Midnight Ballerina

by Cori Williams

  I really needed to stop thinking about that whole situation. I barely knew the girl, but just the idea of how he’d treated her made me want to go hunt the asshole down to finish what I started. And it felt all too good to get my frustrations out like that. I didn’t want to be that guy, though. The one whose temper exploded and once it did, you couldn’t reel him back in. That would make me too much like him.

  I shook my head and told myself once again to forget about that for now. Monroe didn’t want to talk about it and I wasn’t going to push.

  “Okay. Well, the office is looking good, a whole hell of a lot better than it did at the beginning of the night. How ‘bout you take a break and maybe pick up tomorrow?”

  “I’m scheduled to work tomorrow night.” She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, causing the cleavage peeking out to push up even more. I tried not to look, but I couldn’t help myself. “I don’t need you feeling sorry for me, Miller. And you definitely don’t need to pay me as much as you would if I was getting tips. Anyone could organize your office.”

  I pursed my lips, not believing what I was about to ask, but I couldn’t help myself. I was beginning to think that the club world really wasn’t for Monroe. She was different from all of these other girls.

  “Listen, I have an offer for you, one that would probably be more beneficial to you in the long run. Why don’t you come work for me? At my construction office,” I added, making sure to clarify that I wasn’t talking about paying her for sex. She gave me a small smile, a faint red appearing on her cheeks at the mention of our earlier conversation that took everything in me not to laugh at her about.

  “I need some help but I haven’t had the time to look for anyone. It wouldn’t be anything too difficult, stuff you’re more than capable to handle, I’m sure. Some filing, a little bit of computer work, and answering the phones. Interested?”

  “Why?” she asked quietly. “There have to be tons of more experienced people looking for a job, and I’m sure I’d make more money here off of tips.”

  I shook my head once. “No, you won’t. You’ll make the same amount plus more working there.”

  “I don’t need you to feel—”

  “Not feeling sorry for you, Monroe.” I just don’t want you working here is what I wanted to add, but I decided to keep my mouth shut about that fact. She would probably think I’m some kind of control freak and I would scare her off.

  It was several minutes later before she nodded her head. “All right, I think I can do that but I should finish off my scheduled nights so I don’t leave Randy hanging.”

  “That’s not necessary.”

  “It is or I won’t agree to work for you at the office.” She placed both hands on her hips, and I held my hands up. I wasn’t going to even waste my breath arguing.

  “All right, fine and if you want to make some extra money before then you could always keep organizing this office for me.” She nodded her head in agreement and I made a mental note to be at Pure every night possible so I could spend some time with her. “Then you can start Monday after the holiday weekend and you’ll be done here. We’ll figure out what hours work with your school schedule later.”

  If only I could make time speed up to that Monday so I could have her in my office, all to myself, all the time. Shit. What in the hell was I thinking?

  I let Monroe go home after that, my mind confused as hell as I watched her walk out. I wanted to make her stay just so I could spend more time with her, but that would be crossing a line that I wasn’t ready to step over. I had a feeling hiring her for Buchanan Builders was probably a bad idea, but for some reason, I didn’t care.

  I LEFT MY last class for the day and breathed a sigh of relief when I reached my car, collapsing behind the wheel. I already looked forward to the upcoming four day weekend. Especially since tomorrow would be my last night at Pure. That, combined with the holiday, gave me hope for a little bit of relaxation.

  Between working at the club, classes, and organizing Miller’s office for him, I was exhausting myself. I knew it, but I continued to push myself anyway. Miller’s office was pretty much cleaned up now, though, so I really didn’t have much there to do. I’m pretty sure he kept coming up with small tasks just to keep me from waiting tables. And he was there almost every time I came in.

