Amelia
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A strip club, me, I’m going to a strip club. I’d always been curious about them, but when I found out a lawyer in our New York office had a client schedule a meeting there I was outraged. She laughed and said it was no big deal.
Now, I can’t stop wondering about the appeal of the strippers. Chris said he hooked up with strippers because they embrace their curves, but I can’t shake the feeling there has to be more than that. These women have something that drew him back over and over, and I need to know what it is. A part of me is terrified I won’t be able to keep him satisfied once the shiny, newness of me wears off. Maybe the women will be able to tell me how to him interested.
Getting out of the cab, I’m lost in thought as I wonder if this is a good idea or a very bad one. I unlock the door to my building then head for the elevator on autopilot. “Why is there an elevator in a four floor walk-up?”
“Ethan put it in for me after my accident. I stayed with Holly and Ethan for a few weeks, until I was cast free. At the time Ethan wanted me to buy a condo in their building, but I love my place, it’s my home. So Ethan had the elevator put in. When he did it I swore I wouldn’t use it, only I use it all the time. My knee hates stairs with a passion. One flight is fine, anything more than two and you’d think I was trying to climb Everest. It hurts like a motherfucker.”
I unlock my place and as I do I remember, crap. I haven’t put away the vibrators from the other night. “What’s that face, sugar? Is there another guy hiding in here?”
Chris’s eyes scan the room before he smiles as he spots my reading nook. Okay, yes, stay in there. “Nothing, I’m just going to change. Make yourself comfortable in here.”
I’m practically running to my bedroom, but he’s on me before I cross the threshold, his arms coming around my waist. Oh god. I groan. They can’t be missed, I washed them then brought them back to my bedroom, but left them out to dry on my bed before putting them in their little cloth pouches.
“Amelia Bishop, what a naughty little girl you are.” Smoky hot the words slide down my neck, followed by his mouth. He sucks on the place where my neck meets my shoulder, then he bites down as his hand covers my weeping center.
I’m trembling, my legs can’t hold me up. “Chris, I need you.”
“Hmm...are you sure? You don’t want to play with one of your toys instead?”
I moan as he undoes my pants then pushes them down, yes, please, his fingers slide inside me. “Not your fingers, I want you. Please.”
“Talk to me about the toys, sugar. Why two?”
“Holly ordered them for me. I’ve never used—oh—” I can’t think when his fingers begin a slow, steady fucking motion.
“Never?” He nips at the spot again, a sharp stinging as he sucks stronger there.
Shaking my head, I fight for breath. “No, I’ve never done any of it before. I told her I was afraid of disappointing you. Before you, I didn’t want sex, didn’t like it. I’ve never even touched there before. Holly thought it was important for me to do it.”
“Amelia, sweetheart, are you telling me you’d never come before, ever?”
Nodding, I sigh as his fingers stop moving. “Never, it’s why I was so sure we wouldn’t work. If it’s all you wanted and I couldn’t give it to you—oh god.” His fingers move to my clit, sending me crashing into an orgasm hard and fast.
I’m up in the air then on my bed. Chris is tearing my blouse off me, and I hear buttons skittering around on the floor. Vaguely, I wonder what kind of a dent he’s going to make in my wardrobe. Then I don’t care as he pushes into me, damn it, I missed it again. Oh, I don’t care, yes.
The world moves again as Chris pulls me into his arm, then my back is against the wall. His thrust sends me against the cool hard surface, but it barely registers. My whole being is centered on Chris inside me. How he feels bigger in this position, I don’t know; all I know is the immense size of him inside me. Too much, oh hot, so hot, I can’t take him in this position until he moves out of me and my whole body buckles at the loss of him.
“Oh, yes,” I scream when he thrusts back inside me, back where he belongs, filling me as he grinds against my clit at the same time. His hands are on my ass, his grip tight as he squeezes my flesh in time with his strokes. All the stimulation is driving me crazy. More, faster, I need to come.
I want to kill him when he laughs against my neck as he sucks on the hollow above my heartbeat. The silky hair on his chest is torturing my breasts, round, full, greedy for his mouth, his touch. Oh fuck, Chris moves me, my shoulders barely touch the wall and I’m impaled on him. It’s everything I feared it would be and every wish I never knew I had. I’m clutching at him as I start to break apart. Faster, yes, right there, right there, oh yes. My head hits the wall with a thump. Ouch. As soon as I feel it I forget it as I take in the sight of Chris. Beautiful, so beautiful my heart aches to see his face hard, his eyes a storm as he moves faster inside me. Without thought, I reach up to touch his cheek. His eyes close as he rubs against my hand. From deep inside me, he thickens then thrusts hard, again and again and, oh god, again.
