She launched herself at him, her chest landing on his and her arms around his back. “I missed you so much.”
Deacon buried his face in her hair and breathed her in. “I know I broke rule number five, but I plan to make sure it never happens again.”
Emma looked at him with shining eyes. “That’s a good plan.” She lifted onto her toes and brushed her lips against his. Something warm and calm unfurled inside his chest.
Another car horn wailed, and the driver leaned out his car window to yell at him. “Move your damn truck!”
Emma tilted her chin and looked up at him. “Is the truck yours?”
Deacon nodded and flashed her a grin. “Got rid of the motorcycle so I could actually haul things. And, you know, drive my girlfriend around.”
Emma squeezed his forearm. “I should be right more often.”
He laughed and kissed the tip of her nose. “Should we go get your new bed?”
Her smile was a door opening. An invitation. “Obviously, Tater Tot. Obviously.”
Deacon looked up from his seat on Emma’s bedroom floor. The bed frame needed some final touches, but he was past the point of assembly where he needed a second set of hands.
“Do me another favor,” he said, nodding at Emma.
“What’s that?”
He handed her his cell phone. “Open up my phone and go to the last website on its history.” He tightened the last screws with one eye on her face, waiting for her reaction.
“The Wood Shop?” Emma’s face glowed with the realization.
“I can’t take credit for naming the company.” Deacon dropped his screwdriver into his toolbox. “After all, I had a little help.”
Emma grinned. “I do have a knack for naming things.” She scrolled through the website, her eyes sparkling.
He dropped his gaze to hide his nerves. He needed her reaction more than he could say. “There are only a few items up for now, but the inventory will grow.”
Emma set his phone on her window ledge and helped him put a hammer away. “Everything is beautiful. But where are you even making all these things? At Noah’s house?”
He scratched the back of his head and met her eye. “I had a spare bedroom. Not that I wanted it.” He sighed. “I didn’t want any of this, Sass. I’m still trying to get my life together.”
She squeezed his shoulder. “This is a really good start.”
Deacon climbed to his feet and moved his toolbox away from the bed.
Emma walked around the frame to inspect his work, her face bright and her voice reverent. “God, Deacon, this is beautiful.”
“Thank you.”
Emma smiled at him, a wicked glint in her eyes, and Deacon’s heart leaped again. They were going to be okay.
“You know what they say about sawdust?” she asked.
“What’s that?”
“It’s like glitter for a man.”
Deacon rolled his eyes and gathered her in his arms. “Just don’t embroider that on a pillow.” He laughed and kissed the top of her head. The familiar smell of her shampoo soothed him, reaching down inside him to fill his chest with light. “On second thought,” he added in a teasing voice, “if you tried embroidery, you’d probably stab yourself in the fingers.”
“Hey!” She tipped her head back and made a face at him. “I resent that remark.”
He squeezed her ass. “Let’s finish the bed, and I’ll make it up to you.” Deacon stepped out of her arms and tipped the mattress onto Emma’s new bed frame.
“How do we even go about doing this?” she asked.
He smiled at her. “I mean, first we put the sheets on. And then we jump in.” He grabbed her hips and pulled her close again. “Or no sheets. Whatever. I don’t want to wait.”
Emma shook her head and grinned up at him. “I mean us, Deacon.”
He held her eyes, hopeful and calm. “One day at a time, Sass. From today until the end of time.”
Epilogue
The scent of hamburgers and hotdogs on the grill mingled with the smell of chlorine and propane, drifting along the breeze to wash over Emma’s body. Her skin was tight in that almost-but-not-quite-sunburned way, and she rubbed a hand over her shoulder as she surveyed the Labor Day weekend crowd.
Somehow, her group of friends had managed to commandeer her apartment’s pool area, and despite the stifling heat, they gathered around the water, drinking and mingling. Bex had hauled an old-fashioned boom box poolside, and Top 40 hits provided backup noise to their laughter.
