Touch Him (ManTrap Book 3)

by Olivia Jaymes

  I was going to have to give Shelby my honest opinion about her book. Good. Interesting. It just wasn't a book for me. I didn't need that sort of help. I had it all together.

  Chapter 18

  Emmy

  Owen and I had set up lunch together the next day. The first day back in the office after time away was always busy, but as he'd pointed out I had to eat at some point. To be honest, I was really missing him. This morning I'd almost poured him a cup of coffee in my kitchen when he'd never even been to my house. I could juggle my schedule for a few hours to fit him in.

  I'd showed up to his office ten minutes early which to me is right on time. It was a nondescript brick building in the downtown area of Arborville that I'd walked by a thousand times without noticing. It didn't have a sign or any indicator of what was inside, which might be a good thing. I could imagine it wouldn't be pleasant if a few disgruntled clients pounded on the door, angry after a bad date or two.

  The inside had an industrial loft vibe with soaring ceilings, exposed brick and pipes, and highly polished concrete floors. I was ushered to the top floor that was set up as some sort of soundstage or photography studio. Owen was in conversation with an upset older gentleman but the minute I stepped into the room he looked up, our gazes meeting.

  For a moment the whole world ceased to exist. That familiar thrill ran up my spine and his smile turned my knees to jelly. Could I really have walked away from him at the end of the weekend?

  He said something to the other man and then strode toward me, his arms outstretched. Normally I would have played it cool and that's exactly the message my brain sent my limbs, but they weren't taking orders at the moment. I practically leapt into his arms, despite about a dozen onlookers. I wasn't much for public displays but over twenty-four hours of not seeing him had clearly had an effect.

  When he lifted his head from our soul-scorching kiss I was a flustered mess and he was all smug male. Dammit. I didn't like the fact that he knew how strongly he affected me.

  "Emmy, I'm so glad you're here," he murmured, placing another soft kiss on my lips. "I wanted to show you around a little before we had lunch. Is that okay?"

  Since I couldn't put words together very well, I had no choice but to nod in agreement. I was hungry but I wanted to know more about Owen's company.

  "We're filming a social media commercial here today," he said, wrapping an arm around my waist and urging me forward. "We've invited some of our most recently engaged and married couples to give testimonials and they'll all be edited together to make the spot."

  There were several people in the large room but now I could see that there were two types, employees and happy in love duos. The former were rushing around and the latter were far more relaxed, sitting on an old sofa and chairs set in the corner.

  "You make them here?"

  "We do," Owen confirmed. "Our ads have a distinctive look and feel with the couples all dressed casually in front of that black backdrop. Let me introduce you to them."

  There were three couples for the commercial, one that looked to be in their twenties, one that looked late thirties or early forties, and then an older couple that might have been in their early sixties. I was terrible at guessing ages but it was easy to see what Owen was going for here. An ad that would illustrate that online dating was for everyone of every age.

  "This is Adam and Madison," Owen introduced the young couple first. "Hannah and Frank. And over here we have Will and Theresa. Everyone, this is my girlfriend Emmy. She's an event planner here in Arborville."

  His girlfriend. I was official. Take that, Shelby.

  "Do you do weddings?" Madison piped up. She was a cute blonde with bright blue eyes. "We got engaged recently and we need to plan the wedding but we have no idea what we're doing or even where to start."

  I practically rubbed my hands together in glee. This - right here - is what I loved. Helping people have their dream day.

  "I do and I'd be happy to help you. If you're not looking for a planner, I can just answer your questions."

  I never went into selling mode, though. It wasn't my style. If people wanted to hire me that was great, but I was happy to give away some advice for free.

  The man Owen had been talking to when I'd arrived was standing at his elbow, holding a clipboard and looking impatient.

  "Honey, can you excuse me for a few minutes?" Owen asked. "It looks like they need me for a quick conference."

  "Sure, I'll be fine." I sat down next to Madison since she was the one that had inquired about her wedding. "Let me know when you're done and we'll go to lunch."

