A Second Chance at Forever (3 page)

She arched a brow, one corner of her mouth quirking up. “Then why should I go out with
you
?”

He couldn’t help but smile. That was too easy. “Because I’m not like other men.”

She let out a low, throaty laugh. A sound he vowed to hear again. “Like I haven’t heard that before.”

He pulled a twenty from his pocket and waited until he had her undivided attention. Until that certain something caught and ignited between them before he slipped the bill into her bikini bottoms. It was an excuse to touch her, to watch her reaction.

He pulled his hand back with deliberate slowness, let his fingertips trail over the skin of her hip. He’d flat out violated the unspoken rules of stripper engagement. They both knew it, but the touch had the desired effect. A shiver ran through her that he felt clean down to his toes. A lazy, desirous heat flared in her eyes.

“Go out with me, Candy.”

She shook her head. “I appreciate the offer, Mr. McKinley, but—”

“Alex.”

She froze, stared at him for the span of a heartbeat, clearly taken off guard, before her body once again began to sway. “Alex.”

God he loved the way she said his name. Spoken low, throaty, and half-whispered, so that he swore he could feel her breath on his neck as she moaned it in his ear…

He tossed her a playful grin. “I’ve seen your nipples up close and personal. I think we can do away with formalities.”

That got a genuine smile out of her, one that lit up her whole face. Triumph surged in his chest. “I promise I don’t bite.” He winked at her.

That earned him another throaty laugh.

Then she bent over him, hands braced on his thighs, her luscious mouth inches from his. The heat of her palms singed his skin even through his jeans. Her warm breaths puffed against his lips as she stared him dead in the eye. “What if I do?”

God almighty.

If he didn’t get away from her soon, he was going to do something that would earn him a well deserved slap across the face.

He needed a stiff drink.

Bracing his hands on the arms of the chair, he rose to his feet, forcing her to straighten along with him. Her entire front pressed against his, belly to belly, her breasts brushing his chest. She was tall for a woman. In her heels, she all but matched his six foot two, which settled their hips together perfectly. He held no doubt she could feel how aroused she’d made him.

She stared at him, a tremble running through her, her eyes slipping to half mast, sultry and filled with unrestrained desire. She made no move to step away, however. It took all of his willpower not to touch her, not to grab her hips and pull her closer. It didn’t help matters any when her gaze dropped to his mouth and seemed to fasten there for a moment. Or when her pink tongue darted out and slid along her lips. Lips he was dying to taste.

“Should you change your mind”—he told her, fisting his hands at his sides—“you have my number.” Then he stepped around her.

He only got two steps away, however, when her soft voice called to him. “Actually I don’t. I seem to have misplaced it.”

He swallowed a groan. How was it possible to be this aroused and not spontaneously combust?

He turned back to her, pulled his wallet from his back pocket, and extracted a business card, then slipped it into the waistband of her bikini bottoms. “Feel free to call at any hour. I doubt I’ll be getting much sleep tonight.”

Summoning willpower, he turned and headed for the bar. He had no doubt he wouldn’t be sleeping tonight. No, it would be cold showers for him.

Chapter Two

What was she doing?

Seated behind the wheel of her car in the Diamond’s parking lot, Angela’s hands trembled as she punched the last number into her cell phone’s lighted display and hit the
CALL
button. She was playing with fire, but Lord help her, she couldn’t resist. She only wanted to hear Alex’s voice, to see what he’d say when he heard hers, see where the conversation would lead them.

Excitement zipped along her nerve endings. There had been something real and irresistible between her and Alex at the club tonight. For the first time in a long time, a man had seemed to see
her
. Right or wrong, she couldn’t resist.

As the first ring shrilled over the line, her heartbeat tripled in cold blind panic. She ran her trembling thumb over the
END
button. This was insane. She shouldn’t be doing this. She should hang up right now, call him tomorrow and tell him the truth. Tell him—

“Alex McKinley.”

The sound of his voice, deep, husky and relaxed, wound around her, settling into the pit of her stomach. “Did I wake you?”