Sara nudged her hip into Emma’s side. “What are you smiling about?”
Emma gestured out at the pool area, at all of the people she loved most. Sara and Max, Gabe and Bex, Sam and Aderyn and Weston. Even Colton was here with his arm around the neck of a new girl he’d started seeing. “It’s just been a really good summer.”
Sara rubbed a hand over her belly, all bumped out in a cute, almost-third-trimester curve. “That’s because you are consistently getting laid.”
Emma couldn’t hide her grin. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” When Deacon’s lease had run out on their old apartment, he’d moved into her place. It felt like a fresh start, the two of them building a life together. And, yeah, getting laid along the way.
Sara rolled her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Play coy over there, why don’t you.”
“You know, I bet you could ask Bex for a vibrator.” Emma tapped a finger to her lips. “Maybe bring you and Max a little closer together.”
Sara sighed. “It’s the close together part that he’s worried about. ‘I don’t want to hit the baby’s head,’” she mimicked. “Ugh.”
Emma laughed. “Okay. So a solo toy, then. Let him catch you in action. See how long he stays away.”
Sara rubbed her hands together. “You genius. You really are like a fairy godmother with sex toys.”
Emma pulled the skirt of her bathing suit cover-up away from her hips and curtsied. “Anytime, peach. But all this dirty talk is making me parched. I’m going to grab a fresh drink. Can I get you anything?”
“Maybe Deacon can make me a mocktail.” Sara sighed. “Still not the same as the real thing.”
“Only three more months,” Emma promised. She strolled around the edge of the pool and made it to the far corner, where Deacon had set up a mini bar.
She wrapped her arms around him from behind and hooked her chin over his shoulder. Deacon was shirtless, and the feel of his skin under hers brought warmth to her chest and her core. “Hey, Barkeep, can you make me something good?”
Deacon turned his head to capture her mouth, quickly deepening the kiss until she panted against him.
Emma broke away with a laugh. “Not in front of the children.”
“Don’t ruin my fun now.”
She whispered in his ear. “I’ll make it up to you later. You know I’m good for it.”
He groaned against her ear and pressed one more kiss on her neck. “So, what can I get you?”
Emma smiled. “I admit a particular affection for margaritas, and I need a mocktail for Sara. But whatever’s coldest is good.” She fanned herself as Deacon lifted the lid of his cooler. “I still can’t believe this weekend had the hottest temperatures out of the last three weeks.”
Deacon scooped two handfuls of ice from the cooler and dropped them into his blender. Then he parted the neckline of Emma’s cover-up and stroked a finger over her shoulder. His skin was cool from the ice, and she shivered under his touch, half from arousal, half from the cold. “I’m not complaining about the attire.”
She grinned at him. “There’s not much of it to complain about.”
The last song on the radio ended, and the familiar chords of Carry On filled the air.
“Live your life, maybe someday find a wife, and let go of all your strife in the end. Since time don’t give a damn for all that you had planned, live today, live today, live today.”
Emma stiffened and brought her eyes to Deacon’s face. Even though he was working through the tr
auma of his past and every day was a little better, it had to be hard to hear the song.
Today, though, she didn’t see pain in his eyes. Deacon gathered her against his chest and stroked a hand down her back as they listened to the song play out. His heart thumped against her cheek, steady and true, and she closed her eyes and let herself just be here. With Deacon. Safe and loved.
When the last refrain of the song dissolved into another, Deacon pressed a kiss against her mouth. Then he reached for her hands and wrapped them in his.
“You know that first line?” he asked. “‘Live your life, maybe someday find a wife’?”
Emma froze, and her breath caught in her throat. “Yeah?”
Deacon looked at her like she was the sun. Like she was the whole wide world. “I found her,” he said. “I found you. If you’ll have me, of course.”
He dropped to one knee and pulled a ring box from his pocket. Emma’s heart leaped as the sun caught on the diamond, shiny, but still not as bright as the light in his eyes. “I love you, Emma. I want to live my todays with you, and my tomorrows, too.” She pressed a hand to her mouth as Deacon looked up at her with the future in his gaze. “Will you marry me, Sass?”
