Strip Tease (9 page)

“No touching allowed. The second you touch
me, I quit.”

The dancer’s words were vaguely familiar,
reminding him of Janelle’s dance at the hotel suite. Glancing at
Janelle, he caught her watching them with rapt attention. “That
won’t be a problem.”

The dancer smiled, her hips slowly starting
to sway. “Hmm, you’re one of those types, huh?”

“What do you mean?” Since when did an exotic
dancer become so talkative? Usually they gyrated on your knee and
then left you in the lurch with a raging hard on and nothing to
show for it.

Not that he had any personal experience,
beyond the attempted dance by Janelle. And what a memorable dance
that had been. He still dreamed about it.

“A one-woman kind of man. You only have eyes
for your lady. She’s a lucky gal.” Her movements more pronounced,
the dancer’s hands smoothed over her hips sensuously. “Your dance
begins now. Enjoy.”

* * * *

At first, Janelle had been amused at the
look of panic in the detective’s eyes. Her lap dance suggestion had
clearly shocked him. She had no idea why she’d made it in the first
place. To make him uncomfortable, as he always seemed to do to
her?

Well, that certainly went along with her
usual M.O. Heaven forbid, she let anyone tip the scales and have
something on her. She preferred to be in control. A habit left over
since childhood when her mother hadn’t been around and Janelle had
taken care of her desperately needy sister.

Shaking her head, she pushed thoughts of her
past from her mind. She needed to focus on the here and now. On the
fact that Nate had a desirable woman dancing suggestively in front
of him but he only had eyes for her.

Her skin warmed at the realization. Tingles
teased along her spine and her nipples hardened beneath her dress,
poking against the thin fabric for him to see.

He’d already gotten an eyeful. The
performance earlier had aroused her, had aroused the both of them
and she hadn’t been able to help herself when she’d begged him to
kiss her.

Maybe he thought she was a slut, but she
didn’t care. More than anything, she figured she confused him. She
confused herself, yet she didn’t regret it. Kissing him, touching
him, feeling his hard body pressed against hers for those brief
moments had been more than worth it.

And when he’d touched her nipple, licked it,
oh God, she thought she’d die on the spot.

There was no denying she’d agree if he took
her back to his place. She wanted him. Wanted to kiss him
everywhere, explore his body with her hands and mouth, feel him
move inside of her.

It had been a long time since she’d wanted
someone, let alone
allowed
someone to get close. It was a
chance she rarely took, always protecting herself so she wouldn’t
get hurt.

Tonight, she didn’t care. She wasn’t going
to get hurt. Tonight, she wanted to get off. And no one would be
able to get her off but Nathan Banks.

“You like her?” She inclined her head toward
the dancer before them, impressed with the woman’s suggestive
dancing.

Nate’s gaze met hers, dark and fathomless in
the dim light. He slowly shook his head. “Not really.”

She smiled, not believing a word. “Don’t
insult her. It’s not polite.”

A soft laugh emitted from the dancer and she
straddled Nate, her slim thighs coming around him so that her knees
rested on the booth seat on either side of his thighs. “Honey, he’s
not even looking at me.”

“It’s true. I’m not,” Nate agreed.

“This is a waste of your one hundred
dollars.” Janelle’s heart tightened in her chest.

Never had someone seemed so focused on her.
She’d felt forgotten more than once, lost in the shadows,
especially when dealing with an overwhelming personality such as
Ginger’s.

It felt good to be the sole focus of
someone’s intent.

He shrugged. “You’re the one who wanted to
do it.”

“True.” She slid closer to him on the bench
seat, not caring that her leg bumped up against the dancer’s.

She wanted to be closer to him. She almost
wished she was the one writhing above him in a sensual dance.

Almost.

His hand slid across hers, fingers curling
and he yanked her upper body closer to his. His head dipped so that
it hovered above hers and he murmured, “Let’s get out of here.”

“What about your dance?” She sounded
breathless, her voice shaky and she realized her entire body was
trembling. With anticipation and a bit of fear mixed in.

