His Temptation (X Enterprises Book 4)

by Tanya Gallagher

  Geoff shook his head with a smile. “You heard it here first, friends. Get busy for your health.”

  “That’s right.” Avery’s face lit. “And add some sex toys to spice it up.”

  “So, Avery, what have you brought to show us today?”

  “Only the best, of course.” She grinned and reached into the box.

  Geoff clicked the screen on his computer at the show’s midpoint, rolling the advertisement from this week’s sponsor, Slay All Night, a singles hookup app that promised the night of your fantasies with no strings attached.

  He nudged Avery’s shoulder. “That was awesome.”

  “Thank you.”

  She’d just completed a run-down of all the toys she’d brought to share, and he could see commenters on the live-stream already chiming in.

  She’s hot, from Alex37503.

  Take me to bed, Avery, from IBeJohnson4U.

  I’d play with her sex toys any day.

  Okay, yeah, so a lot of his audience were pigs. But they could be princes in training if they’d just pay attention.

  Avery cracked open a bottle of water and took a swig, wetting her pretty lips.

  “You just about ready?” he asked, and she nodded.

  She returned the bottle to the desk and smiled back at the camera.

  Geoff faded out the sponsor’s message and spoke. “Welcome back, friends. As you know, Avery and I were just talking about the benefits of using sex toys, and she showed us a few of her favorite products for couples.” He turned to her. “Now I want to get into the nitty-gritty. When do you recommend introducing sex toys within a relationship?”

  Avery’s cheeks colored. “You know, I think that depends on each individual couple and your comfort level together. While more and more people discover sex toys each day, you want to be at a point where you’re at least intimately acquainted with each other.”

  “So not on the first date?” he teased.

  She shook her head. “Just like any sexual preference, you wouldn’t start out on the first date by saying, ‘Hey, I’m into sex toys.’ First, you’d figure out if you like each other enough to even hop into bed together. Then, over time, you might start to explore some toys together.”

  “What about by the third date?”

  Avery frowned. “Why that one in particular?”

  “Well, I’ve got a theory that if you structure them correctly, within three dates you can know whether or not you’d like to have a relationship with that person. And, you know, the third date is often pretty critical for a couple.”

  She raised an eyebrow. “Oh yeah? I’d like to hear this theory.”

  “Let’s do it. I like a challenge.” Geoff rubbed his hands together and leaned closer to the camera. “My theory is that you can set up your dates to be kind of like the three acts in a traditional story.”

  Avery’s eyes brightened, and she grinned. “The English major in you comes out.”

  “Shh,” Geoff teased back. “I tell everyone I went to the school of Hard Knocks.”

  She rolled her eyes. “So, back to your three dates.”

  “Yeah, so date one is like Act One. It’s the setup. You establish who the other person is, the boundaries of your attraction, and that person’s world. There’s a story question that gets raised, which in this case is, ‘will we or won’t we fall in love?’”

  “Okay, I see where you’re going with this.”

  Geoff smiled. “Date two, Act Two: the confrontation.” Avery laughed, and he continued. “I don’t mean there’s a physical fight here, but this date is where you gather information about the other person to see how they act in a challenging situation. You can find out so much more about a person through how they act rather than what they say. I always recommend an active date—a cooking class or ice skating or something.”

  “Bungee jumping?”

  Geoff laughed. “I’d say that’s on the extreme end, but sure. And that brings us to date three, Act Three: the resolution. You know by now who the other person is, whether you can work well together to solve a problem. Now you need to decide if you’re going to continue seeing each other or not. This is why the third date is usually so critical for a couple, and why so many people who decide ‘yes’ end up sleeping together for the first time.”

  Avery pursed her lips. “Hmm. That’s a nice theory.”

  “You don’t agree?” He took a swig from his water bottle.

  She shrugged. “I mean, I might if I’ve ever gotten to the third date.”

  Geoff choked on his drink, spitting out a stream of water onto his keyboard.

