Sawyer, Rita - Sacrifice Turned Seduction [What Are Friends For 2] (Siren Publishing Classic)
Page 1
What Are Friends For 2
Sacrifice Turned Seduction
Dianne Killbrew made a deal with Gage Dillinger. He did his part, and now she has to spend a week being wined and dined by him. She’ll have to make sure his smooth sexy ways don’t get under her skin and hope he doesn't see past her sparkle and glitz to the shy girl hiding beneath. There is a lot at risk, but she’s made a deal, and she’s going to stick to it.
Gage can't ignore how much he wants Dianne. It is more than physical desire. He wants to get to know everything about her. The problem is she avoids him whenever possible. So when he is given the chance to put her in a position where she owes him something, he chooses her. Now he’s going to do whatever it takes to get her to see he’s not the player everyone thinks he is.
Genre: Contemporary
Length: 26,802 words
SACRIFICE TURNED SEDUCTION
What Are Friends For 2
Rita Sawyer
EROTIC ROMANCE
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
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A SIREN PUBLISHING BOOK
IMPRINT: Erotic Romance
SACRIFICE TURNED SEDUCTION
Copyright © 2011 by Rita Sawyer
E-book ISBN: 1-61034-546-0
First E-book Publication: June 2011
Cover design by Jinger Heaston
All cover art and logo copyright © 2011 by Siren Publishing, Inc.
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED: This literary work may not be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including electronic or photographic reproduction, in whole or in part, without express written permission.
All characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is strictly coincidental.
PUBLISHER
Siren Publishing, Inc.
www.SirenPublishing.com
Letter to Readers
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DEDICATION
As always, I want to thank my family for their support.
SACRIFICE TURNED SEDUCTION
What Are Friends For 2
RITA SAWYER
Copyright © 2011
Chapter One
Dianne gazed across the yard at Gage, careful not to let him catch her. She tried to ignore his sexy smile and his good looks, but it wasn’t easy. He stood six feet tall and had dark brown hair and matching brown eyes. She grudgingly admitted he looked like a man who could handle himself in any situation. Thankfully, she wasn’t close enough to hear the rough timber of his voice. At this distance she just might be able to keep her senses about her.
“Are you going to tell us what’s going on between you two?” her friend Karen asked.
“You know what’s going on.” She quickly turned away as Gage glanced their way.
“Please. The way he looks at you, no one believes that line.” Her other friend Jillian winked at her, and Dianne groaned.
“Look, we worked together to help Lainey get everything ready for the wedding before Jace found out, that’s all.” Dianne wasn’t ready to tell her friends about the bargain she’d made to get him to help just yet.
“Just how closely did you two work?” Dianne shook her head and kept her mouth shut, letting Jillian think whatever she wanted, especially since she wasn’t too far off.
She looked back over at Gage. He had his back to her now, so she let her guard down and enjoyed the enticing view. Even though he wasn’t her type—he was too charming, too handsome, and too damned aware of it all—he kind of grew on her. Like a fungus she just couldn’t get rid of. Maybe once she had some time to purge him from her system, she’d be able to ignore him the way she had before her friends had nominated her to be the one to approach Gage for help.
She’d learned three things over the past few weeks. The first thing didn’t come as much of a shocker. She and her friends all knew it would be difficult to throw a surprise wedding for a groom. Of course, when her friend Lainey asked their small group of friends for help, they instantly agreed. What else could they say? The six of them had grown up together and were always there when one of them had a problem. It hadn’t been easy to get everything organized in such a small amount of time, but they pulled it off with Gage’s help, which is how Dianne learned her next lesson.
The second thing she now knew beyond a shadow of a doubt was that Gage was a man of his word. If he said he could and would do something, he did it. Not half-assed, either. He’d been efficient and creative, much like her and her friends, so she had to admire him for that. How he managed to get himself and the groomsmen to the wedding without Jace finding out was still a mystery to her.
The third thing she learned was probably the most important, and one she was still working on. Gage always got what he wanted, which meant she needed to figure out the best way to deal with him. He’d fulfilled his part of their bargain, and now it was her turn. The only things he asked—well more like demanded—in return for helping them with the wedding was for her to be his escort, and if he pulled off his part, she would date him for real. He pushed it by suggesting they pretend to be dating in front of his friends so none of them would think they were up to something. With no other options available, Dianne agreed to his request, adding a few terms of her own.
