by Blair Grey
“What?” he sounded like I’d asked a stupid question.
Which I had not. I’d been told that there were no stupid questions. “Look, I mean does she really know as much as you think she does?”
“She got a degree, didn’t she?” He huffed loudly. “And she had a three-point-seventy-five GPA. I think that’s pretty good. Don’t you?”
“But is she going to be good at teaching me how to do what I’ll need to do?” There were people who could teach well and then there were people who just did it all themselves and you had to learn by watching. I was a learn by doing kind of person. “I mean, is she gonna just take over and I’ll have to sit there and idly watch her run the whole place?”
“Again, Axel – you and she need to talk so you can tell her what you need to succeed, and she can come up with a plan to make sure that happens. She knows what her job is going to be. She’s got to set up the business aspects of it and teach you all about doing that. She’s to make sure the place is profitable and that you know what you’re doing before she steps down from her position as CEO.”
“You’re going to make her the CEO?” Where would that leave me? “And what would I be?”
“You would be in training, is what you’d be. If you want to call yourself anything, maybe call yourself a general manager until you know what the fuck you’re doing, Axel. You should look at this as a free education. And don’t let that male pride fuck you up either.”
He had a point. It was my pride that was taking a beating. “So, I’m in training and if she can teach me, I’ll get to take over as CEO?”
“Yeah. It’s not a hard concept. So, get going. She’s about to leave here and she wants to go straight over to the building. And I don’t want her waiting in an empty parking lot of a vacant building alone. Anything could happen to her. And nothing better happen to my baby girl, Axel. Nothing at all.”
So, there it was. I would be protecting his daughter. He could call it whatever he wanted, but the fact was that I would be held responsible for her. And I would have to rein in my libido – a thing I’d never done before.
“Come on, babe. Let’s get this show on the road,” came the girl in my bedroom’s voice.
I’d forgotten her name already. And she was in for some disappointment. “I’ll take off right away, boss.”
“Good. She’ll be happy. See ya tomorrow to let you two know how we voted. As I’ve told my daughter, I expect you both to abide by the decision I and the other officers agree on. No pouting if things don’t go your way.”
“Yes, sir. Thanks. I’ll take off now.” I put the cell back into the pocket of my jeans, grabbed my t-shirt off the floor where I’d tossed it when we’d come in, trying to get naked as quickly as we could. But the sex had to be put on the back burner. “Hey, I’ve gotta go show someone something. You can stay here if you’d like to.”
Naked, rubbing her hands all over her voluptuous body, a pout formed on her ruby red lips. “What? No. Come on, babe. You can do it really quick. Just give me one little orgasm to tide me over until you come back. I’m aching over here.”
If my boss hadn’t ordered it, I would’ve most definitely given her what she’d asked for. But knowing that Sarah was leaving his place and heading to the empty building, I had no choice but to leave the poor woman in front of me hanging. “Baby, I would totally fuck you into oblivion if I didn’t have to take care of something.”
“How long will it take?” She laid on the bed, spread eagle.
For a moment, I forgot what she’d asked as I looked at her juicy body lying on my bed, begging for me to join her. “Um – uh. Shit, I don’t know. I’ve gotta show this building to the woman I’ll be working with.”
“A woman?” She sat up, shaking her head. “No. You can’t go alone. I’ll come too. Just give me a sec to get my clothes back on.”
I wasn’t sure that it was a good idea. “No, you stay here. I’ll be back.”
Laughing as she gathered her clothes and started putting them back on, she gave me a look that said she didn’t fully trust me. “Look, I know lots of guys like you, Axel. And what I know will happen with you and this woman you have to meet, is sex and lots of it. And where will that leave me? I’ll tell you where. In this bed, alone, falling asleep after masturbating. And I didn’t come here to play with myself. So, I’m coming with and you can just deal with that.”
“There won’t be any sex. I can promise you that. It’s gonna bore you to tears too. I’ve gotta show this building and we’re gonna talk about business shit. You stay here. I swear that I’ll be back, and my cock will still be hard for you.” The fact this chick was already thinking that she didn’t have to share me, bothered me a bit. Now, I wasn’t even sure I wanted to come back home to her after all. “No. You know what? You can come with me.” I would drop her ass off after I met with Sarah.
“Now, you’re speaking my language, Axel.” She hurried to put on the rest of her clothes then smoothed her hair a bit as it had gotten kind of messed up with all our pawing at each other. But she still looked a lot like a stripper with her ripped jeans that fit her like a second skin and the cropped top that showed her under-boobs. The sky-high, shiny, black boots only served to put the entire outfit into the stripper league.
Sarah’s first impression of me in years and it would be like this. Shaking my head as I put my boots back on, I didn’t know what else I could do. There wasn’t time to go drop this chick off before I went to meet Sarah.
Heading out to the garage with the girl who’s name I couldn’t remember on my heels, I climbed onto my Harley then let her get on in back of me before firing it up. “Hang on back there. I don’t want to lose you.” I did but thought that might be a bit on the ugly side to say to someone who was just about to let me do things to them that some might find distasteful.
