Free Strip Tease by Karen Erickson Page B

of vision.
    “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