Devilish
Genre:
Release Date: April 10, 2025
Who are we? Nobody really knows. We’re seven powerful heirs to empires, ruling Manhattan from our thrones on Park Avenue. By day, we’re the elite, untouchable, and more connected than you could ever imagine. By night, we revel in the darkness of our secrets, pulling strings that make the city bow to our whims.
Ruthless.
Dangerous.
We’re the Park Avenue Kings.
In this city of power and desire, where the line between love and obsession blurs, nothing is off-limits—and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
***
In a world where everything is within his grasp, love is the only thing that’s ever eluded him.
Lucien Vale is temptation incarnate. Devilishly charming, wickedly confident, and sinfully sexy, he rules Manhattan’s most elite clubs, indulging the city’s darkest desires with a knowing smirk and a whisper of seduction. He’s built an empire, played the game to perfection, and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty when it serves the greater good.
But love? That’s always been just out of reach.
Then he sees Kai Daniels—a man too raw, too vulnerable, and too damn captivating to ignore—being used by someone who doesn’t deserve him. And Lucien doesn’t hesitate. He steps in, knowing full well that some things aren’t meant to be owned.
But Kai’s past isn’t ready to let him go. His tormentor is powerful, relentless, and determined to make them both pay. As the stakes rise, Lucien is forced to become the man he’s kept buried—the one who doesn’t just play the game but makes sure his enemies never play again.
Now, with danger closing in and their connection burning hotter than ever, Lucien and Kai must decide if they’re willing to risk everything for a love that was never part of the plan.
Alternate Cover
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Read the first two chapters of Devilish (Park Avenue Kings #2) now!
These chapters are unedited and subject to change but we hope you enjoy!
Copyright © 2025 by Brooke Blaine & Ella Frank
Lucien
THE VEIL WAS my fortress, and I was its king.
Its devilish king.
From my black and gold throne high above the private club, I watched over the sinful scenes taking place, the many naked, leather-clad, and rope-bound bodies, and felt a supreme satisfaction.
This was my gift, my contribution to the pleasure-seeking members of society. Giving an indulgent, safe place to explore their fantasies and kinks, a place without judgment or fear. A place where sex reigned…and so did I.
“We’re at capacity.” Standing tall and formidable beside me, Malcolm’s sharp eyes scanned over every inch of the den, only stopping and narrowing slightly at the entrance. “New faces.”
I followed my manager’s gaze, locking on the two unfamiliar men who’d just arrived. Though I didn’t know either by name—yet—they would’ve had to pay a handsome sum to even be considered for entrance, with another member vouching for them.
Cocking my head, I studied the elder gentleman blocking his smaller companion as they walked farther into the club. Something about him made the hair at the nape of my neck prickle. Maybe it was the ruddy color of his skin, or the lecherous way he stared, licking his thin lips as he stopped at each scene.
“Name?” I said to Malcolm.
“Rupert McGuire. Head of the Manhattan Contemporary Gallery.”
“Hmm.” I ran a finger over my lips as the shorter of the two came into view. Well, shorter was an understatement, because though he had the face of a beautiful man, his companion was so slight in build that most of the guys in the room towered over him.
In complete contrast to his partner, this one didn’t openly stare at anyone, instead, peeking at them almost shyly, like he didn’t think he was allowed to.
Did he belong to Rupert? It was possible, though he didn’t wear a collar and wasn’t holding his hand or touching him in any way. Age gap pairings weren’t anything unusual here. Neither were rich men with a young plaything. Every relationship was different, something that was welcomed and even celebrated here.
Still, something about Rupert chafed, and being in the business of reading body language meant I wasn’t usually wrong about a red flag.
“Keep an eye on them,” I told Malcolm, who nodded once before quietly disappearing into the shadows of the club.
What I didn’t say was that he’d be providing the second set of eyes, because I didn’t plan to take mine off them.
Rupert stopped beside Zayne, one of the most revered doms to guest showcase at The Veil, and watched as he made the complicated shibari techniques he was doing on his restrained partner look easy. Beautiful knots of bright red rope covered the sub’s body, making it not only a work of art, but a powerful experience for the one underneath Zayne’s skilled hands.
