victoria

 

 

Thump. Thump. Thump. It was Friday night, and Victoria’s heart was racing. She gingerly put on one dangly earring, and then the next, making sure the backing was firmly on before bringing her hands down and taking a good long look at herself in the mirror.

She thought she looked fine. Better than fine, actually. A beige dress hugged every curve, and her navy high heeled sandals matched her clutch, while her shiny brown hair tumbled down in waves. The skin on her legs was still a little sensitive after the afternoon waxing, but no pain, no gain, right? A little lotion would take care of that.

She wondered to herself what kind of show started after 10pm, which is the time Bradley told her to show up at the theater, but she wasn’t too familiar with the scene, so who was she to judge? In any case, she didn’t care much about the show, other than how it related to him, so she didn’t dwell on it. She was going there to see him, and to taste him. The show itself was secondary, although she hoped that Ashley would like it, since she was really excited about seeing a show.

It didn’t take Victoria long to decide who to invite out for the night. She hadn’t really seen much of the other girls since that night out, other than for a coffee here and there, and she hadn’t told them all about her night with Bradley yet, so it made sense to take Ashley, who was already familiar with her and Bradley’s history. Besides, Ashley was still very upset over Rob, so she needed a distraction, especially on a weekend night.

Her nerves were wrecking her. This was unlike her, and the effect he had on her made her uneasy, to say the least. She had never lost control over her feelings. He was supposed to be just a quick fling to scratch an itch that needed to be scratched, so why was she thinking about him all the time?

It was even affecting her work, and that she took very seriously. One of her reasons for avoiding relationships right now was precisely because they tended to interfere with one’s professional life, which she couldn’t afford right now, and now her “fling” was doing precisely that!

She made a pact with herself: she would go all out tonight, allow him to do what he wanted with her, which she was sure she would enjoy, and then forget about him. It was almost a certainty that things would simmer down after the novelty of it wore off, and then they could go their separate ways. Maybe sooner rather than later. Or perhaps they can stick to being fuck buddies, so long as it didn’t interfere with her work.

She thought about him for a moment. Was there any way he could get hurt in all this? She didn’t want any hard or hurt feelings, after all. After some consideration, she decided that he can’t get hurt – he didn’t seem to be the type to get all lovey-dovey during a quick fling. He was too hot, too alpha, and had too many options to worry about just one girl. This new plan made sense to her, so she stopped worrying and started looking forward to the night ahead.

Her Uber stopped in front of Ashley’s condo and they waited there for a few minutes. Victoria grabbed her phone and decided to text Bradley.

We’re on our way.

Great. Can’t wait to see you.

She blushed, and instantly gave herself a mental kick in the head. Since when did a stupid text message make her blush, she wondered?

Ashley was still nowhere to be seen.

Victoria once again googled the address that Bradley had given her. She didn’t find any theater in the area on the map. Just some restaurants, convenience stores, some high-rise condos, and some kind of bar she had never heard of. Hmmm, she thought, maybe the map is outdated.

She heard the other door open and looked over. It was Ashley, and Victoria’s eyes popped open when she saw her.

“Oh, wow, you’re so stunning, hon!” Not that she normally wasn’t, but this was something else entirely.

“Thanks, sweetie. I decided to stop moping and to have a little fun tonight. Who knows, might even meet someone. Not Mr. Right, just Mr. Right Now. Right for tonight, shall we say.” She laughed and gave Victoria a nudge.

Victoria chuckled. This was more like the Ashley she knew.

“I could tell you’re ready to mingle, hon. You look great. I mean, you always do, but you sure put some special effort into it tonight. In a good way.”

Ashley’s blonde curls bounced as she nodded. “I went to Sephora and had a makeover this afternoon. Do you like my fake lashes? They’re not too obvious, are they?” She fluttered her eyelashes in Victoria’s face. It was too dark to see much, but Victoria didn’t want to rain on her parade.

“They really make your eyes pop. And the makeup is so sexy!” She smiled brightly for her friend.

Ashley tugged on her skirt as she got comfortable in the seat. She was wearing a short, tight black skirt with a flowy top that had a cool pattern in dark forest green, and high heel sandals.

“So, are you excited to see him again?” Ashley raised her eyebrows – she seemed almost more excited than herself.

