by Layla Frost
I’d thought the universe was finally shining on me when the intern position had opened up.
I should’ve known better.
I was prepared for all the fact checking, research, and running around to accompany the on scene crews. Even the mindless errands weren’t an issue. I got that it was a demanding position.
What I hadn’t known was it was also a demeaning one. Deborah was the worst, since nicknaming me ‘Fire Crotch’ was kinda hard to beat, but she wasn’t the only one who treated the interns like shit.
I’d only been there for a few months but I was already the senior intern.
Grabbing the file I needed, I headed back into the studio as Deborah was leaving.
Thank God for small miracles.
When she got out into the hallway, she called loudly over her shoulder, “After you’re done taking care of Gary, Fire Crotch, there’s a big coffee spill.”
I hate her.
*******
“What’s up, Pete?” I asked the bouncer on dressing room duty when I got into work that night.
He lifted his chin. “Hey, Legs. Lars wants to see you.”
Though I danced under the name Flame, Legs was the nickname Lars had given me. It caught on.
Who’d have thought my stripper nicknames would be more flattering than the one from my day job?
“Thanks.” I went to find Lars, knocking on his office door.
“Come in.”
I opened the door and leaned against the frame. “Pete said you wanted to see me.”
“Yeah,” he said, turning from the security monitors that took up one side of his L-shaped desk. “I got your email requesting this weekend off. Everything okay?”
“Yeah, sorry. Just a last minute thing.”
After being kidnapped by a whackadoo and ending up in the hospital, my best friend Piper was getting married. She’d wanted to wait until all of her bruises disappeared, and, for once, her fiancé was being patient.
Well, his version of it.
Working with their moms and a family friend, Jake had been planning the perfect wedding. Once Piper was healed, he wanted everything in place and ready to go. I even helped him pick a spot for their honeymoon that was secluded and private, his only stipulation.
An early morning text and a surprisingly detailed weekend itinerary had let me know it was finally time.
Lars flipped a calendar. “That’s fine. Will you be back for next Tuesday?”
I nodded.
He scribbled some notes on a sheet of paper. “You’re set for the weekend off then.”
“Cool, thanks.”
He smiled. “See you around, Legs.”
Hot.
*******
“Do you think they remember they’re in public?” Ray asked, jerking her head toward where the bride and groom sat.
After the wedding ceremony, pictures were taken as the hotel staff quickly set up tables and began offering drinks. Sharply dressed servers weaved their way through the room, offering various heavenly hors-d’oeuvres.
Watching Jake rub Piper’s jaw with his thumb, I felt like a voyeur. It wasn’t an obscene touch, although I’d overheard enough of their whispered conversations to know what they were saying was probably filthy.
Leaning in to Ray, I shook my head. “I don’t think they even know anyone else exists.”
Glancing to the side, I saw Kase watching Jake and Piper, too. A small, proud smile pulled at his lips before he took a long drink of his beer.
“Why does Kase look so smug?” I asked Ray.
“‘Cause he’s always smug. The good Lord blessed him with so much confidence, he has to have his boxers custom-made to fit it all.”
My eyes widened. “You’re kidding… Right?”
“I would not be surprised.”
Edge, Ray’s boyfriend, pulled her chair back and kissed the top of her head. “How do you know about Kase’s confidence?”
“I saw it once when he went streaking. He tried to cover himself, but he only has two hands.”
And here I thought his eyes were the most attractive part of him.
I cleared my throat as I tried not to think about all of his impressively appealing parts. “Right now he looks extra smug. He almost looks prouder than the parents.”
“Oh, that’s because he’s convinced he set Piper and Jake up. He’s been bragging about it nonstop.”
“Really?”
“Yup. When they first met Piper, he invited her to a concert with them so Jake would go for it. When he realized Jake needed another push, he offered to walk her out to her car, knowing Jake would insist on doing it. It worked, but Jake kinda botched that. Still, he eventually pulled it off. And when he’d inevitably be an ass, Kase was the only one that could talk some sense into him.” Ray’s expression tightened, a mix of pissed and sad. “Of course it’s more impressive knowing he was working against someone else.”
