by Romi Hart
Still, as he heard the announcer call her to the stage, he found his eyes shifting toward her, running up and down her enticing figure. The music she chose spoke volumes about her, and she had this crazy way of calling to mind an old burlesque show. He realized quickly how she had earned her reputation and become the star of the show. Anybody who saw her move fell prey to her hypnotizing performance. It was intoxicating. Every time he looked at her, all he could think about was how enthralling she was, how she didn’t belong here with the rest of the girls. She could grace a Vegas stage, or a silver screen. How had she landed here? He sat pondering and twirling the beard hairs at the tip of his chin, a tic he had developed since growing it out.
“If you keep drooling, you’re going to fill that empty shot glass faster than I can,” the bartender, Charlie, chuckled.
“What?” Harrison asked, still distracted by Skye’s dancing.
“You heard me. You’ve had your eyes superglued to Skye tonight. That’s not like you.”
“She’s talented. She should be choreographing routines for the other girls, not dancing,” Harrison replied. It was the quickest excuse he could muster, having been put on the spot. He certainly had no intention of admitting to his fascination with her.
“Yeah, sure, and you shit monkeys right out your ass,” Charlie scoffed. “You want some wine with that cheese?” he asked.
Harrison finally turned his attention to the bartender. “You ever think about a job as a standup comedian? You’ve got a steady stream of jokes.”
“I have a steadier stream of whiskey,” Charlie grunted.
“Then keep it coming. It’s going to be a long one,” he stated.
“You’re telling me. Ever since your crew made your presence known, the back rooms haven’t had a moment’s rest. You’ve been a pretty steady customer yourself.”
Harrison’s eyes traveled back over to Skye as she finished up her routine, his throat constricting as he saw the wads of bills stuffed into her g string. He had his reasons for disappearing into the back rooms, getting more than just a private show. He needed the distraction from what had clearly become an obsession.
But that was none of Charlie’s business. “Well, when in Rome,” Harrison shrugged as Charlie passed his drink over.
The tapping of nails caught his attention, and Harrison looked up to see Skye as she rapped her nails on the bar.
“Charlie, I need my nightcap,” Skye sighed, not even batting an eye in Harrison’s direction. If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought she was purposely ignoring his presence. That wasn’t the typical reaction he got from strippers. Then again, he’d been a bit of an ass in completely ignoring her when she had seemed to want his attention about something.
Tilting his head, he considered his words for a moment. “Who taught you to dance like that?” he finally asked.
Skye looked up at him as Charlie placed her drink and shrugged. “Nobody. Some things you learn on your own,” she replied shortly.
“How long have you been dancing here?” he asked, hoping to keep the conversation from dying so quickly. He didn’t let himself consider why it mattered.
“Long enough to handle myself,” Skye retorted.
Harrison scoffed slightly, lifting his hand with a smirk. Obviously, he was going to get nothing but attitude from her. “Okay, let me paint a picture for you,” Harrison said, turning to face her more directly, “When you get up on stage it isn’t like any of the other girls’ performances. It’s like you’ve done stage shows or something. You don’t just pick that up from work experience in a strip club,” Harrison said.
“Is that your way of calling me a liar?” Skye asked, teasing in her voice but also a bit defensive.
“No, but you don’t get to be the star of the show by trial and error, and I’m guessing you’re making more than the rest of the girls by far. Am I wrong?”
She stared at him with such disdain he thought she might not answer. “I don’t really think it’s any of your business, Harrison, but I am one of the club’s top earners.”
“Do you think you could choreograph for the other girls?” he asked.
Skye chuckled incredulously. “My job is to bring in customers and make as much money as I can for myself and the club. That doesn’t include coming up with new routines for the other girls to help line their pockets. My methods work for me, and I don’t care to share them with anyone else. It’s above my pay grade.”
Harrison studied her for a moment, trying to understand her sharp retort. “But if the whole club becomes more elevated, then wouldn’t everyone here be making more money? Including you?”
“I’m not the manager or the owner. I believe that’s under your job description, not mine. Besides, I have my own business endeavors to consider,” Skye remarked.
Harrison leaned back, surprised. Maybe it was narrow minded, but he just assumed that the girls here were here to stay, that some of them had dreams but that those were fantasies far beyond their reach. “So, what are you, a college student working here to get through until you graduate or something?”
She scoffed, and he felt stupid for asking the question. “I’m a little past college age. But I have goals, and I’m going to achieve them. I’m close, and I’m not going to let a little sympathy for other women who haven’t honed the skill get in my way.” She pointed at her empty glass and motioned for Charlie to bring her another drink.
Charlie gave a nod and glanced at Harrison. “You want another or are you going to high-tail it to one of the back rooms here soon?” he asked. Harrison smirked.
“It’s break night for me,” Harrison muttered, for some reason not wanting to have that conversation in front of Skye. “I’ll take another one.” While Charlie went to work, he turned back to the woman who only intrigued him more with each word she spoke. “Mind sharing what your plans are? I mean, you said you had goals you were close to meeting. Would it jinx you if you talked about it?” he asked.
