SEAL's Bride: A Secret Baby Romance (19 page)

“
J
ust come out
, love. I’m running short of time here!” Liam yelled at her through the door of his guest bedroom.

“I… don’t know,” she called back.

He groaned. His personal shopper Rita had worked some real magic, pulling together half a rack of suitable ladies’ clothes in the time that Liam and Audrey were at dinner.

Full of sushi and sake, Liam half-dragged Audrey back to his furnished Midtown loft. She quailed at the sight of so many posh garments, but Liam forced her into the guest bedroom and demanded that she pick something to wear.

“We’re going out. You promised me, remember?” he said, drumming his fingertips on the door frame. “So come out, let’s get a move on. I’ve got places to be.”

The door knob turned, the door swung open. Audrey stepped out.

For a full three seconds, he was actually gobsmacked. She wore a tight black leather minidress, showcasing her flawless pale skin and creamy cleavage. She also wore a pair of silver high heels that made her legs look a mile long, even though she was a tiny thing.

Women’s clothes really were mystical, to Liam’s thinking.

“Is it okay?” Audrey said, her cheeks going pink.

“Errm… you’ll do,” Liam said, snapping himself out of it. “It’ll suit where we’re going, that’s for sure.”

He started to turn away, thinking he’d stop in his own bedroom and adjust himself to hide his growing erection. Before he did, though, he paused.

“You should take your hair down,” he said, eyeing her for another moment.

Audrey trailed her fingertips down her braid, then shrugged. “Okay.”

“I have to, uh… grab something. Meet you at the car in a minute,” he said.

She didn’t fight him on that, at least. When he got to his SUV she was standing next to it, her hair flowing around her shoulders like a waterfall of flame.

“Maybe I should drive,” she said.

“Bloody little chance of that,” he said. He went around and opened her door, watching her slide into the car.

What was he doing that for? He only opened car doors when he was trying to get laid. And little Audrey might be pretty, but she was not on his list.

Liam’s employee, Jack’s sister. Not to mention she seemed about as fun as a piece of wet cardboard.

That’s not what you thought a year ago, when she was on your lap, pressing those damp panties against your fingers. Grinding on your cock
, he thought.

Then,
no more of that, you prick.

“Where are we going?” she asked as he jumped in and navigated toward the east side of town.

“Good question,” he said. “Got my mobile?”

She pulled it out of the tiny purse she held and handed it over. Liam searched for what he wanted, then set the GPS.

“Why are we going to Avondale?” she asked, taking his phone when he handed it back. “What’s in that neighborhood that could possibly interest
you
?”

Liam smirked. “Wait and see.”

She sat back in her seat and stared out the window, her expression unreadable.

“So… here’s my question,” Liam said, drawing her attention once more.

“Mm?” she asked.

“For someone who clearly always plays by the rules, I’m a little surprised at how we met,” he said, enjoying her instant look of embarrassment.

“I was drunk,” she said, lifting a shoulder.

“You were fucking wild, is what you were,” Liam said. “Don’t get me wrong, I quite enjoyed it. I just find that wild girl hard to reconcile with…
you
.”

For the barest second, he thought he saw a flash of hurt on Audrey’s face.

“It was a mistake, obviously,” she tossed back at him. “One that does
not
bear repeating.”

Liam let it go at that, figuring he’d have plenty chance to aggravate the piss out of her later in the evening. If only she didn’t make it quite so
fun
…

When he pulled up out front of Mama’s Primetime, a big windowless warehouse, Audrey gave him a skeptical look. “A club, this early? It’s only nine thirty, Liam.”

“We’re here to see someone,” he said. “And it’s Friday. There will be people here already, believe you me.”

He threw his keys to the valet and ushered Audrey to the front doors, a hand at her lower back. She stiffened at his initial touch, but didn’t protest.

There was a suit-and-sunglasses-wearing bouncer at the door. The guy barely even glanced at Liam, but he put a hand out to stop Audrey.

“Yeah, I’m gonna need to see some ID, honey.”

Audrey flushed and dug her license out, tapping her foot while the guy looked back and forth between the card and her. The idea of straight-laced Audrey using a fake ID struck Liam as hilarious.

“Don’t laugh,” she scolded him as the bouncer handed it back.

