Crowd Pleaser

by Marie James

  “I’m trusting you to be a good boy.” Havoc’s tail thumps against the plush carpet. His eyes follow me, but his chin stays flat on the floor. “Don’t make me regret it.”

  Weekend traffic in the metroplex is always bad, but today it seems more horrendous than normal.

  “A baseball game maybe?” I ponder out loud as I inch forward on the stretch of road that’s normally free-flowing.

  Impatient and more than a little annoyed, I check the email Vic sent earlier one last time. The frat house Jake and I will be performing at is clear across town, closer to Fort Worth than I’ve ever been for SCP.

  Eventually, whatever was causing the delay is handled, and traffic starts moving again, and I’m able to follow the not so gentle commands from the navigation app to get to my destination. On closer inspection of the frat house, I grow slightly uneasy. The two-story house has seen better days, and the fact that it doesn’t seem to be surrounded by other frat/sorority houses makes dread pool in my stomach. There is more than one Greek row in Dallas, most chapters sticking close together.

  I shoot off a text to Jake which goes unanswered. Vowing to give him a piece of my mind when I see him, I send a text to Joey asking him where he is. He responds immediately, letting me know that he’s inside waiting.

  After pulling a condom from my purse and my Rover fob from the keychain, I stuff them both in the tiny pocket of my skirt.

  Catcalls and suggestions of all sorts of devious acts follow me up the front steps of the house. I grin, shaking my head as I walk past drunk guys with lust in their eyes and women who hate me for merely being alive. Do they not realize that the guys I fuck at these parties aren’t even an option for them? They’re here as SCP employees, and their dance cards are already booked out before they show up, yet, they hate me for showing up to work as if I stole their happily ever after.

  The tension in my shoulders eases only slightly at the sight of Joey, dressed in all white, across the room. Talking with a camera guy near the corner, he doesn’t even notice me until I tap on his shoulder.

  “Don’t worry,” he says the second his eyes land on mine. “Vic wanted something a little rougher, but I swear you’re safe.”

  I follow the tip of his finger across the room.

  “Brooks is here to keep things under control. The danger is an illusion, Cici. I swear it.”

  Giving Brooks a nod, he raises his untouched beer in my direction.

  “Joey, they’re snorting coke on the front porch.” I turn in a circle, looking around the room, taking in the different type of crowd than I’m used to. “Is this even a frat house?”

  Even in the dim light of the room, I can see his cheeks tint pink. “Some of these people are in college. I’m sure of it.”

  “Where’s Jake? I can’t believe he agreed to this.”

  Joey doesn’t answer, even as I stare him down waiting for an answer.

  “I’m not getting naked in this house. Even with Brooks here, he’s no match against fifty horny guys, and I have a no gangbang clause in my SCP contract.” The twitch of his lips at my reminder only pisses me off more. “Where. Is. Jake.”

  “He canceled on this party. He’s working another one across town.”

  I tilt my head because I sure as fuck didn’t hear what I thought I just heard.

  “Bullshit,” I hiss. “He wouldn’t.”

  “He is,” Joey assures me. “He’s at Lambda Phi Gamma with Karen.”

  “Lane?” I ask referring to her last name.

  “Yep,” he says with a wink. “And she doesn’t have a no gangbang contract.”

  “Is this really happening?” I ask looking into the eyes of a man I’ve worked with all year. So much for friendship or even a mild level of respect.

  “Vic wasn’t too happy about the demand for part of the cover charge.”

  The blood pounding in my ears settles some at his declaration. “So Jake is being forced to do the other party?”

  “Forced?” Joey laughs without any real humor in the sound. “He volunteered to work a different party. Surprised the hell out of Vic since he’s always insisted on only fucking you.”

  “You about ready?” I stiffen when warm, strong arms wrap around my waist from behind.

  “Wallace?” Relief washes over me when I turn around to look into his familiar face.

  “Yeah, doll. Ready to suck and fuck?” The boyish grin on his face settles my anger even more, but there’s nothing, no one, or any amount of money that’s going to convince me to strip naked and sink down on a dick in this house.

