Dirty Brilliance by Lea Bronsen Book Tour and Giveaway :)
Dirty Brilliance
by Lea Bronsen
Genre: Billionaire M/M Romance
Kace Karrington is a wealthy, self-made investor with no qualms about steamrolling others to achieve his goals. He’s attracted to men, but picks up beautiful women, giving the cold, unfeeling world of Finance the appearance he’s successful...powerful. That is until he meets a smoking hot street punk eager to show him there’s more to life than making money.
Chapter
One
I’m
Kace Karrington, I’m an asshole, and I don’t care what you think.
I screw left and right. I invest cash that doesn’t exist. I’ve
built an empire on the blood of lesser smart speculators. And I’ll
steamroll whoever stands in my way. Again,
I don’t care what you think. Wanna be good? Wanna play it by the
rules? Then, don’t come to me complaining you can’t afford the
life I have. Don’t envy my fortune, my skills, my flair, or what
you call my good luck. It’s
not luck. It’s hard work, and it takes balls. I deserve my insane
wealth, the rapacious admiration of my peers, and the attention from
some of the most beautiful women in the world. I’ve earned all that
and more. I’m brilliant at what I do. I’m a quick thinker, I get
stuff done, I can stomach risk, and I reach my goals because I’m a
wolf, a hunter. Dad
predicted it when I came home with my first A in math. He said I
would excel in analytic economics, and later—as it turned out to be
true—he sent me to the best business and management schools. Having
a parent willing to pay for my studies helped, but I would’ve
climbed to the top. Somehow, someway. My way. My calculative,
slightly treacherous, sublimely effective way. I
wouldn’t recommend such conduct if you like company. Wolves are
lonely. Sometimes, they attack in a group, but most of the time, they
wander on their own. And that suits me fine. I don’t want friends.
The fewer people allowed into the innermost circle, the smaller the
risk. Superficial connections can be valuable assets if they help
pave your path to success. So,
I’m not married. Doesn’t mean I don’t have girlfriends. I do,
but I let them seduce me at soirées
and
entertain me at night. Come dawn, they’re out the door faster than
they can strap their sexy heels on. I have more important matters to
deal with as the morning stock market news rolls in than an after-sex
super-clingy female. Besides,
chicks aren’t really my thing, but in the cold world of finance, it
is better to keep what is considered a weakness (the soft-heartedness
of a homo) to oneself. Therefore, you’ll see photos of me always
flanked by two or three women of young age and blinding gorgeousness.
Gotta tend to my reputation of tough, sharp, and serious—thus
attractive—investor. I
jokingly consider these lines for an imaginary interview as I stand
on my wide balcony on the rooftop of one of the most luxurious
skyscrapers in New York, gazing at the breathtaking view of the
noisy, pulsating city below, feeling like the entire world is at my
feet. I’m the king of my self-made kingdom, and the power and
strength that being on top of a megacity gives me is absolutely
intoxicating. Vibrant,
I fill my lungs with air, making a quick mental note that it might be
less polluted up here than the air people down on the street must
breathe, then erase that thought and focus on myself again. I come
first; the rest of the world can burn as long as I’m in control of
my life. Control
is minimizing debt and making secure placements. I earn a lot of
dough from speculating on the current financial bubble and I’m wise
enough to convert it to real cash and place it on safe goods. I drive
the shiniest and fastest cars, the biggest yachts, and a private jet,
and I’ve purchased high-value apartments in metropolitan cities and
mansions on rivieras around the globe. When global economics
implode—which they assuredly will, sparking another big-scale
military conflict—others will bleed. Don’t
point your finger at me. I’ve worked my ass off to acquire all of
this. Years and years of coercing small-time investors, cooperating
with crooks, buying officials, blackmailing politicians, befriending
dirty millionaires. Of
course, I’d never admit that in an interview. With
a smirk, I lean against the gigantic glass window behind me and pull
my phone out of my pocket. Messages and notifications glide
seamlessly right to left. “Pfft, nothing of importance.” I swipe
them away. My
reflection on the dark phone pane stares back. Piercing ice-blue eyes
in a tanned face with rugged features…and lines on my forehead. Hmm,
am I looking tired? Maybe a little burnt out. At forty plus, long
party nights, too little sleep, unhealthy amounts of booze, and
zigzagging levels of tension will do that to your system. One starts
to fry. Maybe
I just need a new form of excitement. When you’re programmed to
chase goals but have accomplished everything you’ve dreamed of, you
itch for new challenges, different horizons. A
message pops up on the screen with a discrete beep.
From Ella, my sister. My twin
sister
and sole remaining family. I
frown. What does she want? I’m
not one for clichés, but she’s the opposite of me in terms of
direction and success, having sunken into drug hell years ago and,
after our father died, depended on me financially... And so, my
feelings for her are unclear. I’d like to care about her. It would
be natural, right? But her inability to give herself a kick in the
ass, straighten up, and get a life, irks me to no end. Index
finger hovering over the envelope symbol of her message, I hesitate.
Is she asking for money? Or does she need me to sweet-talk to some
cop because she’s gotten into trouble again? I’m
not sure I want to be disturbed right now. I blow out a puff of air
and survey the skyline ahead of me. The sun is setting in the
distance, throwing an orangish light over the rooftops, reflecting
off windows like they’re on fire. I
have plans for tonight. Ella is a leech, the kind of person who once
she’s got ahold of me, will hold on tight with the negative energy
of an addict and suck the very life out.
“Not
tonight.” With a firm shake of my head, I slide the smartphone back
into my pocket and focus on the upcoming evening events. A
finance mogul party is being held at the fashionable St. Regis. The
Steins, an unfathomably rich and odd couple—he old, short, and
ugly; she young, long-legged, a thing of glamor and beauty—are
inviting the Wall Street sharks for some reason I haven’t bothered
to remember. There’s always something to celebrate when you have
more money than you know what to do with it. And there’s always
plenty of hot chicks to keep me company and enough champagne to drown
my loneliness. My
mouth waters.
Award-winning author Lea Bronsen likes her reads hot, fast, and edgy, and strives to give her own stories the same intensity. After a deep dive on the unforgiving world of gangsters with her debut novel Wild Hearted, she divides her writing time between romantic suspenses, dark erotic romances, and crime thrillers.
She's signed with Evernight Publishing, Decadent Publishing, and Insatiable Press. She has also self-published half of her works and participated in the making of several anthologies.
A $10 Amazon gift card + 5 ecopies of Dirty Brilliance
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I love the cover and excerpt! I can't wait to read this one! Thanks so much for sharing your book details!
ReplyDeleteHi Erika Marie, thank you so much for having Dirty Brilliance on your blog! Have a wonderful weekend :)
ReplyDeleteXXX Lea