by Melody Anne
“Right there,” Rachel said with a Cheshire Cat grin. Ari followed her gaze to where three young guys were sitting on lounge chairs chatting.
With an exaggerated swing to her hips, Rachel approached them, gaining all three of their eyes as she walked right up without any lack of self-confidence blocking her goal.
“Hey, boys. How’re you doing?” she asked as she gave each of them a direct look before trailing a manicured finger across her stomach. Ari had to hold in the laughter as their eyes took in her petite yet luscious figure.
“Great. How about you?” one of the guys finally responded after putting his tongue back inside his mouth.
“Oh, I’m OK. It’s just so hot out here and my feet are killing me, but my two girlfriends and I just got here. It’s too bad we might have to leave for the other pool, though,” she said with an exaggerated pout.
At her words, the guys looked up and connected eyes with Lia before their heads whipped back to Rachel, and then bobbed between the two of them as if they couldn’t figure out whom to keep their eyes on. Ari shifted uncomfortably on her feet as she tried to hide behind Rachel, but her friend turned around and grabbed her arm, yanking her forward before turning back to the guys.
“You don’t have to go. We’d be glad to share our lounges with you,” one of them said as he jumped up and placed his hand against Rachel’s back to lead her to his spot.
“You don’t have to do that…Wait, I haven’t even gotten your name yet,” Rachel said as she trailed her nail between his pecs.
“It…it’s Lance,” the guy stuttered. The poor kid couldn’t have been older than twenty-one.
“Mmm, I like that name…Lance,” she cooed. “What are you doing in Vegas?”
“It’s my birthday weekend. These are my fraternity brothers, Alan and Dixon.”
“Wow, all of you have such sexy names. I’m so glad to have run into you today. This heat is killing me…” she pointedly said as she looked over toward the bar.
“We’ll get some drinks. What would you like?” Alan piped in.
“Ohh, such a tough choice. How about you surprise us? My sister should be back any minute now.”
The three of them practically tripped over themselves as they made a rush to the bar, arguing about who got to buy the drinks.
“Have a seat, Ari,” Rachel said as she lay back with a huge smile of satisfaction on her face.
Ari had to close her mouth before she guiltily dropped down into her stolen lounge. “I can’t believe how good you were at that, Rachel. You had them willing to do anything you asked,” she finally gasped.
“I was the baby of the family and learned quickly that guts and guile got me a lot further than crying or begging. It’s helped me a lot in life.”
“You’re terrible, but this lounge does feel pretty nice.”
“The best part is that there are countless females all over here, so after a few more beers, the frat boys will lose interest in us after I suddenly become boring. Then, they’ll run off and play with girls their own age.”
“Nice chairs, sis. How did you manage this?” Lia said as she came up and handed them each a tall glass with fruit floating in it.
“Your sister’s unbelievable flirting ability,” Ari replied as she took a sip and then sighed in pleasure at the sweet, cold taste.
“Yes, Rachel is better than anyone I know at getting what she wants from men. I don’t know how she’s still single.”
“Because I don’t want to settle down with just one guy. I want to flirt with them all and then leave them wanting.”
The three of them laughed while they sipped on their drinks and soaked up the sun. Soon, the guys were back, and panting at their feet. Surprisingly, Ari found herself laughing at some of their stories. She did grow bored with them after a while, but that’s when she laid her head back and tried to tune out the crowd and get some rest.
*****
“You have got to be kidding me!”
“What’s wrong, Rafe?”
Rafe didn’t even notice that Shane was looking around for a threat. Rafe’s eyes were tuned in to Ari, who was clad only in a skimpy bikini while some guy was sitting on her lounge chair practically drooling over her. The thing that made it even worse was that the guy could barely be older than a kid. Was she that desperate for male attention?
He knew damn well that she’d been thinking of no other man but him as he’d made her scream out in ecstasy this morning.
“I need a beer.”