I hum in pleasure as I savor the wet heat 0f him inside me. Chris seems to do the same as he moves slowly, so slowly inside me. “You don’t clean me out. My come stays inside you tonight so you know, feel who you belong to when men stare at you, wanting you.”
How does something so completely dirty sound hot as fuck when he says it? I nod as I kiss him, sealing my agreement. His phone goes off, reminding us of the world outside of us. I love the way he clearly hates it as much as I do.
Carefully, he lets my feet touch the floor. Once I’m steady, he smacks my ass. Ouch. “Get ready, sugar. Nothing too sexy or I don’t care how nicely you ask, we stay home.”
I go into my walk-in closet. What in the world do I wear to a strip club? And not too sexy? I’m not sure I understand the instruction. Hmm...ooh, this one. It’s an off-the-shoulder cashmere sweater dress in a deep plum. Since it’s a size too small for my fat—um, me, it might just be sexy enough. I find a new bra and panties, blushing as I feel the hot, sticky essence of Chris inside me. He’s so dirty. Once I’m dressed I’m trying to figure out which heels I can wear without ending the night in tears.
“Sugar, what’s taking so long?”
“Ugh, I’m not done yet. I still have to do my hair.” I turn as Chris walks into my closet.
His eyes darken as he shakes his head. “Nope, too fucking sexy, take it off. Too much skin, your legs are...damn. You haven’t worn a skirt before.”
I laugh at the way he says it, like it’s an accusation. “Because it’s twenty degrees outside and I’m at work. I also was embarrassed about the scar on my leg.”
His hands go to my hips, then he pulls me against him. Is he still hard or is he hard again? I don’t really care. “I’m glad you don’t care about the scar anymore, I sure as hell don’t. I care about the skin. This dress shows every damn curve too. No, these are my curves to enjoy.”
Hearing him talk as if I’m a stunning goddess who can compete with half-naked strippers puts a grin on my face I can’t take off. “You’re crazy, there will be half-naked women all around us. Men will not be looking at me. I’ll put on some yoga pants and thigh-high boots. Wait until you say no.”
He shakes his head as he runs his hand through his hair. “Let me see you completely dressed.”
I hated it when he called me adorable, but I get it now. He’s absolutely adorable when he’s trying to be tough. Grabbing the yoga pants, I pull them on with his eyes watching my every move. I snag the least painful thigh-high boots I own. Ever since the accident heels are a hard no since they hurt my knee and hip. This one is only two inches and it’s a stacked heel, so I’m hoping it won’t hurt too badly. Done, I stand with my hands on my hips. I bat my eyes at him as I reach for the sweater he’s wearing to bring him closer. “Please.” I whisper against his lips as I rise up on my tiptoes. Mmm...I love how big he is, so strong, with all his yummy muscles, yet he’s gentle with me.
With a twist of his head he deepens the kiss. I will never stop loving the way he kisses. I’m dizzy when he lifts his head. “Okay, ten minutes. I like your hair the way it is. Don’t flat iron it again.”
He’s so bossy. I escape to the bathroom while I tell myself I don’t love it as much as I do. Holy freaking crap. The bruises on my neck are starting to show in technicolor. Chris is a savage, there is no way I can cover this up. I have all the makeup I need but it will take forever. “Chris!”
In the mirror I see him lazily make his way down the hall before stopping in the doorway, leaning against it with a double dimple smile. His hands are in his pockets as if he doesn’t have a care in the world. “You screamed, sugar.”
Don’t look directly at the dimples, I’m still mad at him. “What the hell did you do to my neck? Are you a vampire or something? I can’t go out like this. It’s going to take forever to cover up.”
He shrugs. “I might have gotten a little carried away. You aren’t covering it up.” I turn to argue, my mouth open, until with three very slow steps he’s in in front of me, leaning down over me. His hands are still in his pockets, yet his relaxed air doesn’t lessen the clear command vibrating from him. “Everyone needs to see my mark on you.” I am not wet at his words, damn it, yes I am. “Either we go the way you are or we don’t go at all.”
Damn, he makes the promise of staying home and getting lost in him appealing. Except, I’m thinking long-term, for when my shiny new appeal wears off. How do I keep him from going back to the strippers? The only way to know for sure is to figure out why he went there in the first place. “Two minutes, let me at least brush out my hair and do my makeup.”
“Two minutes.” He winks as he walks away.
Dear lord, he’s too sexy for words. Four minutes later, I’m locking my condo. “Wait, are we coming back to my place or are you dropping me off?”
“You’re sleeping at my place.”
