Seducing Carma [Passion Peak, Colorado 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) Read online

  Passion Peak, Colorado 1

  Seducing Carma

  Carma Mandanici is forced to confront her abusive past when an uncle she barely knows leaves her a large amount of money. She seeks comfort in the arms of longtime crush, Mateo Alvarado.

  Mateo is more than happy to help Carma start to heal from her past, as well as explore her BDSM fantasies. But Mateo has a tragedy in his own past that he must confront before he can become a Dom to Carma, or allow himself to fall in love with her.

  Blaine Peterson and Mateo have been friends since they met as freshmen in college. Blaine left behind a secret that involves his ex-submissive when he moved to Passion Peak to take a lucrative job and start over. He’s falling in love with Carma, right along with Mateo. But when his secret catches up with him, he might lose both his friendship with Mateo, and the one woman he can’t live without.

  Genre: BDSM, Contemporary, Ménage a Trois/Quatre

  Length: 75,473 words

  SEDUCING CARMA

  Passion Peak, Colorado 1

  Tara Rose

  MENAGE EVERLASTING

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

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  A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK

  IMPRINT: Ménage Everlasting

  SEDUCING CARMA

  Copyright © 2013 by Tara Rose

  E-book ISBN: 978-1-62740-158-6

  First E-book Publication: July 2013

  Cover design by Harris Channing

  All art and logo copyright © 2013 by Siren Publishing, Inc.

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.

  All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.

  PUBLISHER

  Siren Publishing, Inc.

  www.SirenPublishing.com

  Letter to Readers

  Dear Readers,

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  This is Tara Rose’s livelihood. It’s fair and simple. Please respect Ms. Rose’s right to earn a living from her work.

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  DEDICATION

  Thank you to the amazing folks in the BDSM Bibliophreaks group for all your support and encouragement. This book never would have happened without you.

  SEDUCING CARMA

  Passion Peak, Colorado 1

  TARA ROSE

  Copyright © 2013

  Chapter One

  Today was the day Carma Mandanici was going to stop dicking around and ask Mateo Alvarado if he was seeing anyone. It was a harmless question, and one she’d asked plenty of customers before. Not because she went around asking out every tall, dark, Hispanic man in town. No, that wasn’t why she asked.

  Nor was she asking because Mateo lived a life shrouded in mystery, and most of the ten thousand or so residents of Passion Peak, Colorado knew practically nothing about him. No. That wasn’t even close. She was merely making conversation. It was awkward for her clients to sit in a chair for an hour or two and have their hair styled without speaking or being spoken to. Carma was merely doing her job.

  Just keep telling yourself that. “So…anything new in your life, Mateo?” Chicken. You took the easy way out.

  His golden eyes filled with humor as he glanced up at her from underneath long, dark lashes. Why was it that guys always had thicker eyelashes than most women? It was as if the cosmetics companies had conspired to genetically alter them so women would spend tons of money on mascara.

  “As a matter of fact, you’ll probably have a new customer soon.”

  “Oh? Why is that?”

  “I’ve referred a friend of mine to you.”

  “Thank you for that. I appreciate it.” Who was it? His girlfriend that he’d kept squirreled away in a secret room on his ranch? His estranged wife that no one had known about, and who had now come back into his life, begging for another chance? His married mistress that until recently he’d only met at the Shady Pines Motel just outside of town? There were more than a couple of places near Rio Blanco Lake to arrange a clandestine rendezvous.

  “Don’t you want to know who it is?” Mateo was a big tease. Every six to eight weeks when she cut and styled his thick, dark hair they spent most of the time playing a cat-and-mouse game that consisted of Carma asking questions and Mateo evading them or dangling just enough information in front of her so that she asked more questions, which he never answered. But each time, Carma couldn’t help but wonder what else Mateo was hiding.

  Underneath the dancing eyes and sexy smile there was a profound sadness about him that she suspected he masked with teasing and humor. Mateo was one of the wealthiest men in town, but no one Carma knew would describe him as outgoing or social.

  Then again, she imagined he could easily afford to pay someone to come out to his ranch, Mystic Ridge Enterprises, and cut his hair. Why then did he come into town to get it done? Carma would love to believe it was because he wanted to see her, but he’d never given her any indication he was interested in pursuing a relationship with her.

  “I’m sure I’ll find out.” She looked into his eyes, reflected in the mirror, as she snipped and cut. “And if I ask you directly, you won’t tell me anyway.”

