by Gina Gordon
TEMPTATION IN LINGERIE
Bare Naked Designs, Book Two
By GINA GORDON
LYRICAL PRESS
http://lyricalpress.com/
KENSINGTON PUBLISHING CORP.
http://www.kensingtonbooks.com/
To my wonderful CP Lindsay Below for her unconditional guidance, support and praise. I couldn’t do this without you!
Acknowledgements
Thank you to my fantastic editor P.T. We make beautiful words together!
Foreword
Although this is book two, Carrie was the first character I envisioned when the Bare Naked Designs series popped into my head. She was standing in front of a mirror, barely covered by black lace, scrutinizing her work. Before I even had the chance to jot down the details of her outfit, Aleks came barreling through the door.
The Bare Naked Designs label is Carrie’s dream. It is her hard work and passion coming together to create unique pieces of lingerie. Each story in this series is based on one of Carrie’s creations. Her designs are the catalyst to a love story full of hot sex and romantic lace.
Carrie is strong and determined, sexy without flaunting it. Her outfit of black lingerie–minus the panties–was exactly what Aleks needed to get in the game and start seeing Carrie as a woman instead of his best friend’s annoying little sister.
I hope you enjoy Temptation in Lingerie and fall in love with Carrie and Aleks on their journey to a happily ever after through lingerie.
Chapter 1
Carrie Taylor slowly slid on her creation, a black satin corset trimmed in lace and a skirted garter. She couldn’t deny the surge of confidence that seemed to appear whenever she wore skimpy lace and smooth satin. Lingerie was the ultimate sexuality booster and all women, every woman, needed to feel that every once in a while.
For Carrie, the last year had been life changing, literally. She was no longer employed at Satin & Lace, the specialty lingerie store. She owned it. Her pipe dream of designing her own line of lingerie–it wasn’t a dream anymore, even though some days it still felt like one. But here she stood, putting the finishing touches on her newest piece to display at the National Bridal Show this weekend.
For the most part, Carrie enjoyed being her own boss, choosing to fit and design the samples on her own body. It was a little impossible now that Aleks Turko had moved into her home. Her parents’ home, actually. He broke any little scrap of concentration she had. Like now. She could hear her brother and Aleks cat-calling at the television downstairs, and it seemed with every passing minute the yelling grew louder.
Carrie sashayed in front of the mirror, scrutinizing her work. The lace-trimmed cups sat just above the nipple. The padding was perfectly positioned. It pushed up her ample bosom, giving her cleavage that any man would drool over. The skirted garter hugged her hips, and peeking through the lace, she could see the creamy color of her skin and the line of her sex. She didn’t bother putting on the tiny thong that matched. Carrie turned to admire the back. The stitching–flawless. The lace–smooth, not one pull or loose strand. “Carrie?” She heard a loud double knock, then the door swung open.
“Aleks! Get the hell out.”
He froze in the doorway. For a moment, Carrie thought he was scared speechless. Scared speechless looked good on him. Everything looked good on him.
“Could you maybe turn around or something?”
He seemed to recover quickly. “No sense covering my eyes now, Care Bear. I’ve already seen it all.”
Carrie felt her face flush, and her neck and chest get itchy with embarrassment. She had nothing to be embarrassed about. She looked damn hot, but still, it was Aleks.
She reached for a long piece of fabric and wrapped it around her body, covering her stomach and lower half. Carrie could feel his eyes on her. Heating her blood. Penetrating the sheer fabric she used to mask her body. Making her remember exactly why she dreamt about him night after night.
“Aleks! Why are you staring?”
He shook his head as if to focus, his shaggy chestnut hair bouncing around. When his eyes finally met hers, they were filled with concern. “You’re bleeding.” She looked down at the small dots of blood that pearled along her breast line. “Don’t you have mannequins to do that with?”
“Yes, but it’s always better to see it on the real thing.” She needed to get the proportions right. Proportions that would fit a real body.
Aleks continued to stare at her. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other, as if the situation made him uncomfortable. Quite unlike the confident Aleks she had known almost her entire life.
He cleared his throat. “Is that new? I haven’t seen it before.”
“I thought I should have something non-bridal for the show this weekend, just in case. Why do you think my door was closed? I’m running out of time.” She rested one hand on her hip. “Shouldn’t you be on the other side of the door?”
He smirked. “Probably.”
“Then why aren’t you?”
“Just wanted to know if you were going to join us tonight. We have beers with your name on them.”
“I can’t. I have a date.” Dave. Now that the day had finally come, Carrie couldn’t remember
why she’d agreed to go out with him again.
“Okay then. I’ll let you finish up.” Aleks pivoted on his heel and scrambled out of the room as if he couldn’t get away quick enough.
“I’ll be down in a little bit,” she added before Aleks closed the door behind him.
Carrie unwrapped herself from the sheer cocoon and slumped down on her bed, letting out a heavy sigh.
She didn’t look forward to her date. Carrie desperately wanted Aleks to be the man she was going out with tonight. He penetrated every part of her being. Her thoughts, her heart, her body. Well, not her body...yet.
