Striptease

Striptease
Alison Kent

Melanie Craine knows romance isn't in the cards for her. She's ambitious, and has no time for a man in her busy life.With all of the other women at the funky gIRL-gEAR.com Web site meeting Mr. Right, someone has to keep things afloat! Then, when hot videographer Jacob Faulkner films her behavior at her friend's wedding, she's livid. Determined to make him see what's beneath her attitude, she tapes herself doing a steamy striptease…for Jacob's eyes only.Jacob never expected Melanie to retaliate the way she did when he sent that tape! Watching her slowly remove each item of clothing from her body is the most erotic thing he's ever seen. Now that he's on board to film the gIRL-gEAR group for a documentary on successful businesswomen, there's no way he can keep things "professional." And it can't get any better when he finds out she doesn't want anything more than a sexual relationship. But will it be enough in the end?

“You want to get into my pants.”

“Repeatedly.” Jacob grinned.

“You’re talking about having an affair.” Melanie stared at him, not sure what to think.

“Is what we’ve done together so far nice?”

She glanced down, picked at a knotted thread on her linen top. “I’m not sure I’d call it nice.”

“Then call it not-so-nice. But not-so-nice in a way that it’s so hot, so tight, so—” Jacob clenched one hand into a solid fist “—so genuinely real that even if you do go back to the way things were before, nothing will seem the same.”

Melanie looked into his eyes, listened to his voice, loving every second of what he was making her feel. Never in her life had she felt this sort of connection that went far beyond anything she’d ever thought of as sexual. This, this…untamed sense of being ruled by her body instead of the mind, the intellect she’d cultivated all her life. What was wrong with her?

He wanted to continue what they’d started. He wanted to call it an affair.

She said the only thing she could, a very simple “Yes.”

Dear Reader,

I’ve had such a great time with the women of gIRL-gEAR, creating their stories and getting to know these heroines along with the rest of you. After reading the first three stories in early 2002, many of you wrote to ask the fate of the remaining gIRLS: Melanie Craine, Kinsey Gray and Annabel “Poe” Lee. So let’s get started.

In Striptease, we find techno-wiz Melanie Craine dealing with her worst nightmare—a man who challenges her need for order and control while being guilty of the very same thing. Sparks definitely fly—and not only from the video equipment! Striptease defines the concept of high-tech romance!

I hope the wait for Melanie’s story has been worth it. And I hope meeting Jacob Faulkner has you pulling that videocam out of storage to explore all the possibilities it offers! I’d love to hear what you think of Striptease.

Visit me on the Web at AlisonKent.com or gIRL-gEAR.com! And stay tuned for Kinsey’s story, Wicked Games, coming in October, followed by Indiscreet, Poe’s story, in January.

Enjoy!

Alison Kent

Striptease

Alison Kent

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

For all the readers who continue to ask

after the rest of the gIRLS. This one’s for you.

A big thank-you to Larissa Estell,

Jill Shalvis and Donna Kauffman for the daily whine fest.

That’s what friends are for!

And to Jan Freed.

I owe you, bud, for fixing the parts I knew

were broken as much as for repairing what I couldn’t see.

A girls’ night at the movies to celebrate sounds like a plan!

The gIRLS of gIRL-gEAR

by Samantha Venus for Urban Attitude Magazine

Samantha Venus, intrepid reporter, insatiable gossip, back at long last with news about our favorite fashion divas. They soon won’t be only our hometown honeys, but national—dare I say international—treasures.

My favorite L.A. production company and my favorite television show hostess with more mostess than most, Ann Russell, will pry out secrets even my bloodhound nose has not been able to divine. And the prospect is just that. Divine.

Even better is this little tidbit Samantha has scooped for all you darlings. Ann and the gIRLS will be baring all, so to speak, for our local Avatare Productions’ deliciously dishy videographer Jacob Faulkner.

This reporter, for one, can only hope for a bit of reciprocal baring. We all know that there is nothing quite as yummy as a man stripped to his bare essentials!

Until that blissful day, dear readers…Samantha Venus signing off for Urban Attitude Magazine.

Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12