Boycotts and Barflies (21 page)

“I hope you like the show,” he said with a sexy smirk on his face. He leaned over the bar and whispered in a seductive voice, “We have something very special planned for you ladies afterwards as well.”

Shoes, money, eternal bragging rights, shoes, money, eternal bragging rights … 156

Chapter 13

The music stopped, except for a low beat playing as the DJ started to speak to the crowd. “Hey, guys, this is your DJ, Maxwell, and I wanted to welcome you all to The Vault!” The crowd cheered wildly with excitement as the spotlight illuminated the man behind the elaborate control board. “We have a special

treat for you. Our bartenders here at The Vault have decided to impress us

with just a few of their bar tricks tonight. I’ve been watching them practice, and  I can assure you this is going to be one hot  show!” Again, the crowd started  screaming and people began pushing toward the bar to get a better view.

The girls were safely up at their table with the best seats in the house for the  show. The guys weren’t behind the bar yet. They had disappeared into the back  to change. Grace was so excited, she could only imagine what was going to  happen next. When she looked over at Bianca and Meg, they too were

nervously smiling in anticipation, their eyes scanning the room for a glimpse of  Jack or Ryan.

The crowd continued to mill around quietly until the spotlight shone on the

end of the bar where Michael, Jack, and Ryan now stood, looking absolutely  edible. Meg screamed, while Bianca threw her fingers in her mouth and let out  a shrill whistle that immediately caught the guys’ attention and earned them

an enthusiastic wave.

Jack was standing there in a skin tight, black tank top that showed off his muscles perfectly for Bianca to enjoy. His arms were folded, making his chest and biceps  look even more striking, if that was possible. A huge smile was on his face as he waited for the show to begin. Bianca stood at the rail, licking her lips at the sight of him.

Ryan was also dressed in a black designer T-shirt that showed off the definition in his chest, but his was more modest, leaving a bit of mystery underneath. He was casual y flipping a silver drink shaker in his hand with smooth and confident movements, like he did it all the time. There wasn’t the slightest sign of nerves in him. Meg  was clapping, stopping only to blow Ryan a kiss from time to time.

Then there was Michael. He was standing off to the side, alone. He had changed into a form fitting black long sleeve button down shirt that fit him like a glove.  It was untucked at the bottom and he was rolling up the sleeves as Maxwell addressed the crowd. The top three buttons were left open, exposing part of his chiseled chest. He pushed the sleeves up over his elbows and ran his hand through his hair. He looked up to the girls’ seats and gave Grace a wink and a nod that made her heart flutter wildly.

Shoes, money, eternal bragging rights, she reminded herself, yet again.

“Thank God we’re all the way up here,” Grace said to Bianca who was standing next to her, tapping her nails frantically on the rail. All of her pent-up energy was about to burst from her body.

“Grace, do you see them? I can hardly breathe,” Bianca gasped as though she

were about to hyperventilate.

“Take a deep breath and relax.” Grace put her arm around Bianca and patted

her shoulder in support. Meg smiled knowingly from her spot on the rail and

pointed down to the bar. “You don’t understand, Grace. I … I think I’m in love

with him.” Bianca said the words so quietly Grace couldn’t be sure she heard

her right over all the screaming, but the pink in her cheeks told her she had.

Before she could respond to Bianca’s confession, the show started.

“Ladies and gentlemen, it is my honor to give you our bartenders: Michael,

Jack, and Ryan! They wanted me to tell you that this performance—and song—

goes out to Suzy and her friends.” A few girls in the crowd, probably named

Suzy, started screaming, thinking the show was for them, but Grace and the

girls knew the truth. The guys walked behind the bar and took their places.

Jack was on the far left, Michael in the middle, and Ryan was on the right side

of the bar, closest to the girls.

A few whistles and cat cal s later, Maxwell cranked the music and Kid Rock’s

“So Hott!” blasted through the club.

158

As the music started, the guys began clapping their hands over their heads in beat with the drums of the intro, trying to get the crowd into it. The spotlights flashed in perfect rhythm. Soon, people were following right along, clapping their hands. Tons of girls started screaming as Jack jumped onto the bar top and pumped his fist to the beat, like the lead singer at a rock concert. The electric guitars kicked in, causing the boys to start dancing.

