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Contemporary Erotic Romance

An Invitation to The World 2:  China and India

Torrid Teaser Vol. 31

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published by Whiskey Creek Press Torrid

ebook isbn:  978-1593749484

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Order eBook from Whiskey Creek Press Torrid, Fictionwise or ARe

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Excerpt(s)

China

Chapter One 

She was on a flight from hell!

Time had no relevance for her. Days, hours, minutes no longer mattered. She was scared for her life.

Having her wrists cuffed to the armrests and her ankles to the legs of the seat didn't help either. Gooseflesh flashed along her skin, the terror of her situation causing her to feel colder than she was.

Her breath shuddered from her chest in great gulps of air. She couldn't stop hyperventilating, and it didn't seem to matter that she was well on her way to passing out. Every pore in her body was reacting to her fear. She was shaking uncontrollably. The hood they'd covered her head with shut out all sense of sight, leaving her fear to feed upon itself. Her lips quivered pitifully, as her tears gathered strength for another deluge.

Jia Li was absolutely terrified. Reality slowly settled in, relentlessly squeezing her chest like a vise. One thing was for sure, this was really happening to her.

Trying to catch her breath, she forced herself to think back to how she'd ended up in this nightmare. Anything to take her mind off what was coming next.

The day had been a typical Monday afternoon in San Francisco. It was a beautiful warm summer's day with the usual breeze chilling things down just enough for a light sweater to be necessary. She'd been running errands, the last one putting her in the heart of Chinatown during the busy lunch break. After having fought her way through throngs of tourists, she'd finished and had started to make her way back to her apartment when she was grabbed. In a flash she'd been pulled back into a narrow alley.

A strong arm had wrapped around her waist and a hand pressed against her mouth, instantly silencing her. Jia faced the street and watched people passing by without so much as a glance to witness her mounting trouble. She dropped her bags and clawed at the hand covering her mouth. She tried to kick back at the man holding her but only managed to trip herself as he dragged her backwards.

Without anyone seeing them, they slipped through a door, and she was gone.

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India

Chapter One

"What a beautiful day. I can't believe it's deserted out here on the Theosophical Society's grounds. It's a national holiday and the city is bursting at the seams with people, but not out here. I'm happy we have it all to ourselves. It's so peaceful sitting here beneath this big old banyan tree."

The young couple had eyes only for each other as they prepared to take a major step in their lives together.

"Are you sure with what we're about to do, Sati?"

"Oh yes, Bodhi, most definitely. I love you, belong with you and will have you as my husband."

"My heart, you know your remaining family, your uncle and his clan, will no longer claim you as a Chaudhari."

"I understand. Yes, I'm grateful they took me in when I was young, but there has never been any love or respect for me as a person. Up to this point my uncle has dictated my life. It's time for me to take control and make my own decisions. I'm responsible for choosing where I go for the rest of my years and it's with you." She reached over and stroked her fingertips across the masculine stubble decorating his cheek.

He was a strikingly handsome man, which made her a very lucky woman to possess his heart.

As she defied convention by touching him in public, she thought about her life. She had worked very hard and the result had been her reputation as a beloved Bollywood starlet. It was only business, she understood that. Still, she'd been pleasantly surprised when her agent, Vasin told her how the name Sati Chaudhari on a marquee was sought after. It meant millions upon millions of rupees earned for those with their fingers in the pot.

There was often a downside to success and hers was being overworked. A while back she'd been on a set, filming and the press had started to speculate about the cause of her apparent exhaustion. Not wanting to have anything negative associated with her or the film, Vasin had pushed for a break.

Thankfully, an opening for a spa weekend at the exclusive Raj Lake Palace floating on Lake Pichola in Udaipur had been found. She'd headed straight there, looking forward to the peace they offered in the beautiful setting. Unfortunately, once she stepped into the lobby a guest had recognized her and the restful weekend looked impossible. After having gained her autograph, he'd begun to make a nuisance of himself. Then her future husband had stepped around the corner and into her life.

"Do you remember when we first met?" Her query was barely heard over the rustling leaves.

"How could I forget? You appeared so fragile in the lobby as that fan was trying to push in on you."

"You stepped out from around the corner and took my breath away. So very handsome and, like a knight in shining armor, you escorted me away from the chaos and handled everything personally. You made me feel so special."

She smiled with fond memories over that first weekend. It had been full of confidential meetings where they'd talked about their likes and dislikes, dreams of the future and the horrors of reality. By the end her break, they'd made plans to meet up gain, and then again. Eventually their secret rendezvous led to even more interludes.

It would be fair for people to believe he was obnoxious, arrogant and snobbish, being born into a family of privilege, yet she'd never found him to be any of those things. In fact he was the direct opposite.

Bodhi Burke was a confident and open-minded man who worked hard in the family hotel business and was determined to take the company around the world. With an Englishman and half-Indian woman for parents, he mainly took after his Anglo father. Very tall, physically fit and handsome, yet his mother's genes were definitely in the mix with his silky soft, rich brown hair and light hazel eyes.

Fixing her eyes to his, she thought how the surrounding thick, long black lashes would be the envy of many women. Suddenly, she felt nervous and Sati looked for assurances.

"Do you have doubts?"

"None." There was no change in his direct gaze, nothing in his body language that showed any hesitation. He was as sure as she that their decision was the best one for them both. "Sati, my love, have I told you today what a beautiful bride you make?"