Why did I tell him my real name! It just came out. That was such a rookie mistake. The girls backstage would be shaking their head at me now.
His leather vest looked so good on him, showing off his big muscles. His patches on his left breast stated: Dark Steel MC and Sgt-at-Arms. I wasn't sure what that meant but it sounded badass. I grinded against Axe, rubbing his giant erection right between my cheeks. The blood in my veins boiled as his hands touched me all over. I'd been with so many customers before but this one was different. He was strong, confident, and so god damn sexy. Desire pooled between my thighs. I got lost in the moment as he grabbed my breasts. I'd never wanted a man more than now.
Suddenly, Axe pushed me off him. I didn't want to stop. He wanted me to go home with him. My brain struggled with the decision. I so desperately wanted him to take me right there in the booth. All I'd have to do was bend over and keep my mouth shut as he pounded me. Nobody would find out.
But that was wrong. I didn't want my first time to be in this strip club. In the end, I was always a good girl. I told him the same thing I told every customer—I couldn't go home with him. Axe handed me two-hundred dollars and bolted out of the booth.
Two-hundred dollars. The lap dance was only thirty.
I ran out to tell him thank you but he was already gone. I looked for him everywhere and eventually found him coming out of the men's restroom.
“I wanted to give you my number before you left,” I said, handing him a scrap of paper with my digits written on them. Another rookie mistake.
Axe looked down and his eyes flared. “I'm really going to call you.”
My cheeks flushed. “I hope so.”
The motorcycle club left and Emerald was almost completely empty. I went backstage and changed back into normal clothes.
“Winter, who was that last customer you had? He was so dreamy.” Poppy asked.
“One of the guys from the motorcycle club.”
“Did you get his number? I'd love to ride a piece of meat like him.”
“Sorry Poppy, I didn't.”
I decided to leave out the fact that I gave Axe my number. Poppy was beyond beautiful and this biker was going to be all mine. I said my goodbyes to everyone at the club and left for home.
—
I pulled up to the tiny blue townhouse that Jenny and I rented. It sat at the end of a row of houses that all looked exactly the same with bars on the windows. We weren't in the nicest area but rent was cheap and the landlord let us do whatever we wanted.
I opened the front door to discover Jenny sitting at the breakfast bar, nursing a glass of wine.
“Why didn't you text me when you were coming home?” she blurted out.
Dammit. Why couldn't I ever remember to text her?
“I'm sorry, Jenny, I totally forgot. Things got a little crazy by the end of the night.” I set down my purse at the door and flung my heels off. The sudden relief of being without shoes was heavenly.
Jenny took a sip from her glass. “You better text me next time.”
“I will.” I gave her a quick hug and she was still rigid with anger. But a second later she loosened up and accepted me.
“Can I get you a glass?”
I nodded. I definitely needed wine after tonight.
Jenny went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of red. It was cheap but it was better than nothing. She poured me one and I downed it in seconds, not even taking the time to savor the flavor. The alcohol went to my head immediately.
“Long night, huh?” Jenny poured me another.
“You could say that again.” I grabbed the wine bottle and we both sat down on the crumb-filled couch in the living room.
Jenny looked into my eyes. “Oh my god, you met someone tonight.”
How did my face give away everything so easily?
I turned towards her. “How the fuck did you figure that out?”
“You have that glint in your eyes. You've never had it before so this guy must be amazing if he was able to hold your attention.”
I flushed at the thought of Axe. I didn't know much about him so why was he so captivating? We barely even spoke to each other and I already gave him my number. What kind of girl was I? The stripper cliché kept flashing across my mind.
Jenny put her hand over her mouth and gasped. She leaned over and whispered, “Did he take your virginity?”
“No way!” I shoved Jenny away hard. The glass of wine she was holding tipped slightly and spilled a little red on the carpet. “Oh crap, let me go get some paper towels.”
I rushed to the kitchen and returned with a whole roll of paper towels. We dabbed the stain on the carpet until there was only a faint blotch. Our carpet was already full of red wine mistakes. There was no way we were getting our deposit back.
