Chapter Sixteen
Summer
I return to the clubhouse right after TR leaves me. At least now I can call him TR.
There was no point in my staying there in the club. What was I going to do there? Sit at the bar alone and watch other couples dance? That’s not my idea of fun, and besides, it would just make me green with envy.
It was bad enough that I had to stop at the local drive-thru to buy food when I almost crashed on my way out of the club parking lot.
Note to self, don’t drink tequila on an empty stomach.
Then to top off my shittastic day, I had to walk back alone through the clubhouse less than two hours after I originally left with a bag of takeout in one hand and my heels in the other. I looked like I got dumped by my boyfriend and felt sorry for myself so I went to buy something to pig out on. At least it's fast food and not ice cream.
The strange thing was when I arrived at the clubhouse, I found not a single Harley parked out front. The only person that seemed to be around was the prospect manning the front gate. I almost went to ask him where the guys went, but he’s not super friendly, so I decide against it.
I instead decide to ask one of the many women sitting inside watching me with smirks on their faces. They look like they want to laugh at me, so I might as well talk to them, so they don’t have to talk behind my back about how much of a stuck up bitch I am.
“Hey Cherry,” I nod to the redhead sitting in the center of the group. She’s the only one whose name I remember.
“What do you want, slut?” her friends chuckle around her, and she leans forward to rest her arms on her knees with her legs spread. Like anyone wants to see her nasty snatch. I wonder how many bikers she fucked today wearing those same clothing and dirty looking thong.
“I was wondering what happened to all your biker buddies? They get tired and take a break so you could finally shower?” I ignore her comment about me being a slut and take a jab at her instead. “Oh wait, that would require you to get your lazy ass up, which clearly you haven’t,” I gesture towards her attire.
The girls catcalling around her makes me know I’ve hit a nerve and probably have initiated the beginning of my first fight with the sluts that hang out around here.
“No, they left so that way they didn’t have to see how dirty virgins do their walk of shame,” I roll my eyes when she giggles and fist bumps the girl seated next to her. Seriously a dirty virgin? This girl must not get out much.
“At least when I fuck men, they beg for me to come back the next day and give me their numbers. Not like you, that when they are done, they have to fuck other sluts so they can finally cum,” the girls gasp around her, and I take my cue to leave the room. That girl isn’t going to tell me anything useful, she’s just going to get up and start a catfight with me. It would’ve been better to have just called Natalie from the start, I don’t know what I was thinking engaging the redhead.
I hear the click of stripper heels behind me and quickly open my door and slam it shut behind me, turning the lock in place. I know eventually Cherry, and I will come to blows, but it will not be today when I have alcohol in my system and no food in my stomach. It’s bad enough I have to deal with being left with wet panties and no relief until tomorrow.
I take off my club outfit and toss it in the corner of the room, not caring where it lands right now. I’m hungry, horny, and tired. That is definitely not a good combination. I locate my favorite pajamas that have puppies on them and tug them on while looking for my remote so I can watch one of my pre-recorded shows.
I’m really getting into my show and about halfway through my bacon cheeseburger when my phone alerts me of an incoming text. I eye the phone on the table next to me and think about looking at the screen, but ignore it and prepare to take another bite of my burger. That’s when the stupid thing starts ringing.
“What the fuck has someone’s panties all in a bunch?” I growl out loud.
I miss the call before I can reach for the phone and just as soon as it ceases to ring, it starts all over again.
I think about picking it up and asking what the hell is wrong with the person who keeps calling, but when I see Thunder’s name on the display, some of the annoyance I felt dissipates.
“Hey Thunder, is everything okay with Bella?” Immediately I’m on my feet and looking for my medical bag and sneakers.
“Everything’s fine with Bella, I’m not calling about her. I’m calling for another medical need, I’m going to text you an address, I need you to be here in fifteen minutes,” he doesn’t give me a chance to reply, he instead disconnects, and the line goes dead.
“How lovely,” I sigh looking over at my half-eaten dinner and pulling on my shoes. Just when I thought I was going to be enjoying a quiet night in, duty comes calling at the one moment I have zero desire to leave my room. I just hope Cherry ran off with one of the bikers so I don’t have to deal with her and her shit.
I take one final bite of my burger and pull my door shut with a sigh.
Seconds later, my phone pings with an unknown address from Thunder and a note that says to ask for Twinkie. What a lovely stripper name. Must mean I’m headed to the strip club.
I make it out of the clubhouse without incident, happy to see Cherry giving a blowjob to one of the prospects on the couch. I’ve never been so happy to see a whore giving a blowjob out in the open before.
Ten minutes later, I pull up to a parking lot that is packed with cars. This must be the strip club Ryan and Natalie told me about. The Dragon is a well-kept club from the outside, much like everything else the Dragon Skulls own. I shouldn’t be surprised by now, but I still continue to be amazed at the care and detail they put into everything they own.
Walking up to the door, I expect the bouncers to tell me I can’t go inside, but the second I tell them I’m here to see Twinkie, they hold the door open for me and gesture for me to go inside.
My eyes are drawn to every corner of the room. The black leather seating, the lit up bar on the other side of the room, and the many dancers in the room. The girl on stage performing a dance, the waitresses wearing nothing but tiny skirts and pasties, and the girls giving lap dances. Oh the girls giving lap dances, I can’t seem to look away from them. I want to look away, I don’t want to watch other women take their clothes off, but I just can’t seem to help myself and find myself entranced by their movements.
The song ends, and the dancer in the center of the stage walks off, finally releasing me from the trance I was under. It suddenly dawns on me that I have no clue where I am supposed to be going and where to find Twinkie. I look behind me to see if the bouncers are still there, but the doors are shut, and they’ve remained outside.