They’d spent the past three weeks in almost-daily contact going over little details. Thankfully, most of their conversations had been on the phone, keeping a buffer between them. When they were together, he insisted on pretending to be a happy couple, so it was much harder. Luckil
y none of her friends had witnessed any of that. What mattered was that she’d gotten through the wedding, just barely, without letting his charms or kisses sway her.
Just the thought of spending a whole week letting him wine and dine her had her heart and stomach fluttering. The man had a way of make her nerves go haywire. She would have to do something about that, and pretty damn quick. Dianne hoped Lainey appreciated the huge sacrifice she was making on her behalf. Of course, most women probably wouldn’t consider having to spend time with a handsome and very charismatic man a sacrifice, but they didn’t know the risks it presented for her. Hell, everyone who looked at her saw whatever it was they wanted to see, but most of them never got past the surface.
Dianne knew that was partly her fault, but that was the way she liked it. Her grandmother, who’d raised her and her sister, had always said Dianne could have tried to be friendlier. When she was younger, right after she came to live with them, Dianne had forced herself to try just to please her grandmother. At times she felt like she was being tortured having to smile and talk about stupid stuff. She’d been lucky enough to meet Lainey, Amy, Sadie, Jillian, and Karen.
It hadn’t taken long for her to become part of their little group. Without them, the little creativeness she’d inherited from her parents would have shriveled up and died. She probably would have become a librarian or something equally as tame. Right from the start, her friends had refused to let that happen. They had dragged her along on all their adventures, making sure she took part in the schemes they devised.
The fact that parts of her were plastered on billboards and in magazines could be laid at their feet. Dianne remembered the auspicious start modeling career as if it had only been yesterday. Sadie had been writing an article for the high school newspaper about prom fashions. One of the boutique owners she had interviewed had been so impressed by the questions she had asked that she offered to let Sadie and her friends be a part of an upcoming fashion show. Dianne tried to get out of it, but her friends wouldn’t let her. Once she’d slipped on the pink-sequined, hip-hugging dress, she’d felt like a different person. Still, Sadie and Amy had to practically drag her onto the runway that first time.
The photographer had started snapping pictures and Dianne had gotten swept up in the moment. A few months later out of the blue a talent scout had called her grandmother about Dianne doing some modeling. Dianne had been nervous at first, but once she learned to be something she wasn’t for the camera, it got a lot easier.
People had no idea that behind her smile hid a very private and sometimes shy woman. All they saw was the sparkle and glitz she hid behind, which was just what Dianne preferred. Now faced with the fear that Gage might see through her act, she was starting to freak out. What she needed was some space to clear her head before she had to deal with him.
“I’m going to get a drink.” She heard Jillian clucking as she walked away, and Dianne couldn’t help but laugh herself.
* * * *
Gage knew, behind her sparkly sunglasses, that Dianne was watching his every move. He almost caught her staring a few times, but she managed to look away just as he turned around. It was as if they were playing their own private game, and he loved it. He knew she’d do whatever she had to do to keep her end of their deal, even though she wasn’t happy about it. She didn’t like waiting for him to make his next move, but a little suspense might do her some good.
If things had gone as he hoped over the past few weeks, she would have warmed up to him at least a little by now. With all the stupid excuses he’d made up just so he could call her, and with the two of them sitting side by side for the flight to Vegas, his plan should have worked. Her stubbornness almost had him giving up. Then he’d catch her looking at him like she was now, and he knew she couldn’t be as uninterested as she pretended.
From the way her friends looked at him he could tell they knew he was interested in her. They were a tight-knit little group of really hot women, and he hoped they would approve of his attempt to start a relationship with Dianne. When Jace first met Lainey he’d been worried about the same thing, but they all seemed to accept him without making him jump through too many hoops. The difference between him and Jace was Lainey had fallen for Jace right from the get-go. Gage, on the other hand, had the sorry luck to be attracted to someone who probably wished she’d never laid eyes on him. The pisser was, he didn’t even know what he’d done to make her feel that way.
“You know one of them is bound to take matters into their own hands if you two don’t work things out soon.” Jace had been around them enough to know what he was talking about, so Gage didn’t argue.
