Page 8 of Sexy Dare (The Sexy 1)

Then, unable to help herself, she clicked on the About section, and photographs of the three partners came up in full color. Jason had the lightest brown hair, the other two men were darker, all sporting a scruff of beard, but it was Jason’s startling indigo blue eyes that stood out. If she hadn’t been so overwhelmed, she’d have paid more attention to them last night. She studied him, his intense gaze, slightly brooding, sexy look, and sighed, squirming in her seat at the sight of him.

Scrolling further, she came to the meaning of Club TEN29 and sucked in a startled breath. The words were brief but impactful: Club TEN29 is named in memory of Levi Bennett, who died in a tragic accident on October 29, 2009, beneath the photograph of a young man who appeared almost identical to the older photo of Landon Bennett. They must have been twins. How tragic and sad, she thought, closing out of the website.

But not before taking one last lingering look at Jason and feeling a sense of regret for what might have been if her situation had been different and she’d been free to see him again.

She made a note to go to a gas station and order a new tire for her old van and get the others checked before turning her attention to ordering supplies for her shop. Incoming orders were coming in surprisingly quickly, and she was thrilled with her slow but steady growth and return clientele.

After she finished her paperwork, she showered and dressed in dark jeans and a sweater, pulling on her lightweight puffer jacket for the day, and loaded up her van again with her candy. She stopped to open the shop for Kelsey. While her intern handled sales, Faith would drop the baskets off at various local businesses. If she didn’t do it today, the candy would start to go stale, and she didn’t want anything to go to waste. She was operating in the black by being careful.

She spent the day working, and though she wished she could say she’d put Jason Dare out of her mind, she couldn’t stop thinking about him, his tight ass, and the warmth in his eyes when he looked at her. But she reminded herself that he didn’t need trouble in his life and that’s what she was running from. Trouble in the form of her brother.

* * *

Jason had texted his partners, telling them he wanted to meet in the morning at the club, which was why he was walking upstairs inside the darkened venue at noon the next day. The guys had been up late, so Jason had pushed the time to a more reasonable one. If it had been up to him, he’d have been here by nine.

He joined them in the large space they occupied as their shared office, when they weren’t holed up in their individual private rooms, to find the guys in jeans and tee shirts, both Landon and Tanner guzzling coffee and glaring at him.

“This had better be worth dragging me out of bed,” Tanner muttered. “I’m fucking beat.”

Landon yawned. “What he said.”

Jason wasn’t surprised. Landon was a man of few words.

Jason flipped on the overhead lights, guaranteeing his friends perked up. He waited for the cursing and groaning to end before he gestured through the window that overlooked the main staging area below.

“Imagine an A-list artist performing on stage. Now picture the lines to get in. A Miami vibe in New York. A whole new TEN29.” He gave his pitch, short and sweet. “So much stronger than come on in and dance,” he added for good measure.

When the two men looked at him over their coffee cups, he frowned and went on. “We started this club and built it into a respectable business. I want more. We’re capable of being more. In honor of Levi, this place should be more.”

Their eyes narrowed at the mention of their friend, Landon’s brother, who’d died too young. In a stupid way, because they’d all been too afraid to walk away from a situation they’d committed to and didn’t know how to get out of. They all blamed themselves, yet none of them blamed each other.

Was Jason challenging them to step up? Hell yes. “We don’t want to get complacent,” he said.

“I’m in,” Landon immediately said, the mention of his twin clearly getting his juices flowing.

Jason wondered if he could convince his talented friend to play the guitar on stage. Not something he’d bring up now. It was too early in the process, and Landon had avoided his instruments for years because he’d used to play with his twin.

Right now, Jason just needed them on board for the change of direction in the club.

Glancing at Tanner, Jason waited.

“Yeah. You got my vote,” Tanner finally said. “We need to build and find our own niche. Get away from the other basic clubs and the best way is to outclass and outsmart them.”

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