It didn’t escape my notice the way Rupert’s companion reacted to what he was seeing. Eyes wide, full lips parted. Clearly, he wasn’t familiar with this style of bondage, and when Rupert said something to him, he quickly shook his head.
Why, then, did Rupert roll his eyes, grab hold of his companion’s cropped shirt, drag him to the only empty spot in the club, and leave him there while he ran off to procure accessories for the evening?
I narrowed my eyes, and as if he could feel my stare, the one left behind looked up at me.
God he was pretty. Even under the dark lighting made to set the mood, I could see the auburn in his short, wavy hair. He had stronger features than I’d expected from one so small, with a sharp jaw and full lips made for sucking…and biting. Very all-American. Very enticing.
Very…not mine.
He swallowed hard as our eyes remained locked on each other. My fingers curled into the arms of the chair and my dick throbbed with an ache I was suddenly desperate to relieve. But as if the universe knew I was about to break one of my own rules, Rupert reappeared carrying a coil of red rope. A glaring reminder that the object of my desire was well and truly taken.
Frustration clawed at me as Rupert stopped in front of his date, blocking my view, and I ordered my cock to calm the hell down. No matter how pretty someone was, I wasn’t the kind of man to steal another’s possessions. Especially in my own club. If word got around I was willing to poach another man’s companion for myself, well…that wouldn’t be too good for business now, would it?
Resigned to the fact I wouldn’t be dipping my dick in the one thing it truly wanted this evening, I got to my feet and made a decision. Just because I couldn’t touch, didn’t mean I couldn’t look. Plus, I still wasn’t one hundred percent convinced that what was happening between the two that’d caught my attention was on the up and up.
My eyes scanned the open space full of secrets and sin as I started forward through the crowd. The music throbbing out of the speakers was a pulse pounding beat that made the blood pump through your veins almost as hard as the deeds going on around you and the orders being given and followed in different corners of the club. Some might see this as a den of iniquity, but for me it was a place of acceptance, self-expression, lust, and often love. Even if just for the night.
Anything goes, that was my motto—as long as it was consensual.
Something I was starting to suspect wasn’t the case between the two I was closing in on.
From my position I could see that Rupert had shoved his partner down to his knees in front of him. He was shaking the bundle of rope at him, as the pretty one adamantly shook his head. Not exactly the kind of response a willing participant in a scene would give, unless of course he was playing the role of brat. However, judging by the flash of fear that entered his wide-eyes when Rupert leaned down and hissed something between his teeth, my gut told me this was no role the younger man was playing but true panic.
Picking up my pace, I strode toward them, blood ringing in my ears as the man on his knees reluctantly reached for the edge of his cropped shirt and pulled it up over his head. He didn’t want this, it was blatantly obvious as he clutched the material over his leather clad knees, in a final act of defiance.
Rupert leaned down and snatched the shirt out of his hands, tossing it to the floor. Then he walked around behind him, and as I got within hearing distance I heard, “Give me your hands.”
The young man swallowed, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he slowly put his arms behind his back. Rupert crouched down and yanked them together hard making his companion wince, and just as he started to wrap the red rope around the man’s upper arms in a careless, unpracticed way, I stepped off the main floor and into the space he’d commandeered.
The second my shoes caught under the dim lights, the one on his knees raised his head and fucking hell… If I’d thought he was pretty from across the club, up close he was absolutely devastating. If he’d been down on his knees for me I would’ve treated him like the most exquisite diamond I’d ever had the pleasure of looking at. Not manhandled him like some overbearing thug who didn’t know what a priceless gem he had before him.
Holding his eyes and giving no regard to Rupert, who hadn’t even noticed my presence, I lowered my chin and asked, “Safe word?” directly to the one staring at me.
A wrinkle of confusion between his brows confirmed what I already knew.
Rupert glanced over his shoulder, looked me up and down, and with a quick “no thanks,” went back to wrapping the rope around the beautiful man’s chest in a way that made me cringe.
If he thought he could dismiss me so easily, he had another thing coming.
“Safe word,” I said again in a tone that brooked no argument, and this time Rupert shot to his feet to face me.
“Look, pal, we’re not interested. Beat it.”
A slow smile spread across my mouth. This was going to especially gratifying.
