Move (Club Kitten Dancers Book 1) (3 page)

The competition showcases the talents of girls at every level. She thinks I should try out for the level one talent showcase. Try-outs will be intense, though, I don’t know if I’m ready. I don’t know if I have what it takes. I think I’m as good as some of the other girls, but I don’t know if I’d want to dance in front of a group of people.

Dancing in front of my friends is one thing, but a crowd of people?

I’m not so sure about that.

The competition takes place at one of the local dance clubs. They’ll clear the club out, add some removable poles, and let the dancers do their thing. I watched a video online from last year’s performance and it was insanely amazing. I know it’s important to start planning your moves early so you’ll have months upon months to perfect your routine, but still…

I don’t know if I’m cut out for performing.

“I have to go to work,” Kasey says, pushing the carrots away. She hops up, grabs her keys, and wiggles her fingers. “See you later, cutie.”

Once she’s gone, I walk around the house for half an hour doing nothing. I’m stuck. I’m bored. I’m in such a rut that I don’t know how to get out. Dancing makes me happy, but not much else does these days. Maybe I should try out for the Darling Dancers performance.

Maybe that would make me smile.

Finally, it’s time for work, so I take off, ready to make coffee for the thirsty people of Whiskee, Colorado.

Duty calls.

Cooper

I can’t stop thinking about the coffee shop girl.

It’s so stupid.

She’s the cutest damn thing I’ve ever seen and all I want to do is call her, kiss her, and make her promise to be mine.

But I can’t do that.

It’s not fair to either one of us. I thought I’d be at Forrest AFB for awhile. When I got stationed here, I thought I’d have a few years here, at least. Three years is more than enough time to meet a girl, have some adventures, and maybe settle down. It’s definitely enough time to get to know someone. It’s definitely enough time to date Bailey.

Only, the day after I asked for Bailey’s number, the Air Force threw a huge wrench in my plans.

I’m deploying.

Not in six months or in a year. No, that would be too convenient. Nope, I’m deploying at the end of next month and I have no idea how long I’ll be gone for. It could be weeks or it could be months. I won’t have regular access to a computer or a phone. I won’t even be able to tell anyone where I’m going. I’ll just be gone.

And that’s the life of an airman.

I try not to think too much about it. This is what I signed up for, after all. Still, it irks me that I can’t honestly pursue something with her right now. She just seems so damn perfect.

“Dude,” James’ voice brings me back to the present. “You need to calm down. You’re salivating.”

I don’t bother saying anything back. He’s right. I talked his ear off about the cute coffee shop girl and he told me to text her, but I didn’t.

I couldn’t.

Not after that news.

She deserves better than me.

“I’m thirsty,” I finally say. We’re sitting at our desks, but our shift ended half an hour ago. We’re just waiting on one more person from the next shift to arrive before we’re clear to leave, and I see her heading toward us.

“Hampton’s here,” he says, jerking his head in her direction. “Why don’t we get a cup of coffee?”

“Did I miss the party?” Airman Hampton says, hurrying into the office. Neither one of us says anything. She’s perpetually late and it’s annoying as hell. She glances at the clock, then back at us and shrugs. “Sorry,” she mumbles.

Jason and I get up and grab our stuff, then head outside. We take my car and head over to Drinks on Me. Even if I can’t ask her out, even if it wouldn’t be fair, I want to see Bailey. I want to talk to her. I want to have a cup of coffee and tell her how damn cool I think she is.

“Why do you like this place so much, anyway?” He asks as we pull into the parking lot. “I mean, I know your dream girl works here, but what else?”

I don’t say a word as we get out of the car and he looks around the parking lot. Drinks on Me is right ahead of us, and to the left is a two-story brick building with “Club Kitten” scrawled on the front in black cursive.

“What the hell?” He asks, staring at it. A couple of young women wearing tank tops and leggings are walking out of the building laughing. “Is that a strip club? Next to a coffee shop?”

“Don’t be stupid. It’s a pole dancing club. It’s not the same thing.”

“How is it not the same thing?” He asks as we walk into the coffee shop.

“Strippers do it for money. Pole dancers pay to do it,” the woman of my dreams answers his question when we step inside. The shop is completely empty, save for us.

“Well, hello,” Jason says with a smile, and I punch him in the arm.

“Hey, stranger,” I swagger up to the counter.

“Mocha?” She asks, ringing it up. She bites her bottom lip, but doesn’t make eye contact.

“And a scone,” I say, handing her my money. My hands linger on hers for just a moment, and then she does it.

Then she looks at me.

And she stops biting her bottom lip.

And she smiles.

“You’re friendly today,” she murmurs, but doesn’t move her hand. I don’t move mine either. We’re at some sort of weird touching stand-off where neither one of us wants to move first.

“Fuck her or I’m going to,” Jason suddenly stage whispers next to me, and Bailey drops the money on the counter. Her mouth forms a tiny “o” and she looks shocked. Fucking airmen. We don’t think twice about the type of language we use while we’re hanging out. I always forget it’s different around civilians. Things aren’t as crass in the real world as they are in ours.

