“I was waiting until you told me it was all right to speak. The last time I said something you damn near chewed my head off.”
“I didn’t chew your head off. I just wanted you to let me finish what I had to say before I forgot.”
“So, what happened next?”
She sounded excited to hear about my five minutes of fame and I was eager to share it with her. When I tried to talk to Ebony about it, she just blew me off, so I was happy I was finally able to share it with someone.
“She took me back to her dressing room and let me put on one of her outfits. She’s got some skeezy shit.”
“I’ll bet.”
I shot Valencia a warning look, letting her know that I heard her underhanded dig. “Anyway, we changed clothes and somebody knocked on the door letting her know she had five minutes before her set began. She actually worked the stage and she called me up at the end of her set. We did a dance together and when it was over we walked the floors, taking requests.”
“Requests? What the fuck were they requesting?”
I couldn’t help but to giggle at the serious expression on Valencia’s face. “If a guy wants you to dance for him, he calls you over. When you dance on the stage the men throw money at you if they like what you’re doing. For a table dance, they pay for calling you over and then you get tips from that person if they like you. Ebony said you got to make the guy paying for the dance seem special, that way he tips extra. She said if the guy really liked you, he’d buy you a drink and ask you to sit with him. She said I shouldn’t sit with anybody that didn’t pay me and to never sit with one person too long.”
“Ebony says this, Ebony says that. Damn, can you tell me the story without the Ebony infomercial?”
“If it wasn’t for Ebony, I wouldn’t have been in the club in the first place,” I said. I got up and slipped my shoes back on. I was tired of going back and forth with Valencia and decided it wasn’t such a good idea to tell her about my dancing after all. Especially if she was going to keep throwing negative energy at me every time I mentioned Ebony’s name.
She followed me as I walked down the dark hallway to the front door. She reached around me and pushed her palms against the door to stop me from opening it.
“I’ll talk to you later,” I whispered as I waited for her to remove her hands. I didn’t want to wake up her stepdad, so I didn’t dare raise my voice.
“Reshunda, it’s dark and it’s late. Why don’t you spend the night and we can speak with Ebony in the morning?”
“You promise to chill out on my cousin?” I nodded my head. “What about your stepdad?” In all the years that Valencia and I had been friends, I’d never spent the night there.
“It will be all right. He’s passed out and won’t even know you’re here.”
She was still whispering, so I got the impression she wasn’t as sure of his sobriety as she pretended to be.
“All right.” I took a step back from the door, anxious to get back to the safety of her room. I wasn’t really feeling like walking home alone anyway, but she didn’t need to know it.
Chapter Twelve
EBONY QUEEN
I woke up at 4:30 in the morning. My head felt like a little man was inside beating on a drum and I had to go to the bathroom something fierce. I lay in bed for as long as I could before I finally mustered up the energy to go. I dangled my feet for a few seconds on the side of the bed, trying to get my head right. My clothes were piled up next to my bed and I made a mental note to pick them up before Reshunda got in my ass about them. I stood up and started walking to the bathroom. I was being extra careful because I didn’t want to wake Reshunda. The bathroom was in the hallway and I had to pass her bed to get to the door. I’d almost made it when I tripped over my shoes and fell to my knee.
“Shit,” I yelled. My right knee started throbbing so I quickly got off of it, sitting in the middle of the floor. Mumbling obscenities, I massaged my knee, trying to ease away the pain.
“I hope I’ll be able to dance tonight,” I whimpered. After a few seconds, the pain started to subside. I looked around the room, surprised I hadn’t woken Reshunda up. She was normally a light sleeper. As I glanced over to her bed, I noticed it hadn’t been slept in.
