THE DEVIL IN DISGUISE

"Wanna do it?" Leyla Stanley asked, wrapping one leg around the man's waist.

Leyla was leaning against a door as she spoke.

A corridor separated the two of them from the lively banquet hall next door.

In that hall, Leyla's ex-boyfriend was celebrating his engagement with his new partner.

The man heard her clearly and emotion flashed in his narrowed eyes.

He gripped Leyla's waist, seized one of her wrists, and threw her onto the soft bed.

Then he leaned over her with his head lowered. His voice was thick with seduction. "Yes."

Leyla's long hair lay sprawled across the pillow. She leaned in and pressed her rosy lips against his.

The sweet scent of her perfume mixed with the deep aroma of wine, filling the room.

His breath caught in his throat. He held her chin with one hand and his voice grew low and tempting. "Leyla, open your eyes and look carefully... Who am I?"

Wait a minute... Who exactly was he?

The tipsy Leyla blinked her eyes open.

The man was incredibly handsome. His long lashes framed striking eyes, and he had a strong nose and refined features.

What a devilish charmer.

Leyla moved closer, her breath warm against him.

Wrapping her slightly cool arms around his neck, she leaned in and whispered in his ear.

"You are..." Her voice was seductive. "Colton."

He was indeed Colton Quinn.

He was the infamous playboy of Valston, known for his reckless ways. He was a romance expert who never let himself get too attached to any woman.

Colton was also the head of the influential Quinn family.

Colton hesitated for a moment.

Then he kissed her passionately, and the kiss seemed to last forever.

The next morning, Leyla woke up from a nightmare.

Her head was pounding, and she buried her face in the blanket.

What Theo Higgins, her ex-boyfriend, had said last night at the engagement party echoed in her mind, haunting her dreams.

"Leyla is just as loose as Rachael. It was only a fling. I would never marry someone like her."

And just like that, Theo had gotten engaged to someone else.

After the Stanley family had faced tragedy, Leyla had become an orphan and went to live with her aunt, Rachael Yates.