Iron Rods: 1 (Strip Club) (10 page)

She wanted to tell him how amazing he’d been. Instead she
nodded, too exhausted and lightheaded to speak.

He’d taken her to the peak twice in less than an hour. He’d
set the bar at new heights, making any man’s attempt to best his incredible
performance next to impossible. He’d managed to make her feel sexy and alluring
despite her limited sexual experience and her six-foot body.

After several minutes, he turned his head along the flat
surface of the desk to face her. “What Lyle said about me is true. I do want to
tear this place down and build a high-rise. As much as I enjoyed this with you,
it hasn’t changed my mind. Iron Rods is a dying club. You can pump as much
money as Lyle can afford into it, but in the end it’s still going to fail.”

She stared into his eyes, willing him to take back his
words. How could he say such things, especially after what they had just
shared? She wasn’t so naïve that she believed what they had done was anything
more than just sex. But Lord love a damn duck, couldn’t he have waited before throwing
cold water on her moment? Didn’t the man care even a little about her feelings?

The warm fuzzies he’d kindled within her now felt like
prickles of ice. Anger quickly replaced the afterglow she’d been basking in.
Good thing. She needed the strong emotion to smack some sense into her
punch-drunk faculties.

He was wrong, of course, though she wouldn’t dignify what
he’d said with a response. She
would
bring Iron Rods back to its former
glory and it would be a moneymaker. From what she could tell, the staff was
behind her, even T. With Lyle’s support, some hard work and the right dancers,
Iron Rods would be Austin’s premier strip club for women. She was sure of it.

“I promise you though,” he continued, “I’ll make sure you’re
well taken care of after the place closes. I’ll find another job for you. One
you’ll love. I’ll pay you three times what Lyle is paying you now. And you’ll
never have to worry about money again. Trust me. What I’m telling you is the
truth.”

His honesty and his offer were the last things on her mind.
Standing in the forefront was her pride, and not far behind, her self-worth.
She’d given up her lifelong dream to be a professional dancer and had taken on
the chance at turning around a run-down club. She would be successful even if
it killed her.

Failure is not an option.

Well, this can’t be good.

Bennett shook his head and heaved a sigh at the sight of
Tatum’s round ass sticking out from under the open hood of her truck in the
Iron Rods parking lot. After a long day in the club suffering through private
lessons so they could quickly get up to speed on Texas Alcohol Beverage
Commission requirements and the basics of bartending, seeing the leggy blonde
up to her elbows in a grease-covered engine could only mean one thing—more
suffering.

For almost ten hours his cock had battled his mind while he
sat near her at the bar and pretended to pay attention to an overpriced
facilitator. Each time the air conditioner kicked on, her perfume blew his way,
enveloping him in her distinctive scent of sunshine mingled with vanilla. The
aroma made his mouth water, especially as his mind drifted to thoughts of the
place she smelled and tasted the best. When they occasionally drew close to
inspect information the instructor provided, Bennett’s skin warmed until his
already overheated body practically melted beneath his trousers and starched
button-down. This, unfortunately, only added to his misery.

His situation should be simple. She wasn’t his type and
couldn’t be more wrong for him on personal and professional levels. And, based
on the daggers he’d seen in her perpetual glare, her curt responses to any of
his questions and the cold shoulder she presented whenever he was around, he’d
managed to piss her off royally over a week ago when he talked openly about his
plans for Iron Rods.

So much for being honest with a woman. If I had wanted to
be ignored, I would hang out with Lyle.

Yet despite the passing of time, as well as knowing why
Tatum was not in his best interest, his body demanded the opportunity to touch
her again. He desperately wanted to fill his hands with her breasts, part the
wet folds of her cunt to taste her honeyed nectar and drive his hard penis into
her until his aching balls slapped the underside of her welcoming slit.

All day, desire had fought tooth and nail with reason,
leaving him mentally and physically frazzled. Relief in the form of
masturbation, followed by a long cold shower and then a relaxing glass of
well-aged whisky, would have to wait while he stuck around and helped her get
the beater she called a truck started.

Why had he let lust rule supreme last week when the Iron
Rods staff had left after their meeting? He should have known better. If he’d
hoped to satisfy carnal needs and rid himself of temptation, the plan had
horribly backfired. Since the moment he’d assisted her out of her clothes in
the manager’s office, he’d wanted more. His mind, which usually focused on
business, now fixated on Tatum. Regardless of the time of day, she was there,
front and center in his thoughts. He couldn’t go on this way.

Bennett reluctantly strode to her vehicle and rolled up his
sleeves. “What seems to be the problem?”