“Then let me grab something to wear so I don’t have to come back in the morning, like I did today. Since we’ll be out late, and you don’t drink, why don’t you drive us in my car?”
With a shrug, he nods. “If you want.”
After I grab an outfit, stuffing it in an overnight bag, I take Chris through to the garage. Pressing the button on the key fob to unlock the car, I hand it over as the car does the light then beep thing. “I never drive this thing.”
“A Ferrari California? Really?”
I laugh. “Really. Ethan gave it to me. He gets a new one every few years, and he usually keeps them. They are stored in a garage, he has a whole floor of them. I had a Volvo I loved. Then one weekend a few years ago Ethan let me drive this, and I felt like it changed my life. I fell in love. When Ethan got a new one he gave me this one. It’s embarrassing though, it has like sixteen thousand miles on it with almost all of them Ethan’s.”
“Damn, sugar, what a waste.”
“I know. I just don’t get out of the city often enough. Driving in the city is not for me. Do you have a car?”
“Nope, when I got traded from California to New York I sold it. I considered getting one in New York only I never needed it. Then I went to Massachusetts, same story, then here.”
When we get to the club, Trent Mayer is waiting for us with a smile as he greets Chris with one of those guy shake-hug things. “Damn man, if you had told me why you didn’t want to hit the club I would have understood. Hey, Amelia, how are you doing tonight?”
“Watch it, you touch her I break your hand.”
Since Chris says it without a smile, and deadly promise, both Trent and I smile uneasily with a nod at each other. I grab Chris’s hand, pulling him past the small vestibule entry. “Come on, cranky.”
The music isn’t nearly as loud as I thought it would be and the place isn’t nearly as scummy as I pictured it. A few heads come up as we walk through the tables. There aren’t too many people here, then again it is a Tuesday night. Several women greet Chris with a welcoming smile, and I feel a growl growing low inside me. One moment my eyes are darting everywhere to take everything in, the next I’m in Chris’s lap. “Hey.”
“Hey, nothing, sugar. Settle, you can still see everything from here.”
Trent is beside Chris. The chairs are large, plush faux leather. I don’t have time to respond before a woman with only pasties on her nipples asks what we’d like to drink. She’s staring lustily at Chris. I’m relieved to see Chris’s eyes never even pause over the women around us, including the waitress, though it’s clear he knows her. She is an exotic mix of Asian and African-American; glitter sparkles across her impressive, surgically enhanced chest. I’m guessing she is around my age or maybe a few years younger. Her hair is a riot of black curls piled high on her head. I lean back, giving her a hard stare as I order a margarita on ice, no salt. Chris looks at me then shakes his head as he orders a club soda with lime, telling her to make sure my tequila is top shelf. “What?”
“Tequila?” I shrug as I press a kiss to his cheek.
Trent laughs. “Amelia Bishop, as much as I appreciate you getting Chris out here, what in the world are you doing here?”
“I felt sorry for you. I saw you’d been texting him all week. I’ve also always wanted to see what it’s like in one of these places.”
I watch as the dancer on stage wraps her legs around the pole then slowly descends without using her hands, while she’s shaking her very impressive breasts and making her ass shake. Okay, I get how some women make a few grand a night.
Chris and Trent laugh, they are talking as I watch the women and the men in the club. There are about four women with trays walking around serving drinks. Two are wearing pasties, one is wearing a white tank that is wet and three sizes too small, the other is in a bikini top barely large enough to contain her breasts. All of them are wearing thong panties.
I spot three women who are chatting with men, and they all offer small touches as they nod. They are also wearing barely there tops. A woman who looks naked from where I sit is grinding on a man, rubbing her breasts into his face. As I watch her, I take a few mental notes then give up. Aren’t lap dances only for if you aren’t going to have sex? Since I can’t imagine not wanting sex when Chris wants it or him being satisfied with a lap dance, my eyes wander through the club.
The drink goes faster than I thought it would. We’re really just sitting here watching the women dance, while Chris and Trent are talking about a game from last season. I’m kind of sort of bored, aside from walking around half-naked, I don’t see the appeal. Although I’m already mentally going through my closet to make sure I have the kind of clothes Chris would prefer.
After the woman who was on stage finishes her third dance, a new woman comes up who has all the curves Chris likes so much. The dancer is looking at Chris hungrily, and he tenses beneath me. Yep, she’s one of the women he’s fucked. It shouldn’t bother me, it doesn’t, okay, yes it does. I do my best to shake it off. I knew walking in here this was practically guaranteed, it’s why I wanted to come.
