His Seduction Game Plan by Katherine Garbera

was staying now for Hunter. Sure, he wanted permission from her to go through her dad’s old files, and if she were honest she’d have to admit she was leaning toward giving it to him.
    But she’d wanted more time to get to know him. A part of her was afraid if she just let him have access to her father’s files he’d find what he needed and then...leave. That was what she’d been afraid to admit to herself. It didn’t take a genius to realize that Hunter wasn’t exactly the boy next door. He was very focused on her, very interested, and she was so scared to believe it might be for herself and not for the files. So she was stalling so she wouldn’t have to find out.
    Coward .
    â€œAre you not sure about that dress?” Gabi asked, coming up to her. Ferrin had been staring at the designer cocktail dress for too long. It was pricey but not out of her budget. It probably wasn’t something she’d normally wear. She’d simply stopped next to it because she’d needed a break. A moment to let herself feel normal again instead of in this jet-set lifestyle that was Hunter’s.
    â€œI’m not. What do you think?” she asked, taking the dress from the rack and holding it up to herself. She shook off her thoughts. There was nothing she could do about the files while she was in San Francisco.
    The dress was short, ending at midthigh, and had a halter neckline, which would leave her back bare. It was in her favorite color—turquoise—and made of a soft flowing synthetic fabric.
    â€œGorgeous! Kara, what do you think?” Gabi called to the other woman who had been discussing potty training with Ava, Christos’s wife. Sheri, Tristan’s wife, was in the dressing room trying on something that would in her words “make him forget I’m a mom and remember I’m a woman.”
    That had made them all laugh.
    â€œLove it. You have to get it. Hunter is always so cool,” Kara said. “You’ll melt him in that gown.”
    â€œTry it on,” Ava urged her. The four of them made their way to the dressing room just as Sheri came out in a strapless dress that looked as if it had been handmade for her.
    â€œYou have to get that,” Kara said. “Tristan will definitely remember you from when you met and not as the mom of two boys.”
    â€œI agree,” Gabi said. “One down, one to go.”
    â€œOne to go? Do you mean me?” Ferrin asked.
    â€œYes. We all want to help you knock Hunter’s socks off tonight,” Gabi said, pushing her toward the dressing room.
    She got in there and sat down on the bench, holding the dress in her lap. She knew that she had issues with men. There was a reason why her dream date involved sitting at home with Pride and Prejudice on the DVR and a pint of Ben and Jerry’s Cherry Garcia in her hands. She didn’t like to take risks.
    Maybe it was because she didn’t like to fail.
    She glanced at her face in the mirror, trying to see the courage she always wanted to be there. But only her reflection was there. No secret courage came out of her eyes. If she wanted Hunter—and she admitted she did—she was going to have to show him and stop pushing him away.
    Granted he had secrets—hell, everyone did. But the man she was coming to know she liked. She didn’t want to have to keep a distance between them anymore. And honestly, when was she ever going to have the chance to go out with a man like him again?
    She shucked off her clothes and turned away from the mirror so she wouldn’t see herself in her underwear and pulled the dress on. It fit like a second skin as she got it into place and fastened the two tiny buttons at the back of her neck. She glanced over her shoulder in the mirror, checking her butt first. The skirt wasn’t too tight, but her bra strap looked odd. She undid it and pulled it off, then turned to look at herself.
    The dress was perfect.