Strip Tease (4 page)

“I want you to call her. Now. Don’t tell her
you’re with me. I want you to ask her where she is and if you can
meet with her. Tell her you have the money from tonight’s gig and
you want to give it to her. That ought to get her to come out of
hiding.”

“My phone is inside.” Janelle gazed up at
the sky, the full, white moon shining down upon her and for a
moment, it felt like any other night. Yet it wasn’t. Her entire
world had just tipped on its side.

She remembered how odd Ginger had sounded on
the phone, how she’d offered all the money to Janelle for working
tonight, when usually they split it. Giving up the money had been
so out of character for her greedy sister…

“Something was wrong. I could hear it in her
voice but she wouldn’t tell me anything. Just begged me to do this,
thanked me when I finally said yes and hung up.”

“Shit.” Nate ran a hand through his hair,
mussing it up in the sexiest way imaginable. “Let’s go and get your
phone. Hopefully she’ll answer your call.”

She tried to protest, but he merely took her
arm and escorted her back into the suite, a grim look of
determination on his handsome face. Goosebumps scattered up her arm
at his touch, and she bit her lower lip as he led her inside.

The place was practically empty, though a
couple of revelers still hung around, accompanied by a few mostly
naked females draped across their bodies, the unmistakable erotic
sound of lips connecting filling the room.

Her skin tingled, her distended nipples
brushing against the soft fabric of her shirt and she jerked away
from Nate, dropping behind the couch. She grabbed her coat and
pulled her cell phone out of the pocket.

Nate waited expectantly, clenched fists
resting on his slim hips. She hit the speed dial, listening to the
phone ring and ring until her sister’s voicemail finally picked
up.

“Ginger, it’s me. Listen, I really need to
talk to you. Can you call me as soon as you get this message? It
doesn’t matter what time it is, just call me, okay? Love you.”
Janelle ended the call and shrugged. “She didn’t answer.”

“I figured.” He pointed at her. “Give me
Ginger’s number.”

“Why?” She gulped, clutched the phone
tighter. “Tell me what’s going on. Is my sister involved in
something illegal? Are you going to arrest her?”

“I have no reason to arrest her—yet. I need
information. We’re pretty sure she knows things about Billy Diaz
that are important to our ongoing investigation.”

“Billy Diaz? You mean her boss? He’s shady?”
She’d always thought the nightclub was on the up and up. Every time
she’d been there, which hadn’t been often, the place looked clean.
Respectable, as respectable as a gentleman’s nightclub could
be.

“Most definitely.”

“Great.” She’d suspected her sister had
something on the side with her enigmatic boss. Hence, the fear he’d
be mad when Ginger didn’t show up for work.

Had Ginger figured out Nate was a cop? Maybe
she’d known Nate would be at the party, so she’d set up Janelle to
handle the heat instead.

Typical Ginger.

“Hey, buddy, you done with that one?”

A deep voice made her turn to find a man
standing before her, a leer curling his thick lips. He watched her
with unabashed interest.

“No.” Nate’s voice was harsh, final and he
took a step forward, his arm curling around her shoulders and
hauling her against him possessively. “She’s not for rent to the
highest bidder. Give the lady some respect.”

“I just thought I’d ask. No harm, man.” The
creepy guy shrugged and walked away.

Nate still had his arm around her and she
breathed deep, inhaling his scent, his touch, his warmth. If
circumstances were different…

But circumstances weren’t different. He was
a detective looking for Ginger and Janelle was a link to her sister
and nothing else.

“We need to get out of here.” Nate’s chest
rumbled with his every word and she reluctantly disentangled
herself, bereft at not having him near.

It was absurd and foolish since she’d just
met him. She’d never reacted so strongly toward a man, as if there
was some sort of sexual magnetism between them, pulling them
together. She wanted to deny it.

Really she did.

He bent, picked something up from the floor
and handed it to her. Dangling from his fingers was her black satin
bra. Snatching it from his grip, her cheeks heated with
humiliation.

“I don’t think I can help you, detective.
Though trust me, I want nothing more than to find my sister. When
she wants to be found, she’ll let me know.” She didn’t want to tell
him anything else, she’d revealed too much already.

