Brides on the Run (Books 1-4): Small-Town Romance Series

by Jami Albright

The whole time he made love to the pole, he never took his gaze off Luanne. Sweat broke out at her hairline, and blasts of lustful longing danced along the nerves leading to her core, where heat pooled like bubbling lava in a too-long dormant volcano. Hooo-leee crap.

  The music changed to a driving beat, and Jack ripped off his shirt, grabbed a water bottle she hadn’t noticed before, and poured water over his head and down his chest.

  The. Crowd. Went. Ballistic.

  Women charged the stage, slipping money in his waistband like he was a sexual slot machine. The group of men were practically crawling on top of each other to get to him.

  Chaos reigned around her, but she was helpless to do anything but revel in the heat consuming every atom of her being. He shook his head and drops of water flew in every direction. Time slowed as he dropped to his knees and undulated his hips. It slammed to a stop when his eyes connected with hers. The things he communicated with that look...Lord almighty.

  He danced, he teased, he charmed, and he was pretty damn spectacular. One lady grabbed his tight buns, and he turned to wag his finger at the naughty move. All was forgiven though when he laughed and kissed her on the cheek. That gesture earned him another twenty. He worked the crowd, even coming off the stage and giving a few quick lap dances, all the while raking in the cash.

  Then he turned in her direction and slowly made his way to their table, each step he took guided by the slow, pulsing rhythm of the music. He was a panther on the hunt. Her new friends nearly fainted.

  The bride was the first at the table to be on the receiving end of his panty-melting gyrations. One last take me to bed or lose me forever look and he moved to the next girl, and the next, but Luanne knew he was coming for her. He did all the right things to get more bills stuffed into his open jeans, but his smoldering look told her this wasn’t just about the cash. The blood scalded her veins the closer he got. She welcomed it.

  Burn me alive, Jack. Burn. Me. Alive.

  The panther’s eyes lit with amber flames when he yanked her out of the chair. Her pulse hammered in her ears, breathing became unnecessary, and the noise from the crowed dropped away. There was nothing but Jack and the music. The beat. The heat. All of it spiraling the tension in her body to breaking point.

  He moved behind her and slid his hands down her stomach. Her arms wrapped back around his hips to keep him where she wanted him. She no longer cared that they were in the middle of a large audience. They swayed to the left, then the right, their hips in perfect unison to the throb that vibrated around them. Her lids drifted closed and she relaxed into him, only to come undone when he sank his teeth into the soft flesh of her neck.

  He spun her to face him. “This isn’t over. Not by a long shot.”

  With that promise? threat? he danced back through the crowd to the stage.

  The little bride grabbed her to yell in her ear. “Damn, girl. I want my man to look at me like that.”

  Luanne was shaken to the core. Money was sticking out of every one of his pockets, and with each thrust of his hips more was crammed in. It didn’t matter if he won or not, there was a couple of hundred dollars bulging in those jeans. She shook her head and pressed a hand to her still-fluttering stomach. That hadn’t been the only thing bulging in his jeans.

  When the song ended women threw more money and themselves at him. Jack scooped up the cash and winked at the women.

  “Marry me, Mighty Joystick!” one of the gay guys yelled.

  “I would, but I’m already taken.” He pointed to Luanne.

  She used the thumb and forefinger of both hands to form a W, then mouthed whatever, which made him laugh. But she didn’t feel whatever about any of this. Her heart still raced like a locomotive on fire. Luckily, there were several performers yet to dance. It gave her time to try to get her lust under control. Good luck. That ship had sailed, sunk, and was sitting at the bottom of the ocean along with her ability to resist Jack Avery.

  Finally, Rosie sashayed onto the stage. “Oh, my. It appears we have a real contender in Jack, the Mighty Joystick. Let’s hear it for him one more time.”

  Jack waved to the crowd as a generous-sized bra went flying past his head.

  “Can you introduce us?” Julie looked at Luanne like she was asking for a puppy at Christmas.

  “Ah…well…I can introduce you, but we’re kind of together.” What? Where had that come from? She knew exactly where it had come from. The freight train of jealousy chasing her to Lustville.

