Remembering his disgusted look, I tamp down my feelings of longing and anger, and place what I hope to be a matching expression to his from that night—cold and unmoving. He may have shaken me then, but I’ve changed. I won’t be lusting after him or be grateful for what he did for me. I’ve already thanked him for that night and he practically spat in my face, scolding me for being out and for what I did to help him. So, I’m going to grant him the same courtesy and not spare him a second glance.
There’s less than a minute of my routine left, so I put everything I have into it. His presence makes me dance sexier, better than I have in my whole life.
I swing myself around the pole, flip upside down, and twirl around it without looking to my left. When I’m on my feet, I shake my hips and shimmy my chest, more than I would have if I didn’t know who was in the audience.
I don’t know why I’m suddenly putting on a show for him, but I can’t help myself. Maybe I want to show him what he was missing, and that he judged me unfairly.
The song ends and everyone in the room cheers so loud, I’m stunned for a moment. I knew they were enjoying the show, but I didn’t think it was enough to warrant this kind of reaction.
My eyes fall to my feet, and that’s when I see all the money on the stage. There are fives, tens, twenties, and even fifty dollar bills mixed in. I even see a few hundred-dollar bills as well. Tonight was definitely good for tips. Who knows? If I can pull off a few more nights like this, I may be going off to school sooner than I thought possible. Then again, maybe not. I’m not sure if I’m ready for that just yet. Whenever I think of school, I get indecisive. I know it’s what I want, eventually, but I can’t help but think now isn’t the time.
Grabbing my clothes off the stage, I walk off with more confidence and a smile bigger than I’ve had in a long time, if ever. It feels good knowing the crowd loved it as much as they did. I just have to tell myself that I’m not smiling because of him.
“Oh my God, Angel. That was amazing! I didn’t know you had that in you,” Amy screams as I walk into the dressing room.
I blush now, with my robe on and away from prying eyes. “Thank you.”
“No, thank you, babe. That dance even got me hot,” Kristine says. She licks her lips as she looks me up and down, pretending to see right through my robe. Heck, maybe she’s serious.
Sitting down in front of my mirror, I take a moment to really go over what just happened, but it’s not just the dance I think about. It’s him. I wanted him, even if it was only for a split second. I wanted it to only be me and him in that room. I wanted to dance just for him. But I can’t think that way.
“Tell me about it. She was unbelievable. I feel sorry for the unlucky bitch that has to go out there after her,” Amy says, looking genuinely worried.
“Amy, you’re up next,” Leroy says as he pokes his head into the dressing room.
“Well, fuck my ass with a curling iron,” Amy grumbles after he closes the door behind him.
Giving her a smile, I say, “Oh, stop it. You know you’re hot. They’ll all forget about little old me once they see you strut your stuff out there.” And it’s the truth. She’s beautiful. No man would be able to look at her and not have at least one dirty thought. Heck, she could probably turn a gay man’s head her way and have them double guessing their lifestyle.
Amy gives me a doubtful smile before she grabs her robe and heads out of the room. A few seconds later, I can hear the DJ start up her song, and then the crowd cheering. I smile, knowing I was right, and not feeling one bit upset about the fact that my act wasn’t hard to follow.
Turning, I go back to thinking about Dominic. It still baffles me that he’s here. Of all the places in the world, this is where he showed up. Did he follow me here? Did he track me down? Or is this all just a coincidence? I can’t help the quickening of my heart when I think about him following me and the reasoning behind it. But I know that can’t be it. Not after the way he left things and what he said.
I wish I could go out there and ask him why he’s here, but a part of me doesn’t want to know. I sure wouldn’t mind giving him the best damn lap dance in all of stripper history though. Prove to him and myself that I’m better than he originally thought. But I think what is keeping me from hunting him down and asking, is I’m more worried about what I would do or how I’d feel if he wasn’t looking for me. I’d be devastated, even if I don’t want to feel that way about him.
It’s wrong, on so many levels, to want a man to practically stalk you. And a man I know nothing about at that. He could be a serial killer for all I know. But I can’t shake the feelings and thoughts I have toward that man. I want him, but I don’t want to want him. I only want to live my life for me, and no one else. That includes sexy and unattainable men like Dominic.
Through the mirror on my vanity, I see the door open. Leroy pokes his head in again. “Angel, that was an amazing show you put on out there, babe. It was so amazing, a few people have requests for you,” he tells me with a smile on his face.
It’s not uncommon that men ask for private shows. Bear asks that we at least take some requests, since they are part of what they offer the customers. He also lets us pick which ones we will accept. He doesn’t want us to deal with anyone who makes us feel nervous or uncomfortable.
The man has been nothing but supportive and understanding of the things we are and are not comfortable with doing. I mean, he has every right to make demands, but he doesn’t. He even offers to have one of the guys outside the door the whole time for our protection. He didn’t even make a fuss when I asked to have the bouncer inside the room with me when I first started, though now I’m comfortable enough to have them outside the door, but only if they are repeat customers.