  The corners of his mouth turned up as he held her gaze in the mirror. “You know me so well, Carma.”

  “You’ve been coming here for two years, and I don’t know you at all.” Her pulse raced. She’d be finished with his appointment in less than ten minutes, and then she wouldn’t see him again for another six to eight weeks. She rarely ran into him in town, and she could only imagine how busy he must be running his family’s business. They raised sheep for wool, a
nd the ranch had been passed down through Mateo’s family for over one hundred years. Mystic Ridge Enterprises was known throughout the west.

  “We’ve known each other all our lives, Carma.”

  “And I still know nothing about you.” He’d been two grades ahead of her in school, and if they’d exchanged ten words in high school, Carma would eat her hair dryer.

  “All right. What do you want to know?”

  She fumbled the styling gel she’d just picked up and nearly dropped it. A soft chuckle escaped his throat and Carma suddenly wished she could smack him upside the head with the tube of product and pretend it had been an accident. Infuriating man. Why should she care if he was seeing someone?

  “Today, I’ll answer one question about myself.”

  “Oh, how generous of you. Is there another asteroid hurtling toward Earth or something?”

  “Hysterical. Really.” The light still danced in his eyes, so his sarcastic tone couldn’t mean he was all that upset with her.

  “Okay.” She put down the gel and handed him a mirror. Then she turned his chair sideways so he could see his hair from the sides and back. “Then tell me this. How’s your dating life these days?”

  Her heart hammered so loudly she was certain he’d hear it. She wanted desperately to avert her gaze, but she didn’t. All conversation and everyday sounds inside Expressions Salon faded into the background. There was only Mateo and his unusual-colored eyes. They sparkled like topaz, and for a few precious seconds it looked as though Carma was about to get an answer to her question. But then the usual cloud descended and she watched him shut down in the space of two seconds.

  “Sorry, Carma. That one’s off limits.” He glanced around, almost as if he were making sure no one had overheard him, and then he rose from his chair, signaling an end to the game. She sighed inwardly. It was the same thing, every time. Why was she so drawn to this man? Why did she waste her time fantasizing about him? Why did he invade her dreams at least once a week? Clearly, he wasn’t interested in her outside of being his stylist. Maybe it was time to move on?

  She walked him up to the desk, and as she grabbed an appointment card, he reached across the counter to hand his credit card to Darlene Perkins, with whom he flirted every single time he was here. The shock of Mateo’s accidental touch on Carma’s arm sent her mind reeling to erotic places, where his eyes stared down at her in a softly lit room, and his deep smoky voice whispered all the decadent things he intended to do to her.

  “Six weeks again, Mateo?” she asked.

  “Sure. If I need to move it out a week or two, I’ll call. And expect a call from the friend I referred.”

  She was about to ask him the friend’s name when Darlene spoke first. “For referring him, you’ll get thirty dollars off your next hair cut when he books one.”

  Mateo smiled at her as if she’d just told him he won the lottery. “Darlene, you always know how to brighten my day.”

  Hot jealousy raced through Carma’s body, and this time she did avert her gaze. He spoke that way to Darlene every time he was here. It was nothing new. But as far as she knew, nothing had ever come of it or likely would. Darlene was a sub to Ron Carson, one of the most protective and strict Doms at Indulgence, the BDSM club in town that was supposed to be top-secret, despite the fact that most residents in Passion Peak knew of its existence. And Darlene was devoted to him. Carma doubted that Mateo’s flirtations would change that.

  Once the next appointment was made and Mateo had paid for his hair cut, she shook his hand the way she did with each client, forced a bright smile to her face, thanked him again for the referral, and told him she’d see him next time. For a brief second or two she thought he was going to say something. His gaze was hesitant and uncertain, but then the spell was broken and he walked out the door.

  Carma leaned against the counter and pulled her cell out of her pocket to check her e-mail. She always had the phone silenced during an appointment. There was a voice mail from her cousin Annalise who lived in Racy, Indiana. It was likely about the reading of their Uncle Dominick’s will. He’d died last week under mysterious circumstances in Chicago, but his body was being brought back here for the funeral. Per the instructions in the will, Carma and Annalise were among the family members who had been summoned to the offices of Fox and Associates, estate attorneys here in Passion Peak, to find out the contents.

  Carma frowned as she thought about the upcoming funeral and will reading. She hugged herself as a shiver passed through her body. Would her cousin Michael be there? More than likely he would, since he was Dominick’s oldest son. But she could always hold out hope he wouldn’t show up for either event.