  I shake my head, giving his thick biceps a gentle squeeze before stepping out of his embrace. “I can’t.”

  “You sure?” Wallace asks with understanding in his eyes.

  I nod, feeling justified in my decision. After a quick press of his lips to my temple, he walks away, disappearing into the crowd.

  “Vic is going to be livid,” Joey warns when I turn my attention back to him.

  “My contract also says that if I feel unsafe at any time, I can turn down a job.”

  “Vic was worried you would say that.” His eyes stare into mine, and I think I see a hint of the man I would’ve considered a friend until fifteen minutes ago, but he disappears just as fast as he arrived. “He said with added security that those claims are unwarranted and if you refuse to work this party, your employment with Sorority Crowd Pleaser is over.”

  Walking away from Joey, straight past Brooks and out the front door of that shitty house is the easiest thing I’ve ever done. I don’t think about the repercussions of what my unemployment will mean. I don’t let doubt seep in as I drive over to the Lambda house. The only thing I focus on is that Joey has to be lying.

  He has to be.

  There’s no way Jake would ask to fuck someone else at a party. There’s no way the man I’ve gotten to know over the last couple of weeks would want to be with anyone other than me. I’ve seen the look in his eyes, especially the ones when he doesn’t think I can see him. I’ve felt the way he clings to me at night, gripping me tighter when I shift in his arms.

  The party is in full swing, spilling out the front door and down the front steps when I pull up. I text Jake, and again, it goes unanswered.

  The doubt I didn’t let invade on the drive over begins to creep in the cracks created by his silence all week. The insidious thoughts create the hesitation I feel to reach for the door handle. The only way to find out if Joey was telling the truth is to go inside and check it out for myself. Normally, I wouldn’t think twice about it. Hell, a couple of months ago I never would’ve even driven over here because I wouldn’t be in this situation. I wouldn’t have put myself in the position that gave someone the power to hurt me.

  Yet, here I sit, hands trembling and breaths coming in short pants. I’m torn between wanting to know the truth and turning around and going home because knowing what’s waiting for me inside has the power to destroy me.

  “Just another asshole,” I mutter as I open the door to my Rover and walk up the front steps.

  “Just another asshole,” I hiss shrugging off some guy who thinks he has the right to touch me as I walk by.

  “Just another asshole,” I sob when I see Jake on the couch with a naked Karen rubbing her pussy on his thigh as her hand strokes his cock.

  “Randi, wait!”

  I don’t stop as Hunter yells at me from somewhere inside. If I pause, the images of Jake’s head thrown back and Karen’s lips on his neck will get in, and Jake has done enough damage as it is.

  Chapter 30

  Jake

  “Hey,” the sultry voice coos soft enough for me to open my eyes.

  My smile falls when I realize it’s some blonde chick, not the brunette I’ve been hard for all week. Ignoring her, praying she’ll show up here and make her declaration has been pure misery this week. But, as hard as it has been to keep silent, to keep from going to her house and begging her to love me, I know tonight will change things.

 
; “I’m Karen,” she says holding out her hand. It’s then that I realize she’s stark fucking naked except for a pair of heels I imagine takes years of practice to walk in without dying.

  Staring at her long turquoise fingernails and studiously avoiding the sway of her large tits, I keep my arms splayed out on the back of the couch.

  “Jake,” I offer out of courtesy. “I’m waiting for someone.”

  “If it’s Cici, she’s not going to make it.”

  My head snaps up. “Excuse me?”

  “Cici is in Arlington, working a different party.” Stepping closer, she leans and whispers, “I work SCP, too.”

  “Okay?” I’m tense, pissed, and growing angrier with each second I sit here after hearing the news.

  “I’m your partner for the night.” She tilts her head, smile never faltering, toward the camera set up to my left.

  Joey isn’t here, but another guy, who introduced himself as Ben earlier, assured me I was at the right place and we’d be ready to shoot in ten minutes. That was fifteen minutes ago.