“I wonder where that heifer is?” I vaguely remembered her running after Valencia but wasn’t sure it really happened. I got up off the floor and limped to the bathroom to pee. I was going to have a long talk with Reshunda when she got home. I was going to tell her to stop running after Valencia like she had a dick. They were starting to worry me. I didn’t know much about friendships, since I’d never had a closer friend other than my mother, but their friendship appeared lopsided to me. If this was what it was like to have a friend, I’d say fuck it because friendships required too much work. Thinking about my mother made me want to cry. I was done crying, though. I went back to bed, pulled the covers up over my head and promptly fell asleep.
The sun had lit up the room by the time Reshunda brought her ass home. I wasn’t in the mood for talking so I pretended not to hear her open the door. She totally disregarded the fact that I was still sleeping. She snatched my clothes up from off the floor and threw them in the trash.
“Damn,” I mumbled. I forgot to pick them up and I knew I was about to hear about it. I sighed deeply. She slammed the closet door, which was a true indicator she was mad.
“Shit, must you make all that noise?” I allowed one of my eyes to open so I could make sure she wasn’t about to go upside my head or something like that.
“Must you be such a fucking slob?”
“Damn, it was just a dress,” I exclaimed as I opened the other eye. She was standing in front of my bed, holding my shoes.
“What about these? If it was dark in here, I would have broken my fucking neck.”
Shit, I forgot about those too. I shook my head. It was going to be a long morning if I wasn’t able to get her to shut the fuck up. “I’m sorry. I tripped over them myself and I said I was going to get them but I guess I forgot.”
She had the weirdest expression on her face.
“What’s wrong?” I wiped my lips, thinking I had drool hanging out the side of my mouth or something, but they felt dry to me.
“You apologized. I’ve never heard you do that before. Damn, I didn’t think you were capable.”
“Oh, you got jokes this morning.” Reshunda was on some shit today and I didn’t feel like dealing with it. When I sat up, I noticed she wasn’t alone. Aloud groan escaped my lips; the morning was going to be longer than I’d originally thought.
“Morning,” Valencia said.
She was so chipper, I wanted to put my foot in her ass. I nodded my head in her direction. I had the feeling I was about to be tag-teamed. It was one thing for me and Reshunda to have our little fights, but it was something totally different when there were witnesses. Reshunda sat down on the bed next to Valencia. Both of them were staring at me.
“What the fuck are you two staring at?” I was getting pissed. I still had a slight headache and this unexpected intrusion wasn’t helping one single bit.
“Sorry,” they both said at the same time. Reshunda grabbed the remote off the dresser and turned on the television. Since they were making themselves comfortable, I decided to get up and take my shower.
“What time is it?”
“Ten o’clock,” Reshunda answered. She continued flipping through the channels.
Before I got up, I checked under the sheets to make sure I had on some clothes. I didn’t remember putting on anything the night before and I didn’t want to put on a show for Reshunda’s little friend. I was counting down the days until I’d be able to move into my own apartment. I had my eye on a pretty little condo downtown, where the action was. I had also looked at a few apartments near the job but I wanted to make sure my money was right before I made that move. As I was leaving the room, Reshunda stopped me.
“Valencia wants to work at the club too.”
Her words stunned me. “And do what?” I knew exactly what she was talking about, but I decided to play stupid.
“Stop playin’; you know what I’m talking about.”
Valencia, who had been lounging on the bed, sat up. “Girl, you just started working there your own self, so how you going to start inviting other folks to come dance and shit. Who said the manager even wants another girl?”
“You got the manager eating off your right tit. You could hook her up if you wanted to,” Reshunda shot back.
“What’s in it for me? Besides, you haven’t really danced yet.”
“What do you mean, I haven’t danced yet? I danced last night, don’t you remember?” Reshunda might have felt the barb I threw at her but chose to ignore it.
“Humph, you’ve got to be able to work the whole room. You ain’t ready for that,” I snidely answered, belittling her ability. In actuality, she did a good job, and with a little work, had a lot of potential, but I hadn’t counted on Valencia wanting to dance too. If she started working at the club then she’d be around us all the time and I wouldn’t be able to put my plans into motion. I didn’t like Valencia’s attitude but I tolerated her for Reshunda’s sake. Plus, I was looking for a sponsor and I didn’t need the extra competition if Valencia could work a pole better than I could.
