Lost and Found (19 page)

“You’re kidding, right? It’s totally out of proportion with the rest of me. It’s also why I don’t usually wear pants. Jamie talked me into these. They’re hers.” Jessie turned around and finished buttoning her fly. She felt slightly less embarrassed with her clothes back on, though the lack of panties was a bit hard to get used to. Especially against her sensitive, newly awakened flesh.

Duncan
caressed her buttocks again and looked up at her. “No, I’m not kidding. I’m dead serious. Never wear jeans again around me unless you want to end up flat on your back as fast as I can manage it.
 
Which will be pretty damn fast, believe me.” A thrill went through Jessie at his possessive tone and she moved forward until she was standing between his thighs again.

“I’ll be sure to go out and buy some of my own jeans, first thing tomorrow morning.”

Duncan
growled and was just about to pull her down in his lap when they heard a tapping at the bathroom door. They froze and looked at each other like deer caught in headlights. “Oh shit,”
Duncan
whispered, looking at his large silver watch. “Jessie, it’s almost ten. We’ve been in here almost an hour.” Jessie angled the watch toward her and covered her mouth in shock.

“Jessie? Are you okay?” Jamie’s worried voice carried through the door.

“I’m fine,” Jessie called, giving
Duncan
a desperate look. “We were just talking.”

“Yeah, well, I walked by here about fifteen minutes ago and I didn’t hear a lot of talking going on. Moaning maybe, but very little talking.” Jamie knocked a bit louder as Jessie covered her face in humiliation. “Jess, tell your detective that Terri-Lynne finally came, and her keeper is with her. She’ll be on stage in five minutes.” They both heard the sound of Jamie’s heels tapping as she retreated from the door.

“Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God…” Jessie said as she tucked her shirt in and looked around urgently for
Duncan
’s jacket. She spotted it by the door and picked it up. This was awful. How could she have done this in such a public place? Nice girls didn’t have sex in strip club bathrooms, did they? Worst of all, nice girls didn’t mutilate their partner’s backs while having sex in strip club bathrooms. She practically threw
Duncan
’s jacket at him and rushed for the door, yanking on it, and grunting in frustration when it wouldn’t open.
 

Duncan
walked up behind her and put his hands on her shoulders. “Jess, what’s wrong? Why are you trying to break down that door from the inside?” He flicked the lock and leaned forward to press a soothing kiss against the back of her neck.

Jessie pressed her forehead against the door and took some deep breaths. “Everything is wrong. We just had sex, well kind of had sex, in a public bathroom, with my sister in the next room. Not to mention a bunch of strangers probably listening in.”

Duncan
wrapped his arms around her from behind. “Jess, I’m sorry. This was my fault. I just saw you with that guy and all I could think about was making you mine. I thought if I could show you how good it could be between us, you wouldn’t want someone else. It’s stupid, I know. But guys are like that.”

“You were jealous? Of Phabio?” Jessie almost laughed. It was so ridiculous.

“Phabio? Is that the pirate king’s name? Yes, I was kind of jealous. I should have known that this was the wrong place to do this. That you’d be embarrassed. But I wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Uh, why didn’t we, uh, go all the way then?” Jessie asked, turning in his arms to look up at him.

“Two reasons. Mainly because I meant it when said I wanted your first time to be special and this is definitely not what I had in mind.’
Duncan
spread his arms to indicate the bathroom. “But also because I was so excited, I didn’t think I could last very long the other way. I wanted to make this about you. So you’d forget about that other guy.”

“Are you serious? That is just about the sweetest, messed-up thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Really? It sounds pretty stupid to me now.”
Duncan
shook his head and smiled ruefully at her. “I didn’t mean to upset you.”

“You didn’t. This all pretty new to me. I’ve never serenaded a club full of strangers with my screams of excitement before.”

“You were pretty loud,”
Duncan
said and winced as Jessie poked a finger into his ribs. “But I don’t think anyone heard you except me and your sister.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Really. There’s music and people talking out there. They’d have to be listening for it.”

“I hope so.” Jessie said, uncertain, but hopeful.

“Don’t worry, next time you put on a performance, I’ll make sure I’m your only audience.”
Duncan
kissed her softly. “Are you okay? Can we go out there now?”

“I’m okay, but how about you?” She blushed and looked down at the front of his jeans. They were still tented over his erection.
 

“Ignore it. It’ll go away.”
Duncan
said, opening the door and gesturing for her to go ahead of him.

“Are you sure?” She looked at him doubtfully.
 

“Yes, I’m sure. Just don’t look at me or touch me or smile at me for a few minutes.”

“That’s all it takes. A look?” Jessie glanced down again, clearly fascinated.

“Afraid so. Men are simple creatures. What can I say?” He shrugged his shoulders and followed Jessie out to the main room of the club, careful not to look at her curvaceous behind.

Chapter
14

The little blond on stage looked exactly like
Duncan
’s mother. Before the booze, drugs, and plastic surgeon got hold of her and turned her into a caricature of herself. The fluffy blond hair, fine-featured pixie face, and wide mouth still haunted his dreams. There was no denying the resemblance to Marie Elisabeth Reinhold McTavish Williams Zuarini. Terri-Lynne, the exotic dancer and former street kid, was definitely his half-sister, Theresa.

“Is it her?” Jessie asked, watching his stunned face with concern. They were standing to the right of the stage, close enough to touch the dancers as they performed a choreographed number to Prince’s ‘Kiss.’ The club had filled up while they’d been in the bathroom and most of the tables had people at them. Many men, but a few women watched the girls on stage.
 

