“Wanna educate me as to what the fuck you’re doing at a strip club, alone?” Asher asked lightly, though his jaw was hard. The big man and Lucky leaned on the bar on either side of me, people dispersing with a look from each of the men.
“Man, I wish I could do that, give someone a withering look and get them out of my bubble,” I observed with amazement.
Lucky smirked again. The big man shook his head.
Three beers were set on the bar. Adam’s was focused on me. “Everything okay here, Lily?” he asked me with concern, his focus on Asher’s cut.
I gave him a grin. “Everything’s fine,” I declared. “Asher’s not a shark,” I winked.
Adam didn’t look convinced. “You need me to call you that cab, just give me a holler, darlin’,” he responded firmly.
“She doesn’t need a cab, I’ve got her. My thanks for looking out for her,” Asher answered for me.
Adam gave him a weary gaze. He nodded, looked at me a second more then moved down the bar.
Asher raised a brow. “Sharks?” he questioned.
“The men who frequent such establishments.” I held my hands out to the room.
Lucky choked on the beer he was taking a tug of. “That’s one thing to call them,” he said dryly.
Asher gave him a hard look, then moved his gaze to me. “Such establishments are not somewhere you need to be spending your nights, flower,” he informed me. “Especially not alone.
“I’m not alone, I was with Bex,” I explained.
Asher didn’t seem happy about my answer. “Was. I don’t see her anywhere, and this is not a place you should sucking down drinks. We’re leavin’,” he declared.
I smiled. “Wow, I think you may be the only man to say he wants to leave a strip club,” I teased, not knowing where my cheerfulness was coming from. I had a niggling feeling it was coming from the man whose body was claiming mine.
Lucky let out another strangled chuckle, his eyes roving around the room.
Asher’s face changed at my words, I didn’t get time to think too hard on it as the music came on and the lights dimmed slightly.
“Plus, we can’t leave, Bex is about to come on,” I threw my hand out toward the stage where music had just started blaring. Three sets of male eyes focused on the place where Bex emerged, strutting her stuff. Her eyes found mine as she rounded the poll, bugging out slightly at the men I was with, though her step didn’t falter. She recovered quickly and winked at me.
“Jesus Christ,” Asher muttered under his breath, his eyes darting away from my scantily clad best friend the moment he realized it was her.
“Holy shit,” Lucky exclaimed, his eyes glued to the stage. “I think I’m in love,” he proclaimed dramatically.
The tall guy didn’t say a thing, his eyes were glued on Bex and stayed there, his jaw hard.
Asher pulled me lightly out of my seat. “We’re leaving,” he said, or more aptly, ordered, his eyes on me.
I frowned at him. “We’re not. Bex has only just started,” I protested.
Asher gave me a hard look. “I’m not sitting here watching your friend strip, and more importantly, I’m not sitting in a strip club with you wearing those shorts,” he bit out, his eyes moving over the length of me. He leaned into me, so his mouth tickled my ear. “Seeing you in those shorts means I’m going to have to fuck you in the next twenty minutes, and I’d rather not do it in a strip club bathroom,” he added, making my stomach drop.
I gaped at him when he leaned back. “Okay. We’re off then,” I decided and the men grinned. I didn’t have time to give them proper goodbyes as Asher dragged me away, I only waved over my shoulder.
“Wanna give me some explanation as to why you’ve been spending your nights at strip clubs?” Asher asked softly, his finger trailing up and down my arm.
I took a long pause. “I told you, I needed time,” I said finally.
Asher squeezed me. “I don’t think you did, flower. Now I’ve got you in my arms, thoroughly fucked, I know the last thing you needed was time. You were scared,” he observed, correctly I might add. “And when I said I’d give you time, I didn’t expect you’d spend it in strip clubs with sleazy fucks like Carlos Leith,” he added in a hard voice.
Thoroughly fucked was one way to put it. Asher had damned near pounced on me the moment we made it through my door. Well, after he made me stand at the front door and do a “walk through.”
“No boogeymen hiding under my bed?” I deadpanned when he’d stopped in front of me after his inspection.
He had frowned. “Don’t like you in this place, and I’m fixin’ that window. Tomorrow. Now, I fuck you.”