The private dances I put on are generic and one hundred percent hands free, and he supports that. Some of the woman do lap dances, strip down to nothing, and a few even offer happy endings. He lets us set our own limits of how far we are willing to go.
“Anyone I know?” More often than not, the same group of men ask for a private show. Now that I have a few regulars, those are usually the ones I agree to doing now, though I know I’m going to have to pick a few new ones. I can’t expect to keep the same repeat customers forever.
The reason I picked my regulars in the first place were because my skin didn’t crawl when I went out to meet them. They are all actually extremely nice and have never asked or pushed me to make the dances more intimate.
One of my regulars, sometimes we just sit and talk. He tells me about his kids and their latest high school drama. He’ll tell me about his work day and how he wishes his wife was still alive. He never seemed to mind that some days, I didn’t even dance at all, preferring to just talk about life. He obviously needs a stranger to confide in, and I give him that. After all, that’s why most of the men come here—to get away and not have the stress of the real world bearing down on their shoulders.
“One I already told the answer was no. It’s that guy with the curly red hair,” Leroy mentions, rolling his eyes. The redhead—Samuel—asks every girl in here for a private session. I think he’s actually scared, but he continues to try. Any time one of us has accepted, he seems to get nervous and fakes a phone call, explaining something came up so he could leave. It makes me feel a bit sorry for him.
“And the other?” I ask, nervous. I want it to be him, but at the same time, I don’t.
Laughing, Leroy shakes his head. “The other is a new guy.” That’s all he says. As much as I want to push for more, I don’t want to bring attention to it in front of him and the other girls.
“All right. I’ll be out in a minute.”
Leroy leaves, and I turn to freshen up my makeup. There’s a very good chance it’s not him. I saw a lot of new faces in the crowd tonight, so maybe it’s someone with the group of rowdy men that were here before I started my shift. I’d rather spend an h
our with Dominic than some drunk bachelor who’s hoping for a happy ending. Like that would happen.
But if it is Dominic out there, I have no idea what I’d say to him. I don’t know what he’d say to me. There are so many unanswered questions between us both. Like, does he even remember me? Does he regret the things he said that night after saving me? Why is he here? Is it because of me, or is it like fate or something bringing me and him together again? The question that plagues me the most is, what will I say to him if he’s the one requesting a private dance? I honestly have no idea if I’ll agree to it or not.
After ten minutes of messing with my hair and makeup, while stressing myself out with my own inner dialogue, I decide it’s time to get this over with. I need to know if he’s out there, or if he left me in his wake, just like last time.
Grabbing my robe, I make my way to the door, but stop when Amy grabs my hand. “Everything all right, hun?”
I look at her questioningly. “What do you mean?”
“Well, ever since Leroy left, you’ve been out of it. Like, really out of it. I’ve tried to talk to you a few times, but you didn’t even acknowledge you heard me,” she says, her voice and face showing signs of sadness.
I can’t believe I was so off in my own world that I’d completely missed someone talking to me. And the fact that I missed her after her performance makes me feel horrible. I’m the worst friend ever.
“Oh my gosh. I’m so sorry, Amy. I didn’t even realize…but I’m fine, really. Just tired. I had a request tonight, so I’ve been trying to get myself ready for it,” I add after seeing the look of doubt on her face. She knows I’m tired, but that I never let that stop me from being positive. I smile at her, and the look of understanding on her face makes me feel relieved. I hate doing private dances, but I can’t really get around it in this line of work.
Nodding her head in understanding, because she knows how much I dislike this part of our job, she squeezes my hand before turning back toward her vanity. She has one more dance before her shift is done tonight. Me, I can leave whenever I like, but I always wait for her to finish for the night. She does the same thing for me. It’s just one of our routines, along with stopping for a cheeseburger and a shake on our way home, or watching bad television on one of our couches before we both pass out.
My hand pauses on the doorknob for only a second, then with a final breath for courage, I walk out into the bar area.
I try not to look at the end of the bar where we have the men wait. It makes it safer for us to meet them first, out in the open. It also gives us the opportunity to see for ourselves what kind of position we may find ourselves in and choose whether we want to go through with it or not. Bear is very protective of the girls here, so every precaution is taken where we are concerned. Even if it’s something we don’t think necessary, but are thankful for it anyway.
When I’m almost to the bar, someone grabs hold of my arm.
“Well hello there, beautiful,” a man slurs in my ear. I’m turned around a little too harshly, and come face to face with one of the drunk men from the big group of guys I noticed here earlier.
Before I can pull my arm free, the same man says to his buddies, “Guys! Look who came to play with us!”
Hoots and hollers ring out as they come rushing toward me. I’m stunned, and even a little scared. I really wish I would’ve thought to grab one of the bouncers before I made my way over here. Even being in the open, things can happen. I should have known something like this would happen eventually. Leroy did say it was a new request, but I guess with Dominic being here and making me crazy, I didn’t think. It was a huge mistake on my part, one I won’t repeat again.
This situation could turn bad fast, so I need to tread carefully with these guys. I don’t know what type of men they are, but even the nicest of guys can turn violent with alcohol in their systems.