Grace had assumed they were good dancers, considering they worked in a bar surrounded by music all the time, but to see them moving together was a completely different thing. Their hips slowly rocked from side to side and hit every beat in the song. It made her memory of dancing with Michael all the more exciting. Their shoulders swayed and they smiled back and forth to one another, clearly enjoying themselves. Seeing them so at ease in front of that many people was an unbelievable turn -on.

Jack jumped off the bar top and each of them grabbed a liquor bottle from behind the bar and, in unison, they started flipping them around in their hands at amazing speeds. Grace watched Michael as he would throw a bottle behind his lower back with the flick of his wrist and it would fly up over his shoulder.

Somehow he would catch  it in front of himself every time, grinning from ear to ear. He could also flip it high over his shoulder and catch it blindly behind his back at a breakneck pace.

Ryan was flipping two bottles around like a master juggler, one in each hand. Things were flying back and forth, arcing from side to side. Jack’s tricks were unbelievable as well. He would flip a bottle into the air and catch it by balancing it on the back of his hand, which he held out flat in front of himself.  He would give his wrist little flick, and it would fly in the air and again land perfectly balanced on his hand. One time, he even managed to balance it upside down by the narrow bottle top, rather than the wider base, and the crowd went wild.

The song and the lights pulsed on, only adding to the heat of the performance.  When Grace heard the provocative opening line of the song, she smiled and blushed profusely, knowing the guys meant it to be a message especially for them. She squeezed Bianca’s hand as they watched in utter and complete awe.  Meg was jumping along with the beat, never taking her eyes off of Ryan.

As they performed their tricks, they were in constant, graceful motion.

Gliding and shaking, each movement complimented the music, while the tricks they were performing took not just their hands and arms, but their entire bodies.

Their legs, hips, and thighs moved just as much as their upper bodies, much to

159

the girls’ personal enjoyment. Grace was stunned by the speeds at which their  hands were able to move as the bottles swirled between their fingers and  rotated through the air and how effortless they made it all look. Michael  continued bouncing a bottle off his bicep and catching it in his hand before  launching it back into the air. The concentration on his face had Grace biting  her lip.

Ryan put down his liquor bottles and grabbed four of the silver mixing cups  he’d been working with all night. He began juggling them high into the air,  never dropping a single one. Jack and Michael stood next to him and the two  did some tandem moves flipping the bottles back and forth to one another,  over their shoulders and under their legs. When Ryan caught all four cups he had been juggling in a tall stack, the place went crazy again. He moved over by  Michael and Jack who were lining up three glasses on the bar top.

A bottle flew from Ryan’s hand, over Michael’s head, and Jack caught it upside  down by the neck and poured a  long, sexy shot into a silver mixer cup.

He flung the bottle back to Michael who did the same into his shaker before placing the bottle back under the bar. The exchange of flying ingredients back and forth between the three of them continued until each had a shaker full of

liquid. Climbing up onto the bar top, they slowly shook the drinks up, singing  and dancing along with the song.

It was impossible to hear the music and watch the show and not dance along  with them. As the guys stood on the bar top, singing, they each stared up at the  girls and gave them seductive smirks that drove all three of them crazy. Grace  simply could not take her eyes off Michael—he was breathtaking. There were  girls screaming at his feet, and yet she didn’t think he even glanced at them  once. His eyes were fixed on Grace’s exclusively.

As the song started to wind down, they reached below and grabbed a glass off  of a tray that Vicki was holding high into the air for them. They each filled a  glass with the liquid from their shakers, look a small sip, and returned them  safely onto Vicki’s tray for delivery. When Michael’s smiling face paused and  looked back up at Grace, giving a little nod of his head, she knew the drinks  were for them, special delivery.

Be strong, Grace, it’s almost over. Hang in there!

The guys stood on the bar top as the song ended and took their bows from the  screaming crowd. Bianca whistled again, louder than anyone in the club, while  Meg and Grace clapped wildly and waved their arms over the rail. Vicki 160

appeared behind them and handed each of them their drinks. “A little present  from the boys. They said if you liked the show, drink them fast and come meet  them down at the bar.”

Grace looked at Bianca and Meg, who were just as flushed as she was after that  amazingly sexy show. They raised their glasses in unison to the guys and  quickly downed them in one gulp. The boys applauded from below and waved  for them to hurry up.