“Yeah. It’s definitely her.”
Duncan
’s voice sounded weird to him. Distant and somewhat alien. He hadn’t been prepared for his reaction to seeing this girl up on stage. She should be like a stranger to him, but wasn’t. He felt the first stirrings of brotherly protectiveness and it disturbed him a great deal. He had no right to feel this way, but he wanted to take his jacket off and cover her up, while rushing her off to the nearest convent.

“What do you want to do?” Jessie asked, putting a hand on his arm. He looked strange. “Can I help?”
 

“You can tell me where the club manager is or better yet: the owner. We’ve got to get her out of here. Can’t they tell she’s underage?”
Duncan
turned his face away from the sight of Theresa gyrating on stage and glared at Jessie.

“They check ID here
Duncan
. She must have some false papers.” He just shook his head and Jessie got a glimpse at the man who spent his days hunting pedophiles and rapists. He was like a stranger to her; an intensely angry stranger. She pointed to the bar. “I don’t know if Percy is here, but we could ask the bartender.”

“No, you wait here. Or better yet. Go home and I’ll call you later.” He walked away from her without a glance. Jessie sunk down onto a nearby chair against the wall to watch him. Things were changing entirely too quickly for her. Two days ago, she hadn’t even been aware of
Duncan
’s existence, but now she felt bereft whenever he was out of touching range. His easy dismissal of her right now made it clear he didn’t feel the same way.

Jessie thought about leaving. Not just the club, but also the entire situation. She was in too deep already and she couldn’t deal with his changeable moods. One second he was desperate for her and the next she was an inconvenience. A nice, boring accountant with glasses and a fondness for playing Scrabble on Saturday nights seemed like a less challenging option.

But how would she ever be content with someone like that after spending a single day with
Duncan
? It was like she’d walked into one of the romance novels she secretly read, except instead of an exciting, spunky heroine to match the volatile leading man, she had somehow been miscast in the role. She didn’t know if she could survive much more of this, but how could she not try?

He made her feel alive. It wasn’t just the sex, though she did feel a rush of excitement just thinking about the way he’d laid her out on that lounge in the bathroom. She also loved the way he teased her, his concern for her, and his own little surprising insecurities. She even liked the fact that he was so dedicated to his sister. She felt a bit resentful at his abandoning her so quickly, but he wouldn’t be the man he was if he ignored his obligations.

Jessie looked back at the stage. Jamie was up there, belting out the Prince song enthusiastically. Her voice wasn’t great, but her confidence and grace couldn’t be denied. The tuxedo jacket she’d been wearing earlier was open; offering glimpses of the tiny black sequined halter Jamie had designed and made herself. As Jessie watched, Jamie slowly drew the jacket down her arms and threw it into the audience. From the back, it looked like she was completely naked from the waist up. A small crowd of older men in the first few tables went wild and grabbed for the jacket. Jamie just smiled slyly and continued her striptease.

Why can’t I be dynamic like that? Jessie asked herself. Look at her up there. There’s four other girls dancing around behind her and yet every eye in the place is on Jamie. She isn’t just beautiful; she’s charismatic too. If I had just a small fraction of that,
Duncan
would fall in love with me. Could she be like Jamie? Probably not, but next time she had
Duncan
alone, she would certainly try to act like she was.
 

The song was ending and the girls struck their final pose. Jamie ripped off the wig, allowing her long red hair to tumble down over her bare breasts and the audience’s applause intensified. The other four girls were stripped down to small bikinis. Jessie watched as
Duncan
, and Percy the manager, approached the stage.
Duncan
’s face was like a thundercloud. Percy, the cadaverous owner, trailed behind, looking like he was about to expire from worry as they stepped through the employee door to meet the girls backstage.
 

When the girls filed off stage,
Duncan
was waiting. Jamie was the first to reach him. She paused for a moment, blocking the stairway, while the other girls fidgeted impatiently behind her to get to the dressing rooms beyond. Jamie raised her eyebrows and gave him a speculative look. “Glad you could make it, Detective. Thought we’d lost you.” She watched for him to stare at her naked breasts, but his gaze never wandered.

Duncan
looked her straight in the eyes. It was strange how Jessie’s twin didn’t effect him in the slightest. Jessie was perhaps a bit more voluptuous and had that delicious beauty mark above her lip, but other than that, they looked almost exactly alike. But if Jessie had been strutting around wearing nothing but a sequined G-string, he would have been beside himself with desire. This Martin sister left him unmoved, if a little embarrassed.
 

Jamie didn’t wait for his response; she just smiled knowingly at him and sashayed away slowly, seemingly oblivious to the many male eyes following her as she left the stage.

Theresa was the last to reach the bottom of the stairs and
Duncan
held out his arm to prevent her from walking past him and Percy. “What’s going on, Percy?” she asked, looking up at
Duncan
with a puzzled look on her gamine face. She obviously had no inkling that he was her brother, and
Duncan
felt a slight tinge of disappointment.

“This man,” Percy said, pointing at
Duncan
. “He says you ‘re under age.”

“Whatever, man. You’ve seen my papers.” She attempted to push past
Duncan
, but he was like a concrete wall. “Listen, I don’t know what your problem is, buddy, but I’m nineteen and Diego has the papers to prove it.” She waved her arm toward the main room where
Duncan
had noticed a large, dark-haired man sitting at the bar, watching his sister intently.

“Why don’t we bring old Diego in here to discuss this? Don’t you think that’s a good idea, Theresa?” The girl went pale when he said her name and she looked up at him with a wild look in her eyes.
Duncan
prepared himself for the chase, sensing that she was getting ready to run. But she didn’t. She just stared. “Do I know you?” She asked, narrowing her eyes at him.

“You used to. We share some common acquaintances.”
Duncan
gave Percy a sharp dismissive look and the man retreated back through the ‘employees only’ door. Alone now, Duncan and Theresa looked at each other like gunslingers at high noon.