by Wilde, Rhea
“You’re going to do great!” Sage exclaimed. “Trust me.”
I nodded to her and despite how much I was sweating, I pulled my sweater on to cover myself. Sage got me a glass of water from the bartender. I took a seat next to her and looked down the bar. The couple I first saw when I initially walked in was still chatting with one another. I didn’t know why I was so curious but they managed to keep my attention.
“Sage, who is that?” I asked.
“Who?”
“Over there. On the other side of the bar. That girl and the man in the suit.”
“Oh, them. The girl’s April. The guy’s name is Wade.”
“Do they work here?”
“April is a dancer here. You haven’t noticed her before? I guess I can’t blame you with how many girls are working here. Wade is one of her regulars.”
“Oh, I see…”
I continued watching them. For some reason, I was curious as to what was going on between the two of them.
“Is she on the clock?” I asked.
“No, I don’t think so. She’s just giving him some extra attention.”
“So that she could make some more money off of him tonight?”
“No. Wade doesn’t come here at night any more. I think he’s just paying April a visit.”
“Then what’s the point if she’s not making any money off of him. Why would she give him the time of the day?”
“Is it really that strange, Harley? I was speaking to Romeo just the other night. He said that you and one of his friends…”
“Yeah but—”
I paused before I told her the truth. Sure, Luther was a handsome man. He even paid me. I was just being nice to him. But I only went out with him because I needed the information. At least, that’s what I was telling myself.
Before I could dig myself into a deeper hole, I stopped asking any more questions. It was just a hunch. All of this cryptic talk about the club and its women were making me suspect that there was something more between the couple I now saw talking at the bar. Maybe I really was just over-thinking it.
“I gotta go,” I said. “I should probably get some rest if I’m going to work tonight.”
“That’s a good idea, Harley. With as much action as you’re going to see tonight, you’re going to need it.”
“Yeah. I’ll see you later, Sage. Thanks again.”
“Thanks for what?”
“Your support… while I was dancing on stage.”
“Oh, don’t mention it. I’m excited to see what you’re going to do tonight.”
“Yeah… me, too.”
I walked through to the club and back toward the entrance. I passed by April and Wade, still curious about whether or not there was anything more to their relationship. Maybe one of them had the answers I was looking for. I still didn’t understand why Platinum could get away with such extreme prices. There had to be more to it than I could see. Any answers would have to wait for tonight though. With my first pole dance scheduled, I was no longer focused on the investigation and instead turned my attention toward not making a fool of myself.
Chapter 14
I looked around to make sure that nobody was watching me. As crowded as the locker room was, most of the women seemed to be minding their own business. But with so many of them standing around me, one of them was bound to say something to me.
You’re Harley. You’re a stripper at a club called Platinum. You’re just like the rest of these women. No big deal.
Tonight was different. It wasn’t just because Sage had finally convinced me to get on stage. I had a new outfit. Regardless of what the friendly store clerk Sarah said, I wasn’t sure if this was me. I didn’t have anything close to this in my wardrobe. I wanted to make sure that nobody was paying attention if I couldn’t pull this off.
I stripped my clothes off and quickly hopped into the outfit. Despite Sarah’s recommendations, I decided the garter was going on so it could hide the slight stomach I developed from sitting around and working on my assignments all day. I managed to get into it without anybody noticing me. Still making sure that nobody was paying any attention, I crept toward the mirror and examined myself. I was pleasantly surprised to see a girl that didn’t look completely out of place. It almost looked sexy. Sexier than how I usually looked anyway. I thought that it was almost a shame that I was single. John didn’t know what he was missing out on.
I stepped into the heels Sarah had picked out for me. The ground felt like it was much farther from me now. It was as if I could reach out and touch the sky. I had to remind myself not to actually try it, since everybody would probably think there was something wrong with me. With the ensemble complete, I stepped out of the locker room and out into the main room.
I passed by a couple of men and they immediately took notice of me. They were the same nondescript businessmen that usually frequented this place. I kept walking and I was able to catch the eye of even more men. I could feel my bare skin exposed completely to all of them. My ass was practically hanging out of my panties. But as I walked around, I couldn’t help but feel appreciative of their wandering eyes. It was the same feeling of empowerment I felt when I managed to get a few men to look at me just the other night.
Even though I was getting more attention than usual, none of the men walked up to me and asked me for my time. I didn’t have the nerve to actually initiate a conversation. I was still looking for a story. There were still details about this place that nobody had bothered to explain to me. Details I knew that were beneath the surface. But I wasn’t able to work up the courage and ask one of the men to tell me why they were really here. Besides, it was difficult to single them out.
I was surrounded by dozens and dozens of affluent men. Each one of them probably had an interesting story to tell. Each one of them with their own little secrets buried deep within themselves. The red lights of Platinum were like a spotlight shining down on every one of them. Now it was just a matter of figuring out where the story was.