The trio sprinted down the stairs as fast as they could. It  took them a few  seconds to mill their way through the crowd that was still gathered around the  bar, but when Grace finally saw Michael, she ran and threw herself into his  awaiting arms.

“Hello there, beautiful,” he laughed in her ear. “Did you like the show?”

“It was impressive,” she said again as she nuzzled her cheek against his neck. He threw back his head and laughed. “You say that a lot.”

“That’s because a lot of things about you are very, very, impressive. Sexy, too,  but I’ll tell you about that stuff in … just over twelve days.” Grace laughed as his

Thank you for evaluating PDF to ePub Converter.

To get full version, you need to purchase the software from:
http://www.pdf-epub-converter.com/convert-to-epub-purchase.html

lips met hers. Before she knew what she was doing, her fingers gripped the  back of his head and pressed him closer to her. When her lips started to part,  she released him and jumped away. “Sorry about that!” she said sheepishly. Michael had a proud smile on his face. “I must have done a good job to get that  kind of reaction out of you.”

“Yeah, you did really well,” she said shyly as he held her hand tightly. The six of  them were gathered together off to the side of the bar, talking about the show  and reliving the highlights. Grace noticed three of the other bartenders who  normally worked the early shift were back tending bar.

Confused, she turned to Michael. “What are they doing here? It’s not that busy  tonight. Why would they need six of you?”

“They’re here to take over for us. We called in a favor.” The look of surprise on  Grace’s face made Michael smirk. “Did I forget to mention that?”

“So you guys have the rest of the night to hang out?” she said excitedly, now  bouncing like Meg.

“Yep, there’s just one more thing we need to do first. I need a little help. Are  you game?” Grace was so enthralled by him, she couldn’t say no. Even though  the mischievous grin on his face should have set off her warning flags, s he  agreed.

His face lit up with excitement as he quietly responded, “Excellent!”

161

What did I just get myself into?

Grace heard Maxwell clearing his throat on the microphone. “Did you guys enjoy the show?” he asked the crowd, who responded with thunderous applause and whistles. “Awesome job, gentlemen!” The boys took another bow for the applauding patrons and gave everyone a wave. “To thank you for a job well done, we wanted to give you a little gift. Did you find some volunteers?” Maxwell asked and Grace felt her hand being hoisted into the air by an ecstatic  Michael. She glanced over at Bianca and Meg who were in the same position with their hands high in the air, looking equally confused.

“OK, then, ladies, could you please head over to the bar? Make some room for them people.” The crowd slowly parted as people cleared a path to the front of the bar for them.

Grace leaned over to Meg and Bianca. “What the hell is going on? Did they say anything to either of you?” They both shook their heads no and the closer they got to the bar, the more anxious the three of them looked. Behind the bar, the guys stood, absolutely beaming. Jack was pulling out a bottle of tequila and

arranging shot glasses on the bar while Ryan gathered up a handful of lime  wedges and a shaker of salt. Michael smiled as he wiped down the top of the  bar, mouthing the word “loophole” to Grace. Her body immediately exploded  with a mix of fear and excitement.

“Who’s up first?” Maxwell asked. Ryan pointed at Meg and gently tapped the  top of the bar, coaxing Meg up with his finger. She stood there paralyzed for a  second until Bianca elbowed her in the side.

“Time to start the body shots!” Maxwell cranked the music and the crowd went  crazy. Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar on Me” thundered through the club as  Meg slowly climbed onto the bar top and hesitantly laid down.

Her face turned five shades of red as she lay  there. Ryan leaned down and  brushed her hair out of her face then whispered something in her ear. She  shyly hiked up the bottom of her shirt and laid her trembling palms down flat  on the bar. Part of Grace was laughing at the sight of her friend waiting to have  Ryan do a body shot off of her, the other part of her was absolutely terrified,  knowing her turn was coming up. She glanced over at Michael who was  watching her reaction anxiously. When Grace smiled and playfully shook her  head from side to side, he  gave her a wink which started that wonderful tingly  feeling running through every inch of her body.

162

Jack handed Ryan the salt and he slowly licked a small section of Meg’s stomach, which quivered when his tongue made contact with her skin. She let out a small squeal that Grace could hear over all the screams of the surrounding crowd who had all crammed closer, wanting a good view of what was going on.

