“Because no man can know you and not want to sleep with you?” Chris asked, grinning.
“No,” she said, coloring with embarrassment. “I didn’t mean it like that.”
“What nights do you work?”
“Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.”
“Can I take you out to dinner Sunday night?”
“I’ll have to check my schedule,” Abby muttered. She was feeling exposed, and she didn’t like it.
“Do that,” he said. “All I ask is that you do one thing for me.”
Abby suppressed the quips that came to mind and looked at him curiously.
“What?”
“Don’t refer to yourself as a stripper or put yourself down.”
“That’s two things,” she said.
“Just try. We’re here,” Chris said, parking in front of the pavilion. “I’ll wait for you.”
“If I were you, I’d consider driving away while I’m gone,” Abby said as she closed the door.
“Thanks, Abby!” Audrey said, running to grab the white paper sack from her hands and peeking into it. She reached around Abby’s waist with a hug before returning to the pavilion.
Abby sighed as she walked back to Chris’ car, where he was standing against the door.
“Ready?” he asked, opening it.
“Thanks for bringing me, and for getting her lunch,” Abby said.
“I’m glad to. I can see the resemblance between you two.”
“We only have the same mother.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. My Mom had me and Justin with one guy, and life was somewhat normal then. But when he left, we started moving around a lot. She had Audrey and Sara with another guy, and that’s when things started to get bad.”
“Bad how?”
“He used drugs, and he got her started on them. I took care of Audrey and Sara when I wasn’t at school. He left after Sara was born, and Mom was an established drug addict by then.”
Chris was watching Abby, and she stared back at him.
“Don’t feel sorry for me,” she said pointedly.
“I don’t. That must have been hard for you.”
Abby shrugged.
“Not really. They’re good kids, and we have each other. I work for them – so they can have a better life than I did growing up.”
“And Justin?”
Abby smiled proudly.
“He’s a sophomore in college. He’s in a pre-med program. And despite our upbringing, he’s a very good man.”
“Are you putting him through school?”
“He’s on a scholarship, but I cover his other expenses. I plan to put him through medical school when the time comes. I could never afford that with a normal job. Do you have siblings?”
“No, it’s just me.”
They rode in silence for a few minutes, listening to the soft sounds of John Mayer.
“I’ll see you Sunday night,” Chris said as he pulled up at the front entrance of Case Publications. “Or call me sooner if you want.”
Chris shook his head as he pulled out of the parking lot to Abby’s office. He had never said anything like “Call me sooner if you want” to a woman. It sounded a little pathetic.
Abby was making him feel an itch he couldn’t put his finger on. He’d been thinking about her a lot at work the night before. He’d even considered texting her, though he’d talked himself out of it.
The revelation that she’d been a stripper at Reed’s bachelor party had surprised him. She didn’t seem like the type. From what little he’d seen of her, he already knew she was guarded and a little shy. Stripping seemed like an odd career choice for someone like that.
The thought of her stripping, though…It gave him mixed emotions. He disliked the idea of strange men staring at her, groping her and using her. None of them had any right to that. But when he envisioned her dancing for him alone, it got his blood flowing. The image of sweet Abby slowly taking off the dress she’d had on at their first lunch had run through his mind several times.
It frustrated him that he couldn’t remember what she’d looked like at the club. Though he remembered his conversation with her, Chris hadn’t paid particular attention to any of the dancers that night. Strip clubs had never been his thing, because they were fake. Just a bunch of plastic women pretending to be aroused for the pleasure of desperate men.
But Abby was much more than that. There was nothing fake about her. He wanted to know more about her, and he was already thinking about seeing her again Sunday night.
Chapter 4
She had styled her hair in big, long waves for her Friday night at work, and Abby dragged it across the lap of the man she was dancing for. He gripped the sides of his chair and groaned.