“I can agree to that.” Without questioning Rafe’s outburst any further, Shane walked by his side as they made their way to the bar.
“Hey, sugar, what can I get for you?”
“We’ll take two Coronas.”
“Coming right up,” she said with an exaggerated smile as her gaze took in Rafe’s bare chest.
This he was used to — women flirting, checking him out. Ari was good at bruising his ego, and he shouldn’t allow her to have that kind of power over him.
“Here you go.”
Rafe turned his attention back to the blonde bartender as he pulled out a hundred and placed it on the counter. “Keep the change,” he said while giving her his best smile.
Her eyes widened as she got caught in his stare and Rafe leaned forward closer than he needed to as he grabbed the drink. “Th…thanks,” she finally replied. Gaining back her composure, she added “I’m off shift in ten minutes.”
The hope in her eyes did nothing for him, but as he turned to see Ari kicking back with his sisters and the guys circling them like sharks, his fury rose again.
“I’ll be right here,” he said with a wink before Shane grabbed his arm and pulled him away from the counter.
“What are you doing, Rafe? Harmless flirting is one thing, but if you’re considering messing around with this girl, that’s an entirely different matter. Have you forgotten that you’re here with Ari?”
“I haven’t, but she sure as hell has forgotten she’s here with me. Not that I give a damn. I can replace her in a heartbeat,” Rafe growled.
Shane turned to see where Rafe’s gaze had landed and then Shane tensed as he watched Lia lean forward, her hand resting on one of the guy’s legs.
“I think we need to go see the girls,” Shane said as he started parting the crowd on his way over. Rafe followed slowly behind as if he didn’t have a care in the world.
“I wasn’t expecting you girls here,” Shane said as he glared at the young men. Rafe had to fight to keep his fists from clenching. As he glared at the man sitting too close to Ari, he took pleasure in seeing fright penetrate his eyes.
“We’re just relaxing,” Lia said as she glared at both of them. “Boys, this is my brother…and his friend,” she added as an afterthought. Rafe noticed that she didn’t tell Shane and him the boys’ names.
“I talked my friend into covering the last few minutes of my shift. Want to take a swim?” Rafe watched Ari’s eyes widen as the bartender pressed her large, barely clad breasts against his arm.
“That sounds like a great idea, sugar,” he said as he placed his hand on her lower back and tugged her even closer. She purred with happiness as her hand came up and ran down his chest. He was sure she’d hurried out to him before he could catch the eye of another girl. Rafe knew that he was a great catch; he had no illusions that his attractions went deeper than good looks and ready cash.
“Excuse me, bitch. You can take your slutty paws off my brother. He’s here with another girl,” Lia said as she stood up and glared at the bartender. Heck, Rafe didn’t even know the woman’s name.
Claws came out as she glared right back and her body tensed against Rafe’s.
“In case you didn’t notice, he’s got his hands around me, so whether he came with someone or not isn’t the point. Obviously, he’s leaving with me,” she said before grabbing his head and pulling it down to hers.
Rafe didn’t fight her when she pressed her lips to his and kissed him. His hand tightened on h
er waist as he pulled her close and kissed her back in front of everybody.
When he finally pulled away, the bartender sported a smug look on her face, which he could understand. But when he turned his head, guilt rose up as he saw the devastation on Ari’s features. Maybe he’d taken this a bit too far.
“You know what? Go off with your tramp, Rafe. Ari is far too good for you,” Rachel snarled as she took Ari’s hand and started leading her away.
“Ari, stop!” Rafe released the bartender and stepped toward the girls. Three heads turned with blazing eyes and zinged him with a nasty look.
“I’d give them a bit of time to cool down, brother,” Shane said with a slow whistle.
“Forget about her. I’m more than you need,” the blonde said.
As Ari and his sisters left, Rafe pushed off the girl’s clingy hands. “It’s not going to happen. Leave me.”
