Austin, however, seemed to have no qualms about it. He nudged me with his foot, gently pushing me in Tonio’s direction. After a moment, Denver did the same.
Well… if they insisted. Placing my hands on their knees, I pushed myself up. Tonio grinned as I neared and reached for me. Somewhat self-consciously, I perched on the arm of the chair, my legs squashed next to his. But he just chuckled and grabbed me in a bear hug, pulling me against him.
Wow. This was far more comfortable than the floor. And a lot hotter, too. My ass was planted on Tonio’s strong thighs, and his arm was around my shoulder. I couldn’t quite figure out what to do with my hands, so I clasped them in front of me, but that meant I wasn’t helping to support my weight. “Am I too heavy?”
“Not at all,” Tonio said, his rumbly voice very close to my ear. “It feels good. Are you comfy?”
“Yes,” I breathed. It was true, too. It was nice to be pressed against him, to smell his crisp, spicy scent. Maybe it was sage? Or mint? Whatever it was, it suited him, and I inhaled deeply. So yeah, I was comfortable, but not exactly relaxed. There’s no way I could be relaxed while being that close to such a hot man.
“So what do we do now?” Denver asked. Since movie night obviously wasn’t happening, I suppose we could’ve all done our own things, but no one seemed to want to. It was rare that all five of us were home at the same time.
Knox had a plan, though. He hoisted his big frame off the recliner and strode out to the kitchen. He returned a minute later with five bottles of beer. I took the two he held out for me and Tonio. Denver tried to wave his off, but Knox simply dropped it in his lap and then tossed another to Austin. Then the bouncer returned to his chair. He was a man of few words, but he got his message across in other ways.
“All right, excellent start,” Denver said once we were all sipping our drinks. Mine instantly made me feel a bit dizzy. I’d also had a margarita with dinner. Knox had made a pitcher. “What’s next?”
“I have a question,” Austin said.
“Are you waiting for a teacher to call on you or something?” Tonio asked, and I giggled.
“It’s for Emma.” Austin acted as if he hadn’t heard Tonio. “I want to know how come you can always tell Denver and me apart.”
“I don’t know, I just can.”
“That’s not an answer,” Denver said. “Tonio had trouble when he first met us. Hell, Knox still has trouble sometimes.” Over on the other recliner, the big man nodded.
“Well, you guys said yourself that Denver’s hair is usually a bit longer. And Austin’s often wearing fewer clothes.” I gave a sheepish smile while I said that, but it was true. Even right now, Austin had on a sleeveless t-shirt and black running shorts while Denver had on a white shirt with a flannel top over the same kind of black running shorts.
But now Tonio was taking up the questioning. “They’re right. You knew which was which when they were riding their bikes the other day wearing identical clothes and helmets. What’s your secret?”
“I don’t know.” All the guys were looking at me, and it was making me nervous. “I guess… they have sort of a different energy to them.”
“Interesting. Like actual energy? Do you think one of us is lethargic or something? Or more like an aura?” Austin asked.
“No one who’s seen you perform at the club thinks you’re lethargic,” Tonio said dryly, but then he nudged me to continue.
“I don’t really know what it is. But Denver’s energy is kind of… serene. He radiates a kind of positive energy.” The twins looked at me as if I were nuts, and maybe I was. I’d certainly never talked this way before. But even though I wasn’t explaining it very well, it felt true.
“So what’s my energy like?” Austin wanted to know.
“Your energy has a swagger.”
The guys laughed, Austin included.
“That sounds about right,” Denver said.
“Let’s test that theory,” Austin said. He stripped off his shirt and motioned for Denver to do the same. “Tonio, cover her eyes.”
I squealed as Tonio’s hand descended over my eyes. The lack of vision made my other senses more aware of how close we were nestled together. Pretty much every part of my body was touching him, and now he’d taken control of one of my senses.
A moment later, he whipped his hand away, and I looked over at the couch. Both twins were shirtless, wearing only identical shorts and black baseball caps with the strip club’s logo on them. I couldn’t see their hair, but I knew. “Austin’s on the left, Denver’s on the right.”