“We were getting to know each other better,” Austin replied. “That’s why I asked Emma about her superpower.”
“That’s right. So it’s my turn to ask a question,” I said, sitting up and accidentally elbowing Tonio in the stomach. He groaned in an overexaggerated way, and I slapped my hand over his mouth to quiet him. Or at least that’s what I tried to do, but I missed and just sort of slapped him.
“Yep, we’re definitely cutting her off after one more beer,” Denver said.
“Okay, here’s my question,” I began, but then I wasn’t quite sure how to word it.
After a moment, Tonio said, “That telepathy thing only works between the twins. You have to actually say it out loud.”
“I’m working on it.”
“All right,” he said, raising his hands up in the air. “Don’t beat me up again.”
“But it’s fun to watch you two wrestle,” Austin said.
“Here’s my question,” I said again.
“She’s stuck on repeat,” Knox observed and made me giggle. When I caught his eye, he winked.
“My question is, why do you guys strip?”
“It seemed like the fastest way to get our clothes off,” Austin said.
“No, I’m serious.” I waved my beer around for emphasis, managing to slosh some on Tonio’s shirt. He was probably seriously regretting inviting me to sit on his lap. “What do you like about it?”
“It’s fun. It’s a rush,” Austin said. “And call me a pig, but I don’t mind women worshipping me.”
“You’re a pig,” Knox and Tonio said together.
“Probably. But don’t knock it until you’ve had a ton of adoring fans screaming your name, begging for your touch, and throwing their panties at you.”
At the moment, I wanted to find all those women and punch them. Then I realized that I’d been one of them that night at the club. Well, except for the panties thing. “Is that why you’re into it too, Denver?”
But it was Austin who answered. “Nah, he just loves to dance.”
“I can answer for myself,” Denver said, throwing a pillow at his brother. “But yeah, I’m in it because I love to dance.”
“Don’t forget about the money. Strippers get bigger tips than bartenders, that’s for damn sure,” Tonio said.
Austin snorted. “Except when the bartenders make puppy dog eyes at all the girls like you do.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Yes, he does. Emma, watch out for that one. If he ever wants to convince you of something, he’ll look at you like a chocolate lab begging for table scraps. Don’t look into his eyes or you’ll be a goner.”
“Really?” I twisted around, rubbing my ass against the front of Tonio’s pants in the process. “Let me see.” I put a hand down to brace myself and must’ve pressed a little too close to his dick because he winced.
“Will you stay still?” Quick as lightning, he grasped my hands and pinned them behind my back. “If you treated real chairs this way, all the ones around the kitchen table would’ve run away by now.”
Wow. If having my eyes covered by him had felt hot before, his holding my hands behind my back was even hotter. The position made my chest stick out, and I could feel the other men’s eyes on me. To my surprise, it didn’t bother me. In fact… I kind of liked it. What was with me tonight? Normally I hated being the center of attention.
I squirmed on Tonio’s lap, trying to get my hands free. “I want to drink my beer.”
“Here,” Tonio said, lifting the bottle to my lips. “If I let you loose, you’ll probably spill it on me again.”
That made me laugh, and his declaration almost came true—I managed to spill it on myself instead. I shrieked, and Tonio pulled the bottle away. Both of us stared at my chest. “First a strip show, now a wet t-shirt contest,” he muttered. “If we keep this up, we’re going to drive down the property values in the neighborhood.”
“Worth it,” Austin said. He got up and padded to the kitchen to get more beers. Watching his bare cheeks move sinuously as he walked away was definitely a highlight of the evening.
He passed the beers out and Tonio freed one of my hands so I could take one.
“Whose turn is it to ask a question?” Denver asked.
“I think it’s mine,” I said quickly. The other guys exchanged glances and then shrugged. “We’re friends,” I began, aiming my words at the twins.
“That’s not a question,” Austin observed.
“Good point.” I took a long sip of beer. “We’re friends?”
“Absolutely,” Denver said, and Austin nodded.
“So how come you’ve never told me your names?”
Knox snorted. “How drunk are you?”
“If you’ve forgotten our names, we really need to cut you off,” Denver said.
“But those are your stripper names,” I explained. “Like that guy Dallas in the Magic Marker movie.”
Tonio and the twins dissolved into laughter. I didn’t know what was so funny, but I joined in anyway. Even Knox cracked a smile.