Ryan continued pouring a small pile of salt onto the damp spot on her stomach. “Ready?” Ryan asked before he put the lime wedge into her mouth.

All she managed was a warning, “Ryan …” and then she was holding the lime between her teeth, waiting for him to do his worst.

Michael handed him a shot of tequila which Ryan held careful y in his hand.

He smiled down at Meg and leaned back over her stomach. Grace could see him licking Meg’s skin gently where the pile of salt was positioned. When he got every last grain of salt into his mouth, he threw back the shot and moved up to her mouth. Meg’s eyes were huge as he came closer and Grace noticed her hands were clenched into tiny fists as she did her best to stay in control under these extreme circumstances. Grace’s heart was racing just watching it. She

couldn’t even imagine what it was going to feel like when Michael did that to

her.

Ryan’s lips met Meg’s as he bit into the lime and lingered. Meg’s hands flew up to his head and she twirled his hair in her fingers for a minute before he pulled away from her, grinning triumphantly. Once again, the crowd screamed at the completion of the first body shot.

Ever the gentleman, Ryan put one arm under her knees and the other around her waist and lifted her off the bar top, setting her down safely behind the bar with him. Her blond hair was scattered in every direction and as she smoothed it down, Jack looked at Bianca with a seductive grin and patted the top of the bar. Bianca shocked everyone when she shook her head no and pointed at him while patting the bar top. Grace didn’t think it was p ossible for Jack’s grin to get any bigger, but it did. Ever the showman, Jack happily hopped up onto the bar, and peeled his shirt from his body, earning himself thunderous whistles and catcalls. Staring at Jack’s chest, Bianca grabbed Grace’s hand and squeezed until her nails nearly drew blood.

Bianca walked behind the bar and Michael handed her the salt. She climbed on

a stool and leaned over Jack with a devilish smirk on her face. Her long red hair

draped over her shoulder, brushing along his chest. He winked at her and

laughed as she leaned down and, starting at his bellybutton, licked a trail all

the way up to his neck. Jack slapped the bar top as her tongue made its way

163

up his chest. Michael and Ryan were howling behind the bar. By the time she  finished, Jack’s hands were clenching his normally perfectly styled hair as he  tried to behave. She sprinkled the salt up the slick trail and placed the lime  wedge between his teeth. She quickly whipped her hair up into a ponytail  before lowering her lips back to his stomach where she licked the long salt trail  up his body. Every so often, Jack would arch up off the bar as she seductively  moved up his chest.

When she finally reached his neck, Michael handed her the shot. She downed it  and hovered over him for a second before lowering herself on top of him to  claim the juicy lime that waited in his lips. Jack reached around her and pulled  the rest of her body onto the bar top with him. Wild screams and applause  came from the crowd at Jack’s bold move. Victoriously, Bianca sat up, the lime  clenched in her teeth and a broad smile on her face. Michael guided her back  down off the bar and then she held out her hand. Jack grasped it as he got off

the bar and bowed to the now frenzied crowd, his hair sticking up in every

direction.

Shit, shit, shit!

The whole body shot thing was hilarious when it was Meg and Jack, but now that it was Grace’s turn, she was blushing as her heart roared to life in her chest. Meg and Bianca screamed her name, and Michael gave a flirtatious tap to the bar top while extending his hand out to her. She took a deep breath and took his hand as she climbed up on the bar. “Behave …” Grace said pointing at  Michael. He teasingly crossed his heart like a good little boy, but the evil grin on his face told her he was anything but. She closed her eyes and slowly lowered herself back onto the cold bar.

Grace turned her head and saw Meg and Bianca flashing her a big thumbs-up.  She felt her face flush at all the attention. Covering her eyes for a moment,  Grace tried to calm herself down, but when she heard the crowd suddenly scream, she peeked out to find Michael standing over her on the bar top.

What the hell is he doing? Oh my God! Is he is going to do what I think he’s going to do? Shoes, money, bragging rights! Shit, shit, shit!