Victoria grinned and sighed. “Yeah, I guess,” she said.

She normally didn’t like to share her feelings, even with her best friends, but this time was different. It was becoming so hard not to tell her friends about how hot she was for him, and about how different he was from her initial impression of him.

All the things she had learned about him during their brief time together was starting to paint a much different picture of him than the arrogant jerk at Sips that night. She remembered her plans to make it a quick fling and held back on sharing much.

Somehow, if she started telling her friends too much, it might make it feel all too real, and she didn’t want that. There was no use in getting excited over something that would never come to fruition, she figured. But she decided to throw caution to the wind and be more open with Ashley. She knew most of the details already, so there wasn’t much new to tell, but she could definitely help her figure things out if they got too complicated.

She was sure she was blushing, but hoped the darkness in the car concealed her pink cheeks. She didn’t hold back, and spilled to Ashley about how hot that night was at his place and what was likely to transpire later that night.

Ashley looked at her with wide eyes. “So, you’re gonna get that fine specimen of a man tonight? Aww, I’m so jealous,” she said.

“Shhhh,” Victoria hissed, gesturing towards the driver.

“Don’t worry about him, I’m sure he’s heard it all,” she said, rolling her eyes quickly and laughing.

Victoria continued. “Yes, I’m going to his place tonight after the show, or after whatever we plan to do after the show, but don’t get too excited. It’s sex, nothing else. You know, he’s a great guy, but not the guy for me–”

Ashley cut her off. “Why is he not the guy for you?” she asked, with a hint of annoyance in her voice. “And what makes you so sure of that?”

Victoria paused and looked out the window. “Well, for one thing, although he seems to be nice, he also has too much of a player vibe going on. I’m not sure I can handle that in the long term. And frankly, no one is the guy for me right now. I’ve a career to focus on and worry about, remember? He’d just distract me from that and screw up everything I’ve worked so hard for. I mean, I can’t even concentrate during my board meetings, because I’m constantly thinking about him!! It can’t go on like this, or I’ll never make partner and everything will have been a waste.”

“You’re being a bit melodramatic, aren’t you, though?”

“What do you mean?” Victoria looked at her and cocked her head to the side. She wasn’t sure why Ashley would accuse her of being melodramatic when all her concerns were perfectly valid.

“I mean, why do you have to overanalyze things? Can’t you just spend some time with him, have fun, and see where it goes? Like normal people do? I swear, you lawyers are all anal-retentive type A worry warts. Just live in the moment for once, and you might have some fun!”

“You don’t understand, Ashley.”

“Why, because my career isn’t as fancy and important as yours?”

Uh-oh, this is entering dangerous territory, Victoria thought. She had to think quick. “No, that’s not what I mean at all, and you know it. You’re great at your job, and you’ve got it made. I’m on thin ice, because all my colleagues at my level are in direct competition for partnership in a few years. Law firms are weird like that, and it’s just hard to get the full gist of it unless you live it.”

That seemed to appease Ashley and she offered up a half smile. “Well, you know what’s best for you. All I’m saying is, sometimes there are different ways to look at things, and if you try it, you might find yourself having a little more fun and being a little less stressed.”

Victoria considered what Ashley said. A part of her knew that Ashley was right, and she needed to lighten up. She told herself that’s why she agreed to even go out with Bradley again – to have fun. To Ashley she just said, “You’re right, I’ll try to be a little more flexible and worry less.”

“We’re here,” said their driver.

Victoria looked out the window and craned her neck left and right. “Are you sure this is it? I don’t see a theater anywhere.”

She hoped Bradley hadn’t sent her out to the middle of nowhere just for shits and giggles, but if he had, well, that would mean she didn’t have to think very hard about what to do about him.

“I’m sure, lady,” said the driver, clearly exasperated.

“Ok, thanks,” she said, and hesitantly stepped out of the car. Ashley came around from the other side and stood beside her, looking up and down the row of storefronts and restaurants before them.

“Well, which place is it? I don’t see a theater,” Ashley said, with a confused look on her face.

“Uh, let me double check here,” Victoria said under her breath as she whipped out her phone to check the text message in which he had sent the address. “Ok, it should be about 5 doors down this way.” She led the way. They got to the end of the row of stores and she turned the corner.