“You won’t lose me, Axel Rush.” She leaned in close, running both of her arms around my waist as she snuggled against my back. “You smell good enough to eat. And when we get back, that’s just what I’m going to do to you. That cock is mine for tonight.”
Her dirty talk did make my dick stand up and pay attention. Sometimes my cock and brain didn’t agree on things. Things like this trick being too clingy already and how I was in for a rough time when I tried to pry her off me to send her on her way. My dick still wanted to be planted deep inside of her for at least a little while. And he spoke to me, asking what the hell was wrong with me? Didn’t I want to get sucked off by those fat, juicy lips of hers?
I did, but then again, I didn’t. I knew what letting her do anything with me would mean. Girls like her loved to take boys like me home to meet their overprotective daddies. But I wasn’t into that scene at all.
Looking for a relationship, even one meant only to piss off her preacher father, wasn’t in my plans. My plans were all on the business I would use to prove to Carl and the whole MC that I was capable of handling things and making money.
My uncle had made sure I had a place in the Iron Cobras before he died only a year after I’d come to the club as a prospect. That was the most anyone in my unfortunate family could do for me. Hard times had hit the Rush family when my father was killed in a car accident, leaving my mother to raise three of us all on her own.
She’d done her best, but money was always tight, and my uncle knew that me becoming a part of the MC was the only hope of getting us out of poverty. I’d already sent home most of the money I’d made, that was left after paying my bills. If I could make the strip club work and make lots of money, then Mom and my younger sisters would get out of the shithole they lived in and be able to stay out of it.
This business means more to me than anyone can even imagine.
Chapter Four
Sarah
While being excited about having my first real job, the idea of having to work with a guy like Axel did hamper things a bit. Sure that he’d put my father’s wishes above anything else, it sort of bothered me that I would be the only female Axel wo
uldn’t be hitting on.
Dad and I hadn’t always seen eye to eye on me not seeing anyone from any MC – ever. Not that I wanted to see a man like Axel, a man-whore. But I did like the way the men in MCs carried themselves. Self-assured, rugged, ready to take on the world with only a moment’s notice – they attracted me to no end. But those weren’t the kind of men for me. Or so my father said anyway.
I wasn’t sure what type of man my father would approve of. In my high school days, I’d brought home a guy I had thought Dad would approve of. Joe was in the chess club – a real smart kid with lots of potential in the looks department. All it would take was my gentle influence to take him up to hottie level. But before I went that far, I had to get the okay from Dad to date Joe.
So, I brought him home after school one day in the fall to carve pumpkins for Halloween. Mom was very nice to Joe and so was Dad. But after he left, my father asked me what the hell I was doing with a pansy-ass like that kid?
That left me not knowing what kind of man my dad would actually approve of. Tough bikers were out and so were soft intellectuals. I’d tried the middle ground type too. One of the football players had asked me out and I’d told him he had to keep meet my parents first before I could agree to the date. Again, Mom was nice. But this time my father wasn’t. He out and out told James that he knew the athletic type and didn’t want his daughter dating anyone like him.
In all reality, I had the idea my father would rather me be alone – at least until he left the planet. How long I could hold out was the real question.
Although my parents had no idea about it, I did date a little in college. Nana wasn’t a prude at all, and she’d encouraged me to try things out with a few different men.
If Dad knew I’m no longer a virgin, he might have a stroke.
The way the windows of my car rattled, told me Axel had finally shown up. I’d been sitting in the empty parking lot in front of a monster of an old building for nearly ten minutes before he got there.
As he pulled up beside me, I saw the trick on the back of his bike. My eyes rolled all on their own. “Great.” Getting out of the car, I walked around to greet him. “Hi, Axel. It’s been a long time. How’ve you been doing?”
Before he could say a word, as he took his helmet off, the tramp who’d gotten off the back of his bike in record speed moved in between us, her hand extended. “Hello, I’m Gretchen Vandross. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Axel hasn’t told me your name yet.” I didn’t bother to shake her hand, so she began taking off the helmet she had on.
Looking past her, directly into Axel’s amazing green eyes, I introduced myself to his girl, “I’m Sarah Davis. Are you going to work here if we get the go-ahead?”
Axel shook his head. “You and I are all there are so far - as far as potential employees go. We’ll have to do the hiring if we get the okay to move forward with things.” He moved passed the young harlot whose eyes stayed on me. “Come on, I’ll unlock the doors and show you around, Sarah.”
“If they vote our way, Dad’s going to be bringing us the money to open a business bank account tomorrow afternoon. That means you and I have to come up with a name for this little venture before then.” I stepped inside as Axel held the door open for me. Being pitch black, I began to wonder what sort of nightmare I’d just stepped into.
Suddenly, light filled the room. Looking up, I found an enormous chandelier lit up. Axel pointed at it. “That’s one of my favorite features of this place.”
I liked it too. “It is beautiful.”
“As will be all who we hire to entertain our guests.” Axel’s sexy grin wasn’t lost on me.
Damn my inner woman! “So, you really think a strip club is the best we can do here?”
The annoying chick who’d glued herself to Axel’s side looked up at him with a frown. “You’re going to open a strip club?”
