The Dancer

by Jordan Silver

  With me the fewer words spoken the better. The people around me know that very well and go out of their way to please me and not get on my bad side.

  But our little back and forth made me feel alive in a way I haven’t since my last game of professional ball. I realized that with her I didn’t feel like I was just going through the motions, the way I usually am when dealing with everyone else.

  More than that, her outright disobedience made me want to tame her. To put her under me and show her why it wasn’t a good idea to stand up to me like this. That thought snapped me back.

  What the hell are you thinking? Where are you letting this slip of a girl lead you? I watched her now as she watched me. Saw the darkening of her eyes and the slight blush on her cheeks.

  She wasn’t as unaware of me as she pretended. Her breath wasn’t coming as easy as it had been just a few seconds ago. And her eyes, those amazing eyes, spoke volumes.

  Everything in me shifted, I know that look, know very well when a woman is interested. But for some reason I didn’t think she was going to be as easy as any of my other conquests.

  That made my dick even harder. What would it be like to possess someone like her? Someone with that much fire? And will she bring that same fiery passion to my bed when I finally take her?

  What the hell are you thinking Max? I felt like a dog for my thoughts. After what had happened to her I shouldn’t be letting my mind wander there.

  The anger came back when I remembered what had happened to her on my watch, making me more annoyed with myself for being the kind of heartless asshole who could look at her with lust after some asshole had molested her just a short while ago.

  Looking at her now, I couldn’t see where the night’s events were still bothering her. Not the way she was willing to butt heads with me. But I was going to need some time to get over it.

  I took a step back only then realizing how close I’d gotten to her, until we were damn near touching. Almost as though I’d been drawn to her without even noticing it.

  “Drop those off and make this your last table.” She opened her mouth to argue, but I shut her down. “That’s not a request, it’s an order.” She actually looked at her watch to see how much time she had left on her shift before walking away grumbling.

  I reached for the bottle of water the bartender had placed there for me without having to be told and took a much needed sip. My throat was dry as hell.

  My senses were still humming and I felt a strange kind of emptiness now that she was gone. I could’ve argued with her all night, just to keep her near.

  How could you miss someone who was just in the next room? My mind wanted to shy away from this new bombardment of emotions. While another part of me wondered what it would be like to own something that innocently sweet.

  It wasn’t something I was used to, this indecision. I’ve had questionable relationships in the past, but nothing like this. I’ve experienced lust at first sight more than once so I know what that’s like.

  But this kind of attraction was new to me. I’m used to the quick flame that burns itself out in a matter of days and on rare occasions a few weeks at most. This didn’t feel like that. This felt like it would take a while to get it out of my system.

  This confusing mix of emotions was proof that I wanted something more from her. That I was only fooling myself by pretending that I didn’t know what it was that I truly wanted.

  I was attracted to her down to my damn toes. But the attraction ran deep and that was the problem. It had been a while since a member of the opposite sex had made me look twice.

  Not only did I want to look, I wanted to touch and I had this insane need to be near her. I know that that had been my reason for rushing back to the city so soon after leaving.

  It wasn’t because I was worried about leaving her alone in the city, well that was part of it sure. But it was my need to be near her, to have the sense that I could reach out and touch her if I wanted to, when I wanted to.

  When I’d been gone for those few days that felt like months, I’d missed her every damn second. It was only now that I felt like I could breathe again, because she was near. The shit makes no sense.

  You’ve really fallen into it now haven’t you Max? And it had to be for someone like her. Not the calm demure model that would have given her liver for me to marry her.

  Or the starlet who’d lasted longer than all the others, but in the end hadn’t been able to hold my interest for little more than a few months.

  But this girl who challenged me. This girl who had blasted her way into places I’d kept hidden and locked off from the world for so long without even trying.

  I felt nervous, like I was standing on the precipice of something bigger than myself. My guts twisted in knots as the old fear reared its ugly head again. I battled it back and tried to hold on to that one glimmer of hope that said my brother was right.

  I’m nothing like my old man. I can’t imagine hurting her. Just the thought of it felt foreign. I could never put tears in her eyes. Would never make her sad a day in her life.

  Damn, is this what it’s like? Will my mind always be consumed with thoughts of her? Will this feeling ever subside or was it here to last?

  I looked up and right into Tony’s smirking eyes at the other end of the bar. I’d almost forgotten he was there, or any of the others for that matter.

  Though they’d all moved on back to what they were doing before our little display, I had no doubt their minds were working over time.

  “What can you tell me about that asshole?” I asked after he walked over to my side.

  “Nothing much yet, never seen him in here before though that much I know. I plan to run him tomorrow, but he shouldn’t be a problem I don’t think.”

  “I don’t like that he touched her. Something seems off about the whole thing, almost like it was planned.” I kept seeing the video over and over in my mind.