Not that her answer mattered. The most he knew about fixing
cars started and stopped at pressing the button for OnStar emergency service.

“It’s not your concern, Slick,” she mumbled, not bothering
to look at him. “I can take care of this myself.”

Bennett scrunched up his face and took a breath, trying to
keep his building frustration in check. When was she going to give Operation
Deep Freeze a rest?

“I assume it won’t start?”

With considerable force, Tatum smacked both hands flat
against the side of the truck and slowly lifted her head from the jumble of
metal parts and hoses beneath the hood. A scowl pinched the skin between her
brows and her lips formed a perfect flat line.

Though she had been outside only long enough for him to shut
down the air conditioner in the club, set the alarm and turn off all the
lights, her efforts to start the truck and the Texas heat and humidity had
already taken their toll. A light sheen of perspiration glistened on her face
and neck. Several golden strands had escaped from her ponytail.

With the back of her hand, Tatum brushed back a stray lock,
leaving a streak of something black on her forehead. Instead of looking
ridiculous, her disheveled appearance only made her look more adorable. Damn
the woman!

“I think it’s my carburetor.”

“You know how to fix vehicles?”

He hadn’t intended to sound accusatory when he asked the
question, but the deepening of her fierce expression suggested she’d taken it
that way. She pushed herself from the truck, wiped her palms on her jeans and
then planted her fists on her hips.

“My daddy made sure I knew how to do basic repairs,” she
said as a bead of sweat rolled into the narrow valley of cleavage at the top of
her T-shirt. “Growing up in West Texas, where you can find yourself a hundred
miles from the nearest service station, it’s pretty damn important to know a
thing or two about engines. Got a problem with that?”

Her Southern twang blasted full-force. The only things she
needed to be more Texan were a piece of straw between her teeth and a horse
trailer behind her truck.

“No. Not a bit.”

In fact, her self-sufficiency only added to her
attractiveness.

Jesus. What’s happened to me? When did women grease
monkeys become a turn-on? I’m becoming more like my father every day.

The realization sent a cold shiver down his back.

“So what makes you think it’s the carburetor?” Bennett
leaned over the massive engine. How could anyone make heads or tails of the
confusing mess?

Tatum crossed her arms over her chest. “The engine won’t
turn over, but there’s power going to the battery. Plus this old girl has been
spewing black smoke and engine has been missing for a while.”

Saving himself from what would probably end up being extreme
embarrassment, he refused to ask how her engine could possibly be
missing
.
The internal workings of the truck were right there.

If only Lyle had taken the time to show him how to fix
things like cars, he wouldn’t have to put on that he knew more than he actually
did. Being less than competent in any subject grated his nerves.

He caught himself reaching for the Susan B. in his pocket.
Instead, he rubbed his chin, hoping he looked and sounded at least somewhat
knowledgeable.

“Hmmmm. You might be right. It does sound like the
carburetor.”

Why did he feel the need to impress this woman? That he even
cared what she thought of him caused his palm to itch for the coin.

“Unfortunately,” he added, “we have a problem. I’d like to
fix this for you, but I don’t have the right tools with me to make the repairs
before the sun goes down. It’ll be dark before I can even get the carburetor
out to look at.”

“You don’t say.”

Bennett glanced up from something large and metallic in the
engine to take in Tatum’s expression. One corner of her lips had pulled tightly
into her cheek. An eyebrow was perched high over a green eye filled with
skepticism. If he was a guessing man, he’d guess she wasn’t buying his act.

“Why don’t I take you home and you can call someone to tow
it off to a shop tomorrow?” he suggested, stepping from the truck. “It should
be safe here tonight.”

Much safer than you’ll probably be with me if I can’t
learn to control myself around you.

Tatum’s gaze shifted between him, her dead vehicle and then
back. She blew out a puff of air, disturbing the stands of hair that refused to
stay out of her face.

“I’m too tired and hot to deal with this right now. Go ahead
and take me home.”

She sounded unhappy but resigned to her fate, though he
couldn’t be sure which situation, leaving the truck overnight in the Iron Rods
parking lot or having to be around him, troubled her more.

When she finished cleaning her hands, they got into his car
and headed north on South Congress. The atmosphere inside the sports car
practically crackled with tension. Tatum kept her head turned toward the
passenger window, occasionally releasing a heavy sigh. Neither of them bothered
to speak. Then again, what was the point when they had so little in common?

As they crossed Milton Street, the road sloped down a steep
hill toward downtown. Tatum angled herself near the front windshield.

“I’ve been on this road at least a thousand times,” she
said, a dreamlike quality softening her voice. “I still catch my breath when I
see this view. Austin has to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world.”