He made a sound at the back of his throat, a sound of pleasure that teased her senses and provoked visions of the two of them together in the dark. “Candy. You actually called.”

She let her head fall back against the headrest. “How’d you know it was me?”

“Because the sound of your voice has been haunting me for hours.”

Her stomach tumbled. She bit her lower lip, unable to help the grin that spread across her mouth. He’d been thinking about her too. “Were you sleeping?”

The question had the image rising in her mind of him lying in a king sized bed, sheets draped low over his hips, his chest bare. Did he sleep in the nude? She was tempted to ask.

“In bed, but not asleep. I’m afraid a cold shower didn’t do me a damn bit of good.”

She could hear the amusement in his voice, imagined the wicked grin that went along with his tormenting words. No sooner had he said it, however, than the image rose in her mind, of him in the shower, the water running over his naked body…

Angela swallowed a groan, forced herself to focus on something else, before she invited herself into that shower with him. “You sounded surprised to hear from me. Why?”

His quiet chuckle echoed across the line, warm, rich and infectious. “You must get a million guys wanting your phone number. I figured it was just a game.”

That he was honest enough to admit it somehow only added to his appeal. She couldn’t resist telling him, “It was, and I’m playing. I told you I was tempted.”

“Mm.” Another murmur of delicious pleasure echoed along the line. “That you did. By what?”

His eyes, as he’d stared up at her only hours before, flared to life in her mind. She saw again the wickedness that flashed there when he ran his fingertips over her skin, felt the desire all over again that had raked through her.

Instead, teasing him, she said, “You made me laugh.”

If she remembered correctly, he’d pulled a chuckle out of her several times. Downright sexy. There was something to be said about a man who liked to laugh, who didn’t take himself too seriously.

“It wasn’t laughter I was aiming for, sweetheart.”

She swallowed a groan. If she closed her eyes she could still feel his body against hers when he’d risen out of his seat at the club tonight. So solid against the softness of hers, his arousal pressing into her hip.

“Tell me something,” he said, “did you call just to torment me, or did you have a reason?”

Even though she knew she ought to, she couldn’t stop herself from asking, “
Do
I torment you?” The words left her mouth with far less bravado then she’d intended, on a needy whisper that laid all her cards on the table. She bit her lower lip as she waited for his answer.

“You have no idea.” The unrestrained need in his voice sizzled along her nerve endings. Like earlier, her body reacted, echoed that need. Desire pooled low in her belly, making her ache.

Now she knew why she’d called him. She had to see him. Just one more time.

“Do you like to dance, A-Alex?” Catching herself, Angela bit her bottom lip. She would have to be careful. It was hard to remember to call him Alex. She kept finding herself wanting to still call him A.J., the way she always had growing up. God help her the day she forgot. She didn’t want to know what looks would cross his features when he found out who she was. That she was Angie Lewis, his best friend’s little sister.

For the space of a heartbeat, she was that fifteen-year-old girl all over again, standing on the front porch of her mother’s house, making a bold pass at her brother’s best friend. Watching the surprise light in his eyes as he’d pushed her away, then hearing the nervous laughter bubble out of him.
“What are you doing, Angie?”

“I did a bit of club hopping in my college days, does that count?” Alex asked.

Shaking off the memory, she forced herself to refocus on the here and now. She wasn’t fifteen anymore. She wore contacts, not glasses. She’d also grown up, dammit. Alex wanted Candy, and Candy… wanted Alex. For one weekend, she’d give them what they both craved.

“The Arctic club on the strip is having salsa night. I usually go with a friend, but she’s busy tonight. Would you care to go with me?” She and Stacy went every Saturday night. Stacy went to flirt with the men. Angela just loved to dance. Tonight, Stacy’s four-year-old son, Lucas, had turned up sick.

“I’m afraid that’s one you’ll have to teach me, but I’m game if you are.”

“I can do that.” She looked forward to it. More than she could tell him. “Meet me there, at the bar.”

“I can be there in twenty minutes. See you soon, Candy.”

