Lavish Obsession Read online

  Lavish Obsession

  Charlotte Byrd

  Contents

  Don’t Miss Out!

  Also by Charlotte Byrd

  Part One

  Chapter 1 - Easton

  Chapter 2 - Easton

  Chapter 3 - Easton

  Part Two

  Chapter 4 - Easton

  Chapter 5 - Easton

  Chapter 6 - Everly

  Chapter 7 - Everly

  Chapter 8 - Everly

  Chapter 9 - Everly

  Part Three

  Chapter 10 - Easton

  Chapter 11 - Easton

  Chapter 12 - Easton

  Chapter 13 - Easton

  Chapter 14 - Easton

  Chapter 15 - Easton

  Chapter 16 - Easton

  Chapter 17 - Easton

  Part Four

  Chapter 18 - Everly

  Chapter 19 - Everly

  Chapter 20 - Everly

  Part Five

  Chapter 21 - Easton

  Chapter 22 - Everly

  Chapter 23 - Easton

  Chapter 24 - Easton

  Chapter 25 - Easton

  Chapter 26 - Easton

  Chapter 27 - Easton

  Part Six

  Chapter 28 - Everly

  Chapter 29 - Everly

  Chapter 30 - Everly

  Chapter 31 - Everly

  Chapter 32 - Everly

  Part Seven

  Chapter 33 - Everly

  Chapter 34 - Easton

  Chapter 35 - Everly

  Part Eight

  Chapter 36 - Everly

  Chapter 37 - Everly

  Chapter 38 - Everly

  Chapter 39 - Easton

  Chapter 40 - Everly

  Tell Me to Stop

  Also by Charlotte Byrd

  About Charlotte Byrd

  Copyright © 2018 by Charlotte Byrd, LLC.

  All rights reserved.

  Proofreaders:

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  Julie Deaton, Deaton Author Services, https://www.facebook.com/jdproofs/

  Cover Design: Charlotte Byrd

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a word of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Visit my website at www.charlotte-byrd.com

  Created with Vellum

  About Lavish Obsession

  I don’t know who to believe, but I know that this place is full of lies and secrets.

  Easton Bay has risked everything to protect me, but that doesn’t mean that he didn’t do what they had accused him of.

  I am in love with him. I am supposed to be his wife, but this changes everything. The King has turned on him. I’m Easton’s only hope.

  But it’s only a matter of time before they turn on me, too.

  Is my fate is sealed?

  *Previously published as Throne of York

  Praise for Charlotte Byrd

  “Decadent, delicious, & dangerously addictive!” - Amazon Review ★★★★★

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  “Titillation so masterfully woven, no reader can resist its pull. A MUST-BUY!” - Bobbi Koe, Amazon Review ★★★★★

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  “Captivating!” - Crystal Jones, Amazon Review ★★★★★

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  "Exciting, intense, sensual” - Rock, Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  “Sexy, secretive, pulsating chemistry…” - Mrs. K, Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  “Charlotte Byrd is a brilliant writer. I've read loads and I've laughed and cried. She writes a balanced book with brilliant characters. Well done!” -Amazon Review ★★★★★

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  “Fast-paced, dark, addictive, and compelling” - Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  “Hot, steamy, and a great storyline.” - Christine Reese ★★★★★

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  “My oh my....Charlotte has made me a fan for life.” - JJ, Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  "The tension and chemistry is at five alarm level.” - Sharon, Amazon reviewer ★★★★★

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  “Hot, sexy, intriguing journey of Elli and Mr. Aiden Black. - Robin Langelier ★★★★★

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  “Wow. Just wow. Charlotte Byrd leaves me speechless and humble… It definitely kept me on the edge of my seat. Once you pick it up, you won't put it down.” - Amazon Review ★★★★★

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  “Sexy, steamy and captivating!” - Charmaine, Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  “ Intrigue, lust, and great characters...what more could you ask for?!” - Dragonfly Lady ★★★★★

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  “An awesome book. Extremely entertaining, captivating and interesting sexy read. I could not put it down.” - Kim F, Amazon Reviewer ★★★★★