When the waitress comes back she smiles widely. “You are so lucky. All the women here love him. He’s one of the nicest, most respectful guys who has been in here in ages. Did he talk you into coming here? Are you two looking for a threesome?” My eyes go big in astonishment at her question. She laughs. “You should see your face. So, no to a threesome. It’s pretty common when women come in with their men.”
I shrug. Chris is looking up at me with a smile then goes back to talking to Trent. “I’ve always been curious about coming into a place like this. A few women I’ve worked with had asshole clients who made appointments at strip clubs, to intimidate them. When they said it wasn’t nearly as bad as they expected, I wanted to know what it’s like. I was also—” I look down to make sure Chris is engrossed in his conversation. “I was wondering how to make sure he doesn’t get bored if I’m not like the women he’s used to.”
“Ah.” She hugs me. Her skin is insanely soft, she smells good, and it’s not nearly as weird to hug the half-naked woman as I would have guessed. “You are so adorable.” There’s that stupid word again. “Come on, let’s go powder our noses.”
The idea of refusing doesn’t cross my mind. As I stand Chris’s arm goes around my waist. “Where are you going?”
“To the restroom.”
Chris shoots a glare at the woman. “Angie, you keep men away from her. If someone so much as touches her it’s on you.”
With a gulp she nods. “We’ll be right back.”
I barely have time to be annoyed before Chris’s hand goes around the back of my neck, pulling me down to him. Holly hell, his kiss is fire, burning me down to my toes. I can’t breathe and I don’t care. When he ends the kiss his eyes trace my face, and with a look of satisfaction he lets me go.
Angie laughs as she takes my hand, then pulls me away. Trailing after her in a daze, I have no idea where I’m going. We stop in what looks like a locker room, in a pale pink. There are half-size lockers that line two walls, then there are four vanity areas. An array of makeup, hair products, flat irons and curling irons are jumbled on the vanity.
“Hey there, cutie, I saw you come in with Chris Baldwin. Are you two shopping for a third?” a very young woman, with skin the color of milk chocolate, hair a pretty bright pink and breasts I envy for how perky they are asks with interest.
I still can’t stop my eyes from widening as I shake my head and suck hard on the straw. My drink is gone, and I’m waiting for the buzz to hit me to make this whole experience a little less intimidating. Angie speaks for me. “They are not looking for a third. She was curious about her man coming in here and how to make sure she keeps his attention. I think she’s adorable. I brought her back here for a Cliff Notes session, Rachel. You want to help me out?”
“Sounds like fun.” Rachel nods with a big smile.
When I stumble back to the table almost a half hour later, Chris is not happy. He puts down his club soda, lifts his eyebrow, and tugs me down hard into his lap. “I’m sorry,” I whisper into his ear as I grind against his lap.
I giggle when he groans. “Where the fuck have you been? Did you have another drink?”
“Mmm...one or two more. I’m not sure. Angie told me it would help loosen me up. She was right, I’m feeling very loose. Has Trent found someone so I can take you home and show you how loose?”
“Christ, Amelia.” He stands, his hand around my arm. Leaning over to Trent, I have no idea what they say before Chris nods. “What’s the matter? Are you okay?”
Damn it. “My knee hurts really bad. I knew I shouldn’t have worn these boots, or maybe it was the dance moves they kept making me practice. I—”
Chris bends over then slings me over his shoulder. “I knew this was a bad idea,” he says as he spanks my ass, hard. Ouch. I try to wiggle down only to get another smack for my efforts. I give up as the cold night air hits me, sobering me up a little. We’re almost back to the car when a flash of light comes out of nowhere, once, twice, I lose count.
Seriously? It’s a good thing I’m leaving because I’m pretty sure Karen will want to fire my ass when she sees the picture. Crap, Ethan is going to lose his shit about it. Ethan might have been a manwhore, but he was respectable about it with the models—he was never photographed coming out of a strip club, ever. If I’d thought there was a chance I would get photographed coming out of the club, I’m almost sure I wouldn’t have come. But I’m a little tired of being the good girl, and I can’t help but wonder, what if it were Ethan? Would it be a big deal if it were a guy?
“Chris, Amelia, what are you two doing in a strip club together? Ms. Bishop, aren’t a—”
I land in the car seat, and Chris closes the door on the annoying guy. Then he comes around and buckles me into the seat. I catch him by the sweater to bring him back to me. “Thank you for taking me tonight. I learned a lot tonight. The women were really nice. I’m ready to try sucking your cock.”
A growl comes out of him as he kisses me hard and so very dirty. The world is spinning when he stops, sucking hard on my bottom lip. “I’m going to hold you to that.”
Giggling, I lean back in my seat then fall asleep.