  The way he’d moved in on her didn’t seem like some drunken mistake. It was deliberate, calculated almost. But why?

  He had to know that something like this was bound to happen. Or hadn’t he expected her to react quite so strongly to his actions? More importantly, who the fuck is he?

  “You might be on to something. The manager said he asked for her section specifically, which I find strange. It doesn’t look like she knows him.”

  “Of course she doesn’t know him. Why would she know a piece of shit like him?” He laughed and clapped me on the shoulder.

  “Down boy, I’m just saying. I think maybe someone put him up to it, but who?” He took a swig from the water bottle that was ever present in his hands when he sat at the bar keeping an eye on things.

  “As far as I can tell she hasn’t made any enemies here and I went back through the last week’s footage.” I’d just given myself away and given him more ammunition to rag my ass with later.

  “Damn bro it’s like that? You might as well hang it up now.”

  “Don’t be an ass. Get the car ready, I want you to take her home. I don’t want her walking the streets alone tonight.”

  No doubt that asshole would be released tonight and I didn’t want him waiting for her somewhere to get back at her for something that I’d done.

  I could’ve given in to her and not get the cops involved, but since I can’t kill him myself that was the next best thing.

  It wasn’t just for her. I don’t want anyone thinking they could get away with treating women that way in my place. I probably wouldn’t have reacted so strongly had it been anyone else though.

  But because it was her I’m going to go the extra mile and make sure he pays fully for what he’d done. If word doesn’t reach his employer through legal channels, I’m going to make sure they get wind of just what kind of scumbag they’d hired.

  The thought of destroying him went a long way to abating some of my anger, but I was still fuming inside. It didn’t escape me that I would’ve been almost as pissed if he’d just touched her hand
.

  I waited at the bar to see if she was going to obey me this time or if I was going to have to go drag her off the floor and hustle her ass out the door.

  No matter how tough she thinks she is, it had to be nerve rattling to go through something like that. I was only trying to take care of her by making her go home early. But she had to give me shit.

  Chapter 12

  She was back a half an hour later with her coat and purse. The look on her face said she was not pleased as she stormed towards the door without saying goodbye.

  Did she have to make me feel guilty for doing this for her? And why the fuck does her displeasure make me feel like jumping through hoops to please her?

  I met her at the door when it looked like she was really going to leave without uttering a word to me. Damn girl! I stood close enough to mess with her, but didn’t allow myself to touch.

  “Come on, I’ll have someone take you home.”

  “That’s okay, I can find my way on my own.” She refused to even look at me, but kept her head straight ahead looking through the glass door.

  I reached out and stopped her this time when she tried to open the door. “I said I’ll have you driven home, didn’t you hear me?”

  “You don’t even know where I live.” She shrugged my hand off her shoulder.

  “I will soon since Tony is going to drop you and bring me back those details.” I beckoned Tony over before she could give me any more of her shit and gave him my orders.

  I was still trying to figure out where she lived since I hadn’t had any luck on that score as yet. This way I wouldn’t have to guess any longer and I can sleep at night without worrying about where she was and if she was safe.

  Now with this niggling doubt in the back of my mind because of what happened earlier, I really needed to know. It was the only way I could protect her after all.

  “Tony, go inside with her, make sure she lives where she says she does. I don’t want to have to go looking for her at the end of the night.” She struck me as the type to pull a fast one.

  “You son of a bitch, who do you think you are?” She turned and stormed out the door leaving me standing there looking after her in shock. Girl has balls.

  Tony didn’t need me to tell him to go after her, he knew me well enough to know what I wanted and I

  had no doubt he’d get it for me. I could’ve gone with her to make sure, but I’d given away too much already.

  I needed to get my shit straight before I started dipping into the employee pool. If I was off and this shit was nothing more than a flash in the pan, it could lead to a very uncomfortable situation in the future.

  I went back to my office to think without the noise and disruptions of people going in and out. I had a sneaky suspicion that there was more than met the eye about what had been done to her.

  But no matter how I shake it, I can’t see the purpose behind it. Had he simply been feeling her out to see if she was interested?

  That didn’t answer the fact that he’d asked to be seated in her section. If someone had indeed sent him here, I had a pretty good idea who that might be. But it didn’t help to jump to conclusions until I had all the facts.

  Nothing showed in the footage when I went back through the night again, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was on the right track.

  If what I suspect is true then I’d have to hang around here longer than usual to make sure she was okay. If I’m right this had happened to her because of me.

  But how had I given myself away? I’d stayed away, hadn’t shown any interest in her at all while I was gone. Not that anyone here would know about anyway.

  But as I recalled, that first day I hadn’t been as careful as I should’ve been. I’d acted out of character and obviously someone had noticed. Someone who obviously wasn’t afraid of retaliation.

  I know it wasn’t the other club owner because he knew better. But a female might be under the misguided impression that I wouldn’t harm her because of her gender.