  "It won't be long," Owen promised and headed over to the camera with the scowling older man. He might be the director but what I knew about filming a commercial could be placed on the head of a pin.

  "So Adam and Madison, how long have you been engaged?" I asked, not wanting to sit in silence. I was strangely curious about the couples my boyfriend had created with his test and website.

  "Just a few months," Adam said, his voice quiet in contrast to his more bubbly fiancee. "But we'd like to get married next Valentine's Day. Is that enough time to plan?"

  "It is," I assured them. "What sort of event did you have in mind? Small? Large?"

  "Small," Madison said, grabbing Adam's hand with a big grin. "Something intimate and romantic. I don't want a big expensive wedding."

  Wise, especially as I was never a proponent of a young couple going into debt for the big day. Of course, these two might have a massive trust fund for all I knew and money was no object."

  "Wish we'd done that," Frank said, the male from the middle couple. His tone was bitter and his expression was the same. "Now we're paying off student loans, car debt, a mortgage, and our wedding."

  His significant other Hannah, who had been smiling only minutes before, now looked pissed the hell off.

  "It's not my fault," she hissed, tugging her hand away from his. "You wanted the wedding as much as I did."

  "I wanted a wedding. I didn't want that circus that we had. Hell, I didn't even know half of the people there."

  "Half of those people were my family and friends."

  Frank leaned forward, his lips a narrow line. "As long as we're talking about your family, let's talk about your mother–"

  "My goodness," Will interrupted loudly, slapping his thighs for emphasis. "Did you hear we're supposed to get more snow on Thursday? I was hoping for spring but I think Old Man Winter has one last hurrah."

  "I heard that, too," Theresa said, patting Will's hand. "Brrrr! I'm ready for some warmer weather."

  Bless the older couple, they were trying to keep the atmosphere casual and light. Hannah and Frank looked like they wanted to kill each other, though. I'd had couples like this before and it was never about the cost of the wedding. It always went deeper than that. As a rule, I didn't play therapist.

  A hand landed on my shoulder and I looked up to see a smiling Owen. "Are you ready to go?"

  I was more than ready. It appeared that Owen's test hadn't worked quite as well for at least one couple. What did that say about me and him?

  Owen

  "What did you think of the office?" I asked Emmy during lunch. I was anxious for her to be impressed, as pathetic as it sounds.

  "I didn't realize you had so many people working for you. I sort of pictured a guy on a computer maintaining the website and you in an office working on refining the test." Emmy laughed and my heart lurched at the sound. She was positively gorgeous when she smiled. "Clearly, I was mistaken in more ways than one."

  "It takes an entire team of IT people to keep the website up and running while also keeping the data that we store protected from hackers. We also have a large marketing team in addition to the operations department that takes care of all things business related. Plus, I have several psychologists on staff and we constantly work to refine our matching program."

  "I didn't realize it was so complicated. I'm impressed. My business looks mighty small compared t
o yours. I have less than a half dozen employees and some are seasonal."

  "I'll bet you have a black book full of contractors," I replied taking a bite of my pulled pork sandwich. We were having lunch at the barbecue joint in between our two offices. "Cake bakers, bands, etc. You probably know every decent place to have a wedding for hundreds of miles."

  "As a matter of fact...I do." Her smile faded and she shifted uncomfortably in her chair. "I hate to say this and it may not be any of my business, but one of the couples you had in today wasn't exactly blissful. In fact, they seemed to be at each other's throats."

  I hadn't noticed anything, but then I hadn't spent much time talking with the couples today. We'd chosen them through an exhaustive process that included written and in-person interviews.

  "I'm sure it was only a tiff. All couples argue. My psychological team chose them and they had to jump through a dozen hoops to be selected."

  "You didn't pick them?"

  "No, my two assistants did."

  That seemed to make her feel better because her entire frame seemed to relax slightly. She'd been tense about mentioning it to me.

