The Cain Casey Series

“You’ve done a wonderful job, love.”

“We’re here not for you to thank me, but for me to start trying to give you as much as you’ve brought into my life.” Cain pointed to the area. “I didn’t forget what you told me about the wishes you made here when you were a little girl, so I made a little deal with your father and Jerry.”

“Tell me, devil, did you include any of your own brand of gentle persuasion in that conversation?”

Cain laughed and pulled gently on her hair. “I bought another farm adjacent to these so they could play with more cows if they deeded me this little bit of land in return.”

“You are interested in cow races, I knew it.”

“I can’t guarantee you won’t find a couple of bovines in your flowers in the morning, but I bought it to build a cabin here so we’d have a place to stay when we come to visit. A place with a bench under this tree so you can sit here and look at the water and make all the wishes you want.”

Emma stood in silent shock, then finally shook her head. “Thank you for doing that and for understanding me so well. There’s something special about this place that I’ve never been able to put into words, but you understood it anyway. I’ll love sitting out here, but I don’t have any wishes left to make.”

“Sure you do. I’m certain you want something.”

“I have two wonderful children and hopefully a third soon.” She put her hands on Cain’s chest and slid her left hand over her lover’s heart. “I have a family of my choosing that loves me.” With her right she cupped Cain’s chin. “All those things were part of my secondary wishes.”

“Secondary wishes?”

“Secondary, as in they came into play after I got what I wished for most of all.” They fell into the kiss Cain started and pulled apart only after they needed air. “I wished most of all for someone to love me, keep me safe, and care about the person I am.”

“Maybe the lake needs tuning, if all it could conjure up was me.”

“The lake knew that my fondest desire in a mate lay in a pair of blue eyes, a tall sturdy frame, and a devilish heart. You talk all the time about the devil inside, Cain, and while that might be true, you’re my salvation and my fondest wish.”

Cain kissed her again as Emma slid her hands to the back of her neck.

“May you always think so, lass.”

Deal with the Devil

It’s business as usual for crime boss Cain Casey, as she maneuvers to form an alliance with the Jatibon organization and secure peace among the ruling families in New Orleans . Cain’s new associate Remington Jatibon is a lot like Cain used to be—a playgirl with a passion for bedding beautiful women and an even greater passion for expanding her father’s empire, on both sides of the law. When Remi meets Dallas Montgomery, a budding actress working for the studio Remi's father has just acquired, she finds that there’s more to Dallas than is included in her press pages.

Meanwhile, on the home front, life is anything but routine as Cain and Emma hope to conceive another child. Little do they know an old enemy is about to surface bent on revenge on Cain, and what better way that to take what she values above all else—her wife.

Third in The Casey Family Saga

Deal with the Devil

© 2008 by Ali Vali. All Rights Reserved.

ISBN10: 1-60282-012-0

ISBN13: 978-1-60282-012-8

This electronic book is published by:

Bold Strokes Books, Inc.,

New York, USA

First Edition: April 2008

This is a work of fiction. names, characters, places, and Incidents are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

Credits

Editors: Shelley Thrasher and J. B. Greystone

Production Design: J. B. Greystone

Cover design by Sheri ([email protected])

Acknowledgements

I’ve said before that no book comes together alone, so there are many people to thank for this one.

The first thank you goes to Radclyffe for your continuous belief in my writing, and for your encouragement to bring Deal to life. Thank you also for your vision and your tireless efforts to make it grow and prosper. Bold Strokes Books is a team I’m proud to be a part of.

Shelley Thrasher has been my editor from the first page of the very first book, and that has been one of the best things to happen to me as a writer. There is no better teacher, gentle critic, friend, and editor. Thank you Shelley for your invaluable help and for your patience as we make our way through these stories.

Thank you to my copyeditor Julia Greystone for making it so easy to cross the finish line on this one. It was a pleasure working with you. And thanks to Sheri who always puts the final touch on every book with an incredible cover.

To my gold team of beta readers Connie Ward, Kathi Isserman, Lenore and Beth, I can’t say thank you enough. You guys are the first people to see the stories in their infancy and you do a fabulous job of keeping me on track. I