“At you? Never,” he said with a grin.

Then the bouncer pulled the door open and they stepped inside. It was dark as a cave and smoky as a peat fire. Rap music pulsed through the air, so loud that Liam could feel the vibrations through his shoes.

He gave Audrey a little shove forward to get her moving, and they headed for the bar.

Then Audrey stopped, staring around. He could see her putting it together. Mirrors everywhere, low lighting, men sitting in chairs near a long stage that came out into the middle of the room…

And the gleaming gold stripper pole, of course.

She whirled, looking furious.

“Did you bring me to a strip club?” she demanded to know, her teeth clenched.

“That I did, love,” Liam said with a wink.

“Are… are you serious right now?” she asked, horrified.

“Did I not say, quite specifically, that you would not enjoy this errand?”

“That was before you forced me to get into this… this getup,” she said, waving a hand at her dress. “Admit it, you practically dragged me here.”

Liam gave her an innocent look. If she was going to go into theatrics about it, he was just going to push her further and further. Slowly, though, like turning up the heat on a lobster in its pot. If the heat got to be too much, maybe she’d quit and then he wouldn’t feel quite as bad about the idea of seducing her.

“If you say so,” he said, patting her on the shoulder. “Look, we’re already here. Let’s have a drink, yeah?”

He let her trail after him as he strode over to the bar, raising a hand to flag down the curvy blonde working behind it.

“Hiya,” the bartender said, looking Liam up and down, her gaze nothing short of appreciative. “What can I get you and your… friend?”

Her glance at Audrey, who was standing beside him looking twenty kinds of nervous.

“I’ll have a pint of something dark, love. Guinness or whatever you got. And a Johnny Walker Blue, on the rocks.”

“And for you, miss?” the bartender asked.

Audrey flashed him a sort of helpless look.

“She’ll have a cranberry juice and vodka,” he said. “Easy on the vodka, yeah?”

“Sure thing,” the bartender purred. “I just love a man with an accent, you know?”

Liam chuckled at the look of disgust on Audrey’s face when the server moved away to make their drinks.

“She’s bold,” Audrey commented.

“It’s a topless joint, darling. They’re paid to flirt.”

Audrey pursed her lips but didn’t reply.

The bartender brought their drinks over and Liam tipped her handsomely. He leaned over the bar and beckoned to the busty blonde, holding up another $20 bill.

“I’m looking for someone,” he told her. “Goes by Chuck.”

Her eyes widened a little.

“I don’t think you want to find him, handsome,” she said, shaking her head.

He pulled out two more $20 bills and slid them all across the bar. “I assure you, darling, I do.”

She glanced around, then took the bills and stuffed them in her black apron. “He’s not here yet. I can let you know if you want, but…”

Liam held up a hand to stop her.

“Consider me well warned.” To Audrey, he whispered, “We’re going to have to entertain ourselves for a while, yet. Let’s get a seat, yeah?”

He handed over her drink and led her near the very end of the stage, right in the middle of everything. Several patrons turned to look Audrey up and down, which made her scowl.

She really was an incredible prude, Liam thought with a sigh.

“Can we sit in one of the booths or something?” she asked as he took a seat.

“Nah, we’re doing a bit of detective work, here,” he said. “Sit down and have your drink, try not to look like a narc.”

“I— I do not look like a narc!” she protested in a harsh whisper, taking the seat next to his.

Liam lifted a shoulder and sipped his whiskey.

The music got a little louder and a sexy Latina girl strutted out onto the stage, wearing a little lace top and skirt. The dancer was a definite pro, her gaze sweeping around the stage and landing right on Liam and Audrey.

Well-dressed couple, sitting together? I’m sure she sees dollar signs floating in the air
, he thought. And in this case, the girl wasn’t the least bit wrong.

“Ah, delightful,” he said with a grin. The dancer made her way over, hips swinging.

Liam glanced at Audrey, who was sitting and watching, her cheeks on fire and her mouth open slightly. Embarrassed, but also a little awed? It was almost charming how naive Audrey seemed at that moment.

The stripper paused right before them, sinking down to her knees. She pointed down at Liam and raised a brow, a smile on her face. Liam couldn’t keep the grin from his face. He pulled some 20s from his wallet with a flourish, making a show of handing them over to Audrey.

