Along Came Us (Man Enough)

by Nicole McLaughlin

  When she turned around, he was standing there, hands in his pocket, watching her.

  “Thanks for waiting. I’m all good.”

  He nodded but didn’t walk away. “You thinking about dancing?”

  Lia’s mouth dropped open, then snapped shut. “Sammy tell you that?”

  “Not entirely. I was just . . . watching you guys talk. I asked her and she didn’t exactly say no. In her defense, she did tell me to mind my own fucking business. To quote her exactly.”

  “Well, maybe you should have listened,” Lia said, but she gave him a weak smile. Elliott was her friend even though she knew he wanted more.

  “So, you are thinking about it?”

  “Maybe. Is that so bad?”

  He shrugged. “Not up to me.”

  “No. I wasn’t asking for your blessing. I was just asking for your thoughts. You’re my friend.”

  He looked down at the gravel and kicked a rock with his boot. A long sigh escaped his lips. “We’re always just going to be friends, aren’t we?”

  “Elliott . . .” It was the first time he’d truly put her on the spot like this about the two of them. “You know I like you.”

  He huffed out a laugh. Then another long sigh. “Do you need the money you’d make stripping?”

  She considered his question. Could she make ends meet without it? She wasn’t sure. There was still graduation at the end of this semester, and no matter what she still intended to try and get the best job she could. But there was little chance that an entry-level position would make her anything close to the kind of money Sammy was talking about.

  “I do need the money. But I still don’t know if I could do it.”

  He just nodded. “Well, go on and get in your car. Lock the door.”

  “Thanks for waiting,” Lia said.

  “Always.”

  She put one leg in and then stopped. “Elliott. How would you feel if you found out a woman you were seeing was a stripper?”

  He shoved his hands in his pockets and sighed before finally answering. “I’d probably lose my fucking mind.”

  That’s what she was afraid of. “Good night.” She gave him a half wave, suddenly wanting to be alone.

  “Good night, Lia.” He waited until she was in her car with the door locked. And as she usually did, she turned on her headlights and watched as he got in his truck. Just because he was a man didn’t mean he was immune to crazy things happening. They pulled out of the lot at the same time, he turned left, she headed right toward the highway.

  Merging onto I-70, she let out a breath of relief. All night as thoughts had been swirling through her head, she’d been forcing herself not to consider the bigger question. How could she even consider dancing if she ever expected things to move forward with Tyler? She’d have to tell him.

  Nothing about him made her believe his opinion on the matter would be any different than Elliott’s. And she didn’t really think she even wanted it to. What kind of man wanted his partner taking off her clothes for other men? It was absurd.

  Yet here she was considering it because she was so desperate. And now that Sammy had put the thought firmly in her head, Lia couldn’t stop thinking about it. It seemed so easy. She could find another job, maybe work her way up for a year, and just dance a few times a month.

  God, if her brother ever found out she would just die.

  And if Tyler found out? Well, maybe this was just a sign that right now was not the time for her to be in a relationship. She hadn’t seen him since the night he brought pizza because he’d gone out of town. Between her busy work schedule, school, and his own job, they’d only talked on the phone recently. He’d also mentioned having drills this weekend, which meant even more time apart.

  She sighed. Hating the thoughts swirling in her head. There were too many variables. Too many reasons why she should just focus on the original task at hand. Giving her and Caleb a better life than they’d had up until now. Her big goals, which she had admittedly put on the back burner the past couple weeks. Ever since she’d met Tyler. As much as her heart ached to consider what that meant, Lia knew her family came first. Even the ones who didn’t deserve it.

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Tyler stared up at the canvas covering the back of the cargo truck he and the rest of the men in his unit were riding in. The truck bumped over rough terrain, rattling all the shit around them. He grabbed a hold of his M240 and secured it by his side so it didn’t slide away from him.

  It was late Sunday, and they were finally done. Training today had been exhausting. He was infantry, and although that was usually grueling, today was even more so because they’d been in the field for seven hours. Same as the day before. As sore as he was, this weekend especially, he’d welcomed the excuse to crawl around a forest, run in and out of buildings, and light some shit up. There was just something about shooting an assault rifle that took your mind off your problems for a bit.