Over copious amounts of vodka, Piper had shared everything that’d happened when she was almost kidnapped by Z.
Using the trust and friendship they’d had, Z had manipulated Jake, tugging loose threads of insecurity. Once they’d started to unravel, it hadn’t been long before everything was in danger of falling apart.
Regarding the newlyweds again, knowing everything they fought through, the beauty of what they had seemed magnified.
I pushed away the dark clouded thoughts. “It’s surprising Kase would play matchmaker.”
“Not really. He’s a romantic,” Ray said.
I burst out laughing. Looking at her to share in the hilarity of her joke, I sobered when I saw she wasn’t kidding. “Wait, really?”
“Oh yeah, big time.”
“Are you sure that’s not just a line he feeds girls?”
It was Ray’s turn to laugh. “He’s a flirt, definitely. But he’s not like that.” Her brows lowered before she tilted her head back and got Edge’s attention. “Babe, when was Kase’s last thing?”
Edge smiled down at her. “Haven’t read his diary, and we don’t get together for tea and gossip. But last I remember was a few months ago.”
I studied Kase again as he chatted with a couple guys from the garage.
His brown dreads were pulled back, the sleeves on his dress shirt pushed up. Even from a distance, his crystal blue eyes were hauntingly beautiful. He leaned back in his chair and took a drink of his beer like he was king of the world.
I turned back to Edge. “Are you sure you mean months? Not, oh I dunno, hours?”
He shrugged. “Like I said, I don’t know for sure.”
“I figured he has bi-nightly stands.”
They both chuckled at that as Edge said, “Clearly you don’t know Kase.”
“Why?”
“He’s not a hit-‘em-and-quit-‘em kinda guy,” Ray explained, surprising me further. “I’m sure he’s probably had some one night stands. But, like I said, he’s a romantic.”
“I’ve never seen him with any chicks, though.”
Ray lifted her drink. “I said he’s a romantic. I didn’t say he was a lucky one. Why the sudden interest? Methinks you’ve got a crush.”
Picking up my napkin, I tore the edges a little. “We’ve never even talked.”
She wiggled her brows. “Who said anything about talking?”
I rolled my eyes, wishing I’d kept my big, nosy mouth shut. “I was just surprised. He’s different than I expected.”
Her expression warmed as she looked at him fondly. “That’s Kase for you.”
Piper’s dad stood to give a toast, but my focus stayed on Kase. I wasn’t sure why I found him so fascinating. He always gave me a chin lift, but he’d barely said one word to me.
I was cool with it.
I didn’t talk to him, either.
*******
“Lars is looking for you again, Legs. And, heads-up, he’s in a nasty fuckin’ mood,” Bouncer Pete said when I got into work the following Friday.
“Awesome,” I muttered
with a weak smile.
I checked around the main room and the office, not finding Lars in either place. I was about to head to get changed when I noticed the door to the alcohol storeroom was ajar.
“Hey.” Pushing it open, I lost any further words.
If this was a cartoon, my eyes would be bugging out and my tongue would unfurl onto the ground.
Lars, in general, was a hottie. Lars in well fitted gray dress slacks and a black tight beater tank top was a flippin’ thing of beauty. Especially as I watched him lifting a box of booze like it was nothing, the muscles and definition in his arms flexing and becoming more pronounced.
Looking over his shoulder at me, he smiled. “Just who I wanted.”
Sasha had been right when she said he didn’t flirt at all.
Instead, he said stuff like that. Things my pervy mind could easily twist.
And twist it did.
“You feel comfortable enough for private dances tonight? If you’re not ready, you can hold off.”
Wicked’s policy for new dancers was only stage sets with other girls until they showed they could handle more. If someone bolted or was uncomfortable with the impersonal distance of the stage, no way would she be able to handle one-on-one.