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  “Just the absolute best story. Everything I like to read about and more. Such a great story I will read again and again. A keeper!!” - Wendy Ballard ★★★★★

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  “It had the perfect amount of twists and turns. I instantaneously bonded with the heroine and of course Mr. Black. YUM. It's sexy, it's sassy, it's steamy. It's everything.” - Khardine Gray, Bestselling Romance Author ★★★★★

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  Also by Charlotte Byrd

  All books are available at ALL major retailers! If you can’t find it, please email me at [email protected]

  * * *

  Tell me Series

  Tell me to Stop

  Tell me to Go

  Tell me to Stay

  Tell me to Run

  Tell me to Fight

  * * *

  Tangled Series

  Tangled up in Ice

  Tangled up in Pain

  Tangled up in Lace

  Tangled up in Hate

  Tangled up in Love

  * * *

  Black Series

  Black Edge

  Black Rules

  Black Bounds

  Black Contract

  Black Limit

  Lavish Trilogy

  Lavish Lies

  Lavish Betrayal

  Lavish Obsession

  Standalone Novels

  Debt

  Offer

  Unknown

  Dressing Mr. Dalton

  Part One

  Chapter 1 - Easton

  When I first see Everly…

  I’ve been watching her.

  I saw her name on the list.

  There were others, too, but she stood out.

  I’ve never done this before. I never sought out one of the women, let alone approached her.

  I pretended that everything that happ
ens here on this forsaken island wasn’t my business.

  I thought that if I didn’t get involved, then it wouldn’t be my fault. But that’s not how life works, is it?

  You are involved, all of the time.

  You make decisions about your values all the time.

  What you do or don’t do.

  What you buy or don’t buy.

  I tried to wash the guilt away. I tried to close my eyes to all the horrors that take place around me.

  Even after they took Alicia away from me.

  I thought I was in love with her and I wanted to run away with her. Yet, when they took her away from me, I believed them.

  I closed my eyes to all the anger, and the hatred, and everything that I knew deep inside of myself to be true.

  I closed my eyes to the truth that I felt deep inside of me.

  You know that feeling that makes your skin crawl when something bad is about to happen?

  You know those little goose bumps you get when you feel like something just isn’t right?

  You know that voice in the back of your head that tries to warn you, no matter how nice everything seems to be?

  Those are signs you shouldn’t ignore. But I did.

  I experienced them.

  I lived them.

  And they became my mistakes.

  Standing here, watching this room full of people talking, laughing, mingling, I realize what I knew all along.

  I didn’t need to overhear my father talking to his closest advisor to confirm the truth. That nauseous feeling, those goose bumps down my arms, that sickening feeling in the back of my throat - those were all proof of it.

  My father had Alicia killed, and I was too stupid, no, too naive, not to see it.

  Is that why I’m here in this room with drapery around the walls and everyone dressed in their black tie best? Perhaps.

  I’m here to find her.

  Everly March.

  I saw her name on the list and something drew me to her.

  Her first name, flowing and never-ending, reminds me of a river or a rushing brook.

  But her last?

  Quick and strong and powerful.

  It’s almost as if it brings the flowing water to a sudden stop.

  Everly March.

  Everly March.

  Everly March.

  I say her name over and over again. Who are you? And why did you bring me here?

  I scan the room in search of her and it doesn’t take me long. I walk by people, leaning in and listening until I hear her name.

  I stand a little bit away from her, just enough so that I don’t come off as a creep. And I watch and wait until her date leaves her side.

  I finish a drink and get another. I continue to wait.

  It is these moments that I return to over and over again, when we are apart.

  The shine of her hair.

  The snugness of her dress around her hips.

  The way she scrunched her shoulders down, either out of shyness, or anxiety, or just to stay warm.

  Her high cheekbones and large bright eyes make her face radiate and I find myself drawn to her.

  It takes everything in my power to keep my distance. It’s not that I want her, which I do, but it’s more that I want to meet her.

  Her beauty is effortless, and I immediately feel the pull of attraction.

  But the pull is more than that.

  It’s like there’s a gravitational pull around her.

  She is the sun and she’s drawing me to her.

  When I can’t stand not being close to her any longer, her date finally leaves.