  His current problem being the fact that he could feel Lia was pulling away from him. They hadn’t seen each other since that night at her house, and although they’d talked on the phone a few times, the past few days she’d been avoiding his calls and replying to his texts with vague responses.

  He’d started this weekend confused; now he was just pissed. If he hadn’t had drills and his buddies to hang out with on Friday, he’d have marched his ass over to her place. Maybe. He’d also considered Caleb, and the last thing he wanted was for the kid to witness him confront his sister. He kept trying to tell himself that maybe she was preoccupied with school—which had been one of her excuses for letting him go Friday morning when he tried to talk to her on the phone. But he wasn’t really buying it.

  The busy weekend had offered him a distraction, but as they drove the thirty minutes back to base, he realized work was now over and he’d have to go back to thinking about Lia full time. He needed to decide his next plan of action because he wasn’t going to just lay low while she did her thing. They’d come to damn far. An explanation was necessary.

  “Holy fucking shit, McNeil. Did you just shit your pants?” One of the guys yelled from the front of the truck bed.

  There were eight of them packed into the back of the cargo truck. Nothing new, but they were all irritable, tired, and ready to get home.

  “Oh damn, dude. That is some foul shit,” Peterson piped up. Chuckles erupted from several of the men. Sometimes they were like a pack of unruly children.

  “You can hardly blame me after those damn sloppy joes we had for lunch.” McNeil followed up his defense by letting off another offensive sound. The smell quickly following.

  Tyler jerked up into a sitting position. “Goddamn, McNeil,” he yelled over the commotion. “I’m gonna pick your ass up and throw you off the back of this truck if you do that again.”

  “You know he can, too,” Peterson teased.

  McNeil just laughed.

  Settling back against the uncomfortable case of supplies he’d been leaning on, Tyler looked over at his friend Aiden, who was shaking his head.

  “What are you laughing at?” Tyler asked, wiping at his cold nose. For early October, the air held quite a chill. Probably the coldest day yet so far. It hadn’t helped that he’d fallen in a creek at some point. His uniform didn’t feel wet anymore but the cold seemed to have seeped into his body.

  “Just you being all grouchy over there.” Aiden cracked his knuckles, a bad habit he seemed unable to break.

  “I’m not being grouchy.”

  “Mmm hmm. Reeve told me about the girl you been seeing. Everything okay?”

  Tyler met Aiden’s eyes. “Reeve has a big-ass mouth too.”

  “You would have told me eventually,” Aiden said.

  He was right. Tyler would have, but that didn’t change the fact that Reeve should have kept his trap shut.

  Aiden, Reeve, and Jase were some of Tyler’s closest friends. Not only in the Guard, but in general. If one of them needed something, they knew the other three wo
uld do whatever needed to be done. It was only a bonus that they got to spend drill weekends together.

  Not the entire time, of course, since they didn’t all have the same job. Reeve was Intelligence, Jase and Tyler were Infantry, and Aiden was Special Forces, a sniper. They’d all seen and done some shit, but Aiden was so badass the rest of them weren’t even classified to know about all the things he’d seen and done. And all of them knew better than to push the guy. He was the most steadfast and loyal human Tyler had ever known. He was also like a big, scary, impenetrable brick wall. Who could also be a big teddy bear. After active duty, he’d moved farther east and opened a bar in Preston, Missouri, just outside of Kanas City. They’d all been to visit him a couple of times.

  “You’ll feel better tonight after a few beers,” Aiden said.

  “Yeah maybe.” Tyler felt a little better at the thought of seeing his friend, Mark. He hadn’t hung out with him since last year’s birthday celebration.

  “Know where we’re going?” Tyler asked. “I never found out.”

  Aiden shook his head. “No clue. But knowing Jase, it will involve something ridiculous mixed with alcohol.”

