The look on Mia’s face when we walked into Scores was priceless. I knew it would be, which was why I took a picture with my cell phone without her noticing. Maybe one day I will show her. For now, it’s the picture attached to her number in my Contacts. I thought about making it my background picture, but Will would flip the fuck out if he were to see his sister on my screen.

Mia bites her cheek, staring around the room. She avoids the girls shaking her their asses on the stage as if they do not exist. They are hard not to notice, especially with all the men surrounding them. Clarke doesn’t seem the slightest bit phased, where Mia keeps her eyes pointed in front of her and bites the corner of her lip.

I hook my arm around Mia’s back and pull her closer to me. She stiffens from my touch but peeks up at me.

“You okay?”

She nods. “Yeah, I’m good. Why is everyone so worried about how I will react to being here? I’m not a total prude.”

I dip down to whisper against the shell of her ear. “Oh, I know.”

She sucks in a deep breath and blows it out. “You are the devil in expensive clothes.”

I laugh at her comment. She has no idea.

Clarke comes up on Mia’s right and yells, “Wanna come with? Will is buying me a lap dance.”

Mia narrows her eyes at her. “Nah, I’ll pass. I have to do the thing, remember?”

I crane my neck to listen to their conversation, hoping to find out more about this secret mission Mia’s on for her job.

“You can have fun in the meantime,” Clarke says. “Have you ever had a lap dance? It’s fun.”

Mia scrunches her nose at her friend. Her innocence is so adorable, same as it was when I was in high school.

“Nope never had one,” Mia says. “Go with Will. I’m sure he will show you a good time. He probably knows this place like the back of his hand.”

More like his cock.

Clarke laughs as if thinking the same as me. “I’m sure he does.”

We both do. Scores is like a right of passage for everyone on our team. Tyler Kane brought Will and me here our first year with the Flyers. Now that he’s married and attached to his wife’s side, the tradition has passed to Will, and by extension to me too.

Will winks at Mia. “I promise to take good care of her. Don’t worry. Do whatever it is that you came here to do. We’ll have fun for you.”

“See ya,” Mia says to Will and Clarke, before turning to me. “You, too. I have things to do.”

Will shoots me a look that says, Stay with her. I nod in acknowledgment because I have no problem following Mia around for the night. I need time to apologize to her without Will around, wondering why I have something to be sorry about.

Will waves to Mia and me and leads Clarke by the hand through the throng. She’s right up his alley, down for whatever and comfortable in a place like this. Hopefully, Clarke can keep Will entertained long enough for me to get Mia alone and out of his sight.

“You don’t have to follow me around just because Will is afraid to leave me alone,” Mia says to me after they disappear into the crowd.

I thread my fingers between hers and give her hand a good squeeze. “Someone has to look out for the lamb when all the wolves are around.”

She tilts her head back and laughs. “Why do you call me that? It’s a stupid nickname, you know.”

“No, it’s not.” I lead Mia over to a two-person table in the far corner, on the left side of the bar, and pull out a chair for her. “The first time I saw you, I admired you for your innocence. You weren’t tainted by life or the hard choices you had to make. There was something about you, something good and fragile. Back then, lamb was the first thing that came to my mind.”

She sits, allowing me to scoot her chair into the table. “The name doesn’t make sense for who I am now. Maybe that’s how you saw me when I was a teenager, but I am nothing like that now.”

“You will always be my little lamb,” I confess.

“Whatever.” She hugs herself, pushing her tits up in the process. Once she realizes where my eyes have drifted, she snorts, as if annoyed with me. “The last time I checked, you owe me an apology. Where have you been for the past week?”

“I stayed at the Ritz. I needed to get away for a little bit.”

“Why do you think it’s okay to keep disappearing? One minute, you were kissing me on my living room floor, and the next morning you were gone. Has anyone ever told you that you are not good for a girl’s ego?”

“I’m not good for you,” I admit. No matter how many years have passed, I have never felt worthy of Mia. “A bastard like me doesn’t get a girl like you.”

She uncrosses her arms and leans forward, pinning me down with her intense gaze. “Why don’t you let me make the decision instead of doing it for me? You and my brother think you know what is best for me. For once, I would like to have a choice.”

I reach across the table to touch her hand, feeling her soft, delicate skin. “You know it’s not that simple, Mia.”

“How about I go find Will right now? If he’s the reason you are a dick, then let’s get it out of the way. He should know the truth anyway.”

“There’s not much to tell.”

She rolls her eyes. “Well, I guess I must have imagined you licking my pussy last week.”

I scan the room for Will and spot him entering a private room on the other side of the club, accompanied by Clarke and a few girls.

“Oh, I see,” she says, irritated. “God forbid Will overhears us. I am tired of lying to my brother. Either you grow a pair and tell him or I will.”