  “I thought you said you were just friends,” Hannah said with a pout.

  “That’s what we usually tell people on the nightclub circuit, but you guys have been so nice to me that I wanted to tell you the truth.”

  A collective “Awww,” came from the table.

  “Honey, if you ever get tired of him, give us a call.”

  “We have a winner, my pretties.” Rosie’s voice purred through the sound system. “Can I get all of the contestants back on stage, please?”

  The men filed out, most of them in some sort of costume. All of them were partially dressed, even Jack. His shirt hung open, and the expanse of smooth brown skin had her wishing everything she’d told these girls about the two of them was true.

  “Rodney, can you give me a drum roll?” Rosie struggled to rip open the envelope while she juggled the mic.

  Boy Scout Jack reached out and took the microphone from her, and held it to her mouth like a human mic stand. “Thank you, Joystick.” She winked.

  Jack nodded and scanned the room until he saw Luanne. He smirked and patted the huge roll of cash in his front pocket. Surely there was enough to get a cheap room for the night.

  “The winner is…Jack, the Mighty Joystick!”

  Screams, cheers, and shouts calling for an encore filled the place. Rosie tried to talk him into another round on stage, but he declined and gave her a big hug. With a pucker of his lips he blew a kiss to the crowd, then bounced down the steps toward Luanne’s table. The smile he wore was probably illegal in all fifty states. He didn’t stop or slow down until she was wrapped in a fierce hug.

  “Congratulations, Joystick.” She inhaled his musky scent and her knees went wobbly.

  He pulled back and grinned. “I might be changing careers.”

  She laughed. “I wouldn’t quit your day job, but hey, who am I to judge?”

  Someone cleared their throat. She glanced around to see the expectant faces of her tablemates. “Jack, these are my new friends Hannah, Julia, and Olivia, and our bride is Alexa.”

  He took Alexa’s hand and kissed her fingers. “Congratulations. Why are all the good ones taken?”

  Alexa’s face bloomed a pretty shade of pink, and Luanne swore she could hear the poor girl’s ovaries begging for mercy. Yep, Jack had that effect on women. Time to break this up. “Where do you get your prize money?”

  Jack threw his arm around her shoulder. “Rosie told me to pick it up at the box office.”

  “Well, we better be going. Thanks for letting me sit with y’all. Best wishes on your marriage.”

  They wove their way through the crowd, stopping for pictures. When they made it to the box office, Rosie was there giving instructions to her staff. “There’s the man of the hour. I could use someone like you on my staff. Are you interested?”

  “It’s tempting, but sadly, I have to get back to Texas.”

  Rosie counted out his five hundred dollars. “Our loss.”

  Jack handed the money to Luanne. “Is there a clean hotel around here?”

  “There’s a roadside inn about a mile up the road. Take a left out of the parking lot. It’s next to the truck stop. Do you want me to call and see if they have a room?”

  “I’d appreciate—”

  “Two rooms,” Luanne said. She needed her own room, especially after his performance.

  “Two?” Rosie’s artfully drawn-on eyebrows nearly reached her hairline.

  “Yes…ah…you see, Jack and I are just friends.” It would’ve been a lot e
asier to speak with Rosie if Jack hadn’t been clucking like a chicken behind her. Damn right she was a scared chicken. No way could she share a room with him after this.

  The club owner shook her head while she dialed the phone. “Ooo-kay. If you’re sure.”

  “I am.”

  “Maria, this is Rose. Do you have a couple of rooms available for tonight? Mm-hmm. Alright, great. I’m sending two friends down right now.”

  Luanne’s eyes filled with unexpected tears. She was exhausted from the events of the day, and her hormones were still recovering from the speedboat ride they’d been on since Jack first stepped on stage. Watching him dance only confirmed what she’d always known.

  Jack Avery would be a rock star in bed.

  Chapter 15

  The travel inn’s lobby was clean and quirky, and Jack would have given every penny he’d earned for a bed. But it was the aroma of greasy burgers in the to-go bags he carried that really had him ready to beg.