“This guy must really be something. I've never seen you act this way before. What's his name?”
I contemplated whether I should give her more details. The wine was messing with my head. “His name's Axe.”
“Wow that justs screams sexy.” Jenny didn't even bother drinking out of a glass anymore. She palmed the bottle and drained it into her mouth. “He might be the one to finally make you a woman.”
I shook my head but deep down she could be right. He was the only man I'd ever felt this way about. He might be the one. “This is stupid. I met this guy at a strip club. Not exactly my style of a fairy-tale romance.”
Jenny put her hands on my shoulders and focused on me. “You need to forget about fairy tales. This is real life, Winter. Don't let it pass you by. Just let the guy stick it in.”
We both burst out laughing. But her words hit me in the gut. She was exactly right. I spent too many years waiting for my prince to come when there's no such thing. Too many movies and books conditioned me to wait for the perfect man. But that man didn't exist.
“Enough about you. I met a guy today too.” Jenny beamed.
I grabbed the bottle of wine from her and took a swig. “Tell me all about him.”
“Well I haven't exactly met him yet.” Uh oh. Here we go again.
“His name's Eric and I met him through one of those dating apps. We've been sexting back and forth all day.” Jenny pulled out her phone and almost showed me the dirty texts until I waved her phone away.
“Jenny, do you really want to go through this again?”
She cocked her head to the side. “What do you mean?”
“Come on, you know exactly what I mean. Remember Harrison—the guy who really turned out to be a girl.”
Jenny giggled hard. “Yeah that was rough. I almost turned lesbian for Harrison. But Eric is going to be different.”
“What about Gary who actually turned out to be a fourteen-year old boy?”
“I'm still waiting for him to become legal so we could date. He was so mature for his age.”
I rolled my eyes. “I think you really need to find a job, Jenny. For one, I can't afford the rent by myself. And two, you'd meet plenty of real guys outside who were the right gender and age.”
“I've tried, Winter. Really I have. I've been to dozens of auditions but I haven't gotten any callbacks yet.”
Jenny was trying to make it as an actress but the competition was extremely rough. Ever since she graduated college she'd only landed a couple commercials. They paid well but the money didn't last. Nobody had the heart to tell her that her dream probably wasn't going to come true.
“Why don't you try something part-time. Maybe waitressing? Or I could get you a job at the club.”
“You want me to dance?” Jenny downed the last of the wine and slammed the empty bottle on the coffee table.
I shrugged. “We could use the extra money.”
“Well I have an audition tomorrow. If I don't hear anything back, then I'll try it your way.”
I smiled. “Sounds like a plan.” I stood up and my knees wobbled from the wine. “I'm going to hit the sack.”
Jenny yawned and nodded. “Me too.”
I stumbled into my room and tripped over a layer of dirty clothes, crashing face first into my bed. I was so exhausted and ready for the night to be over. I closed my eyes and Axe's lean build and tattoos invaded my head. I grinned and blissfully fell asleep.
—
The next morning, I awoke with a spitting headache. The sun blazed through the windows and burned my eyes. I grabbed a pillow and buried my face in it. The memories of last night and Axe came back to me. I reached my hand out and felt around the bed for my phone. I must have left it in my purse at the door. I had to find out if Axe tried to contact me.
I used all the available energy in my body to lift myself up off the bed. I wiped dried drool from my cheek and realized that I fell asleep in the clothes from last night. I took my first step and the room spun, my head jackhammering with a hangover. I used the walls to hold myself up as I made my way down the hallway and to the front door.
My cellphone was right where I left it, in my purse by the door. I turned it on but nothing happened. The screen was blank. My battery obviously ran out and my charger was all the way back in my room. Jenny was in the kitchen cooking some sausages and singing an Ariana Grande song out loud.
She poked her head out. “Want some breakfast, Winter?” The smell of greasy food almost made me vomit. I groaned and crawled to my bedroom.
I undressed and climbed under the cool bedsheets. I plugged in my phone and turned it on. I waited a few moments—no missed calls. I sighed and pulled the covers over my head. What if Axe never called me?