Bad Liar (The Reed Rivers Trilogy #1) - Lauren Rowe Page 0,82
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Reed
Georgina’s entire demeanor shifts on a dime. Right before my eyes, she transforms from a panicked possum in a trap to a sultry femme fatale. She gets up from the armchair and straddles me on the couch, batting her eyelashes at me. She rubs her nose against mine. “All right, Mr. Rivers. Let’s cut the crap. I’m ready to close this deal, sweetheart. You said everyone’s got a price.” She runs her finger across my cheekbone. “So, what’s yours, honey?”
Hallelujah. “I don’t have a price, Georgina.”
She shoots me a snarky look, fully aware I’m throwing her own naïve words back at her. “How about this?” she purrs, her fingertip making its way to my ear. “You agree to listen to Alessandra’s full demo—all three songs—and, in exchange, I’ll give you a lap dance that lasts the same amount of time as you give Alessandra’s music.”
My cock is hard underneath her, my breathing shallow. But I force myself to keep a straight face and my hands on the couch cushions. I’ve come this far. I’m not going to cave until I get exactly what I want. I say, “Wasn’t it you who told me to fuck off and die when I suggested this very sort of bargained-for exchange was your agenda from the start? And now, here you are, mere days later, surrendering your righteousness like an expired passport?”
She grinds herself into my steely bulge. “I’ve learned a few things about negotiation tactics since then. I’ve got a very good teacher.”
Oh, fuck. I’m on the bitter cusp of throwing my arms around her and kissing the hell out of her sultry mouth. Which I absolutely can’t let myself do, or else I’ll surely cave and give the girl anything she wants.
“Lemme guess,” I say, my chest heaving. “Has a certain hothead spent the entire past week regretting the way she flew off the handle the other night?”
“Maybe I’ve realized bribing you with something I want to give, anyway, would, in fact, be a win-win.”
My cock is straining. Aching. More likely than not, dripping with my need for her. “Would this lap dance be performed in the nude?” I ask.
She looks shocked. “No. I’d perform it in this. Right here and now.” She motions to her outfit—a short skirt and low-cut blouse. “After shaking on the deal, I’d give you a little show... ” She nuzzles her nose against mine. “And then you’d listen to all three songs, right here and now, as well.”
I shake my head. “For a clothed lap dance, I’d be willing to listen to ten seconds of the first song. But that’s it.” My tone is businesslike. Flat. Like we’re two farmers negotiating the price of grain. But, inside, I’m a hurricane of pent-up sexual arousal. On the bitter edge of folding like bad poker hand.
“Ten seconds?” Georgina purrs, skimming her lips across my cheekbone. “That’s an insult to lap dancers everywhere, Mr. Rivers. Or, at least, to this one.”
I can barely breathe. “You saw me listen to Bryce’s sister’s music. Ten seconds is all I need—to assess a demo, to be clear. I need much, much longer than ten seconds to do something else.”
She giggles. “Come on. A sexy lap dance ought to get me at least a full-song listen.”
“Okay, time out for a second.” I put both palms on her gorgeous face and her pouty lips part in surprise, begging me to kiss them. “Think, sweetheart. Why would you even want me to listen to a full song, even if you could get me to agree to that?”
She furrows her brow like she doesn’t follow my logic.
“Imagine you get me to agree to a full-song listen. And then, imagine that, ten seconds in, I have the same reaction I had to Bryce’s sister. Hard pass. If I know I’m not impressed after ten seconds of a song, would it really benefit Alessandra if I’m then obligated by the terms of our agreement to keep listening to the same fucking song that doesn’t impress me for another three minutes?”
A light bulb goes off on Georgie’s beautiful face. She gets it. “Ah.”
I drop my hands and grip the couch cushion again, forcing myself not to interact. Not to grab her ass. Not to give in. Not to cave. “See?” I say. “You gotta think a couple moves ahead. Be careful what you ask for in a negotiation, because you don’t want to screw yourself by unexpectedly getting exactly what you’ve asked for.”