  Holy shit.

  He coughed and tried to recover. “Ladies and gentlemen, for those of you who aren’t watching the live-stream, I just spit my drink onto my desk.” He looked at Avery, flabbergasted. “You’ve never had three dates with the same guy?”

  “Rub it in, why don’t you?” Her voice was light, but there was a bit of strain around her mouth, and her cheeks were pink again.

  “Sorry, it’s just that I’m trying to wrap my mind around this.” He cleared his throat. “For those of you who can’t see, I’m going to try to describe Avery to you and see if I can do her justice. She’s got a face and body to bring a man to his knees and a mouth that could finish him off. Since she works for X Enterprises, I’ll bet she’s got the dirty-talk skills of a porn star.” He searched her eyes as he spoke, proud of the way her eyes widened and her mouth fell open, that endearing blush creeping across her cheeks. “But aside from that, she’s funny and kind. The kind of girl your mom wants you to date but who’s also the kind of girl your friends are jealous you landed. She’s the full package.”

  “Go on,” Avery said, teasing. “Maybe you should write my dating profile for me.” She leaned forward, her lips parted slightly. “Actually, I have an even better idea.” She flashed him a shy smile and fisted her hands in her lap. “Why don’t you give me one-on-one pointers to show me where I’m going wrong?”

  “You mean take you out on three dates?”

  She blushed deeper and lifted a shoulder. “Or I take you out. Yeah. Like, fake dates. Take me out, see what happens. You do what you would do, I do what I would do, and you give me pointers where I’m messing up.”

  Goosebumps raced along Geoff’s skin. He’d always liked Avery, but thanks to Sophie, she’d always been off-limits before now. But Avery’s challenge had just changed the game.

  Thank god his sister refused to listen to his show because she was going to kill him for what he was about to do. Geoff licked his lips and smiled back at Avery.

  “Yeah,” he said, and then he echoed her earlier line. “Three dates. Let’s do it.”

  Chapter 5

  The September air had a brisk bite to it as Avery stood in front of Pike Place Fish Market, watching the vendors toss a fish back and forth before settling it into the crushed ice of the store’s display case. An eager weekend crowd swarmed the aisles of the long-standing farmer’s market, baskets and huge, colorful bouquets tucked under their arms.

  The air smelled like the ocean and, more faintly, like fresh food and flowers. In the background, a busker sang the familiar strains of You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away, glittery strands of Mardi Gras beads wrapped around the neck of his guitar.

  “Hey.” A warm hand landed on her shoulder and squeezed, and she turned to find Geoff grinning at her. He wore a button-down shirt that hugged the sculpted muscles of his chest, and his dark eyes smiled as they caressed her face.

  “Hey,” she whispered back. Her throat went dry, and her palms started to sweat.

  Geoff looked the kind of good where she was going to blurt out another inappropriate remark and put her foot in her mouth once more. By this point, she was intimately acquainted with the taste of Gucci leather. Frankly, it wasn’t that appetizing.

  The fact that on his show she’d admitted she hadn’t had three dates in a row with the same person, pretty much undermining all her credibility as an industry expert?
The fact that she’d asked him out on air? Yeah, that had gone over really well with her boss.

  “Maybe you shouldn’t follow through on the date thing,” Jeremy had advised gently on Thursday morning.

  But she’d assured him that she knew what she was doing, and here she was anyway, on date number one. A glutton for punishment. And a liar, too. Avery didn’t have a clue what she was doing here. Only that Geoff was hot and single and that maybe fake-dating him could help her put her high school crush on him to bed.

  But not literally to bed.

  Except…maybe? Trading in her V-card for a night with Geoffrey Carter wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. Other than the fact that Sophie would kill her.

  Dammit.

  Avery sighed and tightened her fingers around the strap of her purse. She couldn’t even think straight around him.

  “It’s nice to see you,” Geoff said.