  "You don't need to worry about talking to me about these things," I assured Emmy. "I value your opinion. Although I admit that today was purely about showing off a little bit."

  "I was impressed." Something wasn't quite right. She was fidgeting with her fork now. I waited quietly while she figured out what she wanted to say. "My friends are having a game night this weekend. They've invited us."

  I liked the way that sounded. Us. This was no affair. We were a couple.

  "That sounds like fun. What kind of games do you usually play?"

  "A lot of the classics like Monopoly, Clue, or Trivial Pursuit."

  "I always win at Monopoly."

  Chuckling, she tapped her chest. "I'll have you know that I'm the champion among my friends."

  "Bring it on," I laughed. "I can't wait for the showdown."

  Her smile dropped and she was fidgeting again. "You don't have to go if you don't want to."

  "Why wouldn't I want to? Seriously, I love board games."

  "I know that it's...early in our...relationship to be meeting the friends."

  "Then I probably shouldn't mention that my lead assistant Carly is anxious to meet you. She's the closest thing I have to family. I was going to invite you for Sunday brunch one of these weekends that you don't have to work."

  Emmy's skin turned pale and I thought she might fall off of her chair for a moment. She recovered quickly but there was a definite panic in her eyes.

  "We can table the discussion for awhile if you want."

  "No, it's fine. Meeting my friends is exactly the same as meeting your friends. I bet we love each other's friends. It will all be great. So sure, let me look at my schedule and see if I have any time off. This is a tough time of the year, though."

  I'd just learned a little tidbit about Emmy. She rambled when she was nervous. It was cute.

  "Just let me know and I'll schedule it. No hurry. Whenever you have the time."

  "Do you have brunch with Carly every Sunday?"

  "Nope, I'm usually too busy but we try and get together every few months." I reached across the table and laid my hand over Emmy's. "They'll adore you, and I think you'll like them, too."

  She shrugged carelessly as if she wasn't worried in the slightest. "It will be fine. Now tell me more about this commercial."

  Emerson Grant wasn't fooling anyone. She was nervous about the whole meet the friends thing

  And the honest truth? I was nervous, too. I was simply better at hiding it.

  Because if Friday night didn't work out, I had a feeling I'd get kicked to the curb pretty fast.

  Chapter 19

  Emmy

  "Where's Shelby?"

  That was the question on everyone's mind this evening but Ashlyn had finally put our worries into words when she'd pulled me into her kitchen.

  "I don't know," I replied, setting the pizza boxes out in a row. We were supposed to be getting dinner ready since it had shown up at the door minutes before. "Maybe they forgot about tonight."

  Ashlyn shook her head as she placed a stack of silverware next to the plates. "Shelby never forgets anything."

  That was true. Although I was playing it cool, I was actually kind of worried myself. I'd sent Shelby a text on Thursday about how much I'd enjoyed her book and I hadn't heard back from her.

  That was really strange. Shelby was excellent about keeping in contact.

  "When was the last time you talked to her?"

  "Wednesday," Ashlyn said. "What about you?"

  "Wednesday."

  "Nothing since?"

  "No, but this is a busy time of year for Shel. I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation."

  Ashlyn pulled her phone from her pocket. "I think we should call Mia."

  Bad idea. Then we'd have another person all the way across the ocean worrying as well.

  "It's the middle of the night in Scotland. We'd scare the hell out of her if we called now and said we hadn't talked to Shelby in a few days."

  "And she didn't show up tonight. This has been on our calendars for weeks," Ashlyn said, her expression one of worry. "This isn't like Shelby at all."

  "So send her another text. Since she knows that we would worry about her, she's sure to answer this time."

  Nodding, Ashlyn tapped out a brief message and hit the send button. "There. Cross your fingers that she replies. In the meantime, can I just say how great your new boyfriend is? Handsome, funny, intelligent, and totally not full of himself. Only you would go to a Caribbean island and come home with a hunk and a half."