“Looks like it’s here. Number 35,” she said as she checked the signage. “Kave,” she muttered under her breath. What sort of theater is named Kave?

She looked around. There were a few women chatting loudly a few steps from the entrance. She opened the door to the theater and was surprised to find stairs leading downstairs, and loud music wafting up.

“Looks like it’s downstairs,” she said to Ashley behind her.

“That’s interesting,” said Ashley. “Maybe it’s a student-run theater or something?”

“Well, he didn’t mention that, but he did say he’s a med student.”

A poster on the stairwell wall caught her eye and she stopped dead in her tracks. The poster featured a half naked man in a cowboy hat and her jaw fell to the floor. It couldn’t be! Could it be – Bradley? She looked at Ashley but no words came out of her mouth. She was completely shell-shocked and speechless. Ashley looked confused.

“Why do they have an ad for a strip bar here?” She asked, not realizing the reason for Victoria’s state of shock. “What’s wrong, Victoria?”

Victoria wasn’t sure what to say. Maybe Bradley was also a model? He certainly had the face and body for it, that much she was sure of. She made a mental note to ask him about that as soon as she got a minute alone with him. She looked closer at the poster and saw the address – and it just so happened to be the same address she had looked up a few moments ago!

She hurried down the stairs, with Ashley close behind, and was just about to go through the second set of doors when she was stopped by the voice of a woman.

“Excuse me! There’s cover tonight. We have a special show by our Men at Work group. You wanna hurry, it already started! But it’ll be $15.00 cover, sweetie.”

Victoria was dazed for a moment, but then she remembered what Bradley had told her about the list.

“Umm, we’re on the guest list I think. Victoria Connor. It’s just the two of us.”

The girl searched through the names on her clipboard and looked up with a smile.

“Aha, there you are! Here, let me give your stamps.”

Victoria hesitated before sticking out her right wrist. She hoped it was washable.

Ashley was a little more enthusiastic and gave up her wrist with a big smile on her face. She caught Victoria’s look and said “What? I’ve invited you to strip bars before, but a certain party pooper never approved. And now, here we are. Thanks to your boyfriend,” she said, laughing mischievously.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” Victoria hissed.

Ashley made a face. “So, if he said he’s in a show here tonight, does that mean he’s one of the strippers?” A look of realization and surprise flashed across her face.

Victoria shrugged and didn’t answer. Her heart raced. Bradley hadn’t mentioned anything about stripping. How could he keep something like that from her? She wasn’t one to be too judgmental, but that seems like a pretty big deal, and something you should probably mention to someone before you invite them to watch you.

Intellectually, she was repulsed; yet, at the same time, her body was telling her that a little part of her deep within was turned on by the whole idea. So, her instincts were right all along, she concluded. He was just a player and a hot womanizer, not someone you’d want to take home to your dad who’s a partner at one of the most prestigious firms in Manhattan.

She took a deep breath and pushed through the second set of doors. The noise was deafening, and for a moment she felt disoriented. She realized the center of attention was just to their right, and sure enough, that’s where the stage was. It was empty now, but the MC’s voice boomed through the speaker.

“Ladies, ladies, ladies, hold on to your thongs, because Dirty Dave is about to take the stage! Give him a warm welcome!” The crowd roared as the music changed to a sexy Latin beat.

Victoria just stood there, mouth agape, as she recognized the face of the man making his way to the stage in a navy uniform, already ripping off his shirt to reveal the most exquisite upper body she has ever seen. His strong muscles flexed as he pulled on the flimsy fabric and his skin shone under the bright lights. The screams and hollers of the women drowned out the music, but his rhythm was impeccable.

A heat rose in her – she didn’t know if it was anger at his failure to share this little tidbit of information, or lust from watching his perfect body up on stage with the knowledge of what he would be doing to her later that night.

Ashley pulled on her arm. “Come on, Vic, don’t just stand there. Let’s go get a table!”

Just as Victoria was about to make a move to follow Ashley, Bradley started to grind right by their end of the stage. Victoria tried to look away, but she couldn’t, and he must have sensed it because he looked right into her eyes, and at that moment she knew there was no going back.