  He glanced over his shoulder to make sure his sassy companion was still with him. She’d been unusually quiet on the walk to the motel. That was fine with him. His body was still on full simmer from the dirty dance they’d shared. Her hips moving beneath his hands had been almost too much. There hadn’t been any control when she started rocking in time with him—he’d almost embarrassed himself right then and there. It had been necessary to break it off and spin her around, or his fingers would’ve gone exploring the soft, warm parts that starred in his dreams. It was good they were getting two rooms, because he’d have a very hard time keeping his hands off her if they were sharing.

  “Can I help you?” A small Hispanic woman in a bright blue sweater stood behind the desk. She was barely tall enough to see over the counter.

  “Rosie called about two rooms for us.” He handed the bags to Luanne so he could get the money from his pocket.

  The little woman looked confused. “I tell Rosie that I only have one room. She not tell you that?”

  “No, she didn’t tell us that.” Luanne’s voice had taken on a panicked edge.

  “One room, two beds.” She pulled a key from a cubby in the wall behind her.

  Exhaustion yanked on Jack’s bones. He didn’t care if he had to sleep on a cot, he just needed to sleep. “We’ll take it.”

  “Jack—”

  He leveled her with his don’t give me any shit glare. “We’ll take it.”

  “One night?” The owner was typing things into the computer.

  “Yes.” They both said in unison.

  “Okay, one hundred dollars.”

  He counted out the money using mostly one-dollar bills from his tips. Rosie had paid him in hundreds, but there was something so satisfying about slipping one bill after another from the stack in his hand to the pile on the counter. This must be how pioneer men felt when they provided for their women. Instead of animal skins he used his stripper earnings. It was close to the same thing.

  He noticed a cubby with toiletries behind the counter. “Are those for sale?”

  “Yes.”

  “We’ll take two toothbrushes, toothpaste, and two deodorants. One men’s and a girly one.” He glanced at Luanne. “Anything else?”

  “A bottle of lotion, laundry soap, and do you have bottled water?”

  “Si. Can I get for you anything else?”

  Jack glanced at Luanne.

  “Um…extra towels?” she asked.

  “Oh, si. I bring them.”

  Jack slapped money on the counter, and they left the office.

  The walk to the room was silent.

  “This is us.” He slipped the old-fashioned key into the lock and swung the door open. The smell of clean laundry filled his nose and he immediately relaxed. The room was small and the furnishings outdated, but it was clean, and it had a shower and two beds. It would do. “This isn’t so bad.”

  “No, it’s actually very nice.” She flipped on the bedside lamp and a warm yellow glow filled the room.

  “Do you wanna shower first or should I?” He emptied his pockets of the wads of tip money he’d accumulated.

  “You’ve got quite a stash there. Good to see you use that pretty face for good and not evil”

  He shrugged. “It’s a livin’.”

  “You must be tired. Your pronunciation has slipped. You take the first shower. I can wait.”

  “Are you sure?”

  She fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “Yeah, I’m sure. You go ahead.”

  “I’m not gonna argue with you. I can smell myself.” He stripped off his shirt and threw it over the only chair in the room. “I’ll save you some hot water.”

  “Thanks. Don’t take too long, I might fall asleep on my feet.”

  He saw her watching him in the mirror, and a thrill of satisfaction shot through him. She may not want to want him, but she did. Lust burned away his exhaustion. He stopped at the bathroom door and peered back at her. “You like what you see?”

  “I wasn’t looking at you, Jack. I was staring off into space. In case you haven’t noticed, I’m exhausted.”

  “Mm-hmm, you keep telling yourself that, buttercup. You keep telling yourself that.”

  Luanne heard the shower come on and wanted to claw her eyeballs out. She’d totally been checking him out and he’d caught her red-handed. Rookie mistake. But seriously. His back was too delicious not to admire.

  Get a hold of yourself.

  She pulled the plastic bag with all their earthly possessions to her. A quick inventory told her she had what she needed to get as clean as possible. Thank God. She grabbed her toothbrush and made her way to the sink/vanity combo outside the bathroom.

