“Yeah,” Lexi laughed, “Kyle is one thing but Mr Logan is something else. I dunno though, it kinda makes me feel safe working here. You just know they've got your back, which you can't say for everywhere.”
The door suddenly opened to the private area over at the side and Tatiana walked through, several notes still caught in her G-string. Tess followed behind, a beaming smile on her face. She rushed forward towards me and excitedly gave me a hug. “Babe, thanks SO much for bringing me down here! I fucking love it!”
Bloody hell she really was unique.
“Glad you've got it out of your system!” I joked.
“Out of my system!” she said energetically. “Hell no, I'm not done with this place!”
My tone turned more serious when I next spoke. “No hun, you won't be allowed back. This was a one time thing.”
“What, no, why? What's the problem?”
“It's an exclusive place babe, they don't let just anyone in. Kyle wasn't happy that you had a dance.”
“Well fuck that,” she said indignantly, “I paid my money. What is it, because I'm a girl or something?!”
“No it's not like that. They just run a very tight ship down here - every man here is vetted carefully before they're allowed down.”
“Well OK, they can vet me. That's fine.”
Why wouldn't she just let this go. She really was a nightmare when she didn't get her way. I didn't like to use the word, but yeah, she was spoiled.
“Look Tess, there are plenty of other strip clubs you can go to if you want. This place is no different.”
She looked glum, a baby who'd thrown it's toys out of the pram. I knew this was just another fad for her, another shiny object for her to enjoy and discard. Her fascination with this place wouldn't last long. At least, that's what I hoped.
“Fine,” she said at long last, her adult side finally coming back round, “let's go.”
I breathed a sigh of relief as we walked from the bar, putting my hand to my ear and mouthing “I'll call you” to Lexi as I followed behind Tess. As we came through the main door Tess stopped. I leaned around her to see Kyle walking back down the corridor towards his office.
He turned at the sound and I saw his face, his eyes shrouded and dark, deepset with worry. He held a paper towel to his lip, stained red with blood that issued from a cut. He smiled meekly at me before turning and continuing through the door to his office, shutting it quietly behind him.
Tess turned to me, her face mischievous. “Is THAT you fancy man?”
“He's not my fancy man Tess, he's my boss.”
“Oh my fucking God Alice, he's insane. I would strip for him for free any damn time.”
I felt a wave of jealously rush through my body at her words. “Yeah good luck with that,” I said, remembering my failed attempts to do just that.
“I get it now. You said I'd get it, and I do. I'd let him break into my room whenever he wants to, if you know what I mean.” She winked at me and nodded her head down, her cheeky side once more galloping to the fore. She was as bad as him with her mood swings. One minute she's throwing a hissy fit and the next she's busting out some sexual innuendos with a cheeky grin.
I guess the company you keep are reflected by the life you lead. And my life was truly fucked up right now.
Chapter 26
My time with Mrs Jones was becoming increasingly talky. To put it another way, we spent a lot of time talking and less time actually 'performing' and dancing.
“It gets to a point where you know all you need Alice, and then instinct takes over,” she told me when I pressed her on the issue. “You're there now, you don't need to learn any more physical moves. That part will take care of itself.”
She'd taken to asking me how I felt about everything, and continued to try to instill in me this desire to perform, this need to break further out of my shell and explore my sexuality to its fullest extent. She would always talk about my body as being a gift, a powerful tool to use to make men quiver, to run their wallets dry.
The more time I spent with her, the more I was indoctrinated to her teachings, to her philosophies. She taught me to enjoy the process, to throw myself into every performance. What had once shred my nerves now enlivened my senses.
I began to relish the prospect of undressing for a man, of seeing him lose his cool and empty his wallet into my thong. Sometimes my tips would outweigh the money Kyle was officially paying me for the job. It struck me how in such a short space of time I'd gone from being destitute to falling to sleep at night, my high heart rate and anxiety no longer a problem, my bank account swelling by the week.
I'd taken to sitting by the phone, constantly glancing at it in the hope that it would ring, that I'd be sent off on another job. The thrill was unbeatable, the feeling of sexual liberation I felt infiltrating me completely.
And then there was Kyle. As I'd expected, he'd never called me, never got in touch. If ever I was given a job it was via a middleman, a messenger. I hoped every time I stepped into the car that he'd be behind the wheel, watching over me, keeping me safe. I wanted him to care, wanted him to be there. But he never was - the window was always down, the driver always visible. It was never him.
It was coming to the end of term when Tess was nominated to plan a party for the people on our course. It wasn't anything official, but that was college - any excuse for a party. She, of course, enlisted me to help her out.
It surprised me how she'd barely spoken about that night down at the club. I thought she'd really push it further but she hadn't. She'd only asked me about things in passing and never dwelt on it all. Perhaps it had finally sunk in that I didn't want that side of my life mixing with my life at college.
She planned for the party to take place at the main social room of our halls, filling the large space with decorations and ordering in enough alcohol to fill a fuel tanker. Her seemingly bottomless credit card must have taken a real hit, but I helped to share the burden with my newfound ability to actually pay for things. Giving her a few hundred dollars for a party was something that would have been laughably inappropriate - nay impossible - only a few months ago. Now it barely made a scratch on my bank account.
