Alexa Chandler lusts after the fantasy man of her dreams. She's always dreamed of a castle and a white knight who'd sweep her off her feet and make mad passionate love to her. Alexa's father and step-mother were killed in a car wreck, leaving her millions of dollars and her father's hotel conglomerate. Alexa is ecstatic when she discovers she's been willed an island off the coast of Florida. It's not the island itself that has Alexa so excited, it's the castle that sits on it. The locals say the island is haunted and no one has stepped foot on it since the castle, brought over from Germany piece by piece, was re-built years before. Alexa has dreams of turning the castle into a resort and a resident ghost would make her idea all the more desirable.

Alexa finds a way onto the island and manages to get inside. There she finds an empty castle save for a large painting. As she looks into the eyes of the man in the portrait, she feels drawn to him, so much that she reaches out to touch the canvas. Her hand breaches the painting, her temperature rises and before she can scream, she passes out.

Alexa has released Damon Forsyth from his prison inside the painting, but he's still trapped inside the castle. Thanks to the beautiful redhead, he can now exact his revenge on the powerful Lord Rogan who used black magic to place him in the painting for the last 400 years. When Damon tries to exit the castle, he's thrown back as if lightening has struck him. The gypsy's magic has bound him to the castle. He cannot free himself. He knows he must seduce Alexa so that she will agree to release him. She can't deny the passion that ignites when he touches her body.

The black magic consumes Damon bit-by-bit the longer he wields it inside the castle. The curse will enslave him to its evilness unless Alexa can find a way to beat it. The more Damon uses the power, the more evil he becomes, but Alexa is immune to the magic because she unknowingly wears a necklace that blocks it. When she touches him, the magic leaves him and he is again her new lover.

Alexa's best friend searches for the answers that will free Damon while Alexa's step-brother finds himself in over his head with another who wants Rogan's magic. By day, Damon is nothing more than a phantom, invisible to all, but by night, he takes a solid form and this is when Alexa goes to him. Drawn to him as the proverbial moth to a flame, their passion ignites until Alexa knows she can never leave him. He must agree not to use the magic. They have to find another way to break the spell. Failing is not an option for Alexa. She intends to have her knight and live happily- ever-after.

Julie Leto's PHANTOM PLEASURES is a delicious story with equal parts passion and adventure. The plot moves quickly with the relationship building as intensely as the danger. With a gypsy touch of magic and a flaming redhead, one can't go wrong.

Book Summary

Hotshot hotel developer Alexa Chandler lusts after the property she’s found off the coast of St. Augustine, Florida--a haunted island complete with an abandoned castle she intends to convert into her premiere luxury resort. Inside, the only furnishing--a captivating portrait of a man--calls to her. With a single touch, she unleashes a phantom who has been trapped within the painting for over two hundred years.

Centuries ago, Damon Forsyth charged into a mysterious gypsy enclave on a desperate mission, but found himself trapped inside a cursed painting by his mortal enemy. Over time, he has contemplated little but revenge and retribution--until undeniable need draws Alexa to his lair. Though she releases him from the painting, Damon remains bound to the castle where the portrait hangs. Damon needs Alexa to break the final barrier. Using the dark magic that enslaves him, he initiates a game of seduction--with his freedom as the ultimate prize.

Unable to resist Damon’s fierce sexuality, Alexa surrenders to his ghostly touch, but soon, she must choose between thwarting the magic that holds Damon in thrall...or her own mortality.

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