He slowly lowered himself down onto all fours over her legs and looked like a panther about to pounce. Her arms were up over her head, her fingers clamped together as he started moving up her body. In her haste, Grace had forgotten to lift her shirt up and before she could do it herself, she felt Michael’s warm fingers grazing the burning skin of her stomach as he slowly lifted the shirt up. 164

She kept her eyes on him the entire time. Even though she was completely dressed, the lustful way he looked at her made Grace feel completely naked.

She watched him taking in every detail of her body as she lay helpless and shaking beneath him. His blue eyes twinkled before he lowered his head down to her stomach. She took a deep breath and waited for the moment when she would feel his tongue on her skin.

At first, Grace only felt his warm breath on the side of her abdomen, but then she felt his lips part as they touched her side and his warm tongue slid over her skin, causing Goosebumps to appear instantly. He laughed at the reaction his touch had on her and went back to the job at hand. He licked a small trail up the sensitive skin on the side of her abdomen. But then, to Grace’s surprise, he continued crawling farther up her body until she felt his lips crash down on her exposed shoulder and he began licking another trail along her collarbone.

When he noticed her puzzled expression, he grinned and said, “I like a lot of salt.”

“Sure you do,” Grace said. Shit, shoes, shit, money, shit, bragging rights — SHIT! she screamed in her head as he took the salt out and began sprinkling it along her stomach and shoulder. The grains of salt that missed their mark slid off and landed on the bar top, tickling as they fell off her body.

“Ready?” he asked, leering at her as he held a small lime wedge between his thumb and index finger.

“Not in the slightest.” She stuck her tongue out at him in protest, but he just shook his head and scolded her.

“Now, Grace, you’d better keep that sexy tongue to yourself or you can kiss the  shoes goodbye. Behave.” He placed the lime between her teeth and crawled  back down to her abdomen. Grace watched Jack hand him the shot of tequila  and say something that sounded like “Go get her, tiger” as he slapped him on  the back, causing a bit of the tequila to spill from the shot glass and land in the  middle of her stomach. Grace jumped when the cold liquid hit and she glared at  Jack.

“No worries, Grace. My boy Mike will help you with that.” Jack winked and  wrapped his arm back around a giggling Bianca.

Setting the shot glass on the bar next to her shoulder, Michael ran his fingers  through his hair and then lowered his lips to Grace’s stomach, kissing  her skin  gently as the crowd went wild. He made his way to where the salt was piled  and again she felt the moisture of his warm tongue slide over her skin. He  pressed 165

his tongue harder onto her skin this time, lapping up the salt. She felt it move  slowly back and forth, gathering up the tiny grains. The crowd let out whistles  of encouragement to Michael as the music blared on.

When he had collected all the salt from her stomach, he turned his attention to  the drops of tequila that pooled on her. He sucked the cold liquid off Grace’s  belly, which tickled more than the licking had. Her hands, which had been  locked above her head, came slapping down onto the bar top with a loud whap.  Michael smirked and continued his way up to her shoulder to get the last pile  of salt on her body.

He bowed his head to the side and, beginning at the edge of her shoulder,  worked his way closer to her neck. Grace felt his teeth nip her skin occasionally  when his tongue wasn’t setting her skin on  fire. It felt like the whole process

had taken about twenty minutes, when in actuality it was probably closer to  one minute, since the song was just now ending.

“You taste delicious, Grace,” he whispered in her ear and Grace nearly lost it.

He was so close and smelled exotic and spicy and all she wanted to do was  concede the bet and wrap herself around him. She bit into the lime so hard,  some of the juice ran into her mouth and a small bit ran down her cheek. Michael, still kneeling over her, picked up the  shot glass and raised it slightly to  her, then threw his head back and poured the alcohol into his mouth. The  crowed clapped and whistled as he leaned back over Grace, ready to claim his  lime from her mouth. The lecherous grin on his face made Grace’s heart  thunder in her chest.

Keep your tongue in your mouth, Grace. Don’t lose it now—you’re almost done.  So what if you have the sexiest man in the world straddling you. Shoes! Do it

for the fucking shoes, Grace! she screamed in her head. She looked up and saw his darkened eyes coming closer. Grace couldn’t take it anymore and closed her  eyes, waiting for it to happen and praying that she could muster the self- control to make it through the next forty-five seconds.

Grace felt his warm breath on her face as he i nched closer. His tongue touched  her jaw as he licked the trail of lime juice that had run down the side of her