  When the truck finally stopped, Tyler was the first to bail out the back. He picked up his bag and weapon, and as soon as he headed for the barracks he saw Reeve and Jase. The two of them had already showered and were all civilianed up.

  “You two need to hurry,” Jase said to Tyler and Aiden. “We’re ready to bail.”

  “I’m gonna need about thirty. I’ve got some paperwork to turn in.” Tyler hoisted his bag up on his shoulder.

  “Alright. Hurry, though. Why don’t we head over to Mark’s hotel to get him and then we can swing back by to get you two.”

  “Tyler and I can just meet you since we drove out here together,” Aiden suggested.

  Tyler figured that was a good idea. No reason for multiple trips.

  “I guess that’s fine,” Reeve said.

  “Where exactly we going?” Tyler asked.

  Reeve and Jase glanced at each other, sharing a look of concern. “Listen. Caitlyn and Mark broke up last week.”

  “What the hell?” Tyler asked, his brow furrowing. Mark and Caitlyn had been together for at least three years.

  “She cheated.” Jase looked furious as he said it, and Tyler heard Aiden mutter a curse. The big guy had little patience for that kind of injustice, especially when it hurt his friends. “He’s kind of having a hard time right now, things still being so raw.”

  “No shit. I bet,” Tyler said. “So, what’s the plan?”

  “Well . . .” Jase looked hesitant. “I had this idea to cheer him up. See, he’s also turning thirty.”

  “The hell does that have to do with anything? Turning thirty is nothing,” Tyler said.

  “I don’t know. He’s just down. His girl cheated on him with some ‘asshole with two legs’. That’s what he kept saying.”

  Damn. Poor guy was obviously suffering. “I get it, so just spit out? Where are we going?” Tyler asked again.

  “Exquisite,” Jase said hesitantly.

  “The strip dive?” Tyler said, completely surprised. “Seriously?”

  “Boss Lady okay with that?” Aiden said to Reeve.

  Reeve looked offended. “I don’t need her permission to go to a strip club. We’re not married.”

  Tyler chuckled and raised an eyebrow at Reeve. “You live together. She give you a curfew?”

  “Midnight. And no lap dances.” Reeve followed it up with a middle finger. “She understands that Mark needs a pick-me-up and that I’m only doing this for him.”

  “Riiiight.” Aiden smirked at Reeve.

  “Well, shit . . .” Tyler looked around. “I guess if that’s what we’re doing, we better get to it.” Tyler backed up, ready to get his paperwork turned in. “I can’t promise how long I’ll want to stay though. Not really my scene.” Not anymore, anyway. Every guy seemed to go through a period in life where strip clubs were amazing, but for most they eventually lost their appeal.

  “Don’t even think about bailing,” Reeve said, pointing a finger at Tyler. “We’ll see you there.”

  As he headed for the barracks to shower, Tyler considered maybe he ought to call Lia and let her know what he was about to do. She was probably going to freak out when she heard. Then again, maybe not, considering she hadn’t seemed to be that into hearing from him lately. He also thought he recalled her mentioning that she had to work tonight, so it really didn’t matter.

  * * *

  Lia stared back at the face in the mirror, trying to decide if she recognized the woman with the long red wig, lined lips, and smoky eyeliner. She didn’t hate the look, in fact she felt sexy, if not overdone. Wanting to really go for a different look, she borrowed some of Sammy’s costume things, her favorite being the new hair. Turning her head from side to side, she gave the mirror a sultry come-hither-and-give-me-all-your-cash look.

  “You’ll be great, sweetie,” Angel, one of the regular dancers said from the corner makeup table. “Just look those men right in the eye and think money.”

  Lia gave her a hesitant smile. “Thanks, Angel.”

  “My first time I was only seventeen. Talk about clueless. They’ll love you.”

  Turning away to hide her shock, Lia sighed. She was a decade older for her “first time.” Did she really think she could do this? She liked her body, although she wouldn’t mind losing a few pounds. Her hips were full, her stomach not completely flat, and her boobs were a solid C. Glancing in the full-length mirror, she adjusted the short sundress she wore. Beneath it was a see-through demi bra and the tiniest bikini bottoms she’d ever seen without being a thong. They barely covered her ass cheeks.

