Having one talk show under his belt, Austin isn’t as nervous when he goes on Late Night Ladies. In fact, he’s looking forward to it. It’s a bit daunting, however, to be among the only men there—both on set or in the audience.

He sat once the ladies were seated. Maggie, the grand dame, who reminded him of Madelyn Kahn, grinned at him.

“So, how do you feel, Austin?”

“Slightly intimidated, if I’m honest. It’s very strange being the only one with testicles on stage.”

The women whooped with laughter. Even their camera operators were female. He spotted a couple men backstage and the stage manager was male. That was about it.

“It is called Late Night Ladies,” Ginny piped up. She was the youngest, a year or so older than he.

“I demand equal time,” he said. “Late Night Laddies. We could come out on stage and dance for you. Would that please you?” he appealed to the audience.

The thundering applause and cat calls answered that question.

“Should we start with you?” Maggie asked. “You could do a dance for us.”

“I suppose I could do. But I’m keeping my pants on. If I damage this suit, my tailor will slay me. Though I’d be a well dressed corpse, I wouldn’t be able to enjoy your lovely company.”

“You’ll really dance to for us?”

“Sure. What am I dancing to?”

The bass player of the band stepped forward, her fingers thrumming the strings. Austin grinned, head bobbing to the rhythm. A saxophone, drums and guitar joined her as he stood.

“I need a partner,” he said. “Ladies?”

They all laughed, shaking their heads, so he went to the wings and got Liat. She joined him as the vocalist began singing Thank You by Sly and the Family Stone.

“Liat Fogleberg,” he yelled.

Austin swung her into a fun, jazzy dance rather like the Lindy. He added moves she’d never done before, but he was so sure of himself, she laughed and did her best. He spun her under his arm, then bowed to her before hopping onto the dais to dance with the vocalist, bass player and guitarist. From there, he skidded to a stop in front of Maggie, doing Patrick Swazi’s hip gyrating moves from Dirty Dancing. To the delight of the audience, she joined him. He danced with each of the hosts while Liat and the others danced in a group. The band extended the song, adding solos for each of the musicians. Austin finished the number by dancing with Liat. As the music wound down, he twirled her again, then dropped her in a dip before slowly raising her. His lips descended on hers, more by instinct than design, and he kissed her deeply.

A thrill scurried down her spine as he drew away, gaze locked with hers. His full lips quirked and she knew it was his way of promising more thrills to come. He bowed to the audience, clapping for Liat and the other ladies, before leading her to a chair. All the women gasped and laughed as they took their seats.

“Marvelous band,” Austin said, clapping once more. “I want to take you home with me. Aren’t they fantastic!” He ran over, giving each of the women a kiss. He stopped center stage, bowed once more and took his place next to Liat.

“Do you like my idea?” he asked the audience.

The women cheered, clapping and stopping their feet.

“Next time, I’ll bring some lads with me and we’ll all dance,” he promised.

“Darling, you can come on any time you like,” Bridget said. She was much quieter than the other hosts and spoke with a breathy Irish accent.

“I will do, Love, as often as you let me.”

The show continued, with Austin did everything he could to make them laugh and feel good. He played off Liat and the hosts, his comical antics making them blush and giggle like girls. By the end of the show, his face was covered with lipstick from all the kisses they had given him.

The audience didn’t want him to leave, but he promised to come back again. Before leaving, he turned to face the hosts, his back to the audience. With a quick flip of his jacket, he bent over giving them a fine view of his ass, pants tastefully on, before dashing off stage with Liat on his arm.

Pandemonium ensued. Instead of going back out for an encore, as the stage manager suggested, he declined.

“Always leave them wanting more,” Austin replied.

As Austin and Liat left the backstage, heading to the green room, he murmured in her ear, “And I want more.”

She shivered, agreeing with him. The hours they had spent together had served to make the attraction stronger than ever. However, they lacked time to do anything about it—until now. Stu drove them back to Austin’s trailer. Liat had left her car on the studio lot near the sound stage. He dropped them off, bid them farewell and headed home.

© 2015 Dellani Oakes

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