  Had brushing her teeth ever felt so good? She didn’t think so. She glanced at the room behind her through the mirror. Crazy to think that only a few hours ago she’d thought they might have to sleep outside. Grudgingly, she had to admit that he’d really saved their bacon tonight.

  Those women and men loved him. Why wouldn’t they? He’d been hot as hell up on that stage, powerful and fun all at the same time. Life with Jack would never be boring, that was for sure.

  Where had that come from? She didn’t have a life with Jack. He might be fun, but she’d always be waiting for him to get bored and leave. People always left her. Her mother, her father, even Scarlett had left in a way. Her best friend had gone to a place Luanne didn’t understand and where she couldn’t follow. Luanne Price didn’t do love, so while she was happy for Scarlett, she mourned the loss of what their friendship used to be.

  When Jack emerged from his shower, she was ready. She’d prepared herself for the sight of him in nothing but a towel. It took her hog-tying her hormones, but she was able to keep her gaze on his face.

  “It’s all yours.” He walked to the vanity and grabbed his toothbrush. The man even brushed his teeth with raw sexuality.

  “Thanks.” She started for the bathroom, then remembered her lotion. When she reached for it her arm brushed against his stomach. And just like that, the monumental effort it had taken to keep her focus above the towel line crumbled. The warm, moist heat of his skin singed her flesh.

  His fingers wrapped around her elbow, and as she pulled back his hand slid down her arm until he clasped her hand. God help her. His fingers stroked the inside of her wrist and the sensible, take-no-prisoners Luanne melted. They locked stares, didn’t move, didn’t breathe.

  With his other hand, he looped a stray hair behind her ear, then trailed his fingers down her neck. “Luanne?”

  “Yeah.”

  He bent his head and whispered, “I’m going to kiss you.” His lips grazed the sensitive spot below her ear.

  A moan curled between them like cigarette smoke in an old speakeasy. His? Hers? She didn’t know or care.

  Slowly, deliberately, he trailed tiny nips along her jaw to her mouth. Each touch of his lips formed a chain of desire winding its way around her, capturing and holding her where she desperately wanted to be.

  “Jack.” Her han
ds roamed his gorgeous back. Desire flooded her body, tightening her nipples to hard peaks wanting to be touched. If something didn’t happen soon, she might explode with want. Even so, she grasped for some thread of control.

  “What?”

  She settled her hands on his fine ass. “I still don’t like you.”

  He tugged one fistful of hair to gain better access to her neck. “Noted and recorded.”

  “’Cause you’re a jerk sometimes.” Was that her voice? It sounded like a porn star’s.

  He nuzzled the place below her ear. “I know, and it’s a terrible flaw.”

  “Alright. As long as we’re clear.” Every jagged syllable of her words sounded like a plea for more.

  He whispered across her neck, “We’re clear.”

  “Now you can kiss me.”

  His mouth closed over hers and the warm, soft assault of lips and tongue scrambled her brain and sent liquid heat shimmering down her body. Strong arms enveloped her. She thrilled in the shelter his body provided. Usually she didn’t like to be so close to…well, anyone, but especially not overly tall people. This was different from anything she’d experienced before. No fear, no hiding. With Jack she was brave and powerful.

  Her fingers slid into his thick, wet hair as her head slanted to give him better access. Warm hands gripped her hips and hauled her against his hard body. The contact acted as an accelerant on the blaze racing between them. She needed more, had to have more. What small tendril of control she had snapped and she ground against the bulge nestled between her legs.

  “Jesus, Luanne.” The words were strangled. In one swift movement he lifted her onto the vanity. Unbidden, her legs circled his waist to pull him to the spot where she had to have him. He stepped into her heat and pushed and pushed again. His body mimicked what she needed, what they both needed to stop the crazy desire tearing through their bodies.

  He deepened the kiss, drinking from her like a man dying of thirst, only to rip away in the next beat. “I don’t know if I can slow this down.” He shuddered as she dragged her nails down his back. “If we go much farther, I won’t be able to stop.”