“Sorry about my friend,” I say, cringing.

“Don’t be,” she says, to my surprise. “I was kind of thinking the same thing.”

“What?” I manage to squeeze out.

She leans across the counter, reaches for my shirt, and pulls me close to her.

“I was thinking I wish you would fuck me or let your friend do it,” she says. Her lips are so close to mine I can smell her cherry lip gloss.

“What time do you get off work?” I ask.

“Eleven.”

“Meet me outside.”

“Fine.”

She releases me then and smiles. It’s a satisfied, smug, full-of-herself smile and I love it. My heart is racing a million beats per minute, but I love it.

What the hell just happened here?

Seriously, if this isn’t love, I don’t know what is. I’ve been with a few girls before, but none of them were anything like her. None of them were so forward, so blunt, so honest about what they wanted.

I can’t help but wonder what’s going to happen when she gets off work. Part of me thinks there’s no way in hell she’s serious, but there’s something mischievous in her eyes and I want to find out what.

We wait for our coffee in silence, then Jason and I take our drinks and leave.

“Um, so I guess you should take me back to my car,” he offers helpfully.

I just laugh.

“Yeah. I guess I should.”

***

I’m leaning against my car smoking when she comes out.

“Those are bad for you,” Bailey plucks the cigarette from my hand and tosses it to the ground. Before I can protest, she pushes me against the car and presses her lips to mine.

Oh, fuck yeah. It’s
on
.

For someone who’s being completely aggressive, she kisses me softly, almost tentatively. Suddenly, I get the feeling she doesn’t have a lot of sexual experience, but we’re going to change all of that.

I flip us so her back is against the car and I’m the one kissing her, and Bailey moans.

“Are you always this excitable, spitfire?” I ask.

She giggles. She fucking giggles in the middle of the kiss and it’s the best damn sound I’ve ever heard.

“You might say it’s been a crazy week,” she whispers, and I kiss her more.

Finally, I pull back and just look at her. She’s got light brown hair that falls past her shoulders and these bright, beautiful eyes that are practically glowing in the moonlight.

“Where should we go?” I ask her.

Bailey shrugs and looks around. The parking lot is deserted. It’s just the two of us and a couple of parking lot lamps.

“I live on base,” I tell her. “In the dorms,” I add with a cringe. It’s not my first choice, but it’s required until I get promoted. All the young single kids have to live in the dorms whether we like it or not.

“My apartment is close. Drive me?”

“Of course.”

We get in the car and Bailey places her hand on my leg. She gives me directions and talks about herself as we drive over.

“I have a roommate, but she’s out tonight with some guy. She won’t be back until late.”

“How long have you guys lived together?”

“All year. Her old roomie left and she needed someone to split the rent with.”

“Nice of you.”

“I’m a nice girl. What did you say your name was again?”

“Cooper.”

“First or last?”

“First. Last is Lance.”

“Your name is Cooper Lance?”

“The only one I have, ma’am.”

“That’s a horrible name.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Bailey peeks over at me.

“Are you always so polite with girls you’re taking home?”

“Can’t say I take many girls home, but I do try to be nice.”

“My mom would love you.”

“I can’t wait to meet her.”

“No way. She’ll try to steal you away.”

“Is that so?” Now it’s my turn to raise an eyebrow, and Bailey rolls her eyes.

“Something like that.”

“Sounds like you’ve had experience with this before.”

“You don’t want to know. Turn left here.”

Bailey

“Do you want a drink?”

Cooper is standing awkwardly in the middle of my living room and I’m wondering, not for the first time, if this is a horrible idea.

I’ve never been so forward with a guy before, but I’ve been pining over Cooper for days. I didn’t expect him to just appear at my job, but he did. He just walked in like he owned and the place and I was filled with need, with desire.

I realized it was now or never and I wanted – needed – to take that chance.

I’ve spent a lot of my life being the good girl, but I’m ready to move past that, now. I’m ready to be a little wild, a little reckless, and a little free.

I’m ready to move.

“I don’t need one,” he says to my surprise. I saw him smoking outside, and while I didn’t really mind, I wanted to get the cigarette out of the way so I could start kissing him.

I needed to kiss him.

The idea that he doesn’t drink when I know he’s a smoker is strange to me. Don’t those usually go hand-in-hand? I’m not much of a smoker unless I’m drinking. Then all bets are off. Kasey keeps a pack of cigarettes in the freezer for the nights when I’m super drunk and just need to smoke
something
.

But Cooper is different.

There’s something about him.

Finishing my shift without getting myself off was hell. There were a few times I almost went into the bathroom and touched myself, but somehow, I managed to have a little bit of self-control.

Somehow.

“Are you sure?” I ask awkwardly, standing in the entryway to the kitchen.

“I think we both know why I’m here, Bailey.”

“I think that’s true.” Only my breath has kind of caught in my throat and I’m hoping he’ll kiss me again so I don’t have to keep trying to find things to talk about.

“Tell me,” he strides across the room and invades my space, standing so close to me we’re practically touching, but not quite.

“Tell you what?”

“Tell me what you want from me.”

“Why?”

“I want to hear you say it.”

