Chapter 20
Miles
I haven’t been to the club on a Friday in a long time. Years. Maybe before Noah was born. It’s busier on Fridays and weekends, so when I come to visit, it’s usually during the week.
“Don’t think I’ve ever noticed this place before,” JJ says as we walk up to the doors, bypassing the long line.
“It’s one of those places you need to know is there,” I say.
It’s down a side street off the main road, but it’s on a dead end so you don’t pass it on your way somewhere else.
“Hey, Miles,” Joshua, the bouncer, says with a smile when we reach him.
“Hey,” I respond.
“Didn’t think I’d see you here again.”
“Rudy and Maxwell can be very persuasive,” I say with a slight laugh.
He marks something off on his clipboard, then glances at JJ.
“This is your guest?”
“Yep.”
He pins his gaze on JJ for a moment, assessing, before checking something else off on the list. Then he picks up the stamp from the podium and applies the ink to my hand and then JJ’s.
“I’ll be in there later. Find me for a drink,” Joshua says as we walk by.
“Uh… okay,” I say, frowning.
“Friend of yours?” JJ asks once we enter the first set of doors.
“Not… exactly.”
“He’s definitely interested in you,” he says.
“I’m aware,” I say. “We, uh… hooked up a few times.”
JJ grunts a sound that feels like disapproval. Maybe jealousy?
I’m not sure what it is, but it makes me uneasy, so the moment we’re inside the club, I grab his arm and pull him aside, to the small hallway that leads to a set of bathrooms.
“I don’t know if it matters to you or not,” I explain quickly. “But I called it off with him. We didn’t have good chemistry.”
“You sure he understood that?” he asks.
“I haven’t seen him or heard from him in years. I didn’t know he even still worked here because I didn’t see him last time. So… yeah?”
He nods, and there’s no use in beating a dead horse, so I suggest we get drinks.
I don’t hate the jealousy. He isn’t being mean or dramatic. It feels like a normal amount of possessive jealousy. But JJ and I aren’t a couple… so that is confusing, but I don’t dwell on it. We’re out to have fun… and fun we shall have.
The music gets louder as we walk deeper into the club, stopping at the nearest bar. From here, we can see one of the smaller stages, but we have to go around the corner to see the rest of the club.
“This place is big,” he says, looking around.
“There are three stages. Rudy and Maxwell are always on the main one.”
“Will we meet them before we see them naked?” he asks with a smirk.
I huff a laugh. “Maybe. What do you want to drink?” I ask.
“What do you want to drink, Miles?” he says, giving me a look like I should know better. It makes my stomach warm.
“Cosmo,” I answer.
I wait by his side as he gets the bartender’s attention and puts in our drink order. He gives her his card and tells her to leave the tab open. A moment later, he’s handing me my extra pink Cosmo—because Friday is pink and black themed—while he brings his whiskey glass to his lips for a sip.
We make our way to an empty standing table not too far from the bar, and I pull my phone from my pocket to let the guys know we’re here.
“I just texted them, so maybe you’ll get to meet them before you see their asses.”
He chuckles, taking another sip of his whiskey.
“Does it bother you that I may see your friends’ asses?”
“If it did, we wouldn’t be here,” I say. Then add on, “Together.”
“I can’t say I feel the same.”
“No? Why not?”
He shrugs. “I’m not really sure. I can be jealous, but I’m not really sure where it comes from.” He pauses a moment, then adds, “Or why it’s only with some people.”
I’m not sure what the last part means, but I let it go.
“A lot of times people get jealous because they don’t trust their partner.”
JJ shakes his head, looking like he’s just realized something. “Not always. That’s a different type of jealousy. I just want what’s mine to be mine. I don’t like sharing.”
“Would I be okay if you were fucking them? No, I don’t think so. But looking? They’re my friends. We all know it’s just for fun.”
“Maybe if I had close friends like that,” he says.
“You don’t?”
“Not really, no. Most of my friends are in California, but it’s been years since I lived there, and we all have our own lives now. I mostly talk to the guys at the firehouse when I’m on shift. My brother, Nash, is the person I talk to the most.”
“That’s the cop?”
“Yeah.” He nods, drinking from his glass. “I guess AJ is a friend.”
“AJ?” I ask with a laugh.
“Yeah, he works at the firehouse too. We’ve known each other for years. We go out sometimes together for a beer.”
“JJ and AJ… that’s cute.”
“Funny story, actually. I once caught him out at a sex club doing a demo. He didn’t expect anyone he knew to be there, so he was embarrassed as hell. I still bring it up now and then, just to annoy him.”
“Wow, so this is totally your scene then?” I ask, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in my stomach. I’m not usually a jealous person, but I don’t like the idea of JJ being at sex clubs or strip clubs… without me.
