Page 10 of Strip Search
J ackie Mitchell
I tried not to flinch as the door shut behind me.
I carried in a bottle of Jose Cuervo and a tray with ice, glasses, salt, and lemons.
My mind could barely tally what I was going to make this hour.
It was at least two hundred dollars and I knew I got a cut when the client ordered premium booze.
That wasn’t counting the fifty bucks I had already made in tips tonight.
Or the tip Darcy Ross might leave me. Oh my God, Lisa would shit if she knew.
“Poor me a drink, would ya luv?” he said in a sexy Australian accent.
“S-sorry,” I said, hurrying to put the tray down on the table.
“Join me in a shot?”
“Yeah,” I said.
He licked his hand and I dotted the salt on it. I filled the shot glass with the Cuervo. Sucking the salt off his hand, he then tanked the shot and I popped the lemon wedge into his mouth. He grinned, showing me the rind of the lemon over his teeth.
I laughed at his antics and relaxed a bit.
“Your turn,” he said. “You look like you could use one.”
“It’s my first night.” I licked my hand and blushed at his appreciative look.
“No shit.”
“Is it that obvious?”
“Only because you haven’t sat on my lap yet.”
I nearly dropped the shot I had just poured myself. “Am I supposed to?”
“Not if you don’t want to,” he said with a smile, and took the shot out of my hand and tanked it.
“I don’t think that’s how it works,” I said, reluctantly. I handed him a lemon slice, but he waved me off.
“It is with me. But I am going to make you pour me a real drink.”
I couldn’t believe how relieved I was to hear him say that, and I quickly blinked back tears so he wouldn’t see.
My bravado that had gotten me this far was rapidly fading away as the adrenaline from being on stage wore off.
Darcy Ross was hotter than the sun, and was even more attractive because he was kind and funny.
But I didn’t want to grind on his lap. I didn’t mind being nearly naked in front of him, mostly because he wasn’t leering, and his admiration was a confidence builder.
But there was only one man I wanted to rub against in the VIP room, and he probably was busy in the club making sure no one was out of line.
“How would you like your drink?” I asked.
“On the rocks with a salted rim and a twist of lemon.”
I figured out how to create that, and handed it to him.
“Feel free to make yourself one.”
Looking at the tequila bottle longingly, I sighed. “If you want me to dance, I shouldn’t.”
“Are you okay with dancing?”
“I love it.” I felt the last of my nervousness slip away. Darcy didn’t turn me on, but he made me feel safe.
Leaning back into the couch, he waved at me to start.
“Music on,” I said. “Play ‘Baby Did a Bad, Bad Thing’ by Chris Isaak.”
“Good choice.” He crossed his legs and winced. It reminded me of Lisa. Darcy must have hurt his knee at some point.
I lost myself in the music, using the entire room to dance, leap, and shimmy.
It should have been tawdry, and I should have been embarrassed that I was, for all intents and purposes, naked with a strange man.
But I wasn’t. When I looked over, Darcy was smiling at me, content to watch.
Considering all the times I’d stared at his ass on Lisa’s poster, it felt like turnabout was fair play.
He even clapped for me when the song was done. I gave him my best diva bow. A deep curtsy where I pretended I had a large bouquet of roses in my arms.
“Have a drink and a seat. You deserve it.”
“I do,” I agreed. “Let me refresh yours.”
“That’s a good girl,” he said with that sexy accent, flirting with a smoldering look through impossibly long lashes.
It was the same one from his calendar and I couldn’t help grinning back.
After I fixed our drinks, I joined him on the couch. He turned to face me, and I tried not to think about yesterday when Miles and I almost broke rule number one. I shoved down the disappointment that we hadn’t.
“I’ve got to know,” Darcy began.
“What’s a nice girl like me doing in a place like this?” I finished.
“Don’t get me wrong,” he said. “Dalton’s is one of my favorite titty bars and I love Miles like a brother. He saved my life.”
“He did?”
“I was about to get beaned with a beer bottle and Miles took it on his forearm instead. Ten stitches.”
“Wow,” I said. “He’s like Superman.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Darcy said. “But he’s a good bloke to have on your side in a fight.”
“I’m here looking for my sister, Lisa.”
Darcy made a show of looking around. “I don’t see her. But I’ve got plenty of credit left on my card if she shows up. Sisters.” He waggled his eyebrows at me.
I couldn’t help but laugh, but I had to look away.
“What’s wrong, luv?”
“I wish I could invite her to join us. She’s a huge fan. I’ve seen you in a towel many times.”
He grimaced. “I’m embarrassed.”
“Don’t be. You have a really nice smile.”
