The Firefighter Meets His Match (Red Hot Reunions Book 4) Read Online Free Page A

and all the other party-attendees seemed to be having an equally entertaining experience. Everyone was smiling and laughing, Melody got up the nerve to stick a dollar in the construction worker’s hat, and Kitty took things a step further—slipping a crisp five into the side of the cop’s briefs and laughing hysterically as the man paused to do a few extra thrusts in her direction.
    By the time the firefighter—the last act—strutted back down the catwalk to join the other men in a finale dance, Maddie was certain the strippers had been a huge hit and wished Jamison could have seen how much fun everyone had. He hadn’t believed her when she’d said she was hiring strippers primarily for laughs, but the tears streaming down Faith’s smiling face as she stepped off the catwalk at the end of the show were a testimony to Maddie’s belief that nothing gave a girl a good giggle like a bunch of semi-naked men dancing in tight underwear.
    “Damn, that was fun,” Faith said, sucking in a breath that emerged as another laugh. “I haven’t laughed that hard since my cousin dressed up in drag for Mardi Gras.”
    “Yay!” Maddie clapped her hands as she and the girls headed back to their booth for another round. “I’m so glad you enjoyed it.”
    “I loved it,” Faith said, looping her arm through Maddie’s. “I will never, ever forget it. Thank you so much, Maddie.”
    “You’re welcome, little sis.” She turned to pull the taller Faith in for a hug. “Now, should we have another Lady Slipper, or would you prefer a cold beer after all that hot stripper action?”
    “Actually,” Faith said, swiping the last of the tears from her face. “I think you should go get your present before it’s too late. It’s waiting in the manager’s office down the hall from the bathrooms.”
    Maddie’s brows pulled together. “Why in the manager’s office?”
    “It was too big to bring out to the table,” Faith said, a naughty twinkle in her eye that made Maddie laugh.
    “It’s not a blow up man doll, is it?” Maddie asked. “Jamison will freak out if I bring home anything more raunchy than a penis lollipop.”
    Faith’s smile widened. “Just go and see. We’ll be here when you get back.”
    Maddie narrowed her eyes one last time, but finally started toward the bathrooms. “You guys be good while I’m gone,” she said as she backed away. “Or at least good enough.”
    The other women lifted their glasses and Naomi called out. “We won’t cut the cake until you get back.”
    With a thumbs up, Maddie hurried past the stage, where the bar backs were disassembling the catwalk. Top-Forty country music was playing over the sound system until Ghost Town Double Wide took the stage for their second set, and a few enthusiastic couples were already spinning around the edge of the dance floor.
    Maddie quickened her step, wanting to be back with the other women before the band took the stage so she could get some more dancing in—it had been way too long since she’d cut loose on the dance floor. A minute later, she was pushing open the door to the manager’s office, ready to grab her gift and head back to the party.
    As soon as she got a look at what awaited her inside, however, her jaw dropped and all thoughts of rushing back to the party evaporated faster than spit on a hot Georgia sidewalk in July.

CHAPTER FOUR
    Maddie
    There, on the left side of the office, dressed in a Roman gladiator stripper’s outfit with nothing but a leather loincloth and some strategically placed armor, was her husband-to-be, a shit-eating grin on his face and his bronzed skin oiled so that every delicious muscle popped, accentuating his already drool-worthy body.
    “What have you done?” Maddie asked, grinning so hard she could barely form the words.
    “I’m your surprise.” Jamison flexed his bicep and shot her his most wicked smolder. “Faith and I have been planning it for a week.”
    “I thought you were angry about the