  There’s my opening, my chance.

  I approach her carefully, not because I’m afraid of spooking her, but I’m afraid of what that would do to me.

  “Hello, there,” I say softly from behind.

  I see her considering one of the options from the silent auction.

  The one she’s looking at is offered by a family friend of my father’s.

  “Considering bidding on that yachting weekend in Newport?” I ask.

  She turns around and examines me carefully. Her eyes narrow, then relax, and then she gives me a smile.

  “Yes, that’s right,” she says with a tinge of sarcasm. “The highest bid is probably around $100,000. So, I’d have to work two and a half years at my current job and save every penny just to match it.”

  Of all the ways I’d thought this conversation could’ve possibly gone, this was not it.

  I don’t know who I expected to get, but this woman with a strong wit and a sharp tongue was not it.

  Her reaction amuses me; it draws me in even more.

  I can’t help but give her a wink.

  “I’m Easton,” I say, holding out my hand and waiting for the moment when she will finally let me touch her.

  The moment is all too brief, unfortunately.

  Before I even have a chance to say another word, her date comes back. It’s as if he was waiting, watching.

  He wraps his arm firmly around her waist.

  She is mine, his body language says. Stay away. Keep away. Get the fuck away.

  I look at him and watch as his nostrils flare out.

  His eyebrows furrow, his jealousy is about to be pushed over the edge.

  I see him getting closer to that edge and I want to push him over it.

  I want her to see the coward that he really is.

  I want her to see that this isn’t the good kind of possessiveness, the kind that makes a woman feel wanted. No, he is all weakness and he knows it.

  “Easton, this is my…friend…Jamie.”

  She pauses in the middle, considering just the right description for what he is.

  She does not use the word date, but friend.

  This does not go unnoticed.

  Chapter 2 - Easton

  When I try to warn her…

  “Actually, she’s my date,” Jamie corrects her.

  I raise my eyebrow in a show of acknowledgment.

  He’s trying to rattle me.

  Trying to shock me.

  Trying to throw me off kilter.

  I’m not going to give in.

  “I was just talking to Everly about the silent auctions here. What will you be bidding on?” I ask.

  He takes a deep breath for a moment of consideration.

  He’s not going to bid on anything.

  He doesn’t have the money, but there’s no way he would ever admit it.

  We stare at each other for a moment, without saying a word.

  “I think I’m going to go for this weekend trip to Paris,” I say in the most smug and entitled way possible.

  I pick up the pen and fill out the form next to the package.

  “It’s all for a good cause, right?” I mumble under my breath.

  “It’s supposed to be a silent auction,” Jamie says, pulling Everly closer to him.

  She shudders a little bit at how forceful he is, and I clench my jaw.

  I want to punch him in his face, but that’s not a wise decision.

  Everly knows nothing about me.

  I need her to trust me.

  I’m not going to get anywhere with her if I knock out her conniving, lying, asshole of a date.

  “Yes, of course. But I doubt that the foundation will be against a little competition. Especially, if that makes the bid go higher.”

  When he doesn’t respond, I turn toward him and hand him my pen.

  “Go ahead, kid,” I say, squaring my shoulders with him.

  I cross my arms across my chest, narrowing my eyes.

  “Don’t call me kid,” he says, grabbing the pen out of my hand.

  Everly tugs at him, whispering something into his ear that I can’t quite make out.

  “I know.” He shrugs her off and walks away.

  She wraps her hands around her arms as she stands next to me, watching Jamie walk around the tables and reading about each of the packages.

  She glares at me and s
hakes her head, and then after a moment, she goes up to him and takes his arm.

  This isn’t going well.

  It’s the wrong approach.

  But I have to keep trying.

  She tries to pull him away, but he refuses to go.

  I have successfully challenged his ego, which was my intention all along.

  She tries again.

  She’s whispering, but I hear her mention that he doesn’t have the money to bid on any of it.

  I smile.

  I don’t either, of course.

  I mean, who the hell does? Besides my father.

  And I know exactly how he got all of his billions, which doesn’t exactly make me race into that line of work.

  Of course, Jamie doesn’t know any of this.