“Forget the dance.” He nudged at the
dancer’s waist with the tips of his fingers. “Sorry sweetheart, we
need to go.”

“You two have a nice night.” She
disentangled herself from Nate’s grasp, shaking her head with a
tiny smile on her face. “I’m sure I don’t need to bother telling
you that.”

“Thanks,” Janelle said weakly, watching the
dancer go.

“Let’s go.” With one quick yank, he had
Janelle on her feet and they were weaving through the maze of
tables and people, headed for the door.

“What about Ginger? Are you sure you don’t
want to try one last time to see if she’s here?” she asked.
Stalling, of course. She needed to catch her breath, her thoughts.
He was moving so fast…

“We already tried.” He glanced over his
shoulder, his gaze heated. “We’ll worry about Ginger tomorrow.”

Janelle stumbled over her feet trying to
keep up with his long legged stride, turning his comment over and
over again in her head. Panic welled up inside her, words of doubt
whispering through her mind and she tried to ignore them.

She needed to go with her gut, not let her
negative past keep her down. Only moments ago, she’d felt free and
desirable, ready to seduce him.

Now she was wary and nervous. Unsure of his
motives, though deep down she felt they were true. They had nothing
to do with his wanting to get closer to Ginger. He wasn’t using
her.

Was he?

Janelle shook her head once.
No
. He
couldn’t be. How would sleeping with her get him closer to her
sister?

The gigantic entry doors loomed ahead of
them and Nate’s grip tightened on her hand. He was so strong and so
warm, and his hand felt good, wrapped around hers. Their earlier
kiss had been dizzying, delicious. She needed to concentrate on
that, needed to focus on the way he made her feel.

He pushed through the door, nodding toward
the giant man who still stood guard at the front. The cool night
air fanned across her face, chilling her heated cheeks and she
shivered from the sudden breeze.

“Cold?” Nate pulled her closer, his arm
wrapping around her shoulders, his large hand cupping her
shoulder.

He made her feel small and protected. She
absorbed his warmth, loving the feel of him walking with her in
tandem, both of them anxious to get to his car.

“Thank you,” she murmured, suddenly a little
shy. Silly considering everything they had just experienced
together. At a
sex
club, for God’s sake.

They found his car in record time, the both
of them climbing into it eagerly after he hit the keyless lock.
Rubbing her hands together in the hope to warm them up, she turned
to watch him as he started the engine. He glanced up, his mouth
drawn into a tight line, as if he was about to tell her some grim
news.

Nerves gnawed at her gut. No way was he
going to change his mind. Would he?

“You’re coming home with me.”

Her mouth dropped open, shocked by his
commanding tone. Relief flooded through her. That was not what she
expected him to say. “Okay.”

“I’m not going to let you change your
mind.”

“I don’t plan on changing my mind.”

“That’s a good thing.”

With lightning quick movements, he was on
her, his arms wrapped around her waist, his mouth connecting with
hers. The kiss was intense, his lips nudging hers open, his tongue
silky and smooth as it moved against hers.

She felt overpowered, overwhelmed and oh,
God, she liked it. She slowly slid her hands around his neck,
moving up into his silky black hair. She stroked the back of his
head, the soft strands curling around her fingers.

Moaning against her mouth, his hands went
for her head as well, tugging at the stupid cheap wig until it
tumbled off and fell behind her and onto the floorboard.

“Ah, thank Christ,” he whispered, his
fingers threading through the ends of her hair. “Your hair is
beautiful.”

“My hair is a sweaty mess. That wig was
hot.” She sprinkled tiny kisses across his face, her lips brushing
against his bristly cheeks.

“It feels good. So soft. You feel good.” His
whispered words sent a delicious shiver down her spine.

His mouth captured hers once more, his hands
wandering all over her body, stroking her waist, the sides of her
breasts. His fingers curled around them, thumbs reaching to stroke
her nipples and she couldn’t contain the gasp that spilled at first
contact.

Nate became bolder with his every touch, and
she arched into his hands, into his mouth. Her skin was on fire,
her panties growing wetter and she clutched him close, wanting him
closer.

