Tiny Dancer(Divine Creek Ranch 13)(26)

Camilla’s gaze skirted left and right as she clasped her fingers together on the counter in front of her. “You did say that you wanted to talk privately with me?” Her words were toned as a question rather than a statement. Was she asking to stay?

Ben replied, “Yes, we did. Why don’t you stay then? You’re safe here—safe with us. We can deal with your car in the morning.”

She picked up her glass of juice, slipped from the barstool, and went to the window by the kitchen table, which looked out over the backyard. Ben joined her just as lightning flashed, and he could see the water standing on the saturated ground, as much as a foot deep in some areas.

“I’ll stay.” Her beautiful face was reflected in the window glass as she looked out over the yard. He watched her expression, trying to gauge her emotions and whether that was what she really wanted, and their gazes met in the reflection. The image was dimly lit, but he thought he saw vulnerability in her eyes that she didn’t often show.

The scent of her freshly washed hair wafted in his nostrils as he gently brushed it from her shoulder. Speaking to the issue worrying him the most, Ben murmured, “I’m sorry. Please don’t leave Divine, sugar.”

“You know the last thing I ever wanted to do was get crossways with either of you.” Her tone was apologetic.

Ben stroked her shoulder then let his fingertips trace down her upper arm, raising gooseflesh there. “Come sit. Let’s eat first.”

She nodded and returned to her seat and thanked Ben when he put a turkey sandwich on a plate for her. She seemed to collect her thoughts for a moment, then murmured, “Before you say what you need to say, can I ask some questions?”

“Sure.” If it would help her settle, he’d tell her whatever she wanted to know.

“Did you fuss so much about the girls dancing together before I came to work for you?”

Figuring that answering in as few words as possible was good, and honesty was the best policy, Ben said, “No.” He shared a quick glance with Quinten, who seemed content to let him speak for the both of them.

“Do you fuss at Corinna and the rest of the girls about their work clothes as much as you do me?”

“No.”

“Do you fuss at me so much because you think I’m unprofessional?”

“No. I don’t have any problems at all with the way you conduct yourself, and never have.”

“Then why are you both being such assholes to me about dancing with my friends and the way I dress?” The need for an honest answer was in her eyes as she transferred her gaze from him to Quinten. “You answer this one, Quinten. And ‘no’ is not an option.”

“We’re jealous of other men looking at you. We understand you want to make as much in tips as you can. We understand you want to enjoy breaks with your friends. We can’t take the way men look at you like they want to eat you alive. Like they want to strip you naked, lay you on the bar, and eat you up, like we—”

Ben put a hand up. “I think she gets it.” Camilla’s cheeks had gone bright pink, and she opened her mouth to say something, but Ben politely cut her off as well. “He’s right. We’re jealous. Can I ask you a few questions?”

Looking like she’d realized she’d set herself up for this, she nodded.

“Is there something between you and those three bouncers?”

Her eyebrows arched in surprise. “No. We’re friends. I worked with them so they were off-limits. Work is work and—”

“—pleasure is pleasure. We know.” Ben modulated his tone. “Why?”

“Why? You know the reason why. I got involved with the assistant manager at the Dollhouse when I first started dancing. Tyler had a jealous streak a mile wide, which made it hard for me to do my job. Not only that, he was also an embezzler, he was dealing drugs, prostituting a couple of the dancers—”

Ben hadn’t known all the details. “Did he ever try to—”

“No. Too jealous, and he’d also helped to cover up a murder that happened when a drug deal went bad. How he found time to do all that crap without me knowing is beyond me. It was traumatic opening my door and finding police officers standing there, wanting to question me. The whole experience left me feeling dirty.”

“What happened to him?”

“State correctional facility in Huntsville, where I hope he’s rotting as some gigantic inmate’s girlfriend. Prick.”

Ben swallowed a chuckle at the look of disgust on her face.

“I swore off dating men I worked with. I turned the bears down—”

“The bears?”