  It was Sammy’s suggestion to go for innocent and flirty, and she’d shown Lia how to make sliding the dress off her body look erotic. It was also a good excuse to use up more time, since it would be more to take off. Lia had liked that idea.

  She let her arms drop, still worrying over what she would actually do once she got out there. Sammy had met her at the club earlier this afternoon, and together they’d gone through her song a few times, the other woman giving her pointers on how to walk, how to move on the pole, and how to touch herself to entice the men. At the time, she’d felt a little excited and empowered. But now that time was finally counting down to her big debut, all that confidence seemed to scatter. Silly, considering she’d seen a hundred different women dance on the stage out front.

  Who was she kidding? She was absolutely terrified.

  How had she let Sammy talk her into this? The selling point had been that it was only one song, since Sunday evenings because they usually weren’t that busy. It would be a good way to get a feel to see if this was something she’d be interested in doing.

  Beck had been so on board when she’d run it by him the previous night—he’d actually grinned. The problem, Lia thought as she walked over and peeked out the door, down the hall, and into the only-a-third-full club, was, how could she appreciate doing it if she didn’t make any money on this trial run?

  She let the door shut and began to pace, her stilettos tapping across the tile floor.

  A few moments later, Beck walked in, shot glass in hand. “Here you go. On me.” Lia took the glass, lifted it to her nose and winced. Vodka. She rarely drank, but if there was a time to break protocol, it was before you took your clothes off in front of strangers. Lia knocked back the shot.

  “I might need another,” she said.

  “I’ve got something a little stronger if you need it,” Angel called out.

  “I’m good, but thanks.” As much as Lia liked her, she knew that whatever Angel had to offer likely involved a needle or a straw. No thank you, Lia was far from interested in either. Exquisite didn’t have a big drug problem, but there was always some of it at any club, according to most of the girls who worked there. Lia was so used to coming in, working her shift, and leaving. It was odd to spend time in the dressing room for s
o long.

  Becker walked back in and held out the shot glass once more. “Ten minutes.”

  She nodded, throwing back the second shot. Hopefully it would kick in soon. She needed to forget what she was about to do.

  The door opened once more, but this time it was Sammy. She was grinning. “Don’t panic, but Elliott just let in a group of guys that will be perfect for your first time. They’re not old and pervy. They’re actually super good-looking. I’m jealous. But I get to serve them.” Sammy grinned.

  “Great.” She couldn’t imagine any worse news than this to help her nerves. She could only hope they were ready to throw down some cash. It was odd that they had a new group on a Sunday. “Are they new members?”

  Exquisite was a private club, only because that allowed them to get away with serving alcohol alongside fully naked girls. Legally, the ten-dollar membership had to be paid ten days in advance. Conservative lawmakers hoped it would just divert men from bothering at all. How cute of them, because where there was a will there was a way. And there was quite a will to see naked women.

  Sammy gave her a long look. “Yeah, as of five minutes ago. You know Beck pulls that shit all the time if he feels like the risk is worth it.”

  Lia knew Sammy was right. She’d seen Beck tell the bouncer to let guys in before and then he’d just fudge the paperwork and the rules. He was not one to turn business away at the door, and so far, he hadn’t been caught in a sting.

  “I think I’m going to throw up,” Lia whispered.

  “Girl, you’re going to be fine. Think of all the bank you’re going to make. And you picked one of my favorite songs. Just get lost in the mood.” Sammy gave Lia a warm smile and rubbed her hands up and down her arms quickly. She’d picked “West Coast,” by Lana Del Rey, and the dark moody feel was one of her reasons. It matched how she felt. Dark and twisted.

  Plus, it was too slow to require her to do much actual dancing, which she could not pull off and look hot at the same time. Not like some of these girls who could shake their ass and drive the guys crazy. Lia couldn’t even imagine. Maybe someday.