Her mouth dropped open before she raised one lip in a sneer, then stomped off to find her next wealthy victim. It seemed Rafe had pissed off just about everyone he could today. He didn’t know how he was going to get out of this one.
“I’m sure glad I’m not you right now,” Shane said with a laugh. “I’m going to text the girls and tell them how sorry I am that you’re such an ass. I get to be the white knight once more.”
“You’re a prick, Shane,” Rafe growled before downing his beer. He decided he’d probably do best to avoid all three of the girls for the rest of the night.
Chapter Twenty-Six
“Hurry up, Shane. I can’t believe you guys complain about how long it takes us to get ready when you’ve been in the bathroom for an hour primping,” Rachel called with irritation.
“It’s called personal hygiene, Rachel. You might want to try it sometime, squirt. Besides, if you don’t like how long I’m taking, you can always go back to your own room,” he called back, not in the least offended by her taunting.
“I like your room better. It’s bigger than ours, which is just wrong. Besides, I prefer the grunge look. As a matter of fact, I was thinking this whole toothpaste and shampoo thing is for wimps. I’m going to go au naturel,” she mocked.
“Mmm, you’ll fit right in with all the woodland creatures in the forest,” he said as he walked by and ruffled her hair.
“Shane!” she cried out as she rushed into the bathroom to fix her carefully styled hair.
“You started it.”
“Grow up!”
“Are you two at it again? I swear, it’s like babysitting,” Lia grumbled as she walked from the room looking like his wet dream incarnate.
As Lia stepped toward him, he couldn’t take his eyes off her long hair tumbling down her back, and the way the stunning black stilettos accented her bare legs. Her dress molded to her breasts and then ran out over her hips, the shimmering material swirling around her legs like the thundering end of a waterfall.
Rachel’s phone rang and she excused herself, but Shane was oblivious to her. When Lia finally looked up and their eyes met, he wanted to march her backward toward his room and make her his.
No matter how much he told himself that sleeping with her would be a mistake, the longer he was in her presence, the more he seemed to forget that fact. He needed to be buried inside her body while her fingernails scraped down his back, as she claimed him as her own with the same intensity.
The absolute need to have her was starting to short-circuit his brain.
“Sorry, guys, but you’re officially on your own.”
Shane turned to see Rachel taking off her silky blue shrug.
“What do you mean?” Shane asked, feeling a bit light-headed. There was no way he could spend the evening alone with Lia with the way she looked now. Each day around her zapped a little bit more of his will to resist.
“I have an important call I have to make,” Rachel said as she breezed away and closed her door. Lia followed, but no matter how much she knocked, her little sister wouldn’t open up.
Neither of them knew it was all a ruse — Rachel was giving them the night together alone.
“Well, Shane, it looks like it’s just you and me,” Lia said with a wink as she grabbed her shawl.
Shane felt pressure build in his gut as he watched her turn her well-defined yet feminine back to him. No matter which angle he faced, she was just as appealing. He beelined for the liquor cabinet and poured himself a double, downing it in one gulp. Please give me strength, he thought before walking to the door and opening it for her.
“Which show are we going to see?”
“I don’t know. Your little sister is the one who purchased the tickets. She told me to hold onto them since they wouldn’t fit in her purse, but I haven’t had a chance to look yet,” Shane replied as he grabbed the envelope from his pocket and walked by her side to the elevators.
“You were putting a lot of trust in her.”
“She wouldn’t stop pestering me until I caved in. I’d rather be playing a bit of blackjack than attending what I’m sure will be a girlie show.”
“Oh, have some faith. Rachel has great taste.”
It wasn’t Rachel’s taste in shows that had Shane on edge — it was his fear of not being able to keep his hands to himself. As Lia walked ahead of him, the sway of her hips caught his eye. She had just the right amount of curves for a man to grab hold of while he thrust deep inside her heat.