“I don’t believe we’ve met,” I said, glancing back at the one on his knees to make sure the clumsy ropework wasn’t causing him pain before addressing Rupert. “Lucien Vale. I’m the owner of this club.”
Surprise flitted across his expression, and he tossed the rope he held over his companion’s lap haphazardly before holding out his hand.
Welcoming him into the fold? I think not.
“Are you aware of the safety procedures here at The Veil?” I said.
Rupert dropped his hand and straightened his shoulders, but he was still several inches shorter than my six-foot-two.
“Sure, sure.” He waved me off. “I signed the paperwork.”
“You must have to be allowed entrance into my private club, or any of the ones I own around the world.”
There it was. The suspicion narrowing his eyes on mine.
“Is there a problem here?” he said, before gesturing to his bound companion, whose gaze kept flicking between the two of us. “Or can I get back to what I came for.”
“What you both came for,” I corrected.
“Right. Sure.”
Then Rupert made the mistake of turning his back on me, and before he could make another move, my hand clamped down on his shoulder.
“What the—”
I turned my attention to the one on his knees and demanded, “Safe word.”
He bit the inside of his cheek and looked to Rupert, who opened his mouth to speak, but I held my hand up.
“Not you.” I nodded toward the beautiful bound one. “Him.”
Those full lips parted and then he shook his head.
“You don’t know what that is, do you?”
Again, he glanced at Rupert and shook his head.
Fury licked at my veins as I turned my full attention on Rupert. “You tied this man up without a safe word?”
“He’s fine. If he didn’t like it, he would say—”
“His. Safe. Word.”
Rupert’s jaw clenched and he bit out. “Fine. It’s—”
“No.” Several feet away, Malcolm watched and waited for my signal, and when I gave it, he was at my side in an instant. “Malcolm, would you escort Mr. McGuire from the premises and make sure he’s banned from entering any of my establishments in the future.”
Rupert blanched and then his face went fire-engine red. “On what grounds? I’m a paid member—”
“Were a paid member. One who’s no longer welcome.” I stepped toward him so that he had to crane his neck to look up at me. “Everything at The Veil is consensual and everyone follows the strict rules set out in the paperwork you signed. That means using a safe word when engaging in any kind of bondage play, something your partner knows nothing about—”
“He’s—”
“No longer any concern of yours.”
“Excuse me?”
“You heard me. The second you violated his trust in my space he became my concern.”
Rupert began to sputter before shaking his head in disbelief. “You can’t just kick me out.”
“Oh, but I can.” I gestured to Malcolm who moved up beside Rupert and took a firm grip of his bicep. “And no, you can’t get a refund.”
Rupert’s eyes darted to the man still on his knees, and I moved in front of him, making sure to block his view of the one he’d arrived with.
Rupert’s attention flicked back to me. “You can’t just take him.”
“I can do whatever the fuck I like. But to be clear, I’m not taking him, I’m saving him—from you. Malcolm.”
Without another word, Malcolm began to tow Rupert away from the corner he’d commandeered and through the crowd toward the door. Not caring what happened to him beyond that, I turned my attention back to the one on his knees who was staring out into the sea of people as though watching his boat sail off into the distance.
Not wanting to startle him, I slowly held my hand out and those big eyes peered up at me under the light. Not quite grey and not quite blue, his eyes were an unusual shade that reminded me of a misty morning as the sun tried to peek through. But it was the expression in them that had my breath catching.
Where I thought I’d see relief in those eyes, all I saw was worry and confusion. I’d taken away the one person he was most familiar with, and monster or not, Rupert was who he knew—and I was nothing but a stranger.
Kai
NO. WHAT’S HAPPENING? Where are they taking him?
Panic, sharp as a knife, seared my chest as the man in black, the one who’d introduced himself to Rupert as Lucien Vale, held his hand out toward me.
I looked back at where Rupert was being thrown out and rose to my knees, needing to go after him, but I was tangled in the rope he’d been eager to tie around me. Fear clawed at me as I struggled to break free, but somehow the rope was getting even tighter.
Oh God, don’t leave.