  "You met yours in an elevator."

  "Your story is more romantic."

  "Yours is cuter."

  They didn't settle the matter because Ashlyn's phone beeped loudly. She held up the screen. Shelby. Thank goodness.

  "See? She's fine."

  Ashlyn tapped the screen and the text popped up.

  I'll talk to you later.

  "That's it?" I took the phone from Ashlyn and tried to scroll down but there wasn't anything else. "That's her entire reply?"

  "That's it," Ashlyn agreed. "Quite the curt dismissal. I guess Shelby's in the middle of something. Do you think she and Brad are fighting? That would explain why they're not here tonight and also why she doesn't have time to talk to us."

  The last time I'd seen Shelby and Brad together they hadn't been all that happy with one another. Brad had been a dick and Shelby had fumed all the way home. Later she'd told them that he'd apologized and they'd made up.

  "The closer the wedding gets, the more stress they're going to feel," I replied. I'd seen it played out hundreds of times. "Sometimes they're going to take that stress out on each other. So the answer is yes, I do think they might be arguing. All couples fight, right?"

  At least that's what Owen had said at lunch on Tuesday.

  "Kyle and I argue every now and then," Ashlyn said. "But not anything terrible. We get mad and then we get over it."

  "That's the way to do it. Just don't say anything you can't take back."

  Ashlyn glanced down at her phone and grimaced. "Do you think one of them said something like that?"

  "Maybe, but she's asking for space so I think we need to give it to her."

  "Agreed," my friend sighed, tucking her phone away. "I'm still going to worry a little, though."

  "She'd tell you not to, I bet."

  In a way it was easier because Shelby wasn't here. I'd assumed she and Owen would go off tonight and talk shop while the rest of us played Clue.

  We don't play Trivial Pursuit with Ashlyn's boyfriend Kyle any more. He's a certified genius and kicks all our asses.

  "Shelby and Owen have a lot in common."

  Ashlyn poured out two margaritas. "Psychology stuff. I'm sure you both have shared interests. Have you been able to spend much time together this week?"

  Surprisingly we had, despite having
to catch up at work. We'd had dinner together on Wednesday night, lunch on Thursday, and dinner and a movie Friday.

  No, we hadn't had sex again yet. We'd both been busy and exhausted with work but I was thinking that tonight might be the time. What was the point of having a regular boyfriend if I didn't get to have sex with him?

  "We have. It's not easy, though. We both have crazy schedules. Luckily Owen's is much more flexible than mine."

  "A man who compromises for you. Now that's a good one. I think you hit the jackpot this time, Em."

  Had I? Sometimes Owen seemed far too good to be true. But I was falling for him anyway.

  Help.

  Owen

  Emmy was a cruel woman, and she knew exactly what she was doing. In fact, it was clear this woman was a master at arousing my most prurient interests and then walking away with nothing but the gentle sway of her hips.

  Fuck.

  The last thing I needed was for her friends to see me with a raging hard on but it looked like that was probably going to be how the game night was going to go. I could practically hear her friends talking amongst themselves after we left.

  Did you see the dick on that guy? He must get hard with a good stiff breeze. Poor Emmy. Do you think she knows he's a pervert?

  She'd done it the first time when we were playing Monopoly. I'd just landed on Park Place and had every intention of purchasing the property when I felt her hand on my thigh, rubbing up and down. Not quite all the way to my cock but just brushing her fingertips right below a mere centimeter from my balls.

  The way we were sitting at the dining room table with the tablecloth covering everything below our waist no one had any clue what this naughty woman was doing. Like this was any other normal evening, Emmy was chatting and laughing, this time about the weatherman. He liked to dress up in funny costumes. Last night he'd been a rain cloud. Not that I gave a shit right then. The only thing I'd cared about was what her hidden fingers were doing out of everyone's sight. If anyone noticed that I was being uncharacteristically quiet they were too polite to say so.