“You said we were the baddest chicks the club ever saw,” Reshunda said eagerly.
She didn’t appear to notice my reluctance about accepting this new idea and it pissed me off that I was going to have to spell it out for them. “We were, but damn, you took that shit and ran with it. If she wants to dance at the club, she’s going to have to go down there and get the job just like I did.”
“Reshunda, stop begging this bitch. It’s obvious she doesn’t want to help us,” Valencia said as she threw me the evil eye.
I started counting in my head, trying to cool down. It didn’t bother me that she called me a bitch because I was a bitch and a good one at that. She did get my goat when she said I didn’t want to help my cousin. She was way out of line with that one.
“Heifer, please, you got me twisted. I never said I didn’t want to help Reshunda. I said I didn’t want to help you.” I watched the different emotions run across her face but once again she surprised me. I expected her to leap off the bed and take a jab at me, but she didn’t.
“Seriously, is this supposed to shock me or something? ’Cause you’ve made it clear from day one how you felt about me, but it’s all good, bitch, I feel the same way about you.” She stood up and walked to the door. Reshunda, give me a call later.” She shut the door behind her, ending our brief discussion.
I was glad when Valencia left. She was a fake-ass bitch and I couldn’t stand her. She walked around like she was better than everybody else and I was tired of pretending to like her stuck-up ass.
“Why are you so fucking mean to her? She ain’t never did anything to you.” Reshunda was pissed.
“Why do I have to be nice to her? She’s your friend, not mine.” Reshunda and I had a great relationship outside of her bitchy friend and I was tired of fighting about it.
“I didn’t ask you to kiss her ass or anything, just be civil. Is that too much to ask, damn?”
“Why did you have to ask her to dance at the club, knowing I don’t like her?” My neck was rocking and my hands were on my hips, but it didn’t intimidate Reshunda because she was working her neck too and waving her arms as well.
“I didn’t ask her to dance and I wouldn’t even have told her about the club if you didn’t open up your big-ass mouth in the first place.”
Damn, she was right, I was the one who let the cat out the bag. Deflated, I sank back down on the bed.
“Fuck it, if she gets in, she gets in. The bitch can’t touch me ’cause I know how to work my ass.”
Reshunda didn’t even respond. She walked out of the room and a few seconds later I heard the front door slam.
“Damn.”
Chapter Thirteen
VALENCIA ROBERTS
I wasn’t mad when I left Reshunda’s house because things turned out exactly how I thought they would, but even better. I didn’t expect any help from Ebony, but at least Reshunda knew I wasn’t the problem. If I didn’t need the money so badly I would’ve said fuck it and let them have the stinky club. But I needed some fast money, and short of robbing a bank, I didn’t know any other way to get it. I went back home to find something impressive and seductive to wear to the club. I wasn’t sure what I was going to do to entertain a pack of horny men, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
I’d tossed every stitch of clothing I owned on the floor and still hadn’t found anything that was sexy enough for an audition. I considered going naked, but that would definitely give the wrong impression. I wasn’t going there for anything other than dancing. I needed money but I wasn’t no ho.
I pulled open the door to the Cheetah Club. I was so nervous, I felt like I was going to pass out. I paused in the darkness to allow my eyes to adjust. My hands were shaking but I managed to pull it together and walk inside. The foyer of the club was empty but I could hear music. Without any signs to direct me, I followed the sounds and put my game face on. I was wearing some booty shorts under my jeans and a simple tank top, which emphasized my breasts. In the empty hallway, I removed my jeans and tied the legs around my neck. It wasn’t a fashion statement; I didn’t have anywhere else to put them.