  That may have been true in the past. Everyone knew that I had a soft spot when it came to women. In fact I was their strongest champion.

  But I was sure that if the one responsible for this was indeed a female I won’t let her off easy. Every time I think of his hands on her I want to kill.

  Not only was it a violation of her and should never have happened, let alone in my place. But no one else is to put hands on her. How dare that fuck?

  Tony came back more than a little bit flustered over an hour and a half later. He dropped down in the chair across from me and glared at me like I stole something from his ass.

  “What the hell’s wrong with you?” I knew before he opened his mouth that it had something to do with my pain in the ass. I wasn’t wrong.

  “She’s just as bad as you or worst.”

  “Why, what happened?”

  “She evaded me like an expert that’s what, damn. And she’s fast too. I never saw anyone take the subway stairs that fast since we used to jump the turnstile.”

  “You lost her?” He gave me a dirty look.

  “I didn’t say that but you owe me.” He rubbed his leg and grumbled under his breath.

  “She gave you a workout did she?”

  “I had to take the subway. I barely bought a Metro card in time and got downstairs just in time to hop on the train.”

  “The good thing is she didn’t see me get into the next car over so she didn’t notice me following her home. Here’s her address.” He threw a piece of paper on the desk. “I need a damn drink.”

  He left and I picked up the piece of paper and read it. I wasn’t familiar with this part of the city, but I knew enough about it to know that it wasn’t the safest place for anyone, especially not someone like her. One more damn thing for me to worry about.

  That night after I was done for the day with the bullshit, I had him drop me off outside her building. I looked around at the broken street lights and almost broke out in a sweat.

  She walks these streets after midnight. What the fuck had I been thinking? And how the fuck am I gonna get her out of here?

  She lived in a shitty apartment building in a shittier part of town. My nose turned up in distaste as I made my way up the stairs to the second floor apartment after walking through the unlocked main door.

  There was an elevator down there, but no way was I getting into one of those things in a place like this. I’d had enough of that shit as a hungry kid in the Bronx growing up.

  There was graffiti on the walls and gang tags. The more I saw the more pissed I became. Could she be any more of a fucking stereotype?

  Innocent young girl, new to the city, living in a dangerous side of town, walking the dark streets alone at night. It was the prototype for a typical B-movie.

  This late at night there was still a lot of noise in the building. Kids screaming, TVs blaring and couples arguing. Not to mention the smell of burnt food from somebody’s dinner disaster.

  The usual for a place like this where no one gave a fuck and most of the tenants had already given up on life. If you tried hard enough you just might catch the scent of desperation in the air.

  As I approached her door I realized it had been a while since I’d been in a place like this. Not since I left home for college. I’d come a long way from those days.

  I knocked twice on her door and waited. I thought I heard movement inside, but she didn’t answer, not even when I continued knocking. I sensed her on the other side of the door and knew that she was looking at me through the peep hole.

  “Annabelle, open the door.” She took her sweet time, but I soon heard the locks disengage. She pulled the door open and glared up at me with her arms folded, blocking the way with her little body.

  I pushed her back and walked in and down the short hallway with her hot on my heels. The place was tidy if sparse and there was a scent of something sweet in the air.

  It was obvious that she’d tried to make the place into a little haven away from
what was right outside her door. There were posters on the walls, and potted plants in the windows and on the one ratty desk in the corner.

  I stood in the middle of what was the living room slash bedroom area of the studio apartment and turned to face her. She’d already changed out of her work clothes and her hair was still wet from her shower.

  She looked out of place here, and if I wasn’t mistaken, more than a little embarrassed by her surroundings. She also looked tiny as hell in the robe that swallowed her up.

  “What the hell are you doing here? How did you find me?” She went on the defensive. Something she does every time I get too close I noticed.

  I kept my cool, knowing it would infuriate her farther and the perverse part of me wanted to set her off again. I could feel my body getting ready and sex wasn’t even on the table; not right this second anyway.

  “Is that any way to treat your guest?”

  “A guest is someone that’s been invited.” Rude little thing isn’t she? She folded her arms and tapped her foot.

  “If you don’t mind I’d like to get dressed.”

  “Who’s stopping you?” She walked over to the only chest of drawers and pulled out a pair of shorts and a tank top before storming into the bathroom.

  She came out wearing the same robe, but this time it was open over the shorts and tank. Each time she moved I got a tantalizing view of her thigh and

  I found myself staring at that bare flash of flesh.

  My eyes fled up to hers. Was she teasing me on purpose? From the way she looked at me, like she was more interested in strangling me than stripping down and letting me have her, told me she didn’t have a clue.

  She probably didn’t know that with her arms folded under her breasts, the robe had fallen open and I could see her cleavage. There was a mole right on top of her right tit.

  My mouth watered and my eyes fixated on that spot until it was all I saw. What other little goodies did she have hidden under there?