Join the Club - Lani Lynn Vale Page 0,80

today.

“Come around here and help me,” I ordered.

Avery did, walking around the bar of the strip club that I worked in and grabbing one side of the keg.

Together, we hefted it into place.

Then I got to work hooking up the connections.

“Okay,” Avery started again. “I’m just going to blurt out my idea, okay?”

I gave her a droll look before starting to line the glasses up the way I liked them.

Just as Avery was about to open her mouth and start explaining, the door to the bar opened and then banged shut, and I grinned.

“Hi, Lynn.” I smiled. “You’re early today.”

“Meeting someone,” my dad’s friend, Lynn, and the owner of The Underground, Kilgore’s—or the outskirts of Kilgore’s—newest strip club, said.

Actually, it was an old club.

One that apparently Lynn had won off a guy in a poker game, decided he would like to turn it around, and had restored it to its vintage glory.

When he’d opened it a few months ago, I didn’t think he expected it to do as well as it did.

The door banged again, and Bruno walked in.

Bruno was someone I didn’t know all that well, but when I looked at him, I got the distinct feeling he was of the same caliber as Lynn and my father were.

My father was ex-CIA and a whole lot of other things. Lynn was a whole lot of other things—those were my dad’s words, not mine. But really, I didn’t actually know what Lynn did.

I’d heard quite a bit about him over the course of my life, and I still hadn’t quite pinpointed what it was that he did—or didn’t—do.

Bruno was much the same.

And someone I tried to avoid at all costs. Not because he was creepy or anything, but just because he was kind of scary, and I tried not to get noticed because getting noticed led to my brothers and my dad poking their noses into my life when I didn’t want them to.

Both Bruno and Lynn walked into Lynn’s office and shut the door, leaving me once again to look at Avery who was still not telling me what she wanted.

“I’m not getting any younger here,” I said. “And are we doing lunch or not?”

I usually worked from ten to twelve at the bar after classes, getting things ready for that night. Then I grabbed lunch, went to two more classes, and then got some studying time in and one of my online classes taken care of before I went to work from eight to twelve.

Avery and I met for lunch on Tuesdays.

She was in one of my classes at the college, and we’d hit it off quite well.

Now we were good friends, and we ate lunch and chatted when we could fit in the time.

Tuesdays were usually my only days that I could do that, though.

My schedule was busy as hell—at least for the next six weeks.

I was drastically rewriting my schedule next year.

I would not be taking anything over twelve college credit hours.

I just couldn’t hack it.

First, I didn’t want to attempt something so difficult. It was an awful idea to try to fit this many college classes in.

Secondly, I liked sleeping in. I also liked Saturdays and Sundays. Both of which were being consumed by all the schoolwork I couldn’t finish during the week.

Third, I missed my family. I wanted to see them more.

And lastly, I kind of liked bartending. It made me exceptionally happy to see the disapproving faces my brothers made.

“Let’s head out now,” Avery said. “I’ll tell you in the car.”

I rolled my eyes but grabbed my purse, called out a goodbye to Lynn through the door, and headed out until my shift this evening.

“Do you have to work this Saturday?” she asked casually.

I shook my head. “No. I don’t work Saturday or Sunday. That was the deal with my brothers, remember?”

She snickered.

I’m glad someone found it funny.

I sure didn’t.

“It’s sweet that they love you,” she said. “And Saturdays and Sundays are freakin’ crazy here… or so I’ve heard.”

“You should come,” I teased.

Avery gave me a droll look.

“Do you honestly think that I could get Derek to take me here?” she asked.

Derek was her man.

Derek also was a member of the Kilgore SWAT team, and a really sweet guy that loved his wife.

What he did not love was his wife in danger.

Not that I blamed him.

I was only risky with my own life. Not anybody else’s.

“No,” I admitted. “So… why does it matter if I have Saturday off?”

She bleeped the locks on her car door, and I dropped inside the passenger seat.

“I…” she sighed.

“Oh, spit it out, Avery.” I slapped my hand against my jean-clad thigh.

“I want you to do a stranger photoshoot!” she blurted out.

Seriously, I was a pretty laid back person.

I liked to do what I liked to do.

I dressed like I wanted.

Ate how I wanted.

Worked out when I wanted.

Went to school.

Ultimately, I was pretty chill.

I mean, I worked in a strip club, for Pete’s sake.

What I did not do well were strangers.

I didn’t know why.

That was why I worked behind the bar.

It kept people away from me.

I could put on a good front, but honestly, I was not good with people I didn’t know.

And generally, people coming into a strip club didn’t give a damn about the woman behind the bar. They gave a damn about the woman up on the stage.

Something which I would never, not ever, do.

I was just fucking shy, okay?

I could bullshit with the best of them, but at the end of the day, I still hid behind my daddy when he introduced me to new people.

“I know what you’re thinking,” she said. “It’s a stranger. I swear to God, if there was anyone else, I wouldn’t have asked you. But everyone is married, soon-to-be married, or pregnant that I know female-wise. You’re it for me.”

I swallowed hard past a lump in my throat.

“What would I have to do?” I asked, voice holding steady even though I could feel it threatening to crack.

“Whatever you wanted to do,” she admitted. “I was thinking that I could bring you to our house. We could do it in our bedroom. Or our kitchen. Wherever. Pretty much, we just throw y’all together and take pictures of you. Please, please. I know you’re about to say no.”

I was.

“Avery…” I started.

“He’s a good guy,” she blurted. “He’s rock solid—both in terms of muscles and personality. He’s a little quiet. He’s on the SWAT team. I’ve pretty much blackmailed him into doing it, too.”

“How did you blackmail him?” I asked curiously.

“Well, I think that I’m going to do a photoshoot auction,” she said. “Some of the pictures I’m going to enter into this auction will benefit the Fallen Officer’s Association. The association is something very near and dear to his heart.”

“Why?” I couldn’t stop myself from asking.

“Adam had a best friend in boot camp. His name was Doucet. Doucet went all the way through bootcamp with him, only to have him have a heart issue that forced him into retirement before they could even deploy. Doucet went on to join the police department while Adam went on to do his thing in the Air Force. Last year, Doucet died while on shift working a police call. He was hit by a tractor-trailer while on the side of the road.” She paused. “And ever since, Adam has done everything he could to help support fallen officers like Doucet.”

That made my heart hurt.

“That’s sad,” I said. “And you think you’ll get something out of this auction?”

She gave me a smile that lit up her face. “I know I will. With the SWAT team calendar doing so good? This will just be huge, I know it.”

She saw the indecision on my face.

“It’ll probably piss off your father,” she teased.

I laughed then.

“Anything that will drive my father nuts I’m down for.”

Her eyes looked so hopeful that I couldn’t say no.

I just couldn’t.

Fuck.

“Fine,” I sighed. “Saturday? What time?”

“Nine?” she asked hopefully.

I winced. “Make it ten, and I’ll do it.” I paused. “Only if you have donuts.”

“No good donuts are going to be left at ten,” she said.

I shrugged. “Then go get them early, and just have them there.”