She couldn’t help but get a physical reaction every time he was near. Like now, her heart raced. It was a smart move not to put on the tiny thong. The detour her mind took would have soaked the material right through. And that excited the hell out of her.
Instead, she had to get ready for a date she shouldn’t have agreed to, with a man that didn’t turn her crank. He was simply a filler while Carrie waited for the man she loved to notice her. But how long was she going to wait?
* * * *
Aleks had to steady himself against the wall. Holy Hell! As if the weird sexual fantasies about Carrie weren’t enough, he’d just kicked his incestuous behavior into high gear. He hadn’t intended to burst in and catch her pretty much naked. Seeing her body encased in lace and shiny material, accentuating the curves of her unbelievably beautiful figure, took him by surprise. To top it off, there were no panties underneath that garter. The line of her sex was visible and oh, so inviting.
Since he had started his Reiki sessions with Amie a year ago, Aleks noticed something different about Carrie. More importantly, something different about himself. He didn’t see her as a pigtailed little sister. Now, she was a smart, sexy woman on the verge of making it big. Her dream made his suffering even worse. Why did she have to design lingerie? Why couldn’t it be scarves or flannel grandma nightgowns? Those were not sexy.
He made his way down to the basement.
Rob sat on the couch, beer in hand, intensely watching the television. “Is she coming?” “No. She has a date.”
“Really?” Aleks was just as surprised but shrugged his shoulders, feigning indifference. Since he was twelve years old Carrie had been around, tagging along, the annoying little third that situated herself between the two best friends. Over the years they had spent a lot of time together. The Taylor house was his second home. A real home compared to the loneliness that had plagued his own.
�
��More beer for us, I guess.” Rob held up his bottle in a cheers position, and Aleks met it with his own.
Aleks slumped back against the couch and contemplated his life. He was thirty years old and living with parents. Not even his own parents but the Taylors, the family that had welcomed him into their home so long ago. But he had to admit, it was an opportunity too hard to pass up. Especially since Carrie still lived at home. He took the initiative and moved out of his condo shortly after Rob’s girlfriend Martina moved in. Aleks knew Rob and Martina wanted their privacy, and he was glad to leave. There was nothing more important than Rob finally finding his happily ever after. Which was another red flag. Since when did Aleks care about happily ever after? His own or anyone else’s.
That evening Aleks watched from the doorway as Carrie re-applied her lip gloss in the hallway mirror. The blush pink goop slid along her kissable lips.
She stopped mid-swipe. “Must you stare? Again.”
“Let me guess, he’s not coming to the door to meet the parents?”
“Last time I checked this wasn’t 1952, Aleks.”
“I’m only looking out for you, Care Bear. You shouldn’t make it too easy for him. A guy
doesn’t buy the cow if he can get the milk for free.”
“Thanks, but you’re not my daddy. Or part of this family for that matter.”
“Ouch!” The shocked sound came from Rob who had entered the hallway, bowl of cereal
in hand. “That’s a low blow. You know Mom would kill you if she heard that. She loves this guy more than me.”
Carrie slid on a sweater and buttoned it, covering her luscious breasts. She addressed her brother, “What are you doing here anyway? You really are taking advantage of the parental units not being home all the time.”
“Mom and Dad love it when their little boy comes back to the nest.” Rob shoveled in another spoonful. “Besides,” he spoke out of the side of his mouth, milk squirting down his chin, “Aleks is the mooch living here when, like you said, he isn’t even family.”
Again with the low blow. That hurt. Aleks had been hanging around the Taylor’s since childhood. He was part of the family, damn it.
Aleks smacked Rob upside the head.
“Oww, what the hell?”
“That’s for the family comment.”
“All right.” Rob turned to Carrie. “Martina wanted me out for the night.” “Trouble in paradise already?”
“No. I vaguely recall hearing something about the matrix and then drinks. Amie was on her way over.”
“They must be practicing their Blue Energy Matrix,” Carrie said.
Aleks had no idea what Amie and Martina talked about half the time. Carrie was the only one who listened when the two of them went on a holistic rant.
“I think it’s an excuse. He just misses me,” Aleks piped in.
“Still haven’t grown up, have we, boys?”
Aleks watched Carrie take one last look at her appearance in the mirror. “Just be careful with this dude, Carrie. We don’t know who he is.”
“Really, Aleks, are you feeling all right?” She looked at him with her deep chocolate eyes. Eyes that he had been thinking about lately, in bed, with his hand around his erect... Focus. Carrie was going on a date. A date with a guy he didn’t know, and Aleks was jealous. Jealous that he hadn’t realized what was right in front of him all this time.
“Aleks, she can take care of herself.” Rob continued to talk with his mouth full. “Did you make a new outfit to get him revved up tonight, Care?”
Carrie’s disgust came across on her face even before she said a word. “First of all...” She looked at her brother. “Ewww. Second of all, that is none of your business.”
Aleks could only imagine what she was wearing beneath that little black dress. A lacy bra and matching underwear, a teddy, or maybe the thing she was wearing earlier when he walked in on her. No matter what was hidden under that dress, she would be beautiful.
“Later, boys. My date is waiting for me,” Carrie yelled as she walked out the door into the
cool evening air.