What started as a party for our classmates quickly escalated into a free-for-all. I suspected as much might happen, what with the party being held in our halls. As people stumbled upon it they couldn't help but sneak in for a cup of free punch. Soon half the campus had descended upon us.
I didn't care. In fact, I was happy for it. A lot of our classmates were boring as sin. At least, that's how I saw them now. It occurred to me that I'd actually quite liked them before I started dancing. I guess it was me who'd changed, not them.
I saw Tess' eyes linger on Tom as he turned up. I knew her disinterest in him wouldn't last long, and so it had turned out. “I thought you didn't like him anymore,” I said as she followed him across the room with her eyes.
“What - oh him, God no, I was looking at someone else.”
I laughed. “Sure.”
“All right, fine. He's fucking hot, OK. He may be an idiot, but that's not gonna change. Nothing wrong with a bit of window shopping.”
I giggled as she stormed off to refill her cup. I swear, nothing was ever normal or easy with her. Always a drama of some kind. It had been like that since we were kids, mainly about boys. She was always the first - the first to kiss a boy, the first to go to second base, third base, hell, all of the bases. Sure, I was the first to strip for money, but I imagine she'd probably done so as an amateur many times before!
It took until the end of the evening for Tess to finally pluck up the courage to talk to Tom. She was so vivacious and confident with everyone else - but with him, she always seemed to close up, retreat a little bit into her shell. That's h
ow I knew she liked him a lot - it's what she always did when she liked someone.
I saw her flirting with him from across the room, the alcohol in her body providing ample lubrication for her words to slip from her tongue. I saw her gesture over to me as she spoke, with Tom's expression going wide with surprise. It always unsettled me when I knew someone else was talking about me, especially now.
“After-party time!” Tess said as she stumbled towards me, leaving Tom behind her. I could see him excitedly shuffle off through the thinning crowd to find his mates.
I kinda liked the sound of it - an after-party.
“Where?”
“Tom's frat house babe! We've been invited into the lions den!”
I dreaded to think of what went down in there. “He invited us to his frat house?”
“Yeah,” she said hurriedly, “come on, let's go.”
I hesitated slightly at the thought. Tom's frat house was notorious for specializing in a particular type of after-party - the type that I wasn't so keen on. Yeah, I was a stripper, but that's where I drew the line.
I couldn't say no to Tess' begging expression, though, her eyes yearning for me to say yes. “Fine, but if it gets weird I'm off!”
A smile cracked across her face. “I'm counting on it,” she said naughtily.
....
Tom's frat house was as I'd expected it to be: large, luxurious, and filled with dicks. We sat around in the main living room on old armchairs, a fire blazing in a centerpiece fireplace, several girls draped over guys' laps. I could feel where this was going, and I wanted no part in it.
“When are they getting here Tess?” It seemed Tom had finally learned her name.
Tess looked over at me as if she'd done something wrong. “Any time now.”
“What's going on,” I whispered to her as she sat on the arm of my chair. “Who's coming?”
Her face screwed up as it always did when she'd been naughty. “Babe, you're gonna hate me for this, but...”
Before she could finish her sentence there was a loud knock at the door and Tom looked up excitedly. “Tess,” he said, nodding her towards the entrance.
Tess glanced at me sorrily before pouncing towards the door. What the hell was she up to.
She opened it up and my heart dropped in anger as Tatiana walked through it, flanked by a couple of the other girls from the club that I didn't know. They walked in with large coats on as the guys began to whoop and cheer.
“Hello boys,” said Tatiana, throwing a wink in my direction as she flung her coat to the floor to reveal a sexy nurses outfit.
I looked in fury at Tess as she crept back into the room behind them, mouthing 'sorry' to me as she did. The other two girls discarded their coats as well to reveal their own sexy gimmicky outfits, perfect for this bunch of hooting monkeys.
I had to get out of there. This was way too close for comfort.
I stood quickly as Tatiana launched into her routine, the guys all roaring and high-fiving each other as they scrambled for their wallets and drew out notes. I walked round the back of my chair, doubting my sudden disappearance would be noticed, when the commotion suddenly stopped and Tatiana's voice carried across the room to my ears.
“You not going to join us Alice?” I turned to look at her, her mouth curled into a conniving grin. “How about you show your friends what you've been learning?”
Every eye turned on me, wide and unblinking, mouths falling open. Tom spoke first, his words spilling out in amazement. “Alice, are you - are you a stripper?!”
I could see the smile widen on Tatiana's face as I stood there, dumbstruck and unable to reply, unwilling to reply.
“Oh, did they not know Alice. I am sorry.”
I turned quickly before they saw my tears and ran from the house into the cold, my breath quickly engulfing the freezing air. I could hear Tess behind me calling my name but ignored her, her voice fading with every step.
