Page 26 of Dragged Home for Christmas

You forgot sexy as fuck.

His libido would be the death of him.

Mike pointed to the door at the other end of the room. “What’s through there?”

Sam grinned. “Let me show you.” He walked toward it, and Mike got an eyeful of a firm ass, toned arms, and a muscled back.

Down boy.

Yeah,definitelysexy.

Sam opened the door, and Mike saw a steep staircase leading down. At the bottom, he found himself in a dark space.

“Let me hit the lights.”

A moment later, Mike was standing in the middle of a dance floor. There were pillars on either side, a glitter ball suspended from the ceiling, and another bar.

“Welcome to Decadence.” Sam flung his arm out. “During the summer you couldn’t move in here. Floor vibrating, hundreds of bare chests, covered in leather, sweat, and other… fluids.” His eyes flashed. “Heaven.”

“Are there many clubs in P-town?”

“A few. This place was always jumping.”

And it could be again.

A light bulb had just flicked on in Mike’s head.

He wandered over to the bar and peered behind it. “Think we can find enough money to replenish supplies here and upstairs?”

Sam grinned once more. “You talking about Anthony selling his ass again?” He tilted his head. “What are you thinking?”

“The Thanksgiving brunch is a great idea, but that isn’t until the end of the month. We need something to bring in moneynow.” Mike gestured to their surroundings. “So why don’t we get the ball rolling and open the club?”

Sam’s face fell. “Ilovethat idea but there’s one major snag. We can’t sell alcohol. The liquor license expired at the end of December. And for us to get a new one, you’d need to register the change of ownership. All of which takes time.”

“How much time? And how much is a license?”

“Two hundred dollars, I think.” Sam sighed. “Which is about one hundred fifty dollars more than I have in my checking account right now. I think the others are in a similar state. And it can take forty days or more for a new license to be granted.” He stilled. “Wait. A license expires on December thirty-first of the year it’s issued in. If you try to renew it now, you’ll only be paying for a few weeks at most, and that’s a waste of money.”

“So what you’re saying is, we need to apply for it in January, and we won’t be able to sell alcohol for the remainder of this year?” Mike’s heart sank. “That sucks.”

“Mike? We have a visitor,” Ashley hollered.

Sam let out a growl. “Ben Sharp. I’d bet money on it.”

“Then let’s go tell him I’m not interested.”

To Mike’s surprise, Sam hugged him. “Nick always said you were awesome.”

Mike got a brief whiff of a warm, earthy cologne before Sam released him and ran up the stairs, Mike following. Sam came to a halt at the top. “False alarm.”

Mike stepped into the bar to find Ashley talking to a cop. A very attractive cop.

Ashley turned toward Mike. “This is Officer Patrick Murphy. He’s here because—”

“We know why he’s here, sweet thing.” Jim walked into the bar, his arms folded. “The same reason he’s visited every day for the past few weeks. And the answer is still no. We arenotleaving.” He set his jaw.

Officer Murphy coughed, his cheeks flushed. “Actually, that’s not why I’m here. Mr. Hopkins informed the police department that the new owner had taken possession.” His eyes gleamed. “I guess you’re his problem now.”

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