  Annalise answered her phone, and Carma went into the break room to talk to her. “Hey, I was with a customer. What’s up?”

  “It’s so good to hear from you. Chad, Dustin and I are here, in town.”

  “Oh, hooray! Now I wish I wasn’t working, but I’m stuck here for hours. My last appointment is at two and I should be out of here no later than four. Did you find Rowena and Van’s house all right?” Carma tried not to let jealousy get the better of her at the mention of Annalise’s Doms, Chad Bristol and Dustin Alexander. Her cousin had two men. Carma hadn’t had a date in over a year. But Annalise had had her share of shit as well, and she deserved this happiness in her life.

  “Yes, and I hate her already. She’s gorgeous, and she’s been showing me your yearbooks from high school. How come you both got prettier as you got older and I didn’t?”

  Carma smiled. “Don’t be ridiculous. You’re beautiful. I’m sure Chad and Dustin tell you that all the time.” Rowena Sommers, now Rowena Whitney, had been married to Van for almost two years. She and Carma had been inseparable in high school and were still best friends. “What do you think of Van?”

  “I like him, and it’s obvious how much he loves Rowena. But right now, he’s talking nonstop about his company, Whitney Restorations, to Chad and Dustin. I wish Racy had known about Van’s company after the tornado hit. Chase Taylor and Ellis McCree would have hired him, and paid his expenses to live in Racy until downtown was rebuilt.”

  “He almost lost his company when that scandal about his uncle broke a few years back.”

  “Oh? I didn’t hear about that.”

  “I’ll tell you another time.”

  “I can wait to see you and catch up, Carma.”

  It would be wonderful to have Annalise around again, even if she was only going to be in town for a short time. “Me either. How long did it take you to drive here?”

  “We left Indiana two days ago. We ended up staying overnight in Lincoln, Nebraska.”

  “That’s where we always stayed the first night when we drove to your home in Ohio. Why didn’t you three just fly into Denver?”

  “Nah. We love to drive. The scenery was beautiful, and it’s nice to just take our time and go at our own pace. I can’t thank Van and Rowena enough for letting us stay here.”

  “They’re good people. Have you taken over her kitchen to cook pasta?”

  “Of course.”

  “Yummy. See you soon.”

  After Carma ended the call, she wandered to the front windows and surveyed the residents walking up and down Juniper Street. Most of the businesses still had the flag bunting draped over their windows or doors from when they’d put it up for the Fourth of July parade last month. A great many of them simply kept it up each year until after the Founder’s Day parade the second Saturday in August, or the Labor Day parade.

  What she really loved about this street and all the streets downtown were the gorgeous purple leaves of the plum cistena trees, and the delicate white and lavender flowers of the Rocky Mountain Columbines, planted on every plot of earth available and circling each street lamp and mailbox. Not only did an explosion of heavenly fragrance assault her senses as she walked the streets each day to and from work, but she loved the colors. They reminded her of sunsets and softly lit rooms.

  She did a doub
le take as she caught sight of Mateo standing across the street, outside of Sassy Brassy, the fetish shop. He wasn’t looking in the windows or about to walk inside. He was watching the salon. She knew he always walked into town, even though his ranch was over a mile away, on Apache Street. She’d asked him once why he didn’t simply drive, and he told her he preferred to be outdoors in the fresh air.

  Carma moved away from the windows so he wouldn’t see her watching him, wondering again why she was wasting her time on him, and why he’d been standing there watching the salon.

  * * * *

  Mateo stood across the street and watched the windows of Expressions for almost ten minutes before turning to walk north toward Apache Street, just like he did every time he came to the salon. The entire time he’d been debating whether to go back inside and ask Carma out on a date. And just like each time, he chickened out.

  Instead of answering her questions while she cut his hair, he avoided them, playing a game that he knew she was growing tired of. It surprised him that she’d let it go on this long. If only she knew how badly he wanted to get to know her better. He’d come close to dropping the act today, and Mateo had seen that realization in her eyes. But instead of telling her what she wanted to know, he’d closed down yet again, out of fear. How could he explain this to her when he couldn’t even explain it to himself?

  He wished he didn’t have to get back to the ranch. Then he’d hang out downtown until her shift was over and take a chance. But he had to return. They had ninety-two lambs to wean, and one of his hardest-working ranch hands wasn’t yet able to do all the work Mateo needed him to do.