“I’ll make a deal with you,” I say, hoping she will be down with my plan. “Why don’t we see what happens between us before we tell Will? There’s no sense in ruining my friendship with him over a fling.”

“I love how you assume our relationship won’t work before things even begin.”

“I don’t do relationships, Mia. When was the last time you saw me with a girlfriend?”

She bites her lip, mulling it over. “Never, I guess. I had assumed you kept that part of your life hidden from me on purpose.”

“No, because there wasn’t anything for me to hide. To date, you are the longest relationship I have ever had, and we are not even together.”

“If you say so.” She looks away from me, but not for long. As soon as a cocktail waitress wearing nothing but a gold thong strolls over to our table, Mia turns to look at me, as if embarrassed for the girl.

I give the pretty brunette our drink order, ignoring all of her advances. She only wants the money, so I drop a twenty on her tray. The girl rewards me with a smile that reaches up to her green eyes and a gentle shake of her fake tits.

Less than a minute after she leaves another girl with smaller breasts and reddish brown hair comes up from behind Mia, touching her on the shoulder as she looks over at me. Mia jumps up from her chair as if struck by lightning. Her reaction causes both the stripper and me to laugh. Strippers love giving attention to the women, and unlike other girls I’ve come here with, Mia wants nothing to do with it. She came here for business, nothing more.

Once Mia settles back into her chair, the girl says something to Mia that I have trouble hearing over the loud music. Mia shakes her head a few times before she smiles, a real one this time. A few minutes pass, where they have a private conversation, whispering shit to each other. What the hell could Mia possibly have to say to a stripper?

The drink girl places two Heineken’s in front of me and hands Mia an apple martini. Mia takes it from her and sucks down half the liquid in one gulp, and then holds her index finger up to indicate she would like another drink.

I pull my wallet out of my pocket and give the waitress my credit card. “Start a tab for us.” I tilt my head to Mia, who is still engaged in conversation with the redheaded stripper. “And another martini for my girl.”

She smiles and walks away with my credit card, and I am left wondering why I called Mia my girl. I guess she will be after she accepts my offer. If she still wants to give us a shot.

“Hey, E.” Mia props her elbow up on the table and looks over at me. “Roxie is going to show me how to give a lap dance. Do you want to be my test subject?”

I try not to laugh. Instead, the corner of my mouth curls up into a smirk. “Yeah, actually, I do. Not out here, though.”

“Duh, silly. I wouldn’t even consider it in front of other people.”

I look up at the girl. “Just us, okay?”

“That will cost you,” she says.

“Money is not a problem.”

She grins. “Good. I have just the place for us. What’s your name, cutie?”

At least she doesn’t recognize me.

“Ethan,” I tell her.

“Well, Ethan, I’m Roxie. I’m gonna take good care of your girl, and she’s gonna take real good care of you.” She says the last part with a wink.

“I’m counting on it.”

My cock gets hard just thinking about Mia grinding on it. Fuck, yes, I want to be her subject. I would pay any amount of money for this experience. Just seeing Mia out of her shell and her comfort zone is worth every penny—no matter the cost.

After we order another round of drinks, Mia gets up from her chair, spilling some of her martini on her hand. I push myself up from the chair and grab her hand to lick the sweet juice from her skin. She tastes like apple and vodka mixed with the scent of her perfume.

What was I thinking? Will could have seen me do that. Idiot. I tell myself that I don’t care anymore and that I don’t need Will’s approval. But I do. Having his consent with Mia is important to me. So, why do I keep fucking things up? Instead of confessing, I lie right to his face and sneak off with his sister.

Mia’s body trembles from my touch, my effect on her instantaneous. She responds so well to me, and I love it. My little lamb is about to dance for me, something I never thought I would see from Mia. I wonder if this has anything to do with her work assignment. Do I care? Nope, not at all.

We follow behind the stripper to the opposite side of the bar, down a long hallway, and into a private room mirrored from ceiling to floor. Luckily, Will and Clarke are off by themselves. Mia would never have agreed to do this otherwise. Tonight, I have Mia all to myself, apart from the stripper who is eye fucking us both.

Roxie touches Mia on the shoulder, sliding her fingers down to her forearm. “Do you want to watch me first or get right to it?”

Mia smiles, refocusing her gaze on me. “What do you want, E?”

“You,” I growl.

Mia’s eyes flicker with acknowledgment. She sticks out her tongue just enough to slide it along her bottom lip.

“Okay, then.” Roxie comes up from behind Mia and places her hands on her narrow hips. She helps Mia sway back and forth to the song, the rock music pumping through the speakers. “A good lap dance is all about the tease. By the time you’re through, he should be begging you to sit on his face.”

Mia blushes at Roxie’s words but keeps moving along with her to the beat. Roxie tightens her grip on Mia, pushing Mia’s skirt down just enough to reveal the string of her hot pink thong. All I can think about is ripping it off her with my teeth, my cock growing harder with each seductive stare and gentle sway of Mia’s hips.