Taking another deep breath, I strutted into the room and waited for a reaction. Several girls stood in the corner of the room, talking. They looked me over but didn’t otherwise acknowledge me. There were a few men sprinkled throughout the bar, but it definitely wasn’t busy. It was still early, however. Every nerve ending in my body told me to turn around and leave but I couldn’t. I promised myself that I would help my mother and if dancing was the only way I could raise some money, I was going to make it do what it do.
The club wasn’t officially open and the few men seated at the bar seemed more interested in getting their drink on than anything else. “I’m looking for the manager,” I said, trying to sound more confident than I felt. The men at the bar eyed me from the top of my head to the toe ring on my foot.
“Manager ain’t available, you’re gonna have to deal with me.” A black guy, possibly thirty-five to forty years old, actually quite attractive if I were looking for an older man, waved me over.
I strutted over to him, making certain to maintain eye contact with him while working the lust in his eyes to my advantage. I hadn’t met a man yet who could resist my charm when I turned on the switch. I could damn near see the blood rushing from his forehead to his dick as his eyes tried to take in all of this. And I mean all of this! I watched his eyes light up as he observed my wide hips and narrow waist. When I straddled the seat next to him, his fingers twitched and his Adam’s apple bobbed. I rocked forward, allowing the roundness of my breasts to entice him, holding them a breath away from his touch. I was there for a pussy show and if he didn’t know, he’d better ask somebody. Judging from the bulge in his pants, he knew what time it was.
“My name is Vee and I hear you’re looking for dancers.”
“Is that so? Well, someone told you wrong. We don’t need any more dancers.” He turned around on his stool as if I didn’t even exist.
This was a first. My heart pounded in my chest. I was not about to let this arrogant prick stop me from doing what I came there to do. If they hired that tramp Ebony, they damn sure were going to hire me.
“Now, you need to look at me. Teasing is a form of art that I’ve perfected. It takes precision and I’m willing to bet you money there ain’t a limp dick in this bitch because of it.” I followed his eyes as he looked around the room. I gave him a moment to assess my goodies and the stiff dicks that I’d inspired. I allowed him time to gauge the money my body would generate. “Now tell me,” I let my voice caress his earhole. “Tell me that I don’t have your blood rushing. Tell me that you ain’t harder tha
n you’ve been in years.” I stood up, feeling my titties doing a Bankhead bounce and my ass cascading like chocolate lava. “And tell me you won’t be back tomorrow for more and more and more.”
He cleared his throat and coughed.
I smiled as I continued my verbal assault. I plucked a cherry from a glass on the bar and popped the red fruit into my mouth while gazing deeply into his eyes. His expression remained stoic as I swallowed and licked my lips seductively. I took the stem and twirled it in my mouth, tying it in a knot. I wanted to throw up. I hated this pussy-power seduction, but it was necessary to get what I needed and homeboy bought my routine, hook, line and sinker. I had the man speechless.
“Obviously you don’t have the juice,” I said. “I need to speak to someone who does.” I blew the words into his ear and his body jerked. I’d seen that shit on TV and it looked sexy so I tried it.
He turned around again. He looked me up and down, licking his lips.
“Little girls shouldn’t play grown-up games.”
Was he threatening me? I tried to get a sense of what he was feeling but he had a serious poker face and it made me nervous.
“I stopped playing games when I was ten.” I edged closer to him.
“I told you we didn’t need any dancers.” He was saying no but his body was saying yes.
“What’s your name, Mr. Man,” I spoke very slowly and softly.
He had to move his head closer to hear me. His chest was a whisper away from my boobs and I pretended this game of sexual teasing was exciting. I looked deep into his eyes and I knew I had him.
“Spears.” He pulled back, shaking his head as if he were breaking from a trance. “What are they feeding kids these days?” he said to the men in the room who laughed with him, but they were enjoying the show too.
“Spears! If you don’t let that fine-ass woman dance, I’m gonna test your blood for sugar! If he don’t want you, you can dance for me. baby!
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