“A smart businesswoman never completely gives away her concept. People steal ideas every day. Let’s just say I didn’t have the best upbringing, and I know what it’s like to struggle and sacrifice. My goal is to never have to deal with some gunslinger coming to take down my place of work again,” she said.
“So, this is your means to an end. Just a staircase to your own personal heaven,” Harrison quipped, trying to sound witty.
“I guess you could put it that way.” She hesitated and gave him an assessing gaze, her eyes flicking over him as if sizing him up. “What about you? What’s your story?”
How did he answer that? “I’m just your average tattooed biker, a rebel without a cause.” It had sounded so much better in his head.
“Something tells me you’re not average,” Skye chuckled. “Don’t shortchange yourself to deflect attention.”
“Is that what you’ve heard?” he laughed, feeling uncomfortable.
“Women talk about everything, Harrison,” she said pointedly, taking all humor from his thoughts. That was the last thing he wanted to hear, considering his nightly conquests recently. “If you think otherwise, you’re dumber than the average client.”
“Brutal, aren’t you?” Harrison chuckled, this time a bit wounded and put in his place.
“I just say it how I see it. I was taught to call a spade, a spade,” Skye said.
“I can respect that,” he conceded. “I’ve always thought pretense was a bitch. Why try to be something you’re not when you’ll just disappoint everyone in the end? If everyone just accepted themselves and kept it one hundred, the world would be a better place.”
“Honesty is a rare virtue these days. Running your mouth gets you killed, and always has. I think this is a statement to the human stain, a condition we’ll never completely eradicate. It’s the nature of the beast.”
Harrison just stared at her for a minute, gauging how they’d gotten into such deep subject matter. Even more surprising was her insightfulness, and overall wisdom.
“Look at this, an intellectual discussion at my bar,” Charlie mused, leaning in. “I’m honored.”
“Shut up, dickhead,” Harrison grumbled. “I enjoy picking a brain when it has something to offer. It’s just hard to find one in such a perfect package.”
Skye actually smiled at him. “I’ll take that as a compliment and agree with you, as well.” If he didn’t know any better, he would have thought she was flirting now. “Thank you, by the way, for getting more guys on guard.”
He shrugged, making light of it, but he was glad he’d done something to please her. “I just wish we could have done it faster. It was always the intention. We just had to work on vetting anyone we let in here. That’s Devil’s Flames for you.”
“I know. I have to admit, though, I was a little worried you were …” she trailed off. She seemed unsure as to whether she should continue, but as Harrison waited it out with an unusual amount of patience, she nearly vomited the words, “too preoccupied to handle the responsibility of heading up security.”
Harrison blinked and shook his head, less than pleased with her opinion of him and even more aggravated at himself for putting it out there. “Is that your way of calling me a man whore?” Harrison asked.
“Well, if the shoe fits,” Skye stated, making no apologies.
“I guess I had that coming.” Harrison shook his head. “Let me at least reassure you of my commitment to my duties here and to my MC. I wouldn’t let a single girl here come to harm. Including you.” He nodded as he looked directly in her eyes.
“I believe you,” she said, tapping beside her empty glass in that signature move that signaled she needed another drink. Charlie motioned from where he was assisting two other customers to let her know he’d take care of it.
“He’s going to be busy for a bit,” Skye muttered.
Harrison didn’t mind. He couldn’t get enough information about the woman next to him, and th longer Charlie took, the more he could learn. “You said you had a hard childhood. What do you mean by that?”
“I don’t really like talking about it. What matters is that it doesn’t define me, just influences me to be better, different. Yeah, there are times I’ve literally felt like the earth was glued to my back because I was under so much pressure, but I refuse to be squashed by it. Danger is all around us, and it’s up to us to allow it to rule our actions or to never give up the fight to stay above it.”
Harrison could relate, but he’d never heard it spoken so well. “It sounds like you’ve really got your head on straight, Skye. Kind of surprises me,” he admitted.
“Why is that?”
He sighed, trying to find the right words and failing. “Without sounding like too much of an asshole,” Harrison glanced up at the pole with a nod, “you look like a natural on that stage. I assumed you were a career stripper, a lifer.”
“Maybe you’re right?” Skye asked, chuckling, “But being a career right now doesn’t mean I have to be a lifer.”
“Obviously,” Harrison conceded.
“I won’t be. Besides, everyone knows that beauty is fleeting and only skin deep. I may look like an angel on that pole right now, but someday, sliding down it might break a hip.” She said it like a joke, but he could hear the seriousness in her voice.
“You’re a riot, girl,” he smiled. The more she talked, the more impressed and enthralled he grew.
“Yeah, I guess I have my moments. Charlie?” she called over the bar as she slid her empty glass back across the counter top. Charlie glanced at both their drinks.
“You two need to slow down a little. You’re going to drink us out of business,” Charlie commented.
“Hey, my drinks are included in the salary, pops,” Skye retorted.
“Don’t call me pops unless you want me to revoke that access,” Charlie warned playfully. Harrison had to admit the banter was pretty comical. A lot of the girls called him pops, probably because when it came down to it, if any of the customers got out of line, pops had been the one who would be knocking them back in line, with the Louisville slugger under his counter. He knew exactly how to hit a homerun right out of the park, and then some.