I get lost in the dance, trying to forget about Will and the fact he’s only down the hall from us as I practically nut over his sister. But I don’t care, not even a little bit. Not right now. Not when Mia has me under her fucking spell.

I lift my hand from my thigh and beckon Mia with my index finger, before patting my knee. She does as I instruct, with Roxie still holding onto her from behind, her breasts pressed into Mia’s back. This is a side to Mia I never thought I would see, and it makes me want her even more. My innocent little lamb is a woman now, all grown up and giving me the worst case of blue balls.

With some instruction from Roxie, Mia leans forward to place her palms on my thighs, with her ass up in the air and her eyes pointed at me. She continues to dance for me, following each of Roxie’s orders. Mia moves as if she has done this a thousand times. I salivate with each thrust, the sight of her letting go so intoxicating.

After torturing me for far too long, Roxie tells Mia to get on the long leather bench with me. She straddles me, slowly moving her hands up my chest and to my shoulders. Roxie sits next to us, with her hand on Mia’s back and the other on her ass, coaching the movements from her body. I can’t believe Mia is going along with this. Will would fucking murder me if he had any idea I was paying a stripper to teach Mia the art of giving a lap dance.

Rocking her hips, Mia stares into my eyes, careful not to rub her pussy on my leg, as per her instruction from Roxie. She’s supposed to tease me, make me want to flip her over and fuck her right here on this bench. Mission accomplished.

I reach into my pocket, pull out a few hundred dollar bills, and hand them to Roxie. “Can you give us a minute?”

She takes the money with a bright smile. “Yeah, I think I can do that. I’ll be back in thirty.” Her gaze falls to Mia, and she moves closer to her. The ends of Roxie’s hair cover the top of her breasts, her pretty pink nipples popping out and touching Mia’s arm. “Think you can handle him without me?”

Mia laughs. “Yeah, I think so. Thanks, Roxie.”

She smiles in answer, and then exits the room, closing the door behind her.

I slide my hands up the backs of Mia’s thighs, feeling her silky skin, as I trace my way up to her firm ass to squeeze it. She yelps and falls forward, this time threading her arms around my neck. With our lips almost touching, she lets out a deep breath, the scent of her apple martini’s filling my nostrils.

Mia sits back so that we are staring into each other’s eyes and moves her hands lower. She hops off me to push my legs apart with her hands. Her lips part, as if she wants to say something. I reach out and pull down her bottom lip with my index finger. Red-hot heat buzzes between us, the electricity from our contact setting my skin on fire.

I grab my rock hard cock over my jeans, and she glances down for a second, before sticking out her tongue to lick my finger. Mia grabs my wrist, pushes my finger into her mouth, and sucks hard.

“Fuck, Mia.” I tilt my head back against the top of the bench and suck in a deep breath. “I wish that was my cock you were sucking.”

She releases her grip on me, my hand dropping to her waist. “You would like that, huh? I’m still waiting for that apology you owe me.” A smirk touches her lips.

“I fucked up. I shouldn’t have left without saying anything to you. You should know by now that I am an asshole. Relationships are not my thing, but fuck if I don’t want you more than anything I have ever wanted in my life.”

Keeping her palms on my thighs, she leans forward, swaying her hips just enough to giggle her tits that are practically falling out of the low cut top. “Sorry, I’m not feeling it.” She chuckles. “I need to feel how sorry you are for being a dick.”

Does she want to fight me? We’ll see about that. Gripping her hips, I dig my fingers into her skin and lift her up so that she’s on top of me. For a second, she tries to wiggle free from my grasp, but instead, she pins my legs between hers and gives in to me.

“Fight me all you want. It turns me on,” I tell her.

She presses her lips together, and the Mia I have grown to love over the years feeds right into my hands. Struggling to get off my lap, she tries to break free, doing a shitty job of it. Mia doesn’t want to run. Nope, my girl likes the struggle just as much as I do.

She frowns. “I’m still mad at you.”

I hold her arms tighter and pull them above her head and pin them together. “Then why did you want to learn how to give me a lap dance?”

“So I could fuck with you.”

I laugh. “And how is that plan working out for you?”

She peeks up at my hands that have hers bound, knowing she could not get away from me if she tried. That’s not what she wants. We both know it. Why does she have to be so independent all the time?

“You are mine tonight,” I say.

“Yours?” She says it as though it’s a question.

The corner of my mouth curls up into a crooked grin. “Mine. You were always mine, Mia.”

“I thought you were supposed to protect me from the wolves, and here I am with the biggest wolf in this place. You are the one I should stay away from.”

“If you were smart, you would have stayed far away from me. Now, it’s too late. You are all mine now.” I move her hands in front of her, with my fingers still burrowed into her wrists. “Give me your mouth.”