Audrey gave Liam a horrified glance and tried to shove the money away, but already the dancer was leaning closer, closer… dangling her breasts in Audrey’s face. Liam pointed at the dancer’s bikini top and mimicked putting money in it.

Audrey wrinkled her nose, but when the moment stretched too long and the dancer started to look impatient, Audrey stuck a bill in the girl’s top.

The dancer beamed and grabbed the 20, vanishing it somewhere. Then she reached behind her back and untied her top, writhing and bouncing in front of Audrey. Audrey’s eyes went big as twin full moons, and she grabbed two more bills from Liam’s hand.

Then Audrey stood up and shouted something into the dancer’s ear, then handed over the bills. The stripper winked at Liam and then sashayed away, moving across the stage to another eager customer.

“What’d you do?” Liam asked, rocking back in his seat.

“I paid her to leave me alone, obviously,” Audrey said. “And I will do it again, without hesitation.”

“Turning the tables on me, are you?” Liam said with a grin. “All right, I’d say that’s fair enough.”

Liam’s gaze drifted down to Audrey’s body, and for a moment all he could think about was the way she felt in his arms, the warm press of her body against his. The sweet taste of her tongue stroking his, the feel of her hands tugging at his shirt. If they hadn’t been interrupted by one of her friends, Liam might have had her right there in the booth that night.

She’d been just as hungry for him as he for her, that much was certain. Of course, he’d given her what she wanted. The naughty version of Audrey moaned as he stroked her clit, and came on his command, soaking his fingers.

If only that was the one before him now.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” the annoyed version of Audrey asked, waving a hand in front of his face.

“Like what?” he asked, his lips lifting at the corners. She did make it so bloody fun to tease her.

“Like you’re thinking something totally inappropriate,” she said, taking a big sip of her drink.

“Oh, that. Well, I was thinking about something totally inappropriate.”

She flushed and looked down at the table. “Well stop it.”

Liam leaned forward, trailing a fingertip down her shoulder. She shivered, but didn’t respond.

“How much would I have to pay to watch you get a private dance?” he wondered aloud.

She looked up at him, eyes stormy.

“More than you’ve got,” she said, looking cross.

“I don’t know about that, sweetheart,” Liam said, leaning back and swirling his whisky. “I’m quite rich.”

“Why would you even want that?” she asked, wrinkling her nose.

“To see a half-naked girl grind up against you, squeeze your tits, maybe even get you a little excited?” Liam asked, then laughed. “Yeah, can’t imagine why anyone would want to see
that
.”

“Ugh.” She rolled her eyes.

“Seriously, there are like five or six blokes in here who’ve been eye-fucking you since we walked in. I bet they’d throw down a nice chunk of change to see you get a dance, if you seemed like you were enjoying it.”

“Well, I wouldn’t be,” she snapped.

“No, I suppose you’re not the type,” he sighed. “You’re already turning out to be rather a boring assistant.”

“I’m at a strip club with you,” she pointed out, finishing the last of her drink and pushing the glass away. “If that’s boring, I’m afraid to ask what kind of assistants you’ve had so far.”

Liam pretended to think about that, letting her make up her own ideas. Audrey was quite the pessimist, it seemed.

“Doesn’t matter, does it? I’m stuck with you, it seems,” he said.

“How flattering.”

“Well, you know. Jack asked if I’d line something up for you, said you were
organized
. He actually spoke quite fondly of you.”

He could see her icy demeanor melt a little at the mention of her brother.

“Ah, Jack,” she sighed, giving her head a little shake. “He has the best intentions, you know?”

“Always did,” Liam said. “And yet, when we got in trouble together in boarding school, it was always because of Jack. He’s not much of a planner, god bless him.”

Audrey cracked a smile. “Yeah, he doesn’t really think things through. He has the best heart, though. I wish something would break his way for once, you know? This contract…”

She paused, and Liam could tell that she was about to launch into a very serious thank you.

“Don’t think of it,” he said, cutting her off before she could begin. “Gratitude is wasted on me.”

Her mouth turned down again, and Liam almost regretted his words. Still, this wasn’t the time or the place for thank-yous, and he wasn’t the kind of man who wanted them.