“No, not really. Especially not anymore. I’d only gone to Shadows & Sin the one time. I was… dealing with something and thought going would help.”
“Did it?”
“No,” he says with a humorless laugh. “Not at all.”
I take my first sip, the alcohol warming my belly instantly. I haven’t eaten anything since lunch.
“There he is!” Rudy’s voice cuts through the loud music.
He and Maxwell bounce over to the table, both of them pulling me into a hug at the same time and kissing my cheeks like wild animals.
“God, okay,” I say, shoving them away. “I just saw you.”
“Well, hello,” Rudy says, looking at JJ and waggling his brows. He’s in a baggy pair of jeans with a lace shirt that covers only his arms and chest. He’s a little skinnier than me but taller—closer to JJ’s height. His dark hair is wavy and messy, tucked behind his ears.
JJ smirks. “Nice to meet you…”
“I’m Rudy,” he says, putting his hand on his chest. “This is Maxwell.”
“Hello, handsome,” Maxwell says with a sinful smile, offering out his hand. I’m not surprised to see his nails painted a deep red. “I’m so glad you could join us today.”
Maxwell is wearing a stylish ripped tank and tight jeans, his long blond hair pulled back in a messy bun. His body and height are almost identical to Rudy’s.
I whack him in the chest playfully. “Be nice.”
“Baby, all I know is nice,” Maxwell says.
“Can I get either of you a drink?” JJ asks, and I don’t know why, but that also gets my stomach all hot and bothered. Something about being a gentleman, maybe?
“Yes, boo, you can,” Rudy says. “But after we perform.”
“Which is in about twenty minutes, so we should get going,” Maxwell adds. “We just wanted to see you before we went on.”
Rudy pouts but looks between the both of us. “I expect you both to be sitting at the stage. We’re saving you seats.”
“Wouldn’t be anywhere else,” I say.
They blow a bunch of kisses, winking as they take off to the dressing rooms.
“So, that’s Rudy and Maxwell,” I say.
“They’re fun.” JJ smiles.
“They’re a lot.”
“Are they like that all the time?”
“All the time,” I groan.
He just chuckles and empties his drink, putting the glass on the table. A waitress who is walking by picks it up. “Would you like another?”
“Sure,” he says.
“Do you have a tab open?”
“Bennett.”
“Whiskey?
“Johnnie Walker.”
She nods and walks away.
“So, a little more of the mystery is unraveled,” I say with a smirk. “JJ… Bennett?”
“I slipped up,” he says playfully. “But you’re not getting anymore.”
“Mhm,” I say. “Let’s get you drunk and see what happens.”
“Trust me, if you get me drunk… the only thing I’ll be doing is you.”
I roll my lips between my teeth to stop from smiling, but then say… “So, you can only do that when you’re drunk?”
I don’t really think that, but messing with him is fun. He holds my gaze, smiling.
“Definitely not.”
A small part of me wonders if that is true.
He acts differently when he’s drunk. Though…
I guess we all do. Myself included. I never would have had the courage to talk to him if I hadn’t been drinking that night—let alone go home with him.
I’ve always needed a little help in the confidence department, especially after Derek.
“Do you think it’s normal for people in relationships to do this sort of thing together?” I ask. “Not that I think we are, I know we aren’t, I just mean… you know.” I shrug, looking away as I guzzle the rest of my drink.
JJ chuckles. “I think that if both parties think it’s okay, then it’s okay. It’s not for everyone.”
“You’d be okay going with a partner to a place like this?” I ask carefully.
“Yeah, as long as we trusted each other. Something like this takes a lot of trust and honesty. Communication.”
I nod. “My ex never would have done this. He didn’t even like me talking to Rudy and Maxwell.”
“He sounds like an asshole.”
“I like to say he wore the asshole crown.”
When JJ gets his drink, we stop at the bar to get me another one, then make our way to the main stage, passing one of the side stages.
The main stage dancers choose the music, while the dancers on the side stages just dance continuously to whatever’s on, kind of like backup dancers.
As Rudy and Maxwell said, there are two seats right up front with reserved signs on them.
We take them off and sit as the dancer that’s up there now, doing a cowboy routine, finishes up.
“Do they come out together?” he asks.
“Most of the time, yeah.”
I finish my drink, putting the empty glass on the small shelf beneath the stage. When the waitress comes by, I request another, and JJ cuts in to say she should put it on his tab.
“Fine, but we’re using my cash for the stage.”
JJ chuckles. “Fine.”
“Have you been to a strip club like this before?” I ask.
“Not in years.”
“Respectfully, do you do anything fun?” I grin at him.
He smiles, but it’s not quite happy. “I try.”
The waitress brings me another drink, and I sip it more quickly this time. They go down easier the more you have, and that’s the problem.
The cowboy leaves the stage, and the music fades into something less country and more Pony—as in the actual song “Pony” from Ginuwine. The stage is empty for only a few moments before Rudy and Maxwell come out.
