Chapter 2
HAILEY
All the weight of my problems slip away when I’m Cherry.
Cherry doesn’t care what people think. Cherry has no problem flirting with Alphas or being the center of attention. Cherry is who I want to be, but for some reason she only comes out when the music is bumping in the confines of Lavender Moon.
I unclip the chaps, letting them fall away from my thighs with an audible clack against the floor, shoving them off the stage with an ostentatious heel.
Paulie in security will grab them and put them back in the wardrobe.
While I can appreciate the costumes at Lavender Moon, not all of them are conducive for climbing and spinning around on a pole.
I grab the cool steel, walking around a few times, getting a feel for the country song with a pop beat to it. I hook my ankles and knees around the pole, my hands high above my head, gripping the cold metal as I climb up.
It's as easy as breathing, doing simple tricks, letting my deep red hair fall behind me and just letting my new-found scent shine.
Here I’m an Omega and I feel like it. I like the hungry gazes on me, almost as much as I like the money trickling onto the stage below.
It’s not like I grew up poor or desolate. I was just never considered, which, in the end, is all I desperately want. It’s why I can’t seem to find anyone worth building a pack with.
I’ve spent so much time being seen but not heard.
The little girl who had all the best toys money could buy, but no one to play with.
People assumed I had this picturesque family with ample parents to provide me with attention, they couldn’t have been more wrong.
I know things could have been worse, so many people had far more traumatic childhoods.
But when you spend your entire life feeling invisible, it’s hard to shift into the spotlight.
Being Cherry is what allows me mentally to do this job. Which I surprisingly like. It’s just hard to tell when someone actually likes me, or they like my scent and the fact that I’m an Omega.
I want to be liked as both Cherry and Hailey. One day, maybe they won’t have to be separated in my mind to make sense.
I swirl around the pole as the music picks up.
Scents are permeating the air, some more mouth watering than others. A few make my nose itch. I tend to enjoy heavier scents, but at the end of the day even if their scent makes me want to crawl on top of an Alpha, there’s never been one I wanted to keep for more than a heat, or a night of fun.
I’m not sure what I’m searching for, but I just feel like I’ll know when I find it.
There are a few Alphas by my stage, some I recognize and some new faces. I smile wildly as I slide down to the floor, doing some leg work. Doesn’t hurt that my scent heightens as I open up my legs and shake my thighs before clicking my massive heels.
“Hey, Cherry,” a deep voice I recognize says.
“Hey, Ben,” I say with a smile, flipping onto my front and crawling to the edge of the stage.
I lie down on my stomach, swinging my feet behind me as I push my breasts together and smile at him.
He's a harmless regular, not the kind of Alpha who wants to settle down. Flirting with him and taking his money is easy.
He tucks a hundred dollar bill in my strap.
“How have you been?” he asks with a grin.
Ben is fine. Good looking enough. He smells like pine trees. But he’s just a client, and that’s the way I like to keep it when it comes to him.
“I got a cat,” I tell him with a wide smile.
He shoves another hundred in my strap. “For your pussy,” he says with a smirk and I shove his shoulder. “I’m going to say hi to Riley, save a dance for me.”
I salute him as he walks away and turn over on my back, raising my hips and doing more leg work.
I call this my lazy girl dance until I feel like getting back on the pole.
I arch my back and thrust my hips upward, the back of my skull is on the dance floor as I see a new patron's pretty face from my upside down position.
He smiles, and surprises me by standing and coming over to the stage. He glances at my face and then down my body.
I blink and glance back at his pretty baby blue eyes.
He has dark brown shaggy hair with a backwards cap. Definitely not the typical Tom Ford or Brioni suit that comes strolling through here. In fact, he’s wearing a tight black T-shirt, black and gray tattoos peeking from where they grip his biceps, and dark wash jeans.
But most of all, he’s a Beta.
Not that Betas don’t visit Lavender Moon, but usually they do as a pack. He seems wholly alone.
“Hi,” he says with a smile and I smile back.
“Hi.”
He rests his elbows on the stage, looking casual and confident as ever. I find it charming.
“Are those bruises from pole dancing?” he asks, his brows furrowed as he spots all the pole kisses on my arms and legs.
I hold my leg up so far back my heel is nearly touching his face.
“Occupational hazard, I fear.”
“Anyone special at home to kiss them better?” he asks.
My perfume leaks out of me when he asks. A few Alphas around my stage stiffen and come closer. But this man, he just presses his fist under his chin and looks at me like I’m fascinating.
“Just a cat,” I say shyly, some of Cherry’s confidence slipping away.
He tugs out his wallet and places what must be a thousand dollars on the stage and I swallow thickly.
“Is that enough for a lap dance?” he asks.
Oh, fuck. I’ve never felt this nervous before, it makes no sense. He’s not even an Alpha. I mean he’s incredibly hot and confident. Minus the stature and scent, you would think otherwise.
“In private?” he asks.
I nod and he holds out his hand; I take it. Marvin from security watches and I give him a tight wink that it’s fine.