Tears blurred her vision as she nodded. “Does that mean I get to be your roommate for always?”
Deacon grinned. “That’s the general idea.”
Emma pulled him to his feet and kissed him. “Then the only answer is yes.”
THE END
Read Avery’s story in His Temptation!
Coming Next
From Tanya Gallagher
His Temptation (X Enterprises Book Four)
She needs help to get her love life off the ground, and he’s a dating expert. But falling for each other isn’t part of the plan.
As X Enterprises’ lead PR person, Avery Beeker knows how to tell the perfect story to get customers to line up and buy the adult products her company is so famous for selling. But while her ideas sing on paper, in real life she’s so good at putting her foot in her mouth that she’s intimately acquainted with the taste of Gucci leather, and she hasn’t had a real date in…well, ever. It doesn’t help that she’s a virgin, and the longer she holds off on doing the deed, the more it threatens to ruin her credibility as an industry expert. Luckily, she knows that her best friend’s brother is the perfect man to help fix her problem, as long as no one finds out.
Geoffrey Carter is the host of Seattle’s top dating podcast, and while he’s good with his hands, he’s even better with his mouth. When Avery asks him to teach her a few dating pointers to get her love life off the ground, he’s more than willing to help. But spending one-on-one time with the charmingly awkward beauty is more than he’d counted on. Because he’s always had a thing for the way her laughter fills the room, and now the man who’s made a career out of being single might be falling for one girl who could ruin the name he’s built.
Read His Temptation now!
Books by Tanya Gallagher
A Slippery Slope
His Distraction (X Enterprises Book One)
His Inspiration (X Enterprises Book Two)
His Invitation (X Enterprises Book Three)
His Temptation (X Enterprises Book Four)
Your Opinion Matters
Thank you so much for reading His Invitation! This story was a blast to write, and I hope you loved reading it. If you enjoyed spending time with Emma and Deacon, please consider leaving a review wherever you purchased this book. Reviews help more readers find the X Enterprises series so the sexy fun can continue!
I also love to hear from my readers and think you are just the best. If you join my mailing list, you’ll get sneak peeks at future books and be the first to know about new releases.
Join the fun at tanyagallagherbooks.com!
Acknowledgments
Being an author is an amazing journey, and I am so, so lucky to do what I love and love what I do. Writing His Invitation was a ton of fun, but it was even more enjoyable because I got to share the process with some incredible people.
To my readers - Thanks for showing up and supporting me. You have no idea how much it means, and I’m so excited to share this story with you!
To Jenny - Thanks for always pushing me to grow, and for loving Deacon and Emma. Your feedback is always spot-on, and I’m so glad we both share a deep appreciation for trashy TV.
To Jess - Thanks for all the details about Vegas, and for being such a source of light and love. The world needs more people like you.
To Sally - You are amazing! Thank you for helping me make His Invitation that much stronger, and for supporting me on this journey. I’m so glad to be on this path with you.
To Ian and Lily - I couldn’t have written this book without you, and I love you so much. Thanks for taking one for the team and taking all those naps so I could have quiet time to write. I’d call it a win-win.
To my ARC team - You make me so happy. Seriously, getting your feedback and encouragement is one of the best parts of this whole writing journey. Thanks for spreading the word about this series, and for being here with me!
About the Author
Tanya Gallagher is the Seattle-based author of contemporary New Adult and Adult romances about smart, strong women and the sexy men who love them. She traded pencil skirts in the boardroom for stories in the bedroom and hasn't looked back since. You can find her traveling the world in search of beautiful scenery and delicious cake, and at penchantforpleasure.com, where she happens to sell one of the most popular brands of personal lubricant for your naughty bits. True story.
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Website: www.tanyagallagherbooks.com
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Twitter: TGallagherBooks
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