A few friends of mine from college had met us at the club, and they were dancing right along with us. A guy walked up to Ari and said something to her. She smiled big and looked at me. She tapped on a few of the girls’ shoulders before she grabbed me, and then we took off, following the guy. We walked down a hallway and then into another room that had a giant glass window with tables all around.

“We get our own private room?” Ellie asked with a smile. She looked over at the pole in the middle of the room and smiled. “Oh god, I want to take pole dance lessons!”

Okay, she’s had too much to drink.

“Just take lessons from freaky-fresh Heather over there. She knows how to get her groove on,” Ari said as she jerked her head over toward Heather, who was on her way to being drunk also.

“Hell yeah!” Heather grabbed Ellie’s arm and dragged her over to the pole.

I looked up and saw a DJ in a booth. He started laughing, and then Eminem’s “Shake That” started playing. I couldn’t believe how Heather could move her body. I just stood there and stared at her and Ellie dancing.

“Years of dance lessons and getting nasty in the bedroom will do that for ya,” Ari said as she hit me in the arm.

I snapped my head over at Ari and busted out laughing. “My god…she could make serious money doing that,” I said as I shook my head. “What are we doing in here anyway?” I yelled over the music.

Ari smiled. “I have a surprise for you.” She pulled out two pieces of red satin and wiggled her eyebrows up and down.

“What is that for?” I asked as the music stopped.

Heather and Ellie were laughing their asses off as they walked back over toward us. Ari reached for my hands and pulled me over to a chair that someone had put in the middle of the room.

Oh, hell no! She did not…

“Sit down, Jessie,” Ari said with a wicked smile.

“No! Oh my god, no, you didn’t, Ari. I said no strippers.”

Azurdee jumped up and down. “Stripper? Yes!”

I quickly looked at her, and my mouth dropped. “Azurdee!”

She shrugged her shoulders. “What? Do you know how long it’s been since a man has touched me? The least you could do is let me touch a hot guy dancing.”

Heather, Ellie, Amanda, and the rest of the girls all started laughing.

“For me, Jess?” Azurdee practically pleaded with a smile.

“No!”

Ari pushed me down in the seat and grabbed my hands. She pulled them behind me and quickly tied them.

“Ari, so help me God, if a strange dick comes anywhere near me, I will never talk to you again!” I yelled at her.

“Ari, you promised us no strippers,” Ellie said.

“Stop whining, Ellie, and just trust me,” Ari said with a wink.

I looked up at Ari. “Ari…please. I don’t want to do this, so please…”

Ari put the red satin cloth over my eyes, and I instantly started panicking.

Oh my god. Scott is gonna find out, and I’m not going to get married. He won’t marry me!

Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar on Me” started playing.

“No! Absolutely not, Ari. Scott loves that song!” I yelled out.

Then, I heard all the girls start yelling and hollering.

What in the hell is wrong with them? Is that Ellie yelling? Ellie, of all people, is going crazy over a stripper! Oh, I am so going to have a talk with her after this. Gunner would be devastated!

Oh god…he’s in front of me. The moment I felt him near me, I wanted to puke. I tried hopping back in the chair, but I was getting nowhere.

“Take it off, cowboy!” Heather yelled out.

“What?” I screamed. “Oh my god, Heather! What is wrong with y’all?” I tried to figure out where he was. “Just stay back, stripper cowboy.”

Then, I felt him straddle me. He must have taken off his shirt because I felt something wrap around my neck, and Ellie screamed something about how hot his abs were.

“Um…no…I’m not happy with this at all. Really, go dance with one of the horny drunks.”

Then, I felt his breath on my neck. Oh god…he smells like Scott. For about ten seconds, I lost my wits.

“Please…I really don’t want…”

I felt someone untying my hands.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

“You have got to feel his abs, Jessie!” Azurdee said with a laugh as someone grabbed my hands.

“Azurdee! If that is you grabbing my hands, you are no longer my maid of honor. I’m stripping you of the title.”

The only girl I couldn’t hear was Amanda.

“Amanda! You’re my new maid of honor!” I yelled out.

Ari started laughing. “Sorry, sweets. Amanda is busy making out with one of the stripper’s friends.”

What. In. The. Hell?

“What? She’s not even drinking. Ari, please…you’re gonna get everyone divorced and—”

The minute my hands touched the stripper’s chest, I felt a funny feeling zap through my body. I froze for two seconds until he straddled me again. I moved my hands across his chest and then slowly down to his abs.

I’d know this body anywhere.

I slowly smiled and then felt his lips against my neck. My body instantly jumped to attention, and every sensation kick-started. He slowly kissed along my neck and up to the side of my face.

“Wait,” I said.

He stopped moving, but he kept his lips against my face. He was now putting more pressure on my legs, and I could feel his hard-on.

“I’d like to take off this blindfold, so I can see my future husband strip for me,” I said.

Scott started laughing as I reached up and pulled the silk cloth up and over my head. He didn’t even give me time to say anything before he started kissing me. All I heard was everyone whooping and hollering. His kiss felt like heaven, and I wanted nothing more than for him to pick me up and just take me out of this stupid club.

“For a second there, baby, I was getting worried that you might be liking this a little too much,” he spoke softly against my lips.

I smiled. “The moment I touched you, I knew it was you.”

I glanced over and saw Brad and Amanda making out like they hadn’t in years. Gunner was hugging Ellie and whispering something in her ear. Josh looked like he wanted to rip Heather’s clothes off her body, and Jeff had Ari in his arms while he was talking to her. Lark was talking to a few of my college friends, and Azurdee was standing there, looking really pissed-off.

I turned back to Scott. “What in the world are y’all doing here?”

“Ari planned it all. I know I told you I didn’t want to have a bachelor party, but we’ve pretty much been following y’all around all night. Josh and Lark are well on their way to being trashed with Jeff and Gunner running a close third and fourth. All I’ve wanted to do was get this part over with, so I can take you back to the hotel and have my wicked way with you.”

I shook my head. “Is that why all the moms were at the houses because y’all had planned on going out the whole time?”

He looked down into my eyes, and I swore they were piercing into my very soul. I would never get tired of how he looked at me with so much passion.

He tilted my chin up with his finger and slowly leaned in to kiss me. “I. Want. You,” he whispered after each kiss.

“Yes,” was all I could manage to get out.

This was the first time we were out and away from Lauren for so long, but we both needed it.

“Scott?” I asked as I quickly looked around.

“Yeah, baby?”

“Please save me from this bachelorette party. Take me to the hotel and love me.”

The way his body moved when he turned around and walked over to Gunner turned me on. I loved his walk. It was confident and sexy as hell.

Gunner nodded his head and said something back to Scott. Lark walked over with Cassie, a friend from college, on his arm, and when I looked over toward Azurdee, she was standing at the window of the club, looking out. I walked over to her and put my arm around her.