The Beta man, whose name I don’t even know, grips me by the waist and helps me off the platform and onto the main floor. He holds on for slightly longer than needed to make sure I have my balance as he takes my hand and gestures for me to lead the way.
Marvin is collecting my money and will bring it backstage for me later as I lead this interesting stranger to one of the private rooms.
I pull the curtain back and he lets go of my hand and sits on one of the luxurious black couches. The music changes here to something more seductive. Nerves zip through my body.
Why’s he having this effect on me?
He gives me a small smile.
“You can just sit if you want to.”
You’re at work. You’re Cherry. You’re a hot ass Omega. Act like it, bitch.
I approach him, my heels clicking loudly with each step as I drag my nails slightly down his chest before sliding them back up to his neck.
“What’s your name?” I ask. I can’t keep referring to him as the Beta in my head.
“Hayes,” he says easily.
“No pack?” I ask, before whipping my hair to the side and planting my ass right in his lap.
He’s hard, and I take too much satisfaction over that.
It’s not like I haven’t grinded over my fair share of cock at this place, but something about this feels different.
“You can touch,” I nearly whisper as his hands grip my thighs roughly and respectfully at the same time.
“Not officially,” he says, and I still momentarily. “No Omega,” he whispers against the shell of my ear, making me shiver and perfume at the same time.
I lick my lips, moving against his body. It’s not as showy as I usually am in the private area, I find myself actually enjoying being pressed up against him.
“What about you? No interest in a pack?”
“Mmm. No one has caught my attention.”
His hands slide ever so slightly on my upper thighs, almost like he knows he’s caught my attention in a way other men haven’t before.
“Makes sense. You should be picky,” he says while sliding another hundred into the elastic of my shorts.
Mother of fuck.
“You make a killing here, don’t you…” The pause is long, like he’s waiting for my name.
“Hail—Cherry,” I rasp out.
I swear I can feel him smile against the back of my head.
“Cherry. Of course, it’s Cherry,” he says, his nose lightly dragging across my hair, identifying my scent.
My scent won’t make him wild like it would an Alpha, but there’s no doubt he’s enjoying my sweet black cherry perfume.
“Any chance you’d be interested in another opportunity?”
I pause, lifting up and turning around so I’m staring at him.
“If you’re here to ask me to work at another club you can fuck off right now,” I tell him with a finger pointed at his chest.
He grabs my finger. “Wouldn’t dare. I know Ian, wouldn’t want to piss him off,” he says and my brows furrow. He knows Mr. Martinez? “I need an Omega to accompany me to a high roller game this coming weekend. I’d pay you a quarter of my winnings.”
My eyes search his and he grins. “It’s a fifty-thousand dollar buy-in.”
I blink at him. “Holy shit,” I whisper, though I meant to keep it internal.
“It’s actually a pretty low buy-in, but it’s exclusive. I’m the only Beta in the tournament. I need to make a statement, and having the hottest Omega on my lap would make a difference.”
I lick my lips and his warm palms glide down the back of my thighs. His touch feels searing. I’d be an idiot not to take that money. Don’t get me wrong, I do well at Lavender Moon—I pay all my bills, I was able to furnish my apartment and get Smokey everything he needs.
But there’s something else I could use more than cash, something my shitty credit score is preventing me from getting currently.
“Instead of a cut, I want a car,” I tell him.
His tongue peaks out between his lips as he smiles. “Deal.”
My heart patters in my chest rapidly as I think about sitting on his lap for an entire night.
It sounds like delicious torture, that I’m absolutely looking forward to.
Him being a Beta has me even more turned on.
He’s everything I wanted prior to designating and now.
He’s confident, and willing to do what it takes to prove his designation doesn’t matter.
Maybe that’s the same point I’ve been trying to prove.
Our exchange has been short, but there’s something here. Hell, it might just be a business agreement, but maybe it could be more.
“What should I wear?” I ask.
“I’ll handle it all.”
I shift on his lap and a deep grunt escapes him. He glances down at his very expensive watch.
So, the Beta doesn’t wear luxe suits, but clearly has plenty of money. Is his unofficial pack rich? Or just him?
“I’ll get you all my information through Ian. The last thing I need is him killing me for getting one of his dancer's numbers.”
I furrow my brows again. “Mr. Martinez?”
He barks out a laugh and it jostles me on his lap. “One and the same. The man is only kind to Omegas, I swear.”
I shake my head. He’s the nicest boss I’ve ever had, not to mention he treats his Omegas, Luna and James, like they are precious baby angels. It’s all I ever wanted for myself.
“Okay.”
I’m not really sure what else to say or do. I’m sure slick is seeping through these tight little panties, but the man doesn’t seem to care.
“I’ll be in touch, Hail—Cherry,” he says with a smirk, kissing my cheek and placing me down on wobbly legs.
Before he opens the curtain he hands me another couple hundred dollar bills and leaves.
I blink at his retreating back.
What the actual fuck just happened, and why is this Beta the first man I’ve truly wanted for myself since my newfound designation?