  “You too.” She was going really smooth with all the words now. Ugh. She tilted her head and peered up at him. “So how’s this whole thing supposed to work?”

  Geoff grinned. “This date, you mean?”

  Avery’s stomach tightened. “Yeah. Are we pretending this is a real date, or is it a real date? Do I pretend we’re strangers?”

  “How about casual acquaintances who are exploring their long-standing attraction to one another?” The way he said it, dead-serious and deeply sexy, made her mouth drop open.

  Oh shit.

  Is that what this was? Because her pulse quickened and heat coiled in her belly in agreement. Why was it so hard to know which way was up?

  “We pack our fish to travel! Airplane friendly!” called the vendor at the fish market.

  The interruption broke Avery’s trance, and she took a steadying breath. Either way, standing here and catching flies in her mouth wasn’t going to impress Geoff. She looked back up at him. “We can do that. And you’ll tell me where I’m going wrong?”

  He shrugged. “If you’d like.” He nodded his chin toward the seafood display. “I don’t mean to crush your hopes and dreams, but it smells like fish. Up for taking a stroll?”

  Avery nodded in relief and started walking into the covered Pavillion section of Pike Place Public Market. “Let’s go.”

  Geoff moved next to her and bumped her shoulder with his, sending heat through her body. “Good call on the date location.”

  She grinned. “If I recall, you suggested a causal, no-pressure first date. A low-key affair where you can continue on to another event if things go well.”

  His smile made her stomach flip. “Like coffee you can extend to lunch.”

  She nodded back. “Or drinks you can extend to dinner.”

  “Were you taking notes?” When Geoff grinned, a dimple appeared in his cheek. God help her.

  “I might have been.”

  “Well,” he said, “I approve.”

  Avery did a fake curtsey, and a tourist walking past bumped into her. Avery pitched forward, falling against Geoff’s broad chest.

  Oh.

  Avery’s body tingled every place she touched him, from his toned torso (hard) to his firm arms (strong), to the hands steadying her hips (surprisingly warm, but still commanding). She breathed him in as he set her back on her feet, bereft when he moved his hands from her sides.

  Geoff swept his eyes down her body, bringing a rush of heat to her skin. His gaze landed on her high-heeled booties, and he chuckled. “What are you doing in those shoes, Ave?”

  She lifted her chin and pushed back her shoulders. This was Geoff here. She needed to stop being stupid. “Channeling a gazelle.”

  His gaze darkened. “If you’re a gazelle, you’re the kind that gets taken out by a lion.”

  “Taken out?” A tiny breath puffed out of her. “Oh.”

  “And by taken out, I mean eaten.”

  Right.

  Avery gritted her teeth and kept walking through the crowd, weaving past a colorful variety of vendors. On her right, she passed a stand selling homemade pasta, and still more stands boasted a riot of seasonal produce. “These shoes are sexy.”

  So was the rest of her outfit—skinny black jeans and a silky, lace-trimmed camisole topped by a featherweight cardigan. She’d worn her hair down around her shoulders in softly styled waves that screamed, Touch me! Tangle your hands in me and pull me close!

  In theory.

  Geoff weighed out his answer, his eyes amused. “They’re hot shoes. But for today, you probably shouldn’t have worn them. Do you even like them?”

  Avery frowned at him and accepted the slice of Gala apple that a produce vendor offered her. “I like the way they look. I don’t know if I love walking in them. But I don’t get it. Shouldn’t you be telling me to up the sex appeal?” She crunched the apple between her teeth, the sweet, bright flavor a balm against his words.

  “Yes, if your goal is to have sex. But if your goal is to see if you can have a relationship, you need to focus on how to be authentically sexy.”

  She forced herself not to pout. Her goal was to have a relationship so she could have sex. Couldn’t it go both ways? “I didn’t know there was a difference. And isn’t the whole point that pretty packaging helps get a guy interested enough to look closer? Then you get to be interested in other features.”