“Dude, I’m doing my best. Has Lainey ever mentioned what I could’ve done to piss Dianne off?” He figured the littlest clue might be a huge help.
“No, but I’ve never asked, either. Do you want me to?”
“Fuck no. The last thing I need is Dianne thinking I’m going behind her back and asking her friends for help.” For cripes sake, they weren’t in high school and he wasn’t going to revert back to the dork his sisters had often accused him of being back then.
Jace’s shoulders shook with the laugh he let out. “Then what are you going to do? You do have some kind of plan, right?”
“Yeah.” He nodded, not ready to go into the details just yet. “I just hope it doesn’t backfire.”
“With five of them to get the hots for, why did you pick the only one who avoids being alone with you? She’s not your normal type. I would’ve laid odds on Jillian or Sadie.” Jace asked the same question that he’d been asking himself.
Jace had been his best friend since elementary school, and he could tell him anything, but he couldn’t answer that.
“They’re both nice, but neither of them have Dianne’s curves or spirit. I guess I’m a glutton for punishment.” Gage sensed something in her that just drew him in.
“You know the guys are getting a huge kick out of this. You’ve always been the ladies’ man and now you’ve met a woman who doesn’t even want to give you the time of day. She’s taking playing hard to get to the extreme.” Jace didn’t know the half of it, and when he found out, Gage was going to be in deep shit.
“That’s where you’re wrong. Dianne and I have come to an agreement.” A crazy man had taken over his mind when he cornered her into it, but it was a done deal.
“Do I want to know the details?” Jace looked over his shoulder at the house where Dianne had disappeared just minutes ago.
“Probably not. Just wish me luck and leave it at that.” Gage wanted Jace to be able to deny knowing anything in case Lainey got mad when she found out what Gage was doing.
Gage decided Dianne had avoided him long enough. He headed for the house, ready to launch phase two of his plan, even though the first part had failed miserably. A few of Jace and Lainey’s other guests stopped him along the way to say their hellos, so it took him a good five minutes to reach the house. He figured his delay had given her plenty of time to escape if she wanted to, but he knew she was still there. He’d been to enough get-togethers to know Lainey’s friends always stuck around to help clean up and pass on any gossip they might have heard.
“Are you following me?” Dianne’s accusation came the second he stepped in the house.
Gage took a second to look her over. She had on black skintight pants and a yellow halter shirt. It was a damn sexy look, but he thought the best part was that she had pushed her yellow sunglasses up on top of her head.
“Yes.” Surprise flashed in her eyes, and he wondered if she’d expected him to make up some excuse.
“Well, what do you want?” She opened the fridge and put in the covered bowls she’d been holding.
Gage walked up behind her and waited for her to turn around. When she spun, he could tell she hadn’t expected him to be so close. She hid the little jump and gasp by crossing her arms over her chest. The way she leaned back against the counter her position should have looked relaxed. Instead, it just looked s
illy, because her shoulders were stiff as a board. He ignored the urge to reach out and rub the tension out for her.
“I wanted to discuss our plans.”
“Your plans.” Her sarcastic tone made him smile.
She wasn’t the least bit intimidated or impressed by him. Maybe that’s one of the reasons why he couldn’t ignore the desire he felt for her. Jace was right. Most of the women Gage found himself interested in usually came to him pretty easily. Knowing she wouldn’t made the thrill of the chase even stronger. The thing he was most afraid of was that once he caught her, he wouldn’t want to let go.
“Fine. My plans are to enjoy the time we spend together over the next week. So I thought I’d ask if there was anything special you’d like to do. Or would you like me to surprise you?” He took a step forward as he spoke, and her breaths came a little quicker.
Dianne’s hands shot out and pressed against his chest, keeping him from getting any closer. “Surprise me.”
He covered her hands with his and softly said, “I’ll do my best.”
They stood there staring at each other. Neither of them spoke or moved. Her green eyes sparkled. She really didn’t need to speak, because they said so much. He could see excitement and anger staring back at him. At that second, he decided if she was going to be mad, he was going to give her a reason for it. He lowered his head, and though she stiffened a little, she didn’t turn away. Her next breath sounded labored, and he felt a sense of anticipation surge through him.