His imagination took over as he pictured peeling off her tight dress and revealing those beautiful curves to full view. So hypnotized was he by her walk that sweat broke out on his brow. And when she turned suddenly, it took a moment for him to lift his eyes to her face.
The knowing look she gave him didn’t instill confidence. She wanted him — he had no doubt about that. The only doubt he had at this point was whether or not he should take what she was offering. His resistance could last only so long.
*****
As Shane and Lia were being escorted to their seats, excitement was building inside her. He’d been glancing her way repeatedly from the moment she’d stepped out of her bedroom, and the car ride had been filled with enough heat to melt the Arctic Circle. Maybe tonight would finally be their night.
“What in the hell is your sister planning?”
“I don’t know what you mean.” Lia replied as she surveyed the small theater.
“Well, for one thing, is that a stripper pole in front of me?”
“It looks like one, but it isn’t as if I’ve ever been to a strip show, so how would I know?” she said, shrugging her shoulders.
She looked around her with growing anticipation. All she knew was that they would be watching a burlesque show. She and Rachel had gone to a couple of burlesque classes last year, and she’d had a blast. Never had she felt so sexy.
“I had assumed we’d be going to something more classy,” he snarled.
“All I can tell you is that it’s burlesque,” Lia defended.
“There’s a big freaking X in front of the burlesque word!” he snapped.
“Well, maybe it’s just really sexy burlesque. Be quiet; people are starting to stare at us.”
Shane threw a withering look her way, and everything became clear to her. Lia now knew beyond a doubt that he was fighting the urge to take her back to his room and finally take her. That’s why he was so upset. But the sexy atmosphere — her clothes — being in Sin City — it all added up to her getting what she wanted.
The two of them sat back as they waited for the small theater to fill. The venue did surprise Lia a little; she had expected Rachel to pick one of the Cirque du Soleil shows. Still, Lia was relieved because the dark room was small and intimate, and Shane’s leg was pressing against hers. The stage was in touching distance, and the waitress had just brought them each a nice large glass of wine.
She wanted to giggle when she realized she was hoping to get Shane drunk so she could take advantage of him. She wasn’t usually so bold, but something about him brought out her hunting instincts — he was currently in her sights
and she wasn’t letting him escape.
“I think we should just go, Lia,” he murmured as he turned to her and pulled at his collar.
“Quit being such a prude. If you were here with Rafe, you’d be drooling over the stripper pole, hoping and praying that some hot thing was about to come out onstage and get naked.”
“I’m not with Rafe — I’m here with you.”
“Is that really so bad, Shane? You know, I took a few burlesque classes not long ago. I will have to show my moves when we get back to the room.” Lia’s hand moved to his thigh and she ran her fingernail from his knee nearly to his groin.
Shane’s hand snaked out and stopped her before she reached her prize, but by the way his eyes dilated Lia’s confidence shot through the roof. Tonight was going to be their night — even if she had to drug the man. He was going to have to get over the fact that she was Rafe’s little sister. She wasn’t a kid now — she was all grown up, with very adult needs.
The lights dimmed and the music started as a giant projector screen dropped down in front of the red velvet curtains hiding the stage, and two sensual women sauntered through a burning X on the video they were playing.
Wearing only G-string panties, garter belts with fishnet stockings, and minuscule bras, they gazed out at the crowd through the large screen with take-me expressions on their faces. Oh, this was going to be so good…
As the video ended and the screen began rising, a sensual music started filling the room from the strategically placed speakers, the pulse of the music pumping through Lia, making her body hum in anticipation.
When the screen disappeared into the top of the stage, the curtains opened and the real show began — seven incredibly hot women in hats, suit jackets and tight pants strutted their feminine curves out onto the stage.
Lia’s eyes were drawn to the performers’ gorgeous bodies as their sultry movements carried them around the stage. Shane took a sudden interest in his shoes after loosening the top button of his shirt to help him breathe. The more uncomfortable Shane became, the greater Lia’s enjoyment.