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Jamie hadn’t been paying attention to the other one and when he turned back she was on the stool next to him with her skirt riding up high.
Looking amused as hell, Rhys said, “Max and I need to talk about the big opening tomorrow before I head home. Have fun....” Jamie heard him laughing over the loud music as he walked away.
Jamie looked at Ryan, who was now completely holding up the swaying blonde. Then he spotted something over Ryan’s shoulder and immediately stiffened.
Near the entrance of the bar stood the club’s owner, a guy named Rick who Jamie had met once. He was a friend of both the Dalton brothers. Standing next to him with her arm around his waist, wearing the hottest little red dress on the planet, was Lucy.
“Excuse me,” he said. He took a step forward only to feel the brunette’s hand on his arm. One strap of her dress had fallen off her shoulder and her heavy right breast was threatening to escape the confines of her top. When Jamie looked back up, Lucy was looking right at them. Gently, he pulled himself free of the other woman’s grasp, leaving Ryan to contend with her and her friend. He immediately headed over to where Lucy stood.
“Hi,” he said.
Lucy smiled but her eyes were still on the two girls at the bar. “A little young for you, don’t you think?”
“A little young for anyone here. The blonde is wasted and trying to get Ryan to buy her more alcohol. I think she needs a warm glass of milk and a bedtime story instead.”
Lucy’s lips twitched.
“How are you, Luce?” he asked gently.
A shadow flickered in her gaze before she said, “I’m good. The funeral was really nice. I-I didn’t get to meet Milly, my niece, but I’m hoping that’ll change. That her aunt, Mason’s sister, will let me visit soon. I’ve called several times and asked to see her, but –”
Rick interrupted. “Great seeing you, Jamie,” he said. “Lucy, I’ll see you backstage in five.”
As the man walked away, Jamie asked, “Backstage?”
Lucy’s grin grew wider but it appeared strained. “Yep. Open Strip Night’s about to begin.”
And she was going to…what? Strip? “You can’t be serious.”
She frowned. “Why wouldn’t I be? I’ve never stripped for an audience before. I think it’ll be fun.”
Fuck, he thought, his fists clenching. He couldn’t deny the idea of Lucy stripping for him would be hot. But the idea of her stripping in public…especially tonight’s public…
“Is this some kind of joke? Did you know I’m here with my friends?”
“Melina mentioned it…”
“So are you doing this to prove a point?”
“What kind of point?”
“That I don’t have any hold on you.”
When her eyes flickered, Jamie sucked in a breath. She was doing it to make a point. Maybe it wasn’t her entire motivation, but it was at least part of it. So what the hell did that mean? That she had something to prove to him? Or to herself?
“We both know you don’t have any hold on me, Jamie. You’re just a friend who helped me out when I needed you. Now, if you’ll excuse me…”
Jamie wanted to grab her arm and drag her outside. Push her up against the wall and kiss her—no, fuck her—until she admitted she cared about him and was deliberately trying to push him away. Until she begged him for release and another chance to be in his life.
Instead, he watched her walk away.
* * *
Several minutes later, Lucy stood back stage with her heart pounding so hard and so loud she suspected everyone else in the room must be able to hear it as well.
A couple of years ago, she’d used an article from the Huffington Post to get her students started on a debate. The question posed by the article was whether or not stripping empowered women. Her class ended up divided on the issue, with about half believing it did empower women, while the other half felt it was degrading.
Lucy’s opinion was it could be either one. In situations where women were powerless or abused, of course it could be degrading. But here in her friend’s club, where Lucy was choosing to bare her body for a crowd of men out to have a good time…well, the thought of stripping definitely made her feel empowered.