  According to most of the girls, Miller’s main focus was his construction company and Pure was just a side business to him. Well, he seemed to be around a whole lot, but I definitely wasn’t complaining. I tried to make small talk with him, which most of the time he would respond to, but I could tell he didn’t like to talk about himself. Miller was a thinker and a doer, but wasn’t much of a conversationalist. It was like he was there just because of me, at least, that’s what I liked to think. He never took anything past an employee/employer relationship, though, so it was a little confusing.

  I don’t know why I was even thinking about a relationship with him. Don’t they always say opposites attract? I was beginning to think that Miller and I were pretty similar, and most of the time people that were so much alike tended to clash. I needed to stop analyzing our every interaction. I created these fantasies in my head and then they just took off from there. Blame it on the fact that I loved to read so much. Guys in the books that I read didn’t exist in real life, though. It was fiction—plain and simple.

  My phone rang from the cup holder just as I pulled into the parking lot of my apartment complex and I took a deep breath when I saw it was my mom. Normally, I loved talking to her. She was one of the best friends I had, other than Amelia, and Carter. But Carter wasn’t a big phone person, probably because he was a guy, and our relationship had faded a bit over the past few years since I left home, which made me sad. Sometimes it was weird not to know what was going on with him because we had been such a big part of each other’s lives for so long.

  “Hi, Mom,” I said into the phone and braced myself for the question that I knew was coming.

  “Monroe! I’m so glad you answered. I feel like I haven’t talked to you in so long, but I know how busy you are. How have things been?”

  We caught each other up on what was going on in our lives. I tried to keep my smart remarks to myself when she told me that Jackson was now unemployed. I got that it was hard to find a job, but Jackson couldn’t hold onto one. Mainly because he never showed up on time, called in repeatedly, and if there was ever a drug test, he was sure to fail. But my parents continued to let him live at home, rent free, and drive their car whenever he wanted. I just didn’t understand why he didn’t want to do something better with his life.

  “So, when are you coming home? I can’t wait to see my beautiful girl. Did I tell you that we’re having Thanksgiving at your Uncle Lee’s house this year? We just don’t have the room here anymore for everyone. Our family just keeps on growing.” Her voice lowered slightly and the cheerful tone was gone.

  “What do you mean by that, Mom?”

  “Oh, you know, just with all of the cousins and boyfriends and new husbands and wives. You know what I mean. So, when will you be home?”

  “Well, about that….” I shut my car off and decided to sit there while I told her the bad news. “I’m not coming back for Thanksgiving.” There I said it, and it was met with complete and utter silence for at least a full two minutes. “Mom, are you still there?”

  “Yes.” I heard sniffling and my stomach rolled at the sound. Hurting my mom was like a shot straight to the heart. I hated to disappoint her in any way, but I just couldn’t make the trip back this year. I had to work late the next night, so driving up in time was out of the question. And I definitely couldn’t afford the last minute airfare. I did have some days off over the break, but honestly, I didn’t want to spend them in the car. I just needed some me time.

  “It’s just…you know I just changed jobs, and I’ve only been at my new one for like a month. I don’t really think I should be taking much time off.” I looked at my refection in the rearview mirror, cringi
ng as the lies rolled off my tongue. I had still never told them I’d been fired, and technically I was at a new job and about to start a new one.

  “Plus, I have loads of homework to catch on up over the break. There are a few papers due the week after and then finals will be coming up, so I know I’ll need to study. And I didn’t tell you sooner because I figured then you would try to come down here. I miss you guys like crazy but I know you and Dad can’t take time off of work like that. So, please don’t be mad.” At least all those things were true.

  “Are you finished, honey?”

  “Um…I think so.” I could keep rambling but I felt exhausted, which was one good thing about my sleep deprivation. And with that thought, I made my way inside.

  “Well, I guess I understand where you’re coming from but that doesn’t mean I have to like it. But you need to stop all of that worrying. You should have told me sooner than two days before! You’re right we would’ve come down. I don’t want my daughter spending Thanksgiving alone, it’s depressing. Your dad and I aren’t always broke. I do keep a stash around in case of emergencies and I would consider this one, so next time, just tell me. You know we’ll miss you so much and you better make it home for Christmas. Or else we will be at your front door whether you like it or not.”