“It’s alright, Pops. I’m just fucking with you,” Skye snorted with a wink. Charlie slid her glass back to her and followed suit with Harrison’s.
“He takes pretty good care of everyone here,” Harrison remarked quietly as Charlie disappeared back down the counter.
“He’s always been good to everyone. I think he likes things better now that the Devil’s Flames took over, though,” Skye added.
“Yeah, I can see preferring to fill drinks instead of knocking out teeth.”
“You seem like the type who enjoys bashing heads,” Skye observed.
“If it’s deserved, sure. Sometimes a good beating is the only thing people understand,” Harrison stated.
“I get that. We have cops and soldiers and war. Sometimes a little brutality is the only language we’ve got.”
“Exactly. Not everyone is willing to follow basic law, and that’s when a few outlaws are needed to keep a balance,” Harrison said.
“I’ve seen it too many times to deny it. We can wish it wasn’t like that, but some people are just born with a tendency for chaos.”
Harrison agreed, but he didn’t want to get anymore bogged down in discussing the dregs of society. “Do you have a plan for executing your exit from here?”
She didn’t even seem to notice the subject change, flowing smoothly with him. “Maybe, but I can’t make all my moves yet. It’s going to take a while longer. A girl’s got bills to pay and all that,” she said.
“Can I ask what your plans entail?” he asked, curious of just how serious she was about all this.
“I’m surprised you’re this interested. I mean, it’s not a very stimulating conversation, is it?” she asked, looking at him with narrowed eyes.
He shrugged, trying to play it cool. “I just find it refreshing that someone here has goals. It’s nice to see people still trying to advance, not just draw a paycheck so they can get by.”
“It’s not like I have escaped that cycle yet, but I have a business model that I think could work. I just need to keep working and saving up, and eventually, I’ll get there.” She smiled.
“You seem pretty tight-lipped about it,” Harrison noted.
“I’m not ready to talk about it yet. You can always ask me again, and I might feel less like it’ll jinx me to talk about it,” she chuckled.
“I guess you give me no other choice but to hold you to that,” he chuckled,
“Good, then we’ll always have something to talk about,” Skye winked.
“Yeah, I have to say you make a good drinking partner.” He waved at Charlie as he polished off his drink.
“Ditto,” she replied, raising her freshly poured drink in a toast.
Harrison smiled back at her as she turned to watch Charlie work with a curious expression. He’d been too hard on her, he realized. She seemed to be fun and engaging and to have a good head on her shoulders. He’d pegged her all wrong, and that did nothing to douse the desire that had risen inside every time he thought of her. Yes, she was great, and for him, that was awful.
4
“I...” Skye trailed off with a low belch and quickly covering her mouth with her hand. “Sorry.” She felt immediate humiliation, but Harrison just chuckled.
“Drank a bit too much?” he asked casually.
Skye shrugged. “I guess so,” she slurred. Waving to Charlie, she lifted her head, “Another, please?” The bartender moved slowly but refilled both their drinks.
“I’m not used to seeing you out here drinking like that.” Harrison remarked.
Skye waved her hand carelessly and lifted her drink up to her lips again, relishing the burn as she knocked it down her throat. “That’s only because I don’t usually spend my time getting sloshed amongst the locals,” she snorted.
Quirking a brow, he asked, “Should I take that to m
ean you’ve enjoyed the company?”
“I suppose.” She hiccupped, lowering her face to rest atop the bar counter.
“Excuse me a moment. I’ve got to hit the john,” he said, slipping from the barstool. As he walked away Skye leaned forward and beckoning Charlie for at least the twentieth time.
The barkeep ambled toward her, filled her glass, and met her blurred gaze. “I would never cut you off, Skye, but you might want to slow down,” he warned, pushing her glass back toward her.
Skye rolled her eyes, her gaze shifting across the club as she watched Harrison step out of the bathroom. Frowning, she stood up and lifted her glass, striding towards Harrison like a woman on a mission.
As she met him halfway, she began, “Since you’re the reason I’m…” Skye hiccupped again, and lurched forward. Harrison stepped in front of her, bracing her with one sleeved arm so she didn’t face plant into the floor at his boots.
“Whoa, I don’t know what you were about to tell me, but I think you’re trashed,” Harrison noted with too much amusement in his voice.
“Well, aren’t you a rocket scientist?” Skye chuckled, “You think you can help me home?”
Harrison glanced past her toward the bar, and even in her inebriated state, Skye knew he was all but asking Charlie’s permission to leave with her. And Charlie would give him a nod, glad to get her out of his hair.
Harrison sighed and looked down at her, confirming her suspicions. And also assuring her he felt obligated under his professional position to do the right thing. “Yeah, I can do that.”
“Great,” Skye stated, fishing into her bra to pull out her keys. “You get to drive.” She stuffed them into his palm casually. Harrison waved her forward. He’d had a lot to drink, but she knew he hadn’t quite kept up with her, and being twice her size, he could handle a lot more. He was practically sober.