He pressed up against my body, towering over me—intimidating.
My cheeks flushed red. I had my first hot flash. My pussy. Instantly wet.
I covered my face and squealed as he put his arm around me, lifting me slightly, carrying me through the crowd like I was a part of the act—thrusting and grinding against me, setting me down only long enough to do a little belly roll and hip drop for the next paying customer, then lifting me again to move through the crowd.
The scent of his cologne mixed with the salt of his sweat, the evergreens, and spice in the air was enough to make me pass out.
“You better go save your mom, cupcake.” He chuckled and gestured to the float.
Mom had taken her coat off and was now swinging it around her head, bumping butts with Nettles.
“Oh, my God.”
The song ended and the crowd screamed and waved fists full of cash to be collected.
“I’ve gotta job to do.” He slapped my ass and dove into the crowd as the next song started.
I blew out a long breath.
“Your mom is kinda cool, Mags.” Katie gestured to her.
“Would have been kinda nice to know the Christmas Jamboree parade involved a fucking stripshow, Kates,” I yelled over the music.
“Oh, it’s fine, she fits right in. Look.”
I glanced back to the stage. Mom was up there swinging in circles, her top now unbuttoned past her bra and her pencil skirt hiked up on her thighs.
Oh shit!
I pulled out my phone and group texted my family.
Meet us back at the manor.
Then I went up to the float and helped Mom down.
“Maggie, that was so thrilling!”
“I’m glad you enjoyed yourself, Mom,” I said, only partly mortified. “We need to get back to the manor, though.”
Getting back through the crowd was its own event—Annie bumped butts with the dancing townspeople in passing, Mom still humming and swaying, me steering them both toward Segman’s Street like I was herding cats.
“Fa, la, la, la, la…” Mom sang the whole way home, bopping her head side to side with a stupid grin screwed onto her face.
“What the fuck was that?” I stared ahead, gripping the wheel. “I don’t want to hear another word about mypromiscuouslifestyle. I didn’t just shake my ass in front of the entire town with the police captain.”
“You told me to lighten up, so I did. It was only a dance.” She casually buttoned her shirt back up. “It won’t happen again. Besides, Jethro was a hoot.”
“No. It was just…different. Unexpected. That’s all,” I said.
“Well, darling, I did have four children. How do you think that happened?”
“God, I don’t even want to think about how I got here.”
When we got back to the manor, Hunter was already there and met me at the car.
I opened the door and got out. “Hey, baby, you’re early. How did it go?”
Hunter chuffed. “How did it go? You tell me.” He pulled out his phone and played a video of the parade. Of course the videographer would focus on Graham thewholetime.
