I can’t.” She tugged at
her restraints, but they didn’t move. The rope rubbed across her skin, keeping
her here with him. She couldn’t run, and she had to admit she didn’t want to.
She wanted this moment with him. Her pride might make her get up and stride away
but every other part of her begged for what she’d denied herself for so long.
He was the only man here who could give her what she needed. It wasn’t about
who hit the hardest. Any of those other Doms could have adequately provided her
with pain. She needed more. She needed connection, the ebb and flow of pain and
pleasure coming from a man who was there with her.
Her dark shadow lover. Kai.
“I’m not the exhibitionist you
are,” Kai admitted. “And that’s the only reason I’m not fucking you right now,
but we’re going to have a long discussion in the morning about the way this
needs to go. For tonight, I’m going to start the process that will allow you to
remain friends with all those people you lied to. So you are going to give me
everything I want. You’re going to cry for me. You’re going to let go and show
them that you’ll cry for me.”
She shook her head. “You’re
asking too much.”
“It’s cry or come, baby. One or
the other, unless you want to find yourself in Big Tag’s office. Let me show
him I can handle you.”
“I can’t. I haven’t done either
in a very long time.” She hadn’t cried since leaving LA. She couldn’t.
Wouldn’t. She hadn’t come either. Not a man-given orgasm. Her mind worked
overtime. He wasn’t joking about getting called into Big Tag’s office. Whatever
punishment Kai could come up with—nothing would touch Big Tag’s disapproval.
They were all mad at her. It was enough to make her want to run away again.
Except it wasn’t that they wanted
to see her humiliated. This punishment wasn’t about hurting her. It was about
this group of people knowing that someone among them could take care of her.
When she looked at it like that, it didn’t seem like punishment at all. It was
about the Dominants giving a shit.
Morgan hadn’t cared when she’d
lied to him. All he’d wanted was the next bit of work from her. After a while,
he hadn’t cared about her finding subspace or her pent-up sexuality. He’d doled
out the pain like it was bait for his trap. He would give her enough to ensure
she stayed around and did what he needed her to do.
This wasn’t the same thing at
all.
“I don’t want to cry in front of
anyone, Kai.”
“Then
let me show them you can let go in another way.”
~*REVIEW BY ELYSSA*~
Fallers, I am rarely surprised. I read a lot. Like, a lot, a lot. I
always have. I like to think I've read pretty much everything, and I
generally know what I'm getting into when I pick a book to review. So
when I picked From Sanctum with Love, I figured I'd get another solid
BDSM/erotica story with a lot of hot sex and very little substance--you
know, your run-of-the-mill story. That's not what I got, and I'm so
happy that that was the case. What I ended up with is a story with
spies, some BDSM, and a really great love story. Fallers, I'm giving
From Sanctum with Love five leaves!
Fallers,
something you may not know about me is that I love spy stories. I LOVE
them. There was a six-month period where I read nothing but spy romance
novels and I only stopped because I lived in the middle of nowhere and
there were literally no more spy novels left at my tiny public library.
So I love spies. Anyway, moral of the story, put spies in it and I'll
adore it. Now back to the review.
Our story
begins with Kai, a psychiatrist, and Kori, his assistant. They're
perfect for each other. Number one, they've been working together for a
few years now, and they're basically an adorable old married couple, but
without the marriage. Plus, Kai is a sadist and Kori is a masochist, so
when it comes to sex, they'd actually be perfect. The problem? They're
both hiding their true selves from one another.
I
know, I know. It sounds like half the novels you've ever read out
there. I KNOW. But it's so, so much more than that. Not only is the
writing sparkly, crackling, and stellar, but the characters really have
relationships (and you all know how I love good interpersonal stories
that feel real) with one another. (Though, as a side note, this is a
book pretty solid into a series--while I didn't feel it was necessary to
have read the earlier books, there are a couple relationships that
weren't exactly clear as i was reading, but not enough to take away from
the experience.)
A lot goes on before true
love prevails--there's a serial killer, family betrayal, issues of
trust, some seriously hot sex, some spy shenanigans, and more. I
just--SO MUCH happens, and it's all great. I'm not a fan of spoilers, as
you all know, so I'll have to leave it at that. But seriously, Fallers.
Buy this book. And then do what I did and get super obsessed and start
to buy all of the other ones in the series.
~*ABOUT THE AUTHOR*~
NY Times and USA Today
bestselling author Lexi Blake lives in North Texas with her husband, three
kids, and the laziest rescue dog in the world. She began writing at a young
age, concentrating on plays and journalism. It wasn't until she started writing
romance and urban fantasy that she found the stories of her heart. She likes to
find humor in the strangest places and believes in happy endings no matter how
odd the couple, threesome, or foursome may seem.