“Hey, guys. I was just trying to find someone,” I say. I try to pull my arm free to get away from them, but the guy tightens his grip.
“Well, babe, you’re in luck. You found me.” His statement proves that he was the one who requested me, not Dominic. I’d give anything if I could have been right. Even though I wasn’t ready to face him again and was unsure of how things would go, I’d take that awkwardness over this disaster any day of the week.
Smiling nicely, but not too nicely as to lead him on, I nod. “Well, I appreciate the request for me to give you and your friends a private dance, but I’m unavailable for any private shows tonight. Maybe another night.” I turn to get away from them fast, but he continues to hold onto my arm, so I use my free hand to remove myself from him.
“Oh, come on. You can spare a few minutes for us,” the man slurs, but there’s a threatening edge in his voice now that causes a chill to move through my whole body.
“I’m sorry, I—I can’t. My shift is over and I’ve really gotta be going.” I stutter before I can catch myself, but I can’t help the fear coursing through my veins, making even the simplest task of talking difficult.
“How about you have one drink with us, then we’ll let you go.” It’s not phrased as a question, but more like a demand. Like I don’t have a choice in the matter. I can also hear the lie in his offer. They wouldn’t let me leave that easily, even if I did agree.
I look around frantically for someone to help me, but I can’t find any of the bouncers around. I’m practically surrounded by men from the group now, and I can’t see anything beyond them.
I want to cry. This is the one thing that worried me about this job. Thankfully, nothing like this has happened to me before now, but after tonight, I don’t know how I’ll feel about confronting people with requests. I’ll at least have someone with me from now on, or talk to Bear about not doing them. I’m sure he’d understand until I feel more secure. I wouldn’t care how much money someone offered me, no amount of money is worth a possible situation like what’s happening right now. And if Bear has a problem with it, then I guess I’ll just have to quit. That would suck. I love dancing here, and the people I’ve become friends with are here.
Unsure of what else to do, I start to plead with him. “Please.”
As the word leaves my lips, my attention is diverted away from the man holding onto me, when one of the guys surrounding me get shoved aside. My vision is filled with my dark knight, here to save me yet again.
“We got a problem here?” Dominic asks as he looks directly at me. Knowing that he’s here and I’m no longer in danger, I avert my gaze quickly, anger taking the place of the fear. I’m so mad that this is happening. Once again, I’m the damsel in distress and he has to save me. Why do I keep winding up in these situations?
“Back off, Leatherman. We had her first,” the guy standing next to me says bitterly.
“Yeah, man.” The guy Dominic shoved away tries to push his way back into the circle, but Dominic stops him by wrapping his hand around his neck.
“This is what’s gonna happen,” Dominic says in a calm, yet threatening voice. “You and your buddies are gonna walk outta here without problems, and you’ll never come back.” The guy’s face is turning a bright red, and the others are looking at Dominic like he’s the devil and they’re the apologetic sinners, fearing him and his Hell. “And if I catch any of you fuckers in here again, I promise being turned down by a woman will be the least of your worries. You got me?”
No one says anything. They all look scared to death, unable to form any words.
“Do. You. Understand?” he asks again through gritted teeth. It’s the first sign of anger I’ve seen from him since he came to my rescue.
“Y—Yeah, man. Whatever you say,” the guy holding my arm says as he finally releases me. My arm hurts a little, but I don’t pay it any attention. The only thing I can concentrate on is my dark knight, and how sexy he looks when he’s pissed off. It has my heart racing, but not out of fear. No, this is from someth
ing completely different, but still scary nonetheless.
The whole group scuttles off, tripping over themselves to get out before Dominic changes his mind and doesn’t let them off so easily.
Turning his attention back to me, he gives me a cocky smile. The anger is completely gone from his features, as if nothing happened.
“Now, where were we?” he asks, then takes a step closer. “Oh yeah, we were just gettin’ ready to discuss my request for some private time with you tonight.”
Chapter Eight
Torq
I could tell she was afraid when I spotted her in the crowd of drunken men, trying to hold her own. I stood aside, still close enough to help if needed, and let her try to get out of the situation herself. She looked like the type who was independent, wanting to do everything on her own. And I hoped she would, but was ready if she couldn’t.
When I told Leroy I wanted a private session with the woman I now know as Angel, he told me he’d have to ask if she’d be willing. I, of course, knew how we did things around here; it’s always up to the woman. So I waited by the back door for him to come out and tell me what her answer was.
It didn’t take long. He told me to take a seat by the bar and that she’d be out shortly. I just didn’t know what that meant. Usually, when I requested a woman, she’d tell me to wait in a room. Sometimes, she’d dance for me out here in the bar. I didn’t care either way, because if I was taking them to bed, it wouldn’t happen here. I respected my club and this business too much to do that. Plus, when I wanted to fuck, it wasn’t just a quickie or even a one-time go around. It was an all-night affair, one that would leave me hopefully spent and the woman completely satisfied.
I waited for a few minutes, but I needed another cigarette. I’d started to get a bad feeling about something and needed the smoke break, but when I got back inside, she was already out of the dressing room, looking for me. But what she found was trouble.
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