Bennett blinked. In that moment, the surroundings came in to
focus. Although he’d been staring down South Congress Avenue, he hadn’t really
paid attention to what he was seeing.

In the distance, the straight lines of the long avenue
dead-ended at the Capitol building. The grand home of the Texas legislature,
the Capitol and its domed peak dominated the view. Tall buildings and trees
lined the wide street as though they were sentinels, silently keeping watch
over all who passed their way.

Many years ago when he rode alongside Lyle in the front of
the old man’s pickup to and from the club, Bennett had felt the same awe of
seeing downtown and the Capitol building. Even then, long before the
skyscrapers changed the city skyline, the view down South Congress had been a
sight to behold. Funny how the changed landscape no longer stirred his soul.
Funny too how he had taken the impressive panorama completely for granted until
Tatum pointed it out.

As though touched by unseen magic, the streetlights and the
strings of lights entwined in the trees that bordered the avenue came to life
with light. A childlike joy swept through him. He glanced at Tatum, whose
stretched smile matched his own.

“Want to watch the bats?” The thought popped into his mind
and flew from his lips before he realized he’d spoken it aloud.

“
You
want to watch the bats fly out from under the
Congress Bridge?”

She placed emphasis on the word
you
as though the
possibility of his wanting to watch the nightly curiosity was beyond belief.

“Yes, I do. But I’ll understand if you want me to take you
home. I know you’re hot and tired.”

He was teasing her again, something he rarely did with
anyone else. But he couldn’t help himself. Doing so felt so right.

“I think I can make it a few more minutes before I drop from
exhaustion.” She pointed an animated finger to an available parking spot on the
side of the road. “Quick. Stop over there. We need to hurry or we’ll miss the
show.”

Moments later, they arrived panting and grinning near the
fringe of people gathered on the wide sidewalk spanning the Colorado River. For
several minutes, thick black ribbons of bats rose into the twilight sky,
twisting and turning, from under the concrete bridge. People held out their
cameras and cell phones, forever capturing the event through pictures and video
until the last of the strange webbed creatures disappeared into the night.

He may have seen the bats on their nightly flight dozens of
times since he was old enough to stand, but tonight, with Tatum at his side, it
was as though he were watching the spectacle for the first time. She somehow
managed to remind him of the wonders of the city and take him back to a time in
his life when he had genuinely enjoyed living here. The woman who lacked social
polish and upbringing was bringing light to a side of him he’d long ago let go
dark. If only he could spend more time with her, away from business, where they
could continue to let down their guard. Maybe then they could learn to like
each other better.

They walked side by side back toward his car when a notion
struck.

“I don’t suppose you’d be up for dessert?”

She stopped in her tracks and stared up at him. “Just who
are you and what have you done with Bennett Truitt?”

“Do you truly want to know?” he laughed.

Tatum tilted her chin, looking deep in thought. “No. I don’t
think so. I like you much better. You’re not the soul-sucking jerk that he is.”

“Ouch.” Bennett placed a hand over his heart and staggered
back. “I’m not that bad, surely.”

She crossed her arms over her chest and thrust out a hip,
accentuating her position on the matter.

“That bad?”

“Oh ya.”

He scoured his mind, thinking through the times they’d been
together. Although he hadn’t exactly been on his best behavior in her company
and he told her the truth about moving forward with tearing down Iron Rods, he
hadn’t acted like a jerk.

“You peed in my Cheerios after we had sex,” she huffed
before he could respond.

“I
what
?”

“After a great run around the rodeo ring in the manager’s
office, you had to open your mouth and insert your big fat hoof. I shouldn’t
tell you this, but I’m gonna anyway. You really hurt my feelings that night.”

She turned on the heel of her boot and started walking.

“Hold on.” Bennett caught her by the shoulder and whirled
her around. “What are you talking about?”

“I’m talking about how instead of whispering sweet nothings
in my ear after our hook-up, you started going on and on about how I would fail
as a manager and the inevitable death of Iron Rods. That’s what.”

He thought back. He remembered saying something about her
being terrific. And then their conversation had drifted to business.

Actually, now that he thought about it, Tatum hadn’t said
much after they lay on the desk. It was
his
conversation that had
drifted to business, not
their
conversation.

Damn. She was right. Their one and only time as sexual
partners, and he’d droned on about Iron Rods rather than cooing to her like a
normal person would.

The tips of his ears burned and the pain in the center of
his chest hurt worse than if she had just drop kicked him.

Man oh man. He’d been more than just a jerk that night, he’d
been a complete ass. That hadn’t been his intention, but none of his intentions
seemed to play out well lately. Not since she stumbled into his life.