Darcy barked out a laugh. “Hey, that’s my line.”
“And you’ve got a great ass.”
He clinked his glass with mine. “Right back atcha. So where is your sister?”
His accent made it sound like sis-tah .
“I wish I knew. The last anyone saw her was here about three weeks ago. She doesn’t answer my or our parents’ calls. She moved out of her apartment in New York after her ACL surgery.”
“Fuck.” Darcy got very still. “She was an athlete?”
“Lead dancer on Broadway. Her whole life ended when they told her she couldn’t dance again.”
Darcy stared down into his drink and swirled the ice around, a pensive look on his face.
“She came to Vegas. First as a bartender, then as a stripper. But I think her leg gave out. I tracked her to her apartment, but she left her roommate in the lurch. The only clues I’ve got to go on are that she told her roommate she’d found a job with room and board, and there was a guy who came to Dalton’s to see her a few times. ”
Darcy leaned forward. “So you decided to become a stripper to see if that guy comes back?”
“That and maybe if the other dancers start to trust me, they’ll remember something about Lisa. Some clue that will help me find her. I was more pissed than worried when I came down here. But now I’m wondering if my mother wasn’t overreacting after all.”
“How long are you planning on staying?”
“I’ve got another week before I have to go back to New York.”
“New Yawk,” he teased.
“You’re going to talk about my accent?”
“Tawk.”
I rolled my eyes. “Do you want me to dance again?”
“If you want,” he said.
He had to be the easiest client I would ever get. I wanted to make sure he got his money worth. “Music on. ‘Bad Things’ by Jace Everett.”
“The True Blood theme song. I loved that show.”
“The books were better,” I said as I started the routine.
“They always are.” He watched me for a while. “I’m guessing you’re a Broadway dancer too?”
My chest swelled with pride that he thought I was talented enough to be on Broadway. Darcy Ross was good for my ego. He was going to ruin me for all other clients. “Not yet. I’m Lisa’s manager.”
“You’re talented.”
“Lisa’s better,” I said, like I always did.
“Not anymore,” he said, and the bitterness in his voice threw me off my rhythm. But his face almost immediately cleared, and I wondered if I’d imagined it. I finished the song more out of breath than I thought I’d be. I was starting to feel a twinge in my calves. I wasn’t used to dancing like this.
“We’re here for the rest of the week too,” Darcy said, sipping his drink. “Why don’t I help you look for your sister?”
“You’d do that?” I gaped at him.
“We’re planning on hitting every bar and strip club in Nevada. Some places will be a bit unsavory. I might as well keep an eye out for her. Lisa is her name?”
“Lisa Mitchell. Her stripper name is Broadway. If you give me your phone, I’ll bring up her portfolio so you can see what she looks like.”
“What’s your name, my little bohemian?”
“Jackie,” I said. “Jackie Mitchell.” I brought up the Zimmerman website and clicked over to Lisa’s headshot and biography.
“It’s nice to meet you, Jackie.”
“Nice to meet you too.” I ducked my head, suddenly shy. I handed him back his phone. “That’s her.”
Darcy studied the picture. “I haven’t seen her so far.”
“How can you be sure?”
“I never forget a pretty face.”
He really was a charmer. If I hadn’t imprinted on Miles and the burly bouncer type I could see myself falling for Darcy’s smile and roguish good looks.
I took his phone back and typed my cell number into his address book. “Here’s my number. Call me day or night if you see her.”
“No worries. If she’s in Vegas and out in public, we’ll find her.”
“Why are you doing this?” He didn’t seem like he was working an angle.
“I’ve got a sister who runs a little wild too. Her name’s Amie. If she went missing in a town like this, I’d be going crazy.”
I bit my lip and looked away. “I’m going to hit all the hotels on the Strip and all the ones that give room and board to their employees.”
“That last is going to be a short list,” Darcy said gently.
“That’s what I’m afraid of.” I needed to start another dance otherwise the thought of my sister prostituting herself would choke me.
I would have helped her financially, but she wouldn’t have accepted it.
I never thought she’d choose to sell her body though.
Maybe she hadn’t. But I couldn’t think of another job that would provide room and board in Vegas.
“I could check out some of the chicken ranches,” Darcy offered.
“Oh, she doesn’t like farms.”
Darcy coughed to hide a laugh. “Chicken ranch is another name for brothel.”
My face was probably neon red. I hadn’t heard that term before. “Very altruistic of you to check those out for me,” I said, getting up to pace the room. I went through songs I liked in my head, so I could find one to dance to so I could lose myself in the dance again.
He put a hand over his heart. “I’m willing to sacrifice to aid a damsel in distress.”
“You are a prince among men.”