Before I could consider anybody, I looked over toward the VIP section. I saw Luther sitting there with Romeo and Landon. It was the first time I had ever seen all three of them together. While Romeo and Luther seemed to be engaged in a friendly conversation, Landon continued to observe the club in the stoic demeanor I last saw him with. Now would be a good chance to talk to all three of them. Even if Landon wasn’t as open as he usually was, I still had an opportunity to learn more about the club and its patrons. A trio of billionaires was sitting right there just across the room. It didn’t matter what they said to me or how far I dug. That was a story in and of itself.
“Harley!”
I was only moments away from making my way toward them when I heard a voice behind me. I turned around and Sage was suddenly standing right there.
“You’re up next,” she said to me.
“What? But I just got here. I didn’t have any time to prepare.”
“Prepare? How are you going to prepare? There isn’t another pole for you to practice on. Are you going to dance in front of a mirror in the locker room.”
“Well, no but—”
“Just relax, Harley. You’re going to do fine. Grab the pole and own it. You’ve already done it before.”
“Sage—”
“You’re a beautiful girl, Harley. The problem is that you need to loosen up. Go ahead. As soon as the song is up, you’re right here on the center pole.”
“What? But I’ve never practiced on this pole before. And it’s right in the middle. Everybody walking in is going to see me.”
Sage began to laugh at me. She was more enthusiastic about this experience than I was. Of course she was. She wasn’t the one who had to put herself on display for the first time. It wasn’t until now that I wondered what exactly I was getting myself into. Walking around in my underwear was one thing. Dancing for an audience of one wasn’t that big of a deal either. Even when I went to the back, all Luther did was make me watch. This was by far the b
iggest test I had in front of me. Now I was just hoping that this would all be worth it. If there weren’t a story here, for better or worse, this was going to be an experience.
The next song came to an end sooner than I had hoped. I waited next to the stage and watched as the girl thanked her audience. One of the bouncers came in and helped sweep all of the money off of the stage that the men had showered her with. As she walked off the stage, she looked at me and winked.
“Good luck.”
I was too anxious to try and respond to her. I looked at the short steps leading up the stage. Suddenly, everything felt magnified. The red lights of the club seemed to be shining even brighter. I looked down and felt ashamed about the outfit I was wearing.
“Harley!”
I turned and saw Sage just a few feet away. She motioned for me to get on stage. I nodded to her and made the short walk up the stairs. My heart was pounding against my chest. I almost felt like laughing to try and ease my anxiety but I couldn’t. I got on stage and saw all of the men surrounding me staring with the same lustful gaze I had seen in my thoughts when I practiced. I gripped the pole and looked down at the ground. I took a deep breath as the music started to play.
Just like you did it earlier… Nothing fancy… Have some fun and get back to finding out more details about this place.
I closed my eyes. I did my best to find the slow rhythm of the melody. The bass of the song was thumping almost as loud as my heart. I started to move my body to the beat. I was holding onto the pole so tight that I could feel my palm already beginning to sweat. I wrapped my other hand around the pole and started to find my groove. I began by slowly walking around the stage. My eyes were still closed. As I slowly walked around the stage, I did a twirl. I imagined that there was a man sitting there right in front of me. I bent over and shook my ass, giving him the view he wanted. Then I turned back around and bent over backwards. I rocked and grinded my body up and down, bracing myself against the pole. The platform heels allowed me to bend myself backward farther than I would normally be able to.
The music started to grow louder in my head. I slowly began to feel more comfortable. I started moving my body quicker as the pulse of the song increased. I shook my hips and rotated my body. My eyes were still shut tight, so I didn’t know if anybody was watching. I didn’t care at this point. I was just doing what I did earlier and waiting for the song to end.
Then something strange happened. I felt something fall across my leg. I opened my eyes just a peek and saw some money fluttering in front of me. I looked down and saw that there were dollars all over the stage underneath me. I tilted my head up and saw that the stage was surrounded. Dozens of men were paying attention to me. I had felt this before. I had imagined what it was like when there were eyes upon me. But this time was different. This time it was real. And these men weren’t as timid or mindless as the men in my thoughts. Their lustful gazes were replaced with a savage and ravenous eagerness.
They continued to rain money over me. I kept my eyes open and stared back at each one of them. I spun around the pole and rocked my body in every direction. The look they had in their eyes was affecting me. It was as if they were consuming me just by looking at me. I spread my legs open and let them get a better look at all of me. I was beginning to lose control of myself. And it was all because I had my own sense of control over them.
I reached behind my back and unhooked my top. It fell down to the ground and my breasts were now bared to them. I held my arms up and over my head, gripping the pole behind me as I slid up and down upon it. They could see all of me and I didn’t care. I could see what they were thinking just from the way they stared at me. And I was enjoying every second of it.
Through the crowd, I could see the men I had tried to approach earlier giving me their full attention. Landon Schrader was staring at me with a calm eye. Romeo had a grin on his face as he nodded his head to the music. And Luther… Luther was looking at me with almost no expression on his face. For a man who said that he was attracted to me, I thought it was strange. It didn’t matter though. I wasn’t dancing for him or any single individual. My nerves were gone. This is exactly how it was when I was practicing. Finally, all of the anxiety left my body.