Aleks pulled aside the lace curtain and watched Carrie through the side window. She opened the car door and got in. The guy couldn’t even open the car door for her? What a douche. “You okay, man?”
“I’m good. Just watching out for your sister, that’s all.” “Right.”
Did he suspect? The inquisitive look on Rob’s face made Aleks second guess his words. “I can’t believe you let her go out looking like that.”
“Looking like what? She was dressed perfectly acceptable.”
“You’re right,” Aleks admitted reluctantly. But he cringed at the thought of that guy watching with lecherous eyes as she sat across from him at dinner. His eyes latched on to the beautiful swell of her plump breasts. The hourglass shape of her body fitting every inch of that black dress. And oh, the possibilities of what lay underneath that fabric.
“Come on. We’re already three beers down.”
“Yeah, coming.” Aleks let his hand fall away from the curtain and contemplated his next move.
Coveting his best friend’s sister. Not the smartest idea but it was something he needed to come to terms with. Carrie had managed to weasel her way into his life. At first, she’d been like a little sister–a pain in his side–then a best friend and confident. Someone he could rely on. To his dismay, the older she got, the more enticing she became. He put off his feelings as natural. What normal guy wouldn’t react to a beautiful woman? Lately his thoughts had taken a lecherous turn. Carrie was all woman, no more pigtails and tomboy overalls. No more baseball caps and braces. She had developed into a sexy bombshell, not to mention, she knew him better than anyone else in the world. Even Rob.
Aleks had had his fair share of female partners, but for some reason none of them stuck. He always ended up back at the Taylor house with his two best friends, watching a UFC fight or hockey game.
Carrie always heckled his choice of females. Aleks knew he had a type, but she called him out on it. Blond, perky and petite. Something Carrie was not. With her curvy, sensuous body and dark features, she was nothing like the cheerleader types he’d dated.
There was something different about his feelings toward her. Aleks wasn’t looking to lay her...who was he kidding, of course he wanted to lay her. But more importantly, he wanted to be with her. Just be together. She knew his fears, his desires, his dreams. Carrie was there when he fell out of Mr. Crawford’s oak tree and broke his arm. She cried all the way to the hospital, stroking his back and reassuring him that everything was going to be okay.
He didn’t know how she felt about him. When they were younger her puppy dog eyes told him she was enamored, but as an adult she had developed a sarcastic, distant attitude. Was that to shield her heart?
“Dude, are you coming or what? She won’t be home for a while if you plan on waiting.” “I’m not waiting. Just thinking about something.”
“A certain female.”
“Something like that.”
Thankful that Rob was never one to interrogate, Aleks watched as he barreled down the basement stairs, two at a time. How was he going to tell his best friend that he thought he was in love with his sister? He was ready for the anger. The possible punch in the face when he explained he wanted to defile Rob’s only sibling.
It wasn’t love. It couldn’t be love. Aleks Turko wouldn’t love. His mom made sure of that when she left him and his dad for a better life. It was all a fantasy brought on by Amie’s weird witch magic. His fantasies would go away eventually. He just needed to find a filler to keep his mind off Carrie and the smokin’ hot lingerie that was probably still sitting in her bedroom.
Aleks knew no matter how hard he tried, he was never going to get that image out of his head. He laid his hand on the doorframe leading to the basement and stood still, hunched over, trying to dispense the blood from his cock to the rest of his body. When his mind finally settled and his heart stopped racing, he
made his way down the narrow staircase and joined his friend.
“What kind of bonehead call was that?” Rob yelled at the television.
Aleks headed to the couch and grabbed the bottle of beer that was handed to him even before he hit the seat. He took a swig from the bottle, unable to concentrate on anything other than Carrie and his inappropriate fantasies. Maybe their friendship could survive a roll in the hay. Maybe once was all it would take to get her out of his system. He had to at least try. Gauge her thoughts on the subject. He would confront her when she got home.
“What the hell, ump? Al, are you watching this?”
Aleks looked over at his friend, his best friend, wishing he could tell him about his feelings for Carrie. Maybe Rob wouldn’t take it so hard. Maybe Rob would believe Aleks wasn’t in it just for a quick bang.
“Throw to home! Throw to home!” Rob slammed his fist into the coffee table. Who was he kidding? He was a dead man.
Chapter 2
Four hours, two lies and a disappointed date later, Carrie stepped through the doorway of her home and let her body relax against the front door.
The date had been bearable. Dave was nice. Attractive. Had a good paying job. He was into her. What more could she want?
Aleks Turko.
Carrie kicked off her heels and left her sweater on the hall table. She padded her way across the plush neutral carpet.
Tonight was the third date. The sex date. Dave had made reservations at the harbor. She really wasn’t into the whole show-off routine. Before she knew it, Carrie found herself walking up the plank to a large boat, trying to drown out the cheesy elevator music that played in the background while being led to a table by a pimple-faced maître d’.
The jerk probably thought he could wine and dine her then slip into her pants. Or little black dress, actually. It had been a little tricky to maneuver her way out of sleeping with Dave, but she’d managed. A headache and an early morning. At least that was true. The Bridal Show was in three days, and she had a lot of work to do.