Blocking out my inner lusty cartoon wolf, I smiled. “No, I’m fine. I can totally handle it.”
Maybe.
How much did Maddison make last week again? Three hundred?
Okay, yeah, I can do this.
Lars put the box on the top shelf. “Great. If you change your mind, let me know, okay?”
“Yeah.” I turned to leave.
“Harlow, wait.” His hand rubbed across the top of his head then down to the back of his neck. “Do me a favor, bring this inventory shit out to Sasha at the bar for me.”
“No problem.” I took the clipboard, my eyes catching his name. “Your name is Lars Luthor?”
He pulled his dress shirt back on. “Yeah, why?”
Bye sexy, cut arms and amazing ink. I miss you already.
“Lars Luthor, like Lex Luthor’s less evil brother?”
I fought the urge to step back as Lars moved closer to me, making the already small room seem downright tiny.
“Legs,” he murmured, grabbing a small lock of my hair and twirling it in his fingers. His midnight blue eyes watched the movement like it was the most interesting thing in the world as he smiled wickedly. “Who says I’m the less evil one?”
“Good point,” I whispered, suddenly positive he’d put Lex to shame. “I, uhh, better go get ready.”
“Yeah, that’d probably be a good idea,” he whispered back. He let go of my hair, his fingers trailing my jaw lightly as he pulled his hand back. Turning away from me, he grabbed another box. “Good luck tonight.”
“Thanks,” I said breathlessly as I left the room.
Yup, definitely the evil one.
*******
Though I’d been nervous, my first private dance wasn’t too bad.
Out celebrating his bachelor party, the groom’s friends bought him the dance that he’d gone along with for fun. He’d joked about the awkwardness of strip clubs and hadn’t seemed to notice or care that I wasn’t a graceful seductress.
The hardest part was being acutely aware of the security camera in the room.
According to the other dancers, Eddie liked to watch.
According to me, barf.
He also liked to fire girls, including my twice former coworker Becca, if he found their private moves weren’t up to par.
Ignoring the pit of fear I had after botching my first attempt, I danced my last set of the night.
Maddison stopped me when I came out from the back afterward. “Dance waiting in room two, Flame, and he’s hot. I think I need a shower after my last one,” she whispered with an exaggerated shudder.
“Thanks.” I opened the door and halted to a stop.
“Hey, Tiny Dancer.”
Fuck.
Chapter Two
Tiny Dancer’s Sparkle Tits
Harlow
When I walked into the private room and saw who was waiting for me, I knew one thing for certain.
The universe hated me.
Not even just part of it, I was talking about the entire universe. Further than the mind could comprehend, it was all out to get me. There was no other explanation.
There were days when I looked effortlessly good. Every single piece of hair fell perfectly. My makeup went on smoothly. No smudged liner, spider lashes, or lipstick on my teeth. The first outfit I grabbed and threw on was totally rockin’.
Those days?
Those were when I saw no one. I could spend the whole day out of the house running errands, and it was like a post-apocalyptic wasteland.
Then there were times when I was just running out for one thing. I’d be in ratty yoga pants and the t-shirt I wore when I was cleaning, cooking, bloated, sick, whatever.
Everyone had that shirt.
I’d shuffle around the store in my slippers, my hair all funked up, and orange fingertips thanks to Cheetos. Plus, I usually had a zit that, much like the Grinch’s heart, grew three sizes that day.
That’d be when I saw everybody. Every single person I’d ever met in my entire life seemed to be out that day, and they’d all want to chat.
Even that wasn’t as bad as when I’d get caught someplace embarrassing.
It happened a lot.
Like the time I’d gone to get myself a new special friend, one of the battery operated variety, and ran into a friend’s dad. I’d learned way more about his kink than I’d wanted to.
Or when I’d dressed up like Hermione Granger for the midnight premiere of Harry Potter. A group of girls from school had seen me and taken pictures, sharing them faster than I could say ‘leviosa’.