  “All right, I think I’ll be able to make it back for Christmas so you don’t have to worry about that. And I won’t be spending Thanksgiving alone. I’ll be with some friends that are sticking around campus.” Okay that was a total lie, unless you counted fictional friends from all of the books that I would be catching up on over the weekend. Amelia was going out of town with her parents and invited me along, but there was no way in hell I wanted to hang out with her mom for that long. I was just fine by myself.

  “Well, I at least need to talk to you on Thanksgiving to make sure you’re okay. Make sure to answer your phone.”

  “I will, Mom,” I promised and a little bit of the guilt drained out of my body since she was so understanding.

  “Okay. Oh, I was going to ask if you’ve talked to Carter lately?”

  “Not for about a month or so I don’t think.” And the guilt set back in. I was a super bad friend, but if you looked at it from the other side of things, Carter was too. Just because he was a guy didn’t excuse him from never picking up the phone to call me. I hadn’t seen him since the summer and I missed him. Even though we broke things off before I left for school, things were never weird between us afterward and I was glad.

  “Hmm…well maybe you should call him. I think you two need to catch up a bit.”

  “O-kay.”

  She asked me about classes and what I wanted for Christmas, and we discussed a few more things before I hung up and collapsed on my bed, hoping to squeeze in a quick nap before work. I made sure to set my alarm on my phone just in case, and just before falling asleep, reminded myself that I really should call Carter.

  However, I slept through the alarm on my phone, twice, so I didn’t get a chance to call him. I rushed to get ready for work, throwing my hair up in a sloppy bun because I didn’t have time to mess with it, and applied a minimal amount of makeup as I drove toward Pure. I was so late, I barely had time to change into my waitress uniform once I arrived.

  I hoped it wasn’t the start of a bad night.

  “Hey sweetie,” Vanessa greeted me as soon as I was changed and heading through the break room. I waved with one hand as I pulled my hair up with the other into a sloppy bun. I didn’t have time for much else. “So I hear you’re leaving me.” She pouted her lips and I bit back a grin. “I am. News around here sure spreads quickly.”

  “What do you expect? It is a bunch of girls working here, gossiping is what they do best and I’m sure you don’t want to hear about all of the different stories that they’ve been creating.” Vanessa rolled her eyes and I matched her with a roll of my own.

  “I’m going to work for Miller at his Construction Company instead of here. What more is there to tell?”

  “Well…some of the girls mentioned the fact that you’re in his office an awful lot and he seems to be here whenever you are. They figured there’s more than filing papers going on in there.”

  I groaned. “And let me guess? Is Bianca the one spreading all the lies?”

  Vanessa shrugged her shoulders but we both knew I was right. I huffed out a breath, grabbing my time card to punch in. “Well, I guess I don’t really need to care what they think.”

  “Lucky you,” Vanessa mumbled as she passed by me to head for the stage, patting my back before I headed out to the front.

  Of course, things couldn’t go smoothly for the night. As soon as I walked in, Bianca shoved off two sections onto me because she was too busy with something else. I didn’t think about or care what she was busy with until I managed to take my first break of the night just before my shift was up. I leaned back against the bar, chugging half the contents of a water bottle in one gulp. That quick nap earlier hadn’t reenergized me at all; I was still tired and the constant stream of drink orders only made it worse.

  I grabbed my water bottle, hoping to be able to sit down in the break room for a few minutes, but just as I turned to go, one of the back rooms opened and Bianca sauntered out of the doorway. She shot me a smug look as she passed, tucking some cash into her pocket, and headed toward the break room. Yeah, I definitely wasn’t going in there now.

  Something didn’t sit right with me, though, so I made my way down the hallway that she had just come from, trying to put two and two together. What exactly had she been doing back there?