  “Yes. But you need to be authentic from the start. Sure, curl your hair or whatever. But there’s a difference between hookups and love. My theory’s about love.”

  Avery narrowed her eyes at him. “Have you ever been in love?”

  “Ah. The sticking point.” Geoff darted his eyes away and ignored the question. “Think of it this way. You know how Gwen Stefani has a signature red lip?”

  Avery looked up at him, her own red lips pursed. “Oh my god, Geoff. Are you about to use a makeup analogy with me?”

  He grinned. “Don’t get too excited. My point is that lipstick is kind of her. But do you think she wears it to bed?”

  “Unlikely.”

  “Right. So the people she goes to bed with need to be able to look at her without the makeup and not get shell-shocked.”

  “And you’re saying I’m like Gwen Stefani?”

  Geoff shrugged. “I’m just asking what the hell happened to the girl who sang the Spice Girls at my house all the time.”

  Avery blushed. “That was a stupid phase.” It was a long phase, actually, filled with dorky music like Wannabe and Say You’ll Be There. She wasn’t proud of it.

  “You don’t need to apologize for the things you like.”

  “The things I like aren’t always cool.”

  “As long as they’re you, who the hell cares?” Geoff’s voice was earnest, brimming with possibility, and it made her stop and consider.

  “Authentically sexy,” Avery repeated.

  “Exactly.”

  “That’s very deep of you,” she teased.

  He flashed her a rakish grin. “I do like to go deep.”

  “Geoff!” She pushed his arm and blushed, then drew a deep breath. “See, I thought we were going to have a moment there. But you ruined it.”

  He shot her another smile that pulled straight to her stomach and made it dip. “So about your lips…”

  His teasing suggestion made her blush deeper. “What about them?”

  He leaned in so close she feel the heat radiating off his skin, and her body involuntarily swayed forward, permitting her a whiff of his spicy, warm cologne. “Just like you, they’re absolutely gorgeous.” He lowered his voice until the seductive note scraped like a bow across a violin. “But they’re entirely unkissable.”

  What?

  Avery stumbled back from him, her shoulders tight. She scrunched her face. “What the hell, Geoff?”

  He grinned again. “They’re intimidating.”

  “They’re stylish.”

  Geoff straightened to his full height, and she was suddenly aware of how masculine he was—all firm muscles and controlled energy. “Here’s the thing about guys. We’re base c
reatures, at the heart of things. Sure, we might want to have long-lasting relationships, but there’s got to be an initial physical reaction. And while those lips are attractive, it’s kind of tough to figure out how to kiss you. It’ll break a guy’s brain. Meaning he’ll potentially give up a good thing just because it’s exhausting.”

  Avery stopped short of pressing her fingers to her lips. Geoff was right. Even she didn’t want to touch them.

  Dammit.

  “Okay. Point taken.” They were nearing the end of the Pavillion, and the door to the exterior market lay ahead. Geoff led the way through the swarming crowd as they stepped back out into the crisp autumn air. Midday sun warmed Avery’s shoulders, and a slight breeze wafted the scent of food vendors from the surrounding blocks.

  Her stomach growled, and she nudged Geoff. “I have a secret motive for choosing Pike Place for today’s date.”

  “You do, huh?”

  She gestured at the building on the corner of Pike and Pine, and his gaze moved to the sign hanging above the shop’s doorway.

  “Beecher’s.”

  Avery nodded. “Mac and cheese. So you can learn the distinct difference between my name and theirs.”

  “I applaud your effort. But I’m not really a mac and cheese kind of guy.”

  She stopped short on the sidewalk. “Excuse me?”

  Geoff tried to shrug it off, but she wasn’t buying his nonchalance. “I don’t eat mac and cheese. Only the kind in the blue box.”

  A laugh burst from her throat. “You’re kidding me.”

  He shook his head. “Nope.”

  “Are you six years old?”

  He rubbed a hand over his chest. “I mean, what guy isn’t, at heart?”