Strip Search (Tap That)

“I find you attractive.”

“So is this the first meeting of our mutual admiration club?”

“This is the start of getting to know each other.” He imagined her growing up years were a hell of a lot different from his and he was curious about her life. About her.

“Then tell me about you, Axl Moore.”

He didn’t really want to go first, but at the same time, she’d asked so he would answer.

“I was born and raised here in Beaver Bend. Left to join the service. Spent four years in the marines, one deployment to Afghanistan. Came home, joined the force. My parents are still married and I have two sisters who are both married. One in Chicago, one here. I own my house because I like to do home improvement projects. I hang out with my friends from back when I was a kid. I fish, I like to go boating. I run for fun. That’s it in a nutshell.”

“You run for fun?” Leighton made a face. “Well, we differ on that. I only run if someone is chasing me, which explains my clearly not-so-skinny body.” She smiled, and it wasn’t an apologetic comment.

She didn’t seem down on herself about her weight and he was glad about that. She had the perfect shape, in his opinion. Womanly. “Your hot body.”

Leighton blushed a little but she rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t fishing for a compliment. But anyway, yes, I grew up in Beverly Hills. Yes, my parents are rich. Or rather, my father is rich, my mother rich by proxy. She met him when she was a cocktail waitress but they’ve been married for thirty years so whatever it was originally it definitely stuck. They both seem happy. I’m an introvert and it drives my mother crazy because she’s always the life of the party. I like books, gardening, and interior design.”

He could see she would enjoy quiet activities. Hell, like him. Different activities, but they were both drawn to quiet solitude. “No siblings? That’s probably why you’re an introvert. Though I have two sisters and I’m still an introvert, so I guess that means nothing.”

“No siblings. One and done. Though my life would have been easier if my mother would have had a second daughter who wanted to do all the things my mother insisted I do. I despised just about all of them.”

“Like what?”

“Singing lessons, dance lessons, acting lessons. Beauty pageants.” Leighton shuddered. “The beauty pageants were horrible. Let’s shove the chubby shy girl with a stutter on stage and that will help.” She laughed. “I know my mother meant well, but I still carry the scars from those days.” She held up her elbow for him to see. “Actual scars.” She pointed to a white jagged line. “I fell off the stage trying to run away from the stares of all those parents and the judges, who were not impressed with me.”

“That’s terrible,” Axl said, remembering clearly how panicked she’d looked on stage the night before. “I’m sorry. I can’t imagine being forced to do something you don’t like. Not to mention I don’t really get the whole beauty pageants for toddlers thing.”

“I think it’s great for some kids. They really love it. Not me. My best friend Zach was a savant. He loved every minute of it and was amazing at performing. I was the deer in the headlights.”

“I would rather rip my nails out with rusty plyers than be in a child beauty pageant.”

Leighton gave him a grin. “And yet… you’ll dance bare-chested for charity as an adult?”

Axl winced. “You’ve got me there.” He put his hands up. “But I can’t say that I enjoy it. That’s too strong of a word. I can take it or leave it. My buddies Rick and Brandon like the attention. Jesse is awkward as hell and I’m just kind of hanging out.” He shrugged. “But I’ll do anything for a friend.”

There it was. That softening expression on her face again. “That’s nice of you. You said your friend’s wife died?”

He nodded. “Sullivan, who owns Tap That. Kendra died two years ago from breast cancer. She was only twenty-seven. Their son was two months old when she died. Finn’s a cool kid. All of us guys try to spend some time with him when we can.” When Sullivan wasn’t being an asshole, which was more and more lately.

“Oh, my gosh, that’s so heartbreaking. I think it’s amazing that you’re willing to do something to raise money in her memory.”

“I feel a little bit like an idiot, I’m not going to lie. But there are worse things than having women yelling that I’m hot. I think the whole event goes to their head. It’s like a positive mob mentality. Suddenly these four average guys in Beaver Bend, Minnesota are the hottest things they’ve ever seen. Except for Jesse, he’s a pro hockey player, so that automatically elevates him. And actually, Brandon is loaded so maybe that makes him a notch above too. Rick has muscles on muscles on muscles. Shit, maybe I’m the only one who is average.”

Not that he cared. He knew he wasn’t classically good-looking. He was too rough around the edges and his mother always told him he looked too stern. That he needed to smile more. Lilly had told him he had Resting Bitch Face. Leighton thought he was intense, so Lilly and his mother were probably right. Whatever. It was his face. Like it or don’t like it. There was nothing fake about him.

Except for this relationship he was planning to embark on with Leighton. He should feel uncomfortable with it being fake but he wasn’t. He was doing this if she was willing.

Axl took a sip of his drink. When he turned, his knee bumped hers. It was an accident but he tensed when she gave a soft little gasp. That sound. God, she was so…ripe. Ready for a long night of him touching every inch of her.

“I can’t speak for the women of this town but I come from a city of beautiful people and I hate to tell you this, but that is not true. Average is not what I would call you. You are, in fact, hot. Sorry.” She gave a silly mocking shrug, lifting her shoulders almost to her ears. “You’re going to have to learn to live with it, Officer Hottie.”

“Very funny, Van Buren.” But he wasn’t actually annoyed. He thought she was downright adorable. He wanted to kiss her again.

“Van Buren? I don’t think anyone has ever called me that.” She looked taken aback.

“Really?” That amused him. “Who are you hanging around with? That’s what any group of friends do, they call each other by their last names.” It meant you belonged. Part of the inner circle. Maybe it was a guy thing. He’d spent a lot of his life in male-dominated environments. Hockey, the marines, the police department. Hell, even his fishing buddies were all guys.

“I wasn’t aware we had a tight-knit friendship.”