  “I’m not here for th—” Before I can finish the sentence, Karen is half on my lap, lips against mine.

  “Cameras are rolling,” she warns. “I only have a babysitter for a couple of hours, so we need to get on with it.”

  “There’s a mistake,” I rasp as I pull my mouth away from hers.

  “Not according to Vic. Cici is fucking some other dude at a party in the ghetto, and you’re scheduled to fuck me.” Her hand begins to stroke down my jeans, finding nothing but a flaccid cock. “Do you need a little blue pill? It’s more common than you think.”

  “I don’t need Viagra,” I hiss pushing her head away and praying it doesn’t look like I’m a total asshole. This chick is just here to work, and I’m not judging her for that, but my dick isn’t getting involved in this. “I need you to get up.”

  She presses her body closer, naked cunt dragging up my jean-clad leg as her hand goes back to trying to force some life into my cock. “If I don’t get a video out tonight, I don’t get paid.”

  “Sorry,” I mutter, angling my head toward the ceiling, eyes clenched closed as I try to gain some control over my anger before this girl ends up sprawled on her back for not backing away when I asked her to.

  “I’ll be quick,” she barters as she works to open the top button of my jeans.

  “Randi was just here,” I hear just as I grip Karen’s hand a little too tight and pull it away from my body.

  Noticing her wince, I release her hand.

  “Who?” Karen asks as she pulls her hand from mine, doing her best not to hide the wince.

  “Cici,” Hunter explains, keeping several feet of distance between himself and the naked woman. Any other day I’d find it comical that a naked chick scares him almost as much as a poisonous snake scares others.

  “She must have finished up her party early,” Karen adds as her hips continue to rock against my jeans. “Too bad I ended up here instead of there. I could be in my pajamas watching Live PD already.”

  “Love that show,” Hunter says in agreement as if he’s suddenly comfortable with naked women.

  “She was here?”

  “Not five minutes ago,” he clarifies. “I tried to stop her, but she bolted out of here after seeing you and your friend.”

  “She worked a different party tonight,” I clarify as an excuse for being in my current predicament.

  “Doubt it,” Hunter says with a shake of his head.

  “She was scheduled with Wallace,” Karen adds.

  My blood runs cold remembering walking into this very living room weeks ago and seeing her bouncing on Wallace’s dick.

  “I honestly don’t think she’d do that,” Hunter adds.

  “She’s a porn star. It’s literally what we do.” Karen leans back, creating some much-needed distance between our bodies.

  Agitated, Hunter looks down at the girl still on my lap. “Why are you still here? Go find someone else to hump.”

  I roll my hips slightly, letting Karen know I want her to get up and there’s no amount of stroking my cock that’s going to get me to change my mind.

  “I better not get fired because of this,” she hisses as she stands from the couch and reaches for the pile of discarded clothes on the floor.

  “The fuck are you doing, man?”

  “I was waiting for Randi, but clearly she had other tastes tonight,” I mutter as I stand from the couch and make my way toward the stairs.

  Hunter follows, not saying a word until we’re standing in the middle of my bedroom.

  “I saw her face, Jake. She was devastated. A woman who’s okay with fucking another guy doesn’t cry when they see their man getting groped by another woman.”

  “And suddenly you’re an expert on women?” I snap, but immediately drop my chin to my chest. It’s not his fault Randi and I have fucked everything up so bad I don’t know if untangling the mess is even possible. “Sorry, man. I’m in a shit mood.”

  “Go talk to her,” he urges. “Get to the bottom of all of this.

  With my head hung in defeat, I can’t even look at him.

  “She’s been adamant that once we fulfilled our contract, she was going to continue making videos with other men. I ignored her all week, so I’m sure that tonight is her way of saying she’s not even interested in following through with that agreement.”

  “And that pisses you off.” It’s not a question.

  “I’m not pissed,” I respond truthfully.