“I’m not letting you go that easy.” Long
fingers slid down her back to rest at the base of her spine as he
started to escort her out of the hotel suite. “I need to ask you a
few more questions.”

“I already told you. I don’t know anything,”
she protested

“Let me be the judge of that.”

* * * *

Nate should let the woman go. Clearly, she
wasn’t lying. She had no clue what her sister was up to. Hell, she
didn’t know where Ginger was, which in theory meant she was of no
use to him.

The potential was there, however. Ginger
could eventually contact her sister and Nate would love to be close
by when that happened. If he could get the sister on his side, tell
her everything and stress what kind of risk Ginger was putting
herself in, maybe Janelle would help him.

She’d been hostile since the moment he
realized she wasn’t Ginger. Reluctant to talk, reluctant to look
him in the eye, she’d been uncooperative at best. Even a little
snippy.

The worst of it? He couldn’t get over how
beautiful she was. She resembled her sister somewhat. Whereas
Ginger had ashen skin and her eyes were dull, Janelle sparkled.
Beautiful, intelligent blue-green eyes, glowing golden skin and a
body that wouldn’t quit, she’d tempted him those few moments in his
lap.

Who was he kidding, she was still tempting.
He watched as she shrugged her coat on, stuffing the discarded bra
in her pocket. She cinched the belt around her slim waist, her lush
lips in a straight line, eyes narrowed and he knew she was pissed
that he wouldn’t let her go.

“Are you taking me to the police station?”
she asked, her voice tight.

“Why don’t we grab a cup of coffee and I’ll
let you in on what’s going on?” The station on a Saturday night
would be a madhouse. He didn’t want to try and talk to her amidst
the chaos.

“I don’t want to grab a cup of coffee.” She
glared at him, hostility written all over her face. The woman
clearly couldn’t stand him.

A damn shame, since he couldn’t say the same
about her. That moment when he’d pulled her against him and told
the jackass to buzz off, she’d felt damn good, her warm and curvy
body nestled against his.

Maybe it was lack of sex that was making him
think with his dick. Something he never did with any female
involved in a police investigation
ever
. He’d been hanging
out at that so-called gentleman’s club for a couple of months,
surrounded by beautiful and not so beautiful near-naked women on an
almost nightly basis. Not a one of them made him react the way this
one did.

What made her so damn special?

“I’ll tell you what’s going on with Ginger.
You’ll want to hear this,” he promised. The elevator doors opened
and they walked inside together, Nate hitting the button for the
lobby.

A weary sigh escaped her. “I can’t be her
keeper forever. I love my sister, detective, but our relationship
is...frustrating. She needs to take care of herself, rather than me
always running behind her, sweeping up her messes.”

She sounded bitter and irritated. He
couldn’t blame her. After observing Ginger for a solid month, she
was nothing but trouble. Completely irresponsible and barely able
to function, she’d probably given her family a run for their money
her entire life.

“Your sister’s life could be at risk if you
don’t at least get me into contact with her. I’m serious.” Nate
watched her, wanting her to understand how important this was.
“Billy Diaz is big time, and she’s deeply involved with some of
his—business ventures.”

“What, drugs? I know she has a drug problem.
She’s been to rehab once already.” Another resigned sigh escaped
her.

“Not just drugs.”

“What more could there be?”

The elevator doors slid open and they exited
side by side. “I’ll tell you if you have that cup of coffee with
me.”

She stopped, causing him to stop as well. “I
feel like you’re threatening me.”

“Not at all. You’re helping me, doing your
part in a police investigation. And you’re getting a free cup of
coffee out of the deal.” He smiled, trying to throw on a little
charm. The look on her face said she wasn’t falling for it.

“Fine, I’ll have one cup, that’s it.”

This woman was definitely the take no
bullshit type. Completely different from her sister, who, from what
he observed, went with the flow and followed the orders of everyone
around her. Janelle probably gave the orders.

What drove her to dance in place of Ginger?
She was gorgeous, of that there was no doubt. Her killer body and
beautiful face would leave most men a drooling pile of lust after
she’d finished stripping.