And, okay, maybe it happened again with the basketball team when I’d been dressed up like Gandalf for The Hobbit premiere.
Sure, I should’ve learned my lesson, but how was I to know they’d recognize me with the beard?
But entering the room to see Kase waiting for me at Wicked? It was a fresh new hell the universe had dreamed up to torture me, making all other mortifying experiences look pleasant by comparison. I’d have gladly relived any of them, even sending out e-vites.
“Kase, what’re you doing here?” My eyes went wide. “Please tell me this isn’t a late bachelor party for Jake.”
Kase’s lips curved in a sardonic smile. “Yeah, like he’d come to a strip club.”
Piper’s husband was tall and gorgeous. He was also kinda scary.
I could almost, just almost, forget that when I saw the way he was with her. Had he been at the club, he’d probably be sitting at the bar texting her. Or on the phone outside so he could hear her better.
Most likely, though, he’d have been on his bike heading home to her.
“They’re still on their honeymoon anyway,” he reminded me.
My breath whooshed out in relief. “Oh yeah. So what’re you doing here?”
Of all of the people in the world that needed to pay for a lap dance, Kase definitely wasn’t one of them.
A few weeks before, I’d gone to Hyde to see Piper. When I’d walked in, Kase had been coming out from the garage. Shirtless. Loose jeans hung low on his hips, showing defined muscle and golden, tattooed skin. His dark dreads had been pulled back, his trimmed beard looked badass, and he’d been smiling.
The contrast between his dark features and the brilliant blue of his eyes changed him from beyond hot to extraordinary.
It was a miracle I hadn’t walked right into a wall.
As usual, he’d just given me a chin lift before turning to talk to someone else.
The first time I’d gotten the chin lift, I’d taken it as him declaring his undying love and inviting me to spend the rest of my life getting lost in his eyes.
After the millionth time, I realized it was his polite acknowledgment of Piper’s weirdo friend.
I was aro
und him and our mutual friends enough to know he was hilarious and easy-going. Piper swore he could get pissed and it was scary.
I believed her.
Just sitting on the plush leather bench, he exuded power and strength. Others might be badass in a more obvious way, but Kase was deceptively dangerous.
He raised an eyebrow. “Real question, Tiny Dancer, is what’re you doing here?”
“Oh, you know, I was passing by and thought I’d come in to see what the fuss was. What do you think I’m doing here?” I walked into the room fully and cringed. “Shit!”
“What…” His voice trailed off as I began swaying my hips.
“Camera,” I murmured, tilting my head slightly to the blinking red light that taunted me from the corner.
I’d been out of view when I’d first entered the room, but stepping in all the way meant Eddie could see me. He’d fired Becca because she hadn’t gotten down and dirty enough for him. If I just stood and talked, I’d be out like yesterday’s pasties.
Tilting his head to the side, he muttered, “Camera?”
“Yeah, the owner likes to keep an eye on things.” I flipped my hair as I crouched, lowering my ass to my feet. Standing slowly, I trailed my hands up his legs. I hooked my fingers into my red stretchy skirt and bent in front of Kase as I pulled it down.
Shoving my ass in his face is now in my top five humiliating moments, but it’s still better than the camera and Eddie getting that view.
Barely.
I hoped Eddie was too busy watching me to notice that Kase didn’t look like he was enjoying the show.
Instead, his brows were lowered in confusion. “Like to make sure shit doesn’t go too far?”
Extra thankful for the pasties, I untied my top and tossed it behind me. “No, he encourages that. He just likes to watch.” Putting my knees on either side of his thighs, I straddled him.
“The fuck?” he growled.
Nothing like rubbing yourself on someone that’s pissed off. Totally not awkward at all.
“I’m so sorry,” I whispered as I moved against him, trying to stay back by his knees. “He fires people if he doesn’t think their dances are good enough.”