But before I knew it, the song came to an end. It took me a few seconds for me to realize it. I looked down and watched as all of the men applauded. I smiled sheepishly at all of them. I leaned down and grabbed the top I had so vigorously taken off. I quickly made my way off stage and one of the bouncers was there to greet me.
“You want your money, don’t you?”
I looked back at all of the dollars bills that had been thrown on stage. I had completely forgotten about the money. I nodded to the bouncer and headed back on stage before he stopped me.
“Don’t worry about it,” he said. “I’ll take care of it.”
“Thank you.”
I quickly made my way away from the stage, throwing my top back on before anybody could get a better look. Sage was already there to greet me like she usually was.
“What did I tell you?” she said to me with a smile. “All you had to do was be yourself. There isn’t much more to it than that.”
“Yeah… I guess you’re right.”
“Of course I’m right. They loved you, Harley. You’re a beautiful girl. You just need to give yourself more of a chance.”
“Yeah,” I sighed. “I guess I just need to get used to it.”
“Does that mean you’ll be going up on stage again?”
“Maybe. I… I’ll have to think about it.”
“Oh, there’s no need for you to think about it. I saw something when you were performing. You were enjoying yourself but it was more than that. You found yourself up there. You just need to bring out that side of you more often.”
I wasn’t sure if that’s what I wanted. Now that I was no longer standing in plain view of all of the patrons in the club up above them, I was able to gather myself and remain grounded. I only needed to be Harley in short bursts like the one needed to get me on stage. I was still Victoria Hill. I was still trying to find a story and investigate anything that was going on in this club.
Sage leaned in close to me and began to whisper into my ear.
“Listen, Harley. I spoke to your friends up there… in the VIP. They said they wanted to speak to you. Maybe you should go talk to them.”
“They wanted to speak to me? They said that to you?”
“Well, maybe not all of them but does that really matter? It’s not a secret which one has his eye on you.”
“Right… I suppose I should say something to him.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t leave you alone with all three of them. I’ll be right back.”
“Yeah.”
I watched Harley disappear back through the club. I turned my attention back to Luther and his two friends. They were continuing to enjoy the luxury of their VIP booth, the scenery most likely much better than it was when I was just on stage.
Don’t stop. They’ve got the story you’re looking for. Find it.
I made a beeline toward the men in the corner. I smiled timidly at them. Landon barely acknowledged me and continued to remain staring at all of the other scenery in the club. Romeo looked at me with a big grin on his face. Luther stood up from his seat and held his hand out to me.
“I’d appreciate your company, Harley.”
“Of course.”
I took his hand then we sat right next to one another. I turned my attention out to the club. I didn’t want to talk about my performance. I figured there was nothing that needed to be said about it. I knew that Luther had an interest in me. He had stated it so plainly the night before. There was no need to instigate it any further when I already told him that I wasn’t interested in him being anything more than a wealthy client.
“That’s a nice outfit,” Luther whispered into my ear.
“Thank you,” I said.
“Did you pick it out just for me?”
I turned and looked at him with a smile.
“If that’s what you want to believe, sure.”
I giggled at him and he shook his head, still unable to get through to me in the way he wanted to.
I sat among all three of them, trying to figure out a way to get some answers. I almost wanted to ask them directly. I wanted to tell them that I was a reporter and I wanted to know exactly what the appeal of this club was. I couldn’t think of any other way to get what I needed for an article. But there was nothing I could do.
Luther leaned in close to me. I felt him brush up against me. He reached his arm up and wrapped it around me. I turned and looked at him, wondering if he knew what he was doing.
“Luther, I—”
“I’m enjoying the company of my favorite dancer. You work here at the club. This isn’t a date. If you want, I could pay you. But you already know that things won’t go any further. It’s not allowed.”
“I…”
“Do you not want my company, Harley?”
“No… It’s fine. I… I don’t know what I was thinking.”
I smiled then leaned back against him. It felt strange sitting so close to him. Even underneath the lights, I could see how attractive Luther was. But I couldn’t let him get to me. This wasn’t just business. This was a personal issue, too. I had a story to write. I needed space from any personal relationships. I couldn’t allow a man, even one like him, to distract me from what I wanted and what I needed.
Before I could over-analyze the situation any further, Sage arrived once again. She took a seat between Romeo and Landon. She looked just as sexy and seductive as she always did. She was wearing a ruffled top and a matching pair of shorts that hugged her ass so perfectly that they looked like they were painted on.
I watched as she was sandwiched between the two billionaires. She played with Landon’s ear, trailing her index finger along the side of his face while he did his best to avoid paying her any attention. Romeo leaned in close to her and began nuzzling her neck. She giggled at him, moving her face in the opposite direction which only made him try even harder. She raised both of her arms up and proceeded to play with each one of them. Landon was calm and emotionless. Romeo was more playful and enthusiastic. I turned to Luther to avoid staring back at them.