I ran and ran, the alcohol heightening my emotions and forcing the tears from my eyes, warm against my cold cheeks. I stopped under a bridge, shaded from the fierce breeze, and sunk to my knees, my weeping uncontrollable.
My world had been broken, the facade I was holding up crushed. My two lives had suddenly come crashing together as one, my secret life as a stripper revealed to the most untrustworthy and shallow people on the entire campus. I knew it wouldn't be long before the whole fucking college knew, and it was all Tess' fault.
I heard her voice once more growing close as her silhouette appeared against the night sky in the distance, following after me. I stood and look on as she approached, her face swollen in guilt, her breathing heavy as she slowed in front of me.
“Alice, I'm so sorry....I had no idea that would happen.”
I said nothing. I just stared at her in anger.
“I just wanted Tom to like me, I thought that would work. I never thought Tatiana would bring you into it. I'm sorry, I didn't think...”
“That's just it isn't it Tess.” My voice was scathing, boiling over. “You never fucking think, not unless it's about you. Do you have any idea what you've done. I could get chucked out of college when people find out about this.”
The gravity of what she'd done dawned on her, her voice growing in remorse as she continued to apologize. “It's OK, I'll go back, I'll tell them not to say anything, not to tell anyone.”
“You think they'll listen, you think they'll give a shit. They're all as fucking selfish as you.” I threw the words at her violently, hoping to inflict damage.
“You've ruined everything Tess, everything,” I continued. “Thanks - you're such a great friend.”
With that I turned from her and carried on walking away, hearing her sobbing behind me and calling for me to come back. I didn't stop. I didn't turn. I kept walking, not knowing where my feet would take me.
Chapter 27
“A car will arrive at your dorms at 8 PM. It will take you to the Globe Hotel. You will go to room 640 where the client will be waiting. Dance for him until he is satisfied, then leave. Nothing more is expected of you.”
They were the exact same instructions I'd gotten for my first client, the man in the shadows at room 640. I'd danced for him, imagining it was Kyle, losing myself in the moment. It had been the most exciting night of my life, my senses a blur a I danced and stripped for the shadow sitting in front of me, a man who could be anyone in my mind. I made him Kyle.
The usual buzz I felt when receiving a new job wasn't present this time though. Tess' actions the other evening had seen to that, and now I felt nervous about doing the job, paranoid that there would be eyes on me, tongues wagging in rumor as I stepped into the car to take me to the client.
The secret had been exposed, the mystique broken, and now everything associated with the job had been tainted.
I arrived at the hotel with a lump in my throat, my usual swagger missing, and went to the concierge at the front. He recognized me immediately.
“Mr White?” he asked, a suggestive look in his eye.
I could feel his disapproving eyes at my back as I walked towards the lift, the young man, Raoul, not there this time to escort me up. I felt a weight increase on my shoulders with every glance of foreign eyes in my direction, my paranoia making every step a burden.
I focused my mind as the lift took me up, trying to break the shackles and get into character. I could hear the words of Mrs Jones in my head: “you're playing a character Alice, and even on a bad day, you need to be able to perform. Whatever is going on in your personal life, do not take it onto the stage with you.”
Unfortunately, now both my personal life and secret working life had become entangled like a pair of earphones.
I knocked at the door and heard the command to come in -
that deep and authoritative voice that I'd heard before.
I walked in the room to a familiar scene - a figure sitting in the middle, cloaked in darkness, dim lamps creating a dark and brooding atmosphere but for a single spotlight lighting up the center of the room. I moved into position upon his order and began dancing to the music, setting into my routine.
“Stop.” The voice boomed from the shadows after a couple of minutes. He had kept quiet last time, not uttering a single word.
I stood upright, my dress already discarded, and looked at the shade. He didn't move, but spoke once more.
“You're not performing as last time,” he said simply. “This is not satisfactory.”
The words stung at me - no client had given me bad feedback. “I apologize Mr White,” I said, “I have no excuse.”
I could see the shape of his head nod slightly. “Go again,” he growled, “and don't let me down.”
Shit. I couldn't afford to fuck this up - there was no wiggle room for letting clients down.
I pushed my personal thoughts deep to the back of my head, as Mrs Jones had taught me, and set back into my routine. I set my mind to Kyle once again, his easy smile and piercing eyes gazing at me from the shadow.
I thought of the touch of his lips as I draped my fingers over my body, my underwear coming loose. I imagined his hands on my body, slipping under my bra, sliding under my panties and onto my ass. The mood struck me as I began to lose myself, my eyes seductive to the shadow, seeing Kyle within it.
“Good,” came the low voice, “you may stop.” The words came suddenly, unexpectedly, bringing me back into the room once more, out of the fantasy of my own thoughts.
“I will be seeing you again Alice,” said the man, his voice dripping in anticipation. “Please, see yourself out.”
Once more he stayed in the darkness, unwilling to show his identity, as I walked away. It was just the way I wanted it - it allowed me to imagine it was Kyle.
The Logan Brothers - Books 1-4: (EXPOSURE, CRASH, TWIN PASSIONS, and ADDICTED TO YOU) Page 10