Breaking away first, he stared at her, his
breath coming in rapid bursts, much like hers. The car, the parking
lot was eerily quiet. The only sound their mingled ragged
breathing, the windows fogged with condensation generated by their
body heat.

Janelle wanted him, wanted this. Was ready
for him to take her back to his place, her place, wherever, so they
could spend the rest of the night in bed. Naked and tangled in the
sheets, exploring each other’s bodies…

“We let this continue, and I’m not sure if
I’ll be able to hold back,” he finally said, his voice hoarse.

“Me too,” she admitted, liking the fact that
she made him feel so out of control.

“I don’t want the first time I fuck you to
be in the back seat of my car.”

Moving away from her, he blew out a labored
breath, pushing his hair away from his forehead. He then put the
gear into reverse and looked over his shoulder, backing the car out
of its spot with ease.

“It would probably be uncomfortable.” Oh,
God she sounded so stupid.

She curled her hands into her lap, clutching
them tight. If she didn’t, she’d probably reach for him again, and
she didn’t want to attack him while he drove.

What if they got into an accident?

That thought made her giggle, she couldn’t
help it, and he noticed. “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing.” She shook her head, snapping her
seatbelt into place as he pulled out onto the street. “I feel
giddy.”

She probably shouldn’t have said that. What
if it made him uncomfortable? What if he thought she was
overreacting?

She probably was. This was nothing more than
a quick one off. A little bit of fun in the sack to ease the
tension of the situation the both of them were now involved in
together.

Who wouldn’t be horny for each other after
that experience in the club?

“You’re thinking too hard.” His deep voice
startled her from her thoughts. “You need to follow your own
advice.”

“What advice?” She had no idea what he was
talking about.

“What you told me earlier. Don’t think. Just
do it.”

He smiled, reaching out to rest his wide
palm against her bared thigh. Sure fingers stroked her skin and she
parted her legs, wishing he would stroke her in an even more
intimate place.

“Like Nike? Just do it?” Her body tensed in
anticipation, watching those long fingers crawl up her thigh.
Breath locked in her throat, she pressed her lips together,
waiting, hanging on the edge.

“Yeah, like Nike.” His voice had softened,
rumbling deep from his chest and her skin tingled at the sound.

Everything about him turned her on. From the
way he smelled to the way he sounded to the way he felt. And
especially the way he made
her
feel. Once she had him naked,
she might go into sensory overload.

She didn’t know if she’d be able to take
it.

And then his hand was gone, both of them
locked firmly around the steering wheel as he stared straight
ahead, driving with overly fierce concentration.

Janelle slumped in her seat, her drenched
sex clenching with need, her frustration mounting. The man had just
teased her unmercifully.

And heaven helped her she’d loved every
minute of it.

Nate’s condo was nice but sparsely
furnished. It looked like he didn’t spend a lot of time there.
Janelle had a feeling if she glanced in his refrigerator, it would
have a couple of beers, various condiments and maybe an old take
out box inside—and that was it.

“Yeah, it’s kind of a shit hole. I’m not
home often especially these last couple of months.” He stashed a
rumpled sweatshirt he found lying on the couch behind it, a
chagrined expression on his face. She found it endearing, his
trying to impress her with his place.

Really, she didn’t care. She was more
interested in heading straight for the bedroom and unwrapping what
was surely a delectable body hiding beneath his clothes.

“You’re a busy guy,” she said, walking
toward him slowly, clutching her hands into fists.

The overwhelming urge to reach out and touch
made her edgy.

“I guess I am. Sounds like you’re busy too,
though.” He stood stock still, his giant body tense and when she
reached him, she gave in to her urges.

Smoothing her hands over his broad
shoulders, she dug her fingers into the stiff muscles there,
marveling at the solid strength she felt beneath his soft sweater.
His hands immediately went to her waist, spanning it with splayed
fingers and she stepped closer.

“I am busy. I never take any time to indulge
myself.”

“Me either,” he murmured.

She pressed her face into the crook of his
neck, inhaled his spicy masculine scent. He relaxed beneath her
touch, his fingers slowly stroking her from waist to hips.