Chapter 20
Cipriana
“Want to go for a dance?” he whispers, scanning my lips.
In his defense, his breath is pure mint.
Very enticing. But I have an agenda. Every couple of days, Trino stops in to drop off cash in the vault…
right about this time. Usually I’m in the corner or back room with the girls, but tonight, I hope he sees where he pushed me.
I’m not some possession to be shared.
“How about a shot first? You know, to get us both loose.” My eyes keep glancing at the door, and he notices.
“Waiting for somebody?” he asks, rubbing his hand closer to my backside.
“No, hunnie, just you,” I regurgitate some of the lines I’ve been taught. My back arches when his fingertips brush the top of my ass. I want to crawl out of my skin right now. How do the other girls do this?
He waves down Julie the bartender and orders two shots of tequila without asking what I want. Bold, I guess. My turn.
When the two shots come, I grab both of them and down them one after the other.
The patron is stunned with his hand held out. “ Whoa . You’re a lush, aren’t you?”
Tingles rush through my fingertips and toes from the alcohol. “Don’t know what came over me. Sorry, order one more and I promise I’ll be good this time.” When he’s not looking, I glance at the door again.
I’m being an idiot. Not only is the chance slim-to-none that Trino is coming in at this exact moment, but I’m also drunk now.
“One more, Julie. Serve it to this side please. We got a snatcher on our hands.” He laughs, pointing at me.
“What’s your name, cowboy?”
The heck am I saying?
“Reggie. And I’m the furthest thing from a cowboy, I can assure you. And you? Britta said something with an M—”
“Misty. I’m new here.”
“Ooh, fresh beauty.”
I frame my face.
He takes his shot and we chat for a few minutes – jitters growing every passing minute as I stall. It’s time. Now or never.
“So, Reggie. Ready for that dance?” I stand to get his hand off my ass.
“I was hoping you’d ask.” He takes my hand like he’s escorting me to a slow dance at a wedding. As he prances me the long way around the bar, Ruby and Diamond do their best to embarrass me – clapping and shouting.
“Ignore them,” I say. “You’re cute and they’re jealous you picked me.”
He tilts his head. “I’ll take that.”
The hollering stops suddenly, and when I glance over my shoulder to see why, I realize the Karma gods are on my side. Trino is walking in with a suitcase.
As much as I want to stop and pose so he sees what he unleashed, the moment has already passed.
I nod to the elder gentleman guarding the private section.
“Booth seven, Misty,” he tells me.
Reggie opens the door for me, leading into the area I’ve only visited on off times to find my hiding spot in case the Lucrazis barge in.
It’s completely different now. I hear moaning in the curtained-off stalls as I pass them.
It turns my stomach even before the smell of perfume mixed with sweat reaches my nostrils.
This was a mistake.
My steps slow as Reggie tugs me by the hand. He looks back, seeing my trepidation.
“Everything okay?” he asks, eyes only on my breasts.
I nod, the dreaded number ‘7’ boring into my soul. Reggie whooshes the curtains open and takes a comfortable seat on the stained couch.
He opens his legs invitingly, sending alarms off in my head to run for the hills. It wouldn’t be the first time. At this point, I realize the girls were right. I’m not cut out for this.
“Come sit on my lap.” Reggie pats his inner thigh, and I shake my head.
“Wait for the next song. It’s about to start,” I stall, dancing slowly in place as the tune comes to an end.
I’m a married woman. What the hell am I doing? What the hell is Trino letting me do?
It’s just pretend, Capri.
Channel Misty.
I sway more seductively back and forth as the song changes. The moan across from me is clearly Naomi – and I swear I hear smooching too. Gosh, don’t let the cameras stop you or anything.
This area is disgusting.
I’ve gotten away with only stripping down to my bra and panties thus far. Any further and I’m crossing a line I never intended to.
“Come closer, Misty, I don’t bite. Twenty a dance, right? I’ll hold onto you all night if I have to.” Reggie takes another sip of his drink. He then leans over and grabs at my leg.
I try to squirm away but he grabs me hard and forces me on his lap. It’s official, I’m uncomfortable now.
“What’s the matter, you don’t like me? Oh. Oh . It’s because you’re new. That’s okay, I’ll happily be the guinea pig grinding pole.” He laughs at his own sleaze.
“I’m sorry, Reggie. You’re a nice guy, and Britta was right, I’m too shy for this.” I pat his shoulder.
“Oh, c’mon.” He scoots me closer, his once attractive face now all pulled sexual desperation. I can tell he’s jealous of the treatment all the other patrons are getting in the other booths.
“Sorry, Reggie, really. Let’s go back to the bar, and I’ll buy you a drink for the trouble. Then I’ll bring you right back over to Britta.”
“Nah. Britta is too bitchy. I like my girl next door right here. You’re a beautiful challenge, Misty. And yeah, she’s right, you don’t belong here. You’re better.” He rubs his hand around my knee, then keeps going up my thigh.
