Avery left us alone in her room, reminding me of the biggest goddamn bed that I’d ever seen only being a few inches away.
“This is some bed,” I found myself saying to break the awkward silence.
Amelia’s green eyes went from me to the bed, and then back to me.
She licked her lips, then burst out laughing.
“This is awkward as fuck,” she admitted. “I don’t want you to think that it’s you or anything.” She paused. “Well, it is kind of you, if we’re being truthful. You’re hot, and I’m awkward, don’t talk to anyone new, and you look like this.”
She gestured to my body with a sweep of her hands, which had me grinning.
“I’m nothing special,” I told her honestly.
I was just a normal guy.
At least, I thought I was, anyway.
Amelia’s snort of disbelief had my brows raising in question.
“Just take it from me. You’re not normal,” she said, her eyes wide. “I work at a strip club. I see guys all night long. Trust me when I say, you’re so far from normal that it’s not even funny.”
“You work in a strip club?” I asked.
Her lips twitched. “I do. But, just sayin’, I only work there because I know it’ll piss my dad and brothers off. I gotta keep them on their toes, and to do that I try to find the most obnoxious jobs that I can find.”
I could see how working in a strip club would definitely bother me, especially if that were my sister.
“Which bar?” I asked.
She named off the newest strip club that was right outside of Kilgore, Texas. The one that they’d remodeled and put so much money into. Also, the one that the town of Kilgore hadn’t been happy that they took away their paycheck since it was outside of the city limits.
Though, if they’d been smarter about it, they would’ve just allowed the owner to build a brand-new club inside the city limits. However, there were so many Bible thumpers and prudes in the area that they’d thrown a big stink about it, causing the owner to look elsewhere.
I’d heard the cover charge to get in the damn door was more than most people paid to play golf at a country club.
Honestly, it kind of made me happy to know that she was working at a place—if she had to work somewhere like that at all—that would take care of her.
Amelia’s eyes dropped down to my chest, and I had to stop myself from looking down to see if I had any stains.
The way her eyes felt on me was downright sinful.
I loved it.
“Okay,” Avery said as she came into the room. “There’s something wrong with my camera. I was thinking that I’m going to order some pizza. We can snack, drink a beer or two to calm down, and I can maybe photograph you during that, too, once I get my camera going. Sound good?”
I pulled my phone out of my pocket, thinking that pizza sounded good.
But stopped when I realized it was only ten.
“It’s too early for pizza,” I said. “I can order DoorDash and some donuts or something, though.”
“I have donuts!” Avery snapped her fingers. “I forgot. That was one of Amelia’s conditions. I got some from Dillan’s donut shop in town. I got up super early for them, too. They’re special orders. But… I want to take a photo of you when you open them if that’s okay.”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “You’re awful.”
Avery didn’t look repentant in the least.
“I think you’ll really enjoy them,” she said with a grin. “That’s why I want you to see them when I can photograph you. Together.”
Amelia rolled her eyes. “I have some beer in my trunk. But it’s hot.”
“I have some beer in my fridge down the road,” I offered. “If you need something to cool you down.”
Amelia’s eyes shone with mirth as she said, “Calm. Not cool.”
I shrugged. “Whatever.”
Her eyes were shining as she turned to Avery. “Adam and I are going to go to his place and get his beer. We’ll be right back.”
Avery gave a thumbs up.
“Sounds good,” she said. “I should have it all done quickly. It just needs a new battery, which I have in my bedroom. The problem is uncovering it. I kind of buried it to make room for the big bed.”
After saying our goodbyes, and promising we’d be back shortly, I walked with Amelia two houses down.
Her eyes reflected surprise when she said, “You’re close.”
“Almost all of the SWAT team lives here,” I explained. “And even some of just the regular officers.”
She ran her fingers over the tips of a rose bush in Derek’s yard before she crossed into the next one. In that yard, she bent over and pulled a honeysuckle flower off of the vine and expertly pulled the flower apart and sucked the sweetness from the flower before letting the pieces fall to the ground.
My dick hardened almost impossibly.
God, to be on the receiving end of that mouth…
“The area is nice. I’ll bet there are some great places to run,” she said as she skipped over a water hose connected to a sprinkler.
Finally we made it into my yard, and she took in all the flowers.
“This is… not what I expected from a bachelor,” she said as she took in the perfectly decorated mailbox with the stupid pink, purple and white flowers surrounding it.
“My sister is a botanist. Or, at least, she’s studying that.” I paused. “She does a little bit of everything. She does floral arrangements for weddings and shit… and this.”
This being the manicured yard.
“It’s awesome,” she admitted. “I’m seriously impressed. I want to have something like this, but the upkeep on it would be something that I definitely wouldn’t be able to keep up with. Not with my schedule right now, anyway.”
I let her into my place and walked over to the fridge where I pulled out four beers with one hand.
Handing her two, she smiled at my show.
“That’s impressive,” she said as she tucked one beer under her arm and held the other beer out to me, top first. I twisted the lid off, and she smiled before saying, “I’m in school. I’m currently in my first semester of classes that will lead to my master’s. But I’m thinking of a change.”
My brows rose.
“You’re working on your master’s?”
She nodded.
“Wow,” I said, shaking my head. “I always planned on getting my college degree, but then I went into the military, and then straight from the military into the police department. I don’t think I’ll be going back to school anymore.”
She sighed. “It’s not all it’s cracked up to be. I honestly hate school, and I’m definitely taking more time off next semester than I did this semester.”
“Why don’t you like it?” I asked curiously. “You’ve gone all this time… what’s changed?”