“Here you go, sexy,” he said with a wink as he set the glass down in front of me.
“Thanks, stud.” I gave him a wink in return and a smile. Of all the men who surrounded me daily, Mac was the only one who got a genuine smile from me. Maybe if things had been different, if I were a normal girl from the normal world… The thought wasn’t even worth finishing.
A moan escaped me as the cold water slid down my throat. Dancing always left me thirsty.
“Don’t be making sounds like that, Ella.”
I quirked a brow at him. “Using my name? Tsk-tsk, Mac.”
He leaned his forearms onto the bar, giving a quick glance toward Al before licking his lips. “Want to punish me for it later?”
The last time we’d been together, I was the punished one—ass spanking, hair pulling, choking. Mac was an aggressive lover—and exactly what I needed.
I leaned in closer to match his stance. Stress relief sounded like fun, especially after I dealt with the assholes on the far wall. “Punish you? And how would I accomplish that?”
“By keeping me hard all night until I get you back to my place.”
My thighs clenched, and I bit down on my lower lip. “And then what?”
He crooked his finger, and I leaned in so he could whisper in my ear. “And then I fuck you until you come so hard on my cock, you’ll have trouble teasing me tomorrow with your fuck-hot body because you have trouble walking.”
A moan slipped from between my lips. “But won’t that just turn you on, knowing you are the reason?”
His tongue peeked out between his lips as he looked at me. “Then I guess I’ll have to punish you tomorrow night.”
The offer was awfully tempting, especially since the last time I’d had sex with Mac was too many weeks ago. I needed release, and I knew Mac was capable of pulling off just what he promised. “What time do you get off work?”
“Two,” he replied.
“I’m off at midnight.”
“Why don’t I come over after?”
That would give me time to go home and shower. “I suppose we could do that, but you’ve got to deliver.”
“Wear that little blue dress. I’ve got some ideas,” he said with a devilish smirk.
“You’re on, stud.”
I finished my water and then headed to get ready for my second trip around the pole, but before I could slip into the back, someone grabbed my arm, halting me. One of Al’s meaty hands was wrapped around my arm at the elbow.
I prepared myself for some lecture for talking to Mac, but the words that came out were not to reprimand me.
“Belle, those two suits over there paid for an hour.”
I didn’t have to look at where he was gesturing, and I ground my teeth in agitation. “No.”
“You’ll do it. Candi is taking your next slot.”
“I don’t want to.”
“I don’t care what you want—they paid. What’s with you?” His brow was scrunched. I never turned down a private dance for a client. Usually they were the type to tip more than I would make in a night on the stage.
“They just creep me out,” I said.
Al looked to them, then nodded in agreement. “Yeah, something’s not right with them boys. Go on, I’ll keep watch.”
With a sigh of resignation, I stomped across the room. I wasn’t trying to lure them in or tease them, but the eyes on me said that my shoes had my hips doing just that, regardless of what I wanted.
As I approached, they straightened in their seats. With each step my anxiety grew, because I knew they were from my past life. I didn’t recognize them but their attitude said it all, and I wasn’t going to be taken back.
I crossed my arms in front of me as I stopped in front of them and glared. I’d never seen them before, but they had the look I was familiar with.
“What do you want?” I ground out, letting them know by my posture I wasn’t interested.
They glanced at each other, and the stoic bald man spoke. “You’re not safe here.”
I tried not to let them see the turmoil brewing inside me. Not because of their words, but that they’d just confirmed they were my father’s men. “I’m perfectly fine.”
“There have been threats. We need to get you to a secure location,” he stressed.
“How many times do I have to say no?”
“I’m sorry, did you say something?” the dark blond asked with a smirk. He was the one I’d seen from the stage. The stoic, even nature of most of my father’s employees didn’t extend to him.
“Miss, you need to come with us,” the other one said, shooting a glare of warning at his partner.
Miss. They always called me Miss.
“I am home, and your hour is up.”
“It’s only been five minutes,” the cheeky blond said.
I turned back to him. “That’s an hour in my presence. Go back empty-handed and beg forgiveness, because I am not going anywhere with you.”
They stood, and I instinctively backed up, my heart slamming. They wouldn’t forcefully take me, would they?
The blond held out his hand, a small white card hanging between his first two fingers. “If you need anything, bella.”
I drew a brow and stared at him, gaining satisfaction at the grumble of frustration that passed before he let go. The card twirled to the ground between us.
My glare followed them, watching them step through the doors. The white card was stark against the dark floor. My lips turned down in disgust before I picked up my foot and shoved my six-inch heel through the paper stock to the carpet below.
“What was all that about?” Al grabbed my arm, twirling me around to look at him.
“Nothing.”
“Ain’t nothing. Those guys paid, and you’re gonna give me a bad rep with that attitude.”
“They weren’t here for a show,” I spat, my anger still sitting at the surface. I twisted my arm to free it from his grip.
“What were they here for, then?”
Nobody knew my past. I was just another runaway, escaping a life, getting lost in drugs and booze and showing off my body to hungry eyes, only without the drugs and booze. My story started differently. I was just as poor as the other girls, but the Louis Vuitton satchel in my locker wasn’t a fake.
Sacrifices were made because everything has a price. Freedom was only free if you took it, so I’d taken mine.
It wasn’t the first time my father’s henchmen had hunted me down and demanded my return, but it was the first time they’d mentioned anything about my safety.
Something about that was unsettling, but I pushed it down. It was just another tactic to get me to heel, and it wasn’t going to work.
“They wanted a whore for some party,” I spat, knowing Al would be up in arms. Nothing could get his business shut down faster than the suspicion of prostitution.
“Good girl. They ain’t welcome here if that’s the case.”
That gave me hope that they’d be banned, so if my father sent them again, they wouldn’t be allowed in.
A few hours and a few dances later, I was ready for a shower. I washed the makeup from my face, happy to have the layers and the weight of the false eyelashes gone. I was hooking up with Mac later, and he liked the natural look more than my painted-up face.