I grab his hand forcefully and tear it away.
Boom!
The door of the private section bangs against the wall, and angry footsteps stomp down the aisle.
Fsssh!
The curtains whip open to Trino looming with a quiet fury in his eyes I’ve only seen once before – the moment before he killed Groundhog.
“Get the fuck off of her,” he whispers.
I’m frozen in shock, my heart beating through my ears.
“Hey, hey . I’m a paying customer, big guy, wait your turn.” Reggie scoffs at him.
Bad move.
“Misty, is this a jealous ex-boyfriend or something? Do me a favor, and tell him to fuck off in whatever caveman language he breathes.”
Really bad move.
Trino gently takes me by the arm to remove me from the booth, and when Reggie grabs onto my other one to resist, a punch to the gut comes so fast I hardly even saw it.
I gasp. “It’s not his fault—”
He doesn’t hear me, though. Instead, he grabs the heaving man by the collar, putting one hand over Reggie’s mouth while twisting the shirt to the point it’s a knot true to Trino’s street name. “Do you know where you are, yuppie?”
His hands go up in surrender. “Sorry—” his voice is all muffled fear.
“I didn’t fucking hear you,” Trino growls.
“I’m sorry.”
“C’mon.” He jerks Reggie by the collar and escorts him out of the private area.
All the curtains are open now, wide-owl eyes on us.
“This man fucked around and found out,” Trino says on his way out. “Let that be a lesson to everyone. If the girl says no, it means no .”
So much for blending in.
I cover my face as the three of us exit.
“Act natural,” Trino says as we exit to a packed bar. He eases up on Reggie’s collar and takes him to another room farther to the left, away from the commotion. I’m following like a little bunny.
I’ve never felt so cared for in my life.
To think, last night he was throwing me to the wolves.
It was bullshit, or… he didn’t know how he really felt.
Don’t get me wrong – I’m still mad at him for saying that stuff, but this is a good start in the right direction.
We’re both learning how to navigate the insane road we’ve been thrust on thanks to our fathers.
We enter the private office, the three of us, and I’m learning how to breathe again. You’d think I’d be used to altercations after watching Groundhog get strangled out, or the car chase, or—
“Sit down,” he tells Reggie forcefully.
“I’m going to sue the pants off this club.” Reggie grits his teeth. “I don’t care who you are. The world doesn’t bend to thugs anymore—”
Trino takes a step closer, and the man cowers.
I fold my arms. “We’ll countersue you on grounds of abuse.
The establishment will open up a case of solicited prostitution on your end, and I’ll open a personal case of sexual abuse under statute two C, fourteen, two of the New Jersey code.
My understanding is the judges are very partial to abused women.
We have video evidence as proof if you really want to try us. ”
“What the fuck?” Reggie’s eyes widen as he looks back and forth between us. “Are you hiring lawyers as your fucking strippers?”
Trino smirks at that.
“Look, Reggie. You seem like a decent guy who’s just had too much to drink,” I say, placing one hand on Trino’s shoulder to calm the raging bull. “How about we go back to my offer of buying you that drink?”
Reggie lifts his shirt to show a pulsing red mark that’s already turning all sorts of colors.
I wince. “Okay, fine. Two drinks.”
Trino’s cackling now that I’m out of Reggie’s orbit. He likes how I handle myself; I can tell by the glint in his eye. Better than beating your new customers to a pulp, big guy. Jeez .
One look at my fingers grasping my arms tells me I’m still shaking from him barging in.
“My woman is being nice to you despite your bullshit, yuppie. I’d take your guardian angel up on her offer, before I change my mind.”
Reggie’s gaze falls to the floor.
“You file a police report, I’ll know. You try any bullshit with your yuppie friends, I’ll find out.
” Trino walks up to him and puts a hand on his shoulder.
“You scanned your license, remember? Reginald Glisper. I don’t know what the fuck kind of name that is, but if I find myself annoyed by you again, I’ll find out. ”
Goddamn he’s terrifying.
“We clear?”
Reggie nods bashfully.
“Okay, boys, let’s break it up.” I ease my lawyer tone now that Reggie’s sufficiently mentally beat up, and offer my hand for him to take. I’m looking up at Trino, who gives me a slight nod of approval, then I whisk him out of the office.
“That was unfortunate, Reggie. I feel terrible. But you really shouldn’t have been pushy in there.”
He doesn’t say anything.
“Look, I’m partly at fault for leading you on. I’ll own it. And sorry about the physicality. Can we put this behind us?”
The lawyer in me is doing everything I can not to open up a can of worms. I don’t want this man being murdered because I tried to make Trino jealous.
I order those drinks I promised him, and keep him company while watching a few patrons leave immediately after their private dances. They’re shaken up from the altercation, obviously.
It was pretty fucked up.
And it was also the hottest thing anyone has ever done for me.