There was something provocative and promising about the way he said her name that sent pops of pure electric pleasure licking along her veins.

“See you soon, Alex.”

****

Barely contained excitement continued to bubble in Angela’s stomach all the way to the Arctic. As she sat at the bar waiting for Alex to arrive, she could hardly restrain herself. A live band played on the small stage, filling the room with upbeat Latin music that had her dancing along in her seat. Bodies packed into the small lounge. The connected dance floor crowded with people shimmying to the music. Low and intimate, the lights cast shadows around the room.

“You look very different with clothes on. I almost didn’t recognize you.”

At the sound of Alex’s voice, Angela turned on the barstool to face him. He stood with his hands tucked into his pockets, a wicked grin playing at the corners of his mouth.

He looked fantastic, dressed in a simple pair of black trousers and a white dress shirt, the sleeves rolled up to just below the elbow, showing off muscular forearms. The way the top buttons of his shirt laid open grabbed her attention. The gap in the fabric allowed her a delicious peek at a triangular patch of tanned skin. The small tuft of dark curly hair there had her fingers itching to sift through it.

“I do occasionally like to wear clothing,” she said, pulling her gaze to his.

“The fun is in taking it off, I think.” A potent combination of mischief and barely restrained desire danced in his dark eyes. It made her remember the boy he’d been once and how different he was from the man he’d become. He’d always been mischievous growing up. Now, somehow, she found that rebellious side of him more alluring. He’d grown a lot over the last twenty years, more mature, no longer the boy she remembered but a man. That maturity added attractiveness she found irresistible.

She couldn’t contain the grin that twitched at the corners of her mouth. “Are you always this cocky, Alex?”

He tipped his head back and laughed, light, open and honest, then sank onto the stool beside her. His knees brushed her leg as he turned toward her. “Only when I drink. I’ve had a few tonight. Don’t hold it against me.”

She smiled. “Enjoying your vacation?”

“Immensely.” Settling his gaze on hers in a way that sent desire slipping through her belly, he leaned his elbow on the bar. “I must admit I’m also a bit more frank with you because you rise to the occasion. I find that very sexy in a woman.”

She cocked an eyebrow, unable to resist. “You like feisty women?”

“No. I like smart, confident women. You can hold your own. That’s incredibly attractive.”

Delight fizzled in her tummy like tiny champagne bubbles, that sense of power surging through her. He hadn’t said he’d found her body attractive, though he’d hinted at it. No, he told her in so many words that he’d seen
her
beneath Candy.
That
made her positively giddy.

The music changed, an upbeat salsa rhythm pulsing through the club. Angela’s adrenaline kicked in. Her legs itched to move to the beat. She stood and held out her hand. “Dance with me, Alex.”

His palm was warm and smooth as he slipped his hand into hers. As he rose to his feet, however, he didn’t immediately follow. Rather, he stopped where he stood, his gaze locked on hers. “You look very beautiful, by the way.”

The way he said it, low and husky but softly honest, set her blood to blazing. She’d chosen to wear her black halter dress tonight because she loved the flare of the skirt, the way it floated around her thighs when she moved. Combined with the heels she had on, the dress also made her legs look longer. Stacy had taught her how to accentuate the positive by adding the right touches. Suddenly she was glad she’d listened to her friend.

Alex took a step toward her, closing the space between them. “I believe I like you better with clothes on.”

“Why’s that?” The provocative edge in his tone told her he had a reason. She was dying to know, if only to hear him say the words.

“Because then I get to imagine taking them
off
of you.”

The clear suggestion made her tremble. She turned toward him, allowed her body to press lightly against his. Felt rather than heard his subtle intake of breath, and watched a flame spark in his eyes. One corner of his mouth curled in pleasure. All things that told her she wasn’t the only one affected by the play between them. “Like that, do you?”

“I find it highly erotic.” His warm palm slid over her lower back, where the open design of the dress left her skin bare. He tugged her the slightest bit closer, only enough that she could feel how aroused he was.