  Everything clicked into place pretty quickly.

  Randy was headed in the opposite direction, hurriedly out the exit that led to the parking lot. The door Bianca had just emerged from opened again, revealing a customer that I’d seen around a few times. Clothing slightly disheveled, he wore a satisfied grin on his face, the expression sending my stomach rolling with the idea of what went down in there. My whole body shivered in disgust, and when the customer saw me staring and waggled his eyebrows at me, motioning toward the room with his thumb as if ready for round two—but this time with me—I felt the bile rise in my throat.

  I jumped in place, quickly spinning on my heel, and got the hell away from that man. How stupid could I get? I actually believed Randy when he tried to convince me that I was confused about the whole situation. I sensed something was definitely sketchy about it, yet I kept my mouth shut.

  Well, I wouldn’t be working at Pure much longer, but if Miller was involved, I couldn’t work for him at Buchanan Builders, either. I prayed he was clueless. One, I didn’t think my bank account could take another bout of unemployment. And two, given my ridiculous crush on him, I didn’t think my heart could handle it. He seemed so genuine, and caring.

  Either way, if these people were doing something so illegal and wrong, that was just a disaster waiting to happen.

  SO, IT WAS my last night at Pure and possibly my last night working for Miller ever again, too, and I wasn’t so sure how to think or feel about that. I still couldn’t believe that stuff like that actually went on. After sleeping on it, I woke up with more questions than I had answers. While I could totally see Randy doing these illegal things—sometimes there was just something about him that seemed a little off—a thought occurred to me. It was completely possible that it was all Bianca. Randy could’ve only been setting up private dances, and she seemed like the type to go above and beyond to make an extra buck.

  But Miller? I just couldn’t see him having anything to do with it.

  And there was also the whole needing money issue. Yeah, that was a bit of a big deal. I actually went on the search for a new job before work and got a few bites, but nothing solid, so I figured it best to come in for my last shift in case those maybe’s never came through.

  I answered a message from Carter quickly before going in, letting him know that I wouldn’t be home for Thanksgiving.

  Carter: Really? I needed my Monroe fix. />
  I grinned at my screen, glad that Carter could manage to make me smile. I tapped a message out to him before sticking my phone back into my purse.

  Me: Sorry! You’ll have to wait till Christmas.

  “Hey, hon.”

  I jumped a mile backward, Vanessa scaring the hell out of me because between the mess with everything here and then talking to Carter, I was a little distracted.

  “Oh, hey.” I pressed a hand to my chest. “What’s up?”

  “Not much.” She squinted her eyes at me. “Is something wrong? You’re here super early. Did Randy call you in or something? He was looking for you.”

  Every hair on my body stood on end at the memories the question brought back. What had happened the last time Randy was “looking” for me, what I am pretty certain Bianca did last night.

  “What? What do you mean did I talk to Randy? No, I actually wanted to ask you about something. I’m pretty sure I saw…inappropriate things going on last night, between Bianca and a customer. And I think Randy’s in on it, too. I didn’t think this place was like that.”

  Vanessa’s eyes widened and she shook her head. “Uh-oh, that doesn’t sound good.”

  “Do you know what’s going on exactly?” I asked, praying she didn’t because I couldn’t see Vanessa getting involved with that, but I guess there was always a possibility.

  “I’m really not sure.” She shrugged both shoulders and turned to drop down onto one of the couches. “I try to keep my nose out of that stuff because seriously, I really don’t want to know that it’s going on. But Randy’s been acting kind of strange and I see him by the back rooms lately an awful lot. I have my suspicions but I’m keeping my mouth shut. I can’t afford to lose this job.”

  “Do you think Miller knows what’s going on?” I was bracing myself for her answer, hoping beyond hope that he didn’t. Miller was a good guy, at least that’s what I thought, and I really didn’t want to be wrong about him. The guy does own the strip club, though. So, maybe I was wrong.