  “You’re heartbroken.” He sighs and slumps down on the edge of my bed. “And the only time a man is heartbroken—”

  “Is when he realizes he’s lost the woman he loves,” I answer for him.

  “Are you sure?” I give him a weak smile, grateful for the defensiveness in his tone. He’s my friend, and yet, he’s concerned for her, too.

  “I’ve never felt like this before. I’ve never woken up in someone’s bed with no intention of leaving. I’ve never wanted to touch someone just to see if her skin is as soft as it looks, or walk her fucking dog just because it makes her life easier at the moment. It has been brutal ignoring her all week hoping she’ll make a move. I just never thought fucking some other guy at a different party was going to be her move.”

  His chuckle is out of place in the seriousness of the conversation.

  “I wasn’t asking if you’re sure if you love her. I knew you did weeks ago, and I told you as much. How are you sure you lost her?” Picking at a piece of lint from his jeans, he drops his eyes only for a second before they’re looking back into mine. “Go talk to her.”

  Shaking my head, I reject the suggestion immediately. “I can’t handle the rejection. Her telling me to fuck off in person isn’t something I think I can face right now.”

  “Text her then,” he suggests.

  Pulling my phone out of my back pocket, I open the SCP app instead of texting. There’s one sure way to find out if what Karen said was true. Vic gets the new videos loaded as quickly as he can, so if hers from tonight isn’t up yet, it will be shortly.

  “SCP website says her new video is coming soon,” I tell Hunter and turn the phone around so he can see the screen.

  Pulling out his own phone, he types on it then turns it around for me to see. “It says the same thing about you, but you didn’t make a video tonight did you?”

  Standing, I walk around the end of my bed and pull an empty duffel from under it.

  “Packing? Where are you going?”

  “I’m going to go to her condo. If she lets me in and everything works out, I won’t be home for a couple of days.” I give him a hopeful wink. “If she tells me to go fuck myself, I’m going home for a while.”

  “Kansas?” he asks with almost a stutter. “You fucking hate it there.”

  “I’ll hate it more here without her,” I murmur as I begin to stuff clothes and toiletries into the bag before zipping it up.

  “And all she has to do is talk to you? It does
n’t matter what she did tonight?”

  I shake my head, the strap of the gym bag settling on my shoulder. “If she doesn’t agree to quit, I’m done. I can’t handle being in love with a porn star.”

  Sighing, he stands from the end of my bed. “You’ll love her regardless of what she does for a living. Keep that in mind when you go over there with your ultimatums.”

  I nod, his words sinking in as I make my way out of the house. They’re still on my mind as I drive past the exit for her condo and straight to the airport. There’s no sense in hashing out an argument I already know I’ll lose.

  Chapter 31

  Randi

  “You already know what I think,” Ellis says, the words muffled slightly as he contorts his face to get eyeliner in his crease.

  Holding my compact closer to my face, I roll my eyes. “And I’ve told you ten times today that you’re wrong.”

  “Sweetheart,” he sighs, “I’m never wrong.”

  “You are about this.”

  “If you didn’t love him, you wouldn’t be hurting so bad,” he challenges.

  “I feel betrayed,” I correct. “He’s the one who forced the agreement in the first place and then turned around and hooked up with Karen. I’m not hurting. I’m pissed.”

  “Listen.” He recaps the eyeliner and repositions his body so he’s facing me fully. “I’ve seen you trying to fight tears for the last hour. That’s pain, baby girl, plain and simple.”

  “Anger,” I counter. “I cry when I’m mad.”

  “Have you talked to him?”

  “No, and I don’t have any plans to.”

  “Straight people,” he mumbles before picking up a tube of mascara.

  “Stow your gay card, Ellis. This isn’t a straight issue. Gay men cheat, too.”

  “Cheat?”

  Refusing to make eye contact after my slip up, I shuffle through the cosmetics on the table in front of me.

  “He can’t cheat if you weren’t in a relationship.”

  “What are we talking about?” Jas asks from the doorway, entering seconds after Havoc bounds across the room and sticks his nose in Ellis’ crotch.