He wants to hear me say it? Well, Brave Bailey is here. I’m not going to back down now. He wants me to be forward? I can be forward.

I take a deep breath.

“I want you, Cooper. I’ve been thinking about you all week. When you didn’t call or text…I thought I wouldn’t see you again.” I’m embarrassed at how needy my voice sounds suddenly, but then something flashes in his eyes.

Pain?

Anxiety?

Regret?

It’s gone before I know what it was, so I try not to worry. Then he’s kissing me, and all rational thoughts float away. Cooper swipes his tongue across my lips slowly, passionately, making me forget, just for a moment, about everything but him.

My hands yank at his clothes, pulling off his shirt. I feel his hard chest beneath my hands. There’s a little patch of hair on his chest and I groan when I feel it. I love the way he’s so masculine.

He’s everything Dominic was not.

Pushing the comparison from my head, I focus on yanking my own shirt off. Now it’s Cooper’s turn to groan.

“Baby,” he murmurs, cupping my breasts. “You weren’t wearing a bra?”

“I might have taken it off before I clocked out,” I confess. “It’s tucked in my purse.”

“Why?”

“To see the look on your face.”

“You have amazing breasts. You’re beautiful.”

“You’re not so bad yourself.”

He picks me up then, acting like I weight nothing at all, which makes me feel a little bit like a pixie. He carries me down the hall.

“Which room?” He grunts.

“Left,” I murmur, and I kiss his neck more, biting and nipping at him. Cooper brings me into my room and fumbles for the light switch. “Just leave it off,” I say, and he chuckles.

“Not a chance. I want to see all of you.”

He drops me on my bed and pulls my black stretchy pants and panties down in one swoop. Then Cooper pushes my knees apart and leans forward, biting me on the thigh. Usually, I’m pretty ticklish there, but not this time. Not with him.

“Tell me what you want, Bailey,” he looks up at me. He’s not going to make this easy. He’s going to make me ask, beg. He’s going to make me tell him exactly what I want. Is it my imagination, or do his eyes hold a little bit of a challenge?

If that’s his game, I’m more than willing to play. Tonight, I’ve stepped out of my comfort zone more than I usually would. I’m never this aggressive with me, but I don’t care. I want him. All of him.

“Lick my pussy, Cooper,” I say, watching him. “Make me come for you.”

“Of course,” he leans forward and begins licking my center. I drop back on my elbows and he pushes my legs further apart, straining my muscles. It’s a good pain, though. It’s an erotic pain.

I’ve never come from this before. Not that Dominic was ever willing to give it a try, of course, but I’ve slept with a couple of guys who tried to make me come using only their tongues. It never worked and they always gave up pretty quickly, happy when I told them they didn’t have to.

Only, something tells me that offering to let Cooper take a free pass on this one isn’t going to work well. He’s taking his time, eating me up like I’m the most savory treat he’s ever touched.

Cooper bites each of my lips, slowly nibbling my skin up and down, then goes back to stroking me. He alternates slow and fast and brings me closer, closer, closer.

“I love eating your sweet pussy, Bailey,” he says, licking me. “You’re so fucking wet for me.”

“I’ve never…I’ve never come like this,” I admit, but the truth is that I want to. I’m getting so close. I just need a little bit more.

“All that’s about to change, Bailey. I’m not stopping until you’re coming on my face.” He slides a finger inside of me, then another, and strokes me quickly from the inside. I bite my lip, groaning, wiggling, but Cooper holds me tightly in place.

If his hands weren’t so tight on my legs, I might fly away.

I’m so close I can taste it.

“Come for me, Bailey,” he whispers the words and slides his tongue back onto me, focusing solely on my clit.

Then I explode.

I see stars and fireworks and everything goes black for just a moment. I cry out, then slowly, slowly, reality begins to return.

I sit up and look down at Cooper, who has a huge grin on his face.

“You’re so fucking sexy,” he says, then he pulls me down onto his lap and we’re both sitting on the floor. I’m straddling him, completely naked, but he still has his pants on.

“I feel the same way about you,” I murmur, kissing him. I taste myself on his lips, taste my body against his tongue. I can understand why he liked it so much. I’ve never done this before. I’ve never tasted my pussy like this. Guys in the past always avoided kissing me after they went down on me, but Cooper has no such qualms.

He just kisses me like it’s the most natural thing in the world, kisses me like he has all the time we could ever ask for, kisses me like I’m delicious.

And I kiss him back because no one has ever made me feel the way Cooper is making me come alive right now.

I want to show him how I feel, I want to show him how grateful I am for what he just offered. I’m not the most experienced partner in the world, but there is something I’m really good at: dancing.

That’s when it comes to me: I’ll give him a lap dance, then I’ll ride him.

“Sit in the chair,” I point to my plain desk chair. He looks confused, but I hurry to grab my phone and when I come back, he’s done as I asked. He’s still wearing his jeans, but I’ll take care of that later. I hit “start” on my “dance all night” playlist, and as I start to move, his eyes begin to get bigger.

Cooper Lance is in for the best night of his life.

And he has no idea just how good I really am.