She looks at me as if she’s confused until she catches on. Mia leans forward to gently tug at my lip with her teeth, knowing full well how I like it. I growl, a ripple of pleasure shooting through my body. Dipping her tongue into my mouth, she rocks her hips to rub her pussy against my erection that tents my jeans.

Still clutching her one wrist, I release the other so that I can pull down her top with my free hand. She’s not wearing a bra, the black spandex shirt molded tight against her tiny frame and now bunched around her middle.

Taking her nipple between my teeth, I tug hard, peeking up at her so that I can watch her as a moan escapes her lips. Her body tenses up for a second before it relaxes.

“E,” she whispers. “Mmm…”

I drop her hand to slip beneath her skirt, not wanting to waste the little time we have left. As I switch between sucking and biting her nipples, I peel back the silky thin fabric covering her pussy. She’s smooth to the touch and waxed to perfection.

I slide my finger along her slick folds, and she hisses, as if in physical pain. She will be later. “So fucking wet for me.” I slowly inch my way into her pussy, and she tightens around my finger. “And so fucking tight. You’re not a virgin, right?”

She opens her eyes, her mouth just as wide, panting and gasping for air. “Would it make a difference if I was?”

“No. I’m fucking you tonight no matter what.”

“I’m not a virgin,” she confesses. “I just haven’t slept with the entire country like you.”

I press my thumb to her lips to silence her. “That’s enough out of you. I have enough time to make you come before Roxie comes back.”

“Then do it already, and stop torturing me.”

I shake my head at her, amused, and withdraw my finger, bringing it to my mouth to lick her juices. “I was going to, but I think you can wait. Patience, lamb. Be a good girl and stop talking back, and I’ll fuck you into tomorrow.”

She huffs, blowing a strand of hair in front of her eyes. “I hate you.”

“Good.” I tuck it behind her ear, grazing my thumb along her jaw. “It’s better if you hate me.”

“For who? You? Your conscience?”

“I’m not good for you, Mia. But that doesn’t mean I want to fuck you any less.”

Mia uses my shoulders to stabilize herself, her body still trembling from the loss of my touch. “Do you still have a hotel room?”

“Why? You wanna come home with me?”

She bobs her head up and down, her eyes closing in the process. “Yesss!”

“Will can’t know. Pretend like you are staying the night with Clarke.”

Mia opens her eyes and grinds her teeth together, looking away as if deep in thought. A beat passes between us before she says, “What if she’s planning to have Will sleep at her apartment? Ugh, I hope not, but it’s not impossible, considering she took off with him the second we got here.”

“Let’s see what happens and go from there, okay?”

She smiles. “Since you’re not going to get me off, I suppose I should get back to work.”

“And what does this work entail? What kind of story could you possibly get from a strip club? Most people know all the nasty shit that goes on at places like this. You won’t make any headlines with a story like that.”

She hops off my lap and fixes her skirt over her long, toned legs. “It’s top secret. I will tell you one thing. It has nothing to do with strippers and everything to do with some of the shady things that go on here.”

“You know who owns this club, don’t you?”

Now, she has me worried. A sweet girl like Mia has no business hunting down gangsters and known criminals. I have had enough dealings with them in my teens, and that glimpse of the dark side was enough to make me see that hockey was where I needed to focus my attention. But it took leaving Mia, Will, and everything I loved behind to see that. Whether Mia realizes it or not, our time apart ten years ago was for the better. For both of us.

“Everyone knows this club is a Mafia front,” she whispers, though I wonder if this room has microphones hidden somewhere. “I’m not as naïve as you think.”

“I’m coming with you.” She opens her mouth to argue with me until I yank at the hem of her shirt to pull her closer to me, cutting off her words. “This is not a negotiation.”

She rolls her eyes at me. “Fine. Don’t get in my way.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“I’ll let you know when I figure it out.” She chuckles. “Honestly, I have no idea. I overheard something at work today, and I thought I would come here to see if anything looks out of the ordinary. So, keep your eyes open.”

I pull Mia onto my knee, hooking my arm around her back as I plant a kiss on her lips. “You scare me more than anyone I have ever met.”

She cocks an eyebrow at me, confused. “And why is that?”

“Because you are too curious, too interested in things that do not concern you. That curiosity could get you killed. I don’t like it.”

“We are only testing this out,” she reminds me. “Just sex, maybe more, which means you have no say in my life or how I run it.”

“That is where you are wrong. Now that I know you’re up to no good, I am not letting you out of my sight. Got it?”

For once, she does not challenge me. She simply nods.

I smile, victorious. “Good girl. Let’s get this over with, so I can take you back to my hotel and fuck you until morning.”

She sticks her tongue out to wet her lips.

No answer is needed. We can communicate later in moans and grunts.