His lips imitated hers, turning into a horseshoe. “I’m going to try, yeah.” Looking back at me, he put that smile back on his way too gorgeous face. “And yes, I think a strip club would work best here. It’s got all the things a successful club like that needs. Private rooms.” He used his free arm, the one the tramp wasn’t hanging onto as if he’d run away if she let go, to gesture to the small rooms on either side of the stage.
“I suppose we could put curtains over the entrances to make them private.” I’d never been inside of a club like that before. “Is that what they do in those types of places?”
One dark brow raised. “Haven’t you been to a strip club before, Sarah?”
I felt the heat of embarrassment in my cheeks. “Well – no. No, I haven’t.”
“And you think you can help Axel run this place?” the whore at his side asked with quite the grin on her painted face.
“I’m the one with a business degree, so yes, I think I can mentor Axel to help him become the successful businessman he’s striving to be.” I wanted to see the whole place, so I began walking toward the staircase. “What’s up there?”
“The offices.” He turned to walk the other way. “Wouldn’t you like to see the kitchen first?”
Where people made food didn’t fascinate me the way it did my father. “No. Dad said that’s his project anyway. I don’t want to waste time on things that don’t concern me.”
“That’s good to know.” Axel stepped in behind me as I went up the stairs. Although there was a woman on his other arm, he managed to put two fingers against the small of my back, sending pure electricity shooting through my body. “I don’t want to waste your time either. I know your goal is to teach me all I need to know then get onto your own career. A career that doesn’t involve the seedier things in life. Your father doesn’t want you to be a part of any of this. It’s a miracle he’s letting you come help for even a little while.”
Stopping at the top, I stepped to one side to let him get in front of me. His little touch had me feeling very hot. “We’re going to have to get the air conditioning up to par in this place before we can do much inside.”
“Hot?” He passed me, glancing at me sideways, well-aware of the effect he had on me. “I think it’s just right in here. Come on, I’ll show you my – I mean our office.”
“You two will be sharing an office?” the bimbo asked as she shook her head. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” She looked back at me. “Don’t you think that’s a bad idea?”
“We’ll have to work closely together. Sharing an office is the only thing that makes sense.” I liked the way his girl was openly afraid of me getting under her man. “After all, when I leave, the office will be set up and there won’t be anything that will have to be moved.”
Axel pushed the door open, and I looked inside, seeing a lot of space. So much space that our desks could even be at opposite ends of the room. Axel pointed out the one item of furniture. “That’s gonna be our desk, Sarah.” He nixed separate desks right off the bat. “It’s made out of Mahogany, is what your father told me. It’s worth a pretty penny too, from what he said. It’s large enough that you can sit on one side and I can sit on the other. That way we don’t have to shout across the room at each other.”
Nodding, I knew he was right. “Yeah, that sounds like a great idea to me too.”
“I’m a hands-on learner.” He leaned back on the desk. “I want to be right there when you’re doing every little thing. I want you to let me do most of the work while you just coach me. This is my baby – my dream. I don’t expect you to understand why that is, but I do expect you to respect it.”
“While I think this place would make a much better restaurant or even a nightclub, I do respect your vision, Axel. I’m not a judgmental person. You should know that about me already.” I had the feeling he’d forgotten that we’d ever known each other. There had been a couple of years when I was around him a hell of a lot. It bothered me that the man in front of me looked and talked to me like we’d never met.
His eyes scanned up my body then rested on mine. “Sarah, I know who yo
u were back then. I’m not sure who you are now though. And I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot with you either. I’m grateful for your help with this. I want this to work, so we’ve got to work. I just wanted to set the foundation for mutual respect.”
Nodding, I knew he was right to want to do that. After all, I could totally poopoo his strip club idea and get my father going on something more for me. But Axel had found the place and he had his own idea of what he wanted it to become. “You’ve got my respect, Axel.”
“Great.” Gently but firmly, he pushed the girl off of him then crossed his arms over his chest. It gave me the feeling he was trying to exert his authority over me, merely because of him being a couple of years older than I was. “Since you said your father will be giving us the seed money to start the business and open an account for the club tomorrow if the council approves it, I want you to know the name I’ve chosen.”
“Okay, what have you come up with.” It was interesting that he thought the name was all up to him. Being someone who’d actually been to college and had earned a degree in business, I knew a lot about marketing and how important the name of a business was.
Opening his arms wide, as if inviting me in, his voice went an octave lower than it normally was, which was low and strong, sexy even. “Welcome to - The Cobra Pit.”
I stood there, letting the name sink in. But it wouldn’t sink. It kind of floated there, not making me feel anything about it at all. “You want to use Cobra in the name?” I wasn’t sure that it was a great idea. “You know there will be some things that’ll go on here the council won’t want to be associated with the Iron Cobras. You know what I’m saying, right?”
Nodding, he looked a little miffed that he hadn’t thought about that first. “Well, do you have any suggestions?”
“I think something more elegant – if you can even say that about a club where women take off their clothes.” I hadn’t thought much about the name yet. “But how about something with gentlemen in it? I’ve seen that on billboards before. Don’t they like to church it up a bit and call those things, gentlemen’s clubs?”