But I couldn’t even see Rupert now. He was gone, and he’d left me here all alone, without a place to go. My breath hitched, swallowing down the whimper of dread I felt as the realization hit that I was fucked. So fucked.
“Hey.” Lucien’s voice softened as he crouched down in front of me. The rope chafed against my skin as I tried to get free, but when Lucien automatically reached for me, I jerked back.
He held his hands up, and dark, penetrating eyes searched mine. There was something almost hypnotizing about them, and I found myself going still still, even though I was breathing so hard I was getting lightheaded.
“I won’t hurt you,” he said, keeping his distance, hands still up where I could see them. “Let me get you out of this mess. All right?”
I swallowed hard but couldn’t get any words out. Not when I was starting to see two of his face and the edges of my vision were turning green.
“You need to breathe or you’ll pass out,” he said. “Can I help you?”
When I managed to nod, he didn’t waste any time. The rope disappeared in a matter of seconds, the strangled hold it had on me finally gone, making it easier for me to catch my breath.
“Good boy,” Lucien murmured, handing me my shirt before his strong hands on my waist lifted me to my feet.
As the dizziness passed, I realized I was holding on to him for dear life, my fingers curled into his arms like I was begging him not to leave me.
Maybe I was.
He didn’t try to pull away or pry me off him, just watched me carefully. “I’m going to take you to my office. You’re safe now.”
I was safe now? What did he know about my life? He couldn’t make those promises, and I’d never believe them anyway.
But Rupert was gone. I had to go somewhere.
I gave a quick nod, and a few minutes later, we entered a room that didn’t look anything like an office. It looked like an extension of the club, with plush chairs and loveseats and low-lit lamps instead of overhead lighting.
Lucien stopped just inside, dropping his hands from me and waiting until he was sure I wouldn’t fall over before gesturing toward a dark velvet loveseat in the center of the room.
My breathing may have finally been under control, but my pulse raced.
Who was this guy? Why was I here? What did he want from me?
When I didn’t take a seat, Lucien took a couple of water bottles out of a mini fridge and set one on the table by the loveseat. Then he twisted the cap off the other and took a long swallow, and it was only then, with his attention elsewhere, that I really looked at him.
Dressed in all black, Lucien’s coal colored hair and piercing dark stare added an air of mystery to him that was as alarming as it was intriguing, as he slipped in and out of the shadows of his office as though they were an extension of his physical being.
He wandered over to the loveseat he’d offered up and took a seat at one end, and the position immediately eased some of the tension thrumming through me. His towering height was definitely intimidating, but the fact he was aware of it and had taken it out of the equation was shocking. Rupert never did anything to put me at ease.
“I didn’t catch your name out there,” Lucien said, leaning back into the seat and crossing one leg over the other. He looked casual, relaxed, and was more than likely trying to make me feel the same way. But considering he’d just kicked my ride out of his club, there was no way I’d be relaxing anytime soon.
Rupert would be furious when I finally returned home.
“Your name?” he pressed, as I stood there silent, trying to work out just how much trouble I was going to be in.
“Kai,” I said softly, my eyes on the floor as I tried my best to think up an excuse Rupert would accept.
“Kai,” Lucien said. “That’s a pretty name. Do you know it’s origins?”
I brought my eyes up and stared at the man across the room from me wondering if I’d heard him right.
“In Hawaiian it means sea. Japanese it means shell or ocean. Oh and this is an interesting one, it means King in Persian—”
“I don’t know,” I said, wondering how he did considering we’d just met. “It’s just a name.”
“Hmm. Perhaps. But I’ve always found the history or origins of them fascinating, and yours is not particularly common around here.”
“And Lucien is?” I hadn’t meant to say that out loud, but when Lucien’s lips curved into a grin I could tell he wasn’t bothered by my response.
“No, I don’t suppose it is. Lucien is of French origin that means light. Same in Latin, it’s derived from Lux which means light.”
I frowned, and looked around the shadow-filled space we were currently in and Lucien chuckled.
“Ironic, right? Please, won’t you take a seat?”
I looked over my shoulder to the door, then back to the man on the loveseat and thought about making a run for it but I wasn’t even sure Rupert would be outside waiting for me. I didn’t have any money and no means to get home. Maybe if I sat down and answered whatever questions this Lucien guy had, he’d put me in a taxi and send me on my way.
