I’d been working for Cole for the last couple of days, mainly doing mediocre work that I was sure he had someone else do for him normally. There was no doubt in my mind now that he really didn't need me as a personal assistant.

So did he hire me because he really did want me? Could that have been his only motivation?

That very thought had this realization rushing over me.

I had a lot of power.

It also had the feminine side of me waking, craving a touch only he could give me.

I wanted him, more than I’d ever wanted anyone else before. I may be a virgin, but I’d had a few boyfriends over the years. Men had made me feel happy, loved even. But that love had been superficial.

Those hadn’t been real emotions, but passing feelings from people who didn't even know me, from people who probably wanted something more for me than I would ever be willing to get them.

But with Cole I wanted to give him all of myself, everything that was inside of me. I wanted to experience the world with him, and that was a crazy feeling and sensation given the fact I really didn't know him.

The few conversations we had, aside from the very intimate one that very first day, had been professional. We hadn’t discussed what we’d talked about, how he wanted me and I wanted him, since that one time. But I felt his gaze on me constantly.

I pushed all thoughts of him aside and focused on finishing the last form that needed to be inputted into the database. Over the last few days I’d gotten to know the employees that worked at his club. They were genuinely nice, working here because they had to support their families, their children.

This wasn't a dirty strip club that housed a bunch of perverted old men wanting to gaze at beautiful young women. Although some of the clientele that came in here were a little questionable. But I suppose that was a given seeing as this was a strip club.

I shut down the computer and rubbed my eyes. It was late, I was tired, but despite that I had this energy moving through me. I was in Cole's office again, the door open, the voices of the girls leaving for the night drifting through. I heard the back door open and close, the heavy-metal banging shut with a resounding clank.

I grabbed my bag and headed out of his office, turning off the light and looking down the hallway before I left. I could see the dim glow coming from the main area of the club. I walked down, made a left, stopped and looked at the stage.

Everything was already cleaned up, and the chairs had already been placed on top of the tables. The smell of lemon and bleach filled my nose. But it was the stage with the gleaming silver pole that called to me. It wasn't that stripping was in my blood, but dancing was.

I left the main part of the stage and made my way toward the VIP section. I pushed open the red leather studded door and stared at the intimate space. There were black leather couches, a few tables and chairs placed toward the walls, and of course in the center of the room, the main attraction, the stage and pole.

There was a bar set up in the corner, a private one just for the VIP members. The club had secluded rooms for private lap dances, but this room was for the group of executives or high rollers, or even for bachelor parties that had money to spend.

I turned and looked at the door, wondering if what I really wanted to do was a smart move. I knew I wasn't alone, that maybe the bartender was still here, or the cleaning crew could be in the back area downstairs. But I really doubted anybody would come in this room. It also had been cleaned already, and as long as I was quiet, nobody would know I was here.

Last thing I needed was somebody coming in here, seeing me dancing, and then letting Cole know I was breaking some unspoken house rule. But this wasn't me wanting to strip because I wanted to be an exhibitionist. This was me missing dancing and letting myself be free.

This was me wanting to be me.

* * *

I’d been scarce throughout the day because I had shit to do, to my disappointment. I wanted to be around Jana, to just look at her, smell the sweet scent that came from her, and to tell her over and over that she was mine.

When I was around her, that's all I wanted to do … be around her.

I keyed in the code for the back door, pulled it open, and just stood there for a second. The club was still, silent, the hour late as fuck. A few of the cleaning crew were finishing up in the kitchen, the sound of their hushed voices coming through. I had to grab some paperwork and head back to my place. I should have gotten this shit earlier, but the truth was I hoped to run into Jana.

I went into my office, grabbed my work, and just for a second stood there. The room still smelled like her, this sweet, floral scent that made my dick hard.

Fuck.

I left the office, knowing that I would go home and jerk it. At this point even getting myself off wasn't doing the trick. What I needed—or more keenly, whom I needed—was so close to me I could barely stand it anymore.

I was about to head back out the back door when the sound of something in the VIP room caught my attention. I walked over to the door, pushed it open slightly, and my entire body froze.

Standing close to the stage was Jana, her bag by her feet, which was what I probably heard hitting the ground. She was staring at the stage, the lights on low and illuminating the pole.

Everything in me came alive.

She didn't have to tell me what she wanted to do for me to understand. She wanted to dance. But it wasn't about stripping. I knew that with certainty. She was a ballet dancer at heart, and moving to music, being graceful and elegant, was in her blood.

It was in that moment that I realized I wasn't going to stay back anymore. I couldn't.

I stepped fully into the room, shut the door behind me, and inhaled deeply. She probably sensed me close by, because she turned around and stared at me. Her eyes widened marginally, and I could tell her breathing picked up.

Tonight was going to be about her giving herself over to me, but also about me finally giving myself to someone.