I do the next best thing I can, I walk through the bodies and over to the bar. A lot of the men stare at me, and even the women stop to gawk. I turn in a circle, noting that almost everyone is looking in my direction. I look down at my body and other than the fact that I forgot to change out of my puppy pajamas, I don’t understand what everyone is staring at.
I shrug off the stares and continue to move over to the bar and take the last open seat in the middle of the bar. I gesture for the bartender to come over and she gives me a sneer and starts to move away from me.
I sigh, she’s going to have me here at least another half hour before I get her to finally come this way so I can ask her where to find Twinkie.
She gets halfway down the bar when she looks up at something in the distance, and I watch as her shoulders visibly sag in defeat and she makes her way over to me.
I look around behind me, but I don’t see anyone there.
“What can I get you?” she asks, never once looking up at me. Instead, she cleans the space in front of me, puts down a napkin and a menu.
“I didn’t come here to eat,” I tell her, pushing the menu back in her direction. She gives me a nasty look, looks behind her and plasters a fake smile on her face. “I’m looking for Twinkie,” I tell her, ignoring her weird attitude changes.
“Laramie, take this one back to see Twinkie,” she nods in my direction and moves off to serve her customers.
Bitch, I think to myself, smiling extra sweet on her face. Take this one back, who the fuck talks about another human like that?
I follow the tall blonde who is wearing a green miniskirt, no panties, and matching green pasties. Honestly, she might as well be wearing nothing if she’s going to wear a skirt like that. I look around and have another look at the women here, I feel nothing but disgust for the way they are dressed. I know this is a business, and they have to do what needs to be done to make money, but they look trashy and distasteful. I hope Twinkie doesn’t look like the rest of them do, or I’m going to have a hard time trying to keep my mouth shut.
“Twink, someone’s here to see you,” she gestures in my general direction and heads off, leaving me standing there with my medical bag in front of me, my hands clasped together around the handle.
I bounce back and forth in place, fidgeting nervously when the figure seated in the chair before me doesn’t turn in my direction. She’s too busy looking out at the crowd down below us.
When she finally stands from her seat and turns to face me, I’m taken aback by her appearance. Not only is she fully dressed in a pink cardigan and blue jeans, but she’s devastatingly beautiful. I’m not a lesbian or anything, but if I were one, this would be the woman I’d want to choose for myself.
Her dirty blonde hair is curled around her shoulders, and her eyes light up a deep green color when she smiles at me for the first time.
“You must be Summer, my name is Kara, but most people around here call me, Twinkie,” she offers me her hand, and I reluctantly take it. For all I know, she’s going to be up next on stage. “Relax, girl. You don’t need to be nervous, no one is going to make you take the stage. I’m Dean’s old lady, I’m sure you’ve met.”
Realization dawns on me. She’s not going to be dancing here tonight, she’s in charge here. Dean would never allow his old lady to take the stage and dance for all the nasty, horny, old men down there.
“Come on, Thunder keeps blowing me up, they need you downstairs in the back room. We have a situation with one of our dancers, and we need you to check her out and find out what happened to her. She’s refusing to tell the men, and if I ask her, she’ll just tell me some elaborate lie to get out of telling me the truth,” she tugs on my hand, and I don’t hesitate to follow behind her.
We make it to the back, and she ushers me into a small room with a desk, fridge, small filing cabinet, and a sofa in the back corner that currently is being occupied by a shaking woman with brown and purple hair. I can’t make out her features with her back towards me, but I can see enough to know that she’s terrified.
This is further displayed when she visibly flinches when Tigger touches her lightly on the shoulder. I watch as his shoulders sag in defeat and he pulls away from her.
I look around the small room and instantly, I know why she’s so nervous. The room is full of people, making the space feel even more claustrophobic. If that were me on that sofa, I’d be feeling the same way.
I touch Kara’s arm to get her attention. “I think it might be best to have everyone clear out so I can examine her. She’s extremely nervous and having all these people in here isn’t helping.”
She nods once and motions for Drag to join us.
“We need everyone to clear out, for now, she needs to examine Clara and speak to her alone. All these people in here are making her nervous,” Kara relays to him.
He looks over at me, and I nod once in confirmation, and he runs his hand through his hair -that he’s left down today- when he turns to face his club.
“Summer needs a few minutes alone with Clara, everyone but Tigger outside,” somehow even in a calm, and low voice, Drag seems to be able to convey an authoritative tone with the club.
Everyone around us starts to exit, except for Tigger who stays firmly planted in the chair behind his desk, continuing to stare across the room at Clara. Unwarranted jealousy fills me when I watch the way he continues to watch her in concern.
Maybe that’s his girlfriend?
Maybe he cares about her as more than just one of his employees?
Why would he ask me out if he’s seeing someone already?
I don’t like feeling this way, especially over someone I barely know, but the feeling is there, and I am powerless to stop it, almost like my body and mind want to stamp the man as mine.
What. The. Fuck.
I clear my throat and turn back to face Drag and Kara. Drag looks over at Tigger and back at me before his eyes seem to light with recognition.
“He refuses to leave. He feels guilty because he wasn’t here to protect the girls. As the owner, he thinks it’s his responsibility to keep all the girls safe and out of harm’s way. Something serious could’ve happened, and he never would’ve forgiven himself,” he looks in Kara’s direction, and I feel like he’s not referring to Clara. “He wasn’t here, he was off doing lord only knows what and now he feels guilty.”
Wait, I thought he said he was coming to work tonight?
I don’t have time to dwell on it when Kara puts her arm around my shoulders and leads me forward. “Better get a move on nurse, the patient is waiting.”