“Oh, wow,” JJ says with a chuckle.
I grin as I take in their outfits. Maxwell is dressed as a cop, while Rudy is wearing a black and white striped prison suit—and by suit I mean booty shorts and a crop top.
“Never seen this one before,” I say.
The music gets louder and faster, the guys start doing their routine, dancing on the pole, the ground, along the end of the stage.
At one point, Rudy is twerking in front of JJ, who looks like he’s having the time of his life.
I hand him a ten, and he slips it into Rudy’s waistband.
He blows him a kiss before moving along to the other side.
They’re animated, getting the crowd involved. They dance with each other and pretend to have sex on stage, with Maxwell bent over and Rudy behind him, slamming into him and spanking him. It’s fun as much as it is sexy.
“That was interesting,” JJ says when the routine is done and we’re back at the bar to get another drink. I’m already feeling the effects of the alcohol.
“Hey,” someone says, pulling my attention.
“Oh, hey, Joshua,” I say quickly, turning back toward the bar.
He comes up on my right, while JJ is on my left.
“Can I buy you a drink?” he asks.
“I just did,” JJ says before I can get a word out.
I just keep staring ahead. “Is he your boyfriend or something?” Joshua asks.
“No,” I say simply.
“But we’re here together,” JJ adds.
“Well, if he’s not your boyfriend, then I can buy you a drink,” Joshua says.
“I have a drink coming, Joshua. Quit being a prick.”
“I’m just trying to buy an old friend a drink.”
“You’re being really fucking pushy about it,” I say, turning to face him. “Isn’t it your job to stop shit like this?”
“Fuck you,” he spits out before turning away.
“Hey!” JJ calls, lunging in his direction.
I quickly turn and place a hand on his chest. “Don’t,” I say firmly. “It’s not worth it.” His gaze comes back to me, and I can tell he’s pissed. “I’ll handle it.”
My phone starts buzzing, so I grab it. It’s Rudy. I keep my hand on JJ’s chest while I answer the call.
“Yeah?” I shout into the speaker.
“Meet us in VIP!”
“Be there in a few.”
Our drinks are placed in front of us, and he picks them both up. I put my phone into my back pocket before saying, “Come on.” I hook my arm in JJ’s and lead him through the crowd.
I feel Joshua watching me from across the room, but I ignore it. I don’t know what his problem is or why he’s acting like a dick. I haven’t talked to him in years, and we only hooked up a few times.
JJ and I make it to the VIP section where Rudy and Maxwell are waiting at a half-circle booth. We sit across from them.
“What’s wrong?” Maxwell asks the moment we sit.
Never misses a beat, that one.
“Joshua is being a prick.”
“Huh?” Rudy says. “Why?”
Maxwell elbows him. “Obviously, because he’s jealous.”
“Of what? They hooked up like twice.”
“It was a little more than twice,” I admit.
“Still, it wasn’t serious,” Rudy says.
“Which is why I said he’s being a prick,” I say with a smile. “And I don’t want to keep talking about it.”
“How’d you like the show?” Maxwell asks, looking at JJ. He rests his chin on his fist and smiles.
“Very entertaining,” JJ says politely.
“Who’s ass is better?”
“Maxwell!” I scold.
“What? You know we ask everyone.”
“They’re both nice,” JJ says.
“No, honey. No. We want the truth,” Rudy says, resting his chin on his fist.
“We can take it,” Maxwell adds. “Promise. What’s your honest opinion?”
“You’re making him uncomfortable,” I say.
“I’m not uncomfortable,” JJ says. “It’s okay, really.” He looks back at the guys. “If you’re going to make me pick, then I pick Maxwell.”
“Yes!” he says, slapping the table. “Another point for me.”
“Guess it’s back to the gym to do more squats,” Rudy says with an eye roll.
“So, is this what you guys do full time?” JJ asks.
“Yep. Four nights a week,” Maxwell says. “Perfect job, ya know? We get to be the center of attention.”
“Not everyone likes that,” I say.
“What do you do, JJ?” Rudy asks.
“I’m a firefighter.”
They both gasp and give me the evil eye. “A firefighter? That’s so hot!” Maxwell says.
“Literally… it is,” JJ says, taking a sip from his drink.
“Oh, and he’s funny,” Maxwell says, eyeing me.
“I’m wet.” Rudy fans himself.
“Are you going on again tonight?” I ask, hoping to change the subject to something normal.
Though, this is Maxwell and Rudy. Of course things won’t be normal.
“Yeah, at 12:15,” Maxwell answers.
“Which means, we have about forty-five minutes to drink and get to know this sexy as hell firefighter.” Rudy grins. “Tell me, Mr. Firefighter, do you wear those sexy little uniforms?”
I just roll my eyes.