I walked over to the opposite end of the loveseat and gingerly took a seat, still not sure what it was he wanted from me. This wasn’t the first time I’d been alone in a room with a powerful man. But at least I’d known what to expect in those situations.
“I want to ask you a couple of questions if that’s okay with you?”
I nodded but chewed on my lower lip, waiting for the hammer to fall. This guy was being too considerate, too nice to someone like me.
“That man you came here with tonight, Rupert, is he your boyfriend?”
I scrunched up my nose.
“Okay, okay, no. How about partner?”
I shook my head.
“Daddy?”
I shook it again, and when Lucien went to offer up another respectful term I cut him off with— “Keeper.”
Lucien’s eyes narrowed and hardened, and it felt as though the temperature in the room dropped several degrees and I immediately lowered my eyes to my lap.
Why did I say that?
“What do you mean by keeper?”
When I didn’t automatically respond, Lucien shifted in his seat and leaned forward, gently touching his fingers to my knee. I raised my eyes to his.
“What do you mean?”
“I… I just meant he gives me somewhere to sleep and eat.” Shut up, I silently berated myself, knowing that if Rupert was waiting for me I’d be in even deeper trouble if he knew what I’d just said.
“So you live together.”
I nodded, keeping my mouth shut this time.
“Do you feel safe there?”
Not about to lie, I said nothing, shifting my attention to anything but him.
“Hey,” Lucien coaxed. “You can talk to me. I’m not going to tell him.”
He might not tell Rupert anything but the fact he’d gotten rid of him already meant my living situation had been jeopardized.
Lucien sighed but kept on. “Do you have anywhere else you can go? Perhaps with a friend or—”
“No, no, no.” I shook my head and covered my face as pinpricks stung my eyes. Oh God. What was I going to do? I’d end up back on the streets, a place I’d told myself I’d never go back to.
I rocked back and forth, my mind racing as I tried to come up with a plan. It wasn’t like this guy could stop me from going home. Sure, Rupert would be so pissed he may not even answer the door, but he wouldn’t keep me out forever…right? This wasn’t my fault.
“Kai. Look at me.”
I couldn’t do that. He’d see right through me.
“Kai, I know you’re scared, but I know men like Rupert. Power hungry pieces of shit, that’s all they are.”
My head shot up, mouth parted at his words.
“Yeah.” Lucien nodded, brushing the back of his finger across my cheek. It came away wet, but I didn’t have the energy to be mortified, not when there were so many other emotions coursing through me. “I don’t know your story. I don’t know your relationship with him, but I can see you, and that’s no way to live. If you don’t have anywhere to go, you can stay here. I’ve got a room you can have—”
He didn’t even get the rest of his sentence out before I shot to my feet, shaking my head as I took off for the door. No way was I staying here. I wasn’t going to work in some sex club. I’d rather sleep on the steps of Rupert’s brownstone.
Before I could reach for the handle, Lucien was there, blocking my exit. A sad smile curved his lips.
“You don’t like that idea?”
“I’m not going to work in a sex club.”
“Wait a second,” Lucien said. “I don’t want you to work here. I was offering you somewhere safe to stay. But I can understand why this might not work for you. I have another idea, but it requires some trust.”
He extended his hand out. “I’m Lucien Vale. I’m thirty six, though I won’t blame you if you thought I was thirty three. It’s the genes.” He winked at me, and it was so not what I expected that I could only blink and stare.
Lucien nodded at his hand. “You gonna leave me hanging, or…?”
I didn’t know why I did it, but I shook his hand. His fingers engulfed mine easily, warm and strong and…comforting.
“I’m Kai Daniels,” I said, and then bit the inside of my cheek. “I’m twenty three.”
“And look eighteen,” Lucien teased. “Are you sure you’re twenty three?”
I nodded. “It’s the genes.”
The low chuckle that left him was genuine, so effortless that it had me almost cracking a smile.
He had a deep laugh. It was…nice.
“Well, Kai,” he said, and lowered my hand. “I was wrapping things up here for the night to head home soon anyway, so since you need somewhere to stay and I have a spare room, why don’t you come home with me tonight?”
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