Behavior-wise, she was nothing like her
sister. Calm and composed, coherent. Perfectly capable of taking
care of herself, she didn’t appear to have a drug problem. From the
moment she’d walked into the suite, he’d noticed her, confused at
the difference he saw. The way she’d glared at the men, shuddered
when one had stuffed money down the front of her shirt.

He’d at first believed Ginger was having an
off night. Knowing it was a completely different woman put a new
perspective on the situation.

They headed toward the twenty-four hour cafe
within the hotel, which was empty, and the waitress seated them
quickly. As they each slid into the booth, Nate noticed the harsh
lighting did nothing to detract from Janelle’s beauty. No, more
like it enhanced it, allowing him the opportunity to study her
closer. Yet again, he wondered how he could’ve mistaken this woman
for Ginger.

“So tell me what’s going on,” Janelle said
the second the waitress left with their coffee order.

“Nothing like getting right to it.” He
watched her, enjoying the play of emotions that crossed her face.
Confusion, frustration, a little bit of anger. Which meant, she
would probably have a tough time lying. An advantage he needed to
remember.

“Listen detective, I’m tired. It’s been a
long day and I’m emotionally as well as physically drained. Tell me
what’s going on so I can go home and worry about her and not get
any sleep tonight.”

The thought of keeping her awake with other,
more exciting things crossed his mind but his professional side
shoved them firmly out. He hadn’t let a woman throw him off his
game in a long ass time and wasn’t going to let it happen now.

“We think she’s helping Diaz run his
prostitution ring. She’s done so for the last few months and he’s
paying her in drugs. Meth, to be precise, though he also gives her
cash.”

Her eyes widened, her lush lips parting in
what had to be surprise.

He stopped talking when their waitress
appeared with a fresh pot of coffee. They were both silent,
watching the older woman pour even amounts of steaming dark liquid
in each cup. The woman smiled at them and then walked away.

“A prostitution ring?” Janelle looked
incredulous. “She wouldn’t do something like that.”

Nate tore open three yellow packets of
substitute sugar and poured them into his coffee, then dumped in
two little cartons of creamer. He stirred it noisily with a spoon.
“She is. They run a small fleet of girls out of the nightclub. I
thought at first Ginger was working for him, and maybe she was, but
certain clues point to her actually running it. She answered the
phone when I called the number they give out.”

“That doesn’t mean anything. I don’t believe
it.” She shook her head, sipping from her cup and then grimacing.
“Oh my God, that’s hot.”

She pressed slender fingers to her pursed
lips, blew out a shallow breath. Lush dark pink lips that were
completely bare, didn’t have a smudge of lipstick on them, which he
found incredibly sexy.

He wondered what those lips would feel like
wrapped tight around his cock, the hot wet warmth of her mouth
engulfing him, bringing him to an intense orgasm...

Nate shifted in his seat, adjusting the
front of his jeans and feeling like a damn pervert. His reaction to
her made him uneasy.

“God, I burned my tongue.” Janelle pressed
her lips together.

“Why don’t you put some creamer in it?
That’ll cool it down a bit.” He pushed the dish of stacked creamers
toward her.

“No thanks. I prefer my coffee black.
Besides, that stuff isn’t good for you.”

“What, non-dairy creamer and fake sugar?” He
sipped from his cup, realizing he didn’t taste much coffee
whatsoever.

Just the way he liked it.

She wrinkled her nose. “It’s all processed
and man-made, you know? It’s not good for you. I believe in eating
natural, whole foods as much as possible.”

“You really are nothing like your sister,
are you?” He knew Ginger loved to gorge herself on junk food when
she wasn’t getting drunk or high, and she consumed an endless
supply of soda. Not only did his one source at the club inform him
of this seemingly useless tidbit, but he’d seen her do so himself
numerous times.

“We’re veering off track, when we should be
talking about what Ginger’s involved in.” Janelle rested her
forearms on the table, hands clasped, looking every inch the cool,
professional woman. “Do you have any proof she’s running her boss’
prostitution ring? My sister’s done a lot of terrible stuff, but
running prostitutes? I find that hard to believe.”