4. Got You In Heat #2
“I believe you. I am considering a break right now. It’s a distraction, but not necessarily a good one. You ever do some shit but realize your motives are wrong?”
“All the fucking time.”
I snickered. “That’s where I’m at. The money is good, but I don’t know. I have a lot to sort out within myself. I don’t have to decide tonight, but I will soon.”
“Whatever and whenever you decide, I support it. If you take a step back and come back to it, it’ll be there. If you step back and walk away forever, that’s even better. Your future is bright, Jersei. You won’t lose either way,” Harmoni shrugged as she broke down her blunt.
I smiled at her words, not expecting my eyes to gloss from them. Reaching over, I squeezed her hand. “Thank you Harmoni. The same shit applies to you though.”
“Yeah, I hear you.” She brushed me off. “I need to tell you two things, and you have to promise not to be mad at me either.”
My head tilted. “What did you do, Harmoni?”
“Okay, so I wasn’t completely honest with you about tonight. I have a private booking at Feelz, and me and one of the strippers may or may not have a past and she wants me to spend the night. Will you be okay?”
I gave her a dull stare, trying not to get annoyed because I would want someone to go with me too if the shoe was on my foot.
I sighed. “Rideshare runs all night. I’m cool with taking one back. Next time, yo ass need to be honest ‘cause I could’ve come to support you then drove myself home. Now tell me the other thing.”
“There’s a bag in Zy’s room for you. Don’t ask me what it is, just know I don’t need shit in return.”
“Whatever it is, I appreciate it.”
For the rest of the ride, we laughed, drank, and caught up.
An hour passed before we were pulling up to Grove Hollow, a city east of Harvest Hills.
The Grove was classified as hood, but I always felt the most connected out here.
Plus, they had the best food and the finest niggas.
The driver parked on the VIP side. The building was dual sided, one for the night life and the other for the strip club.
The club bouncer helped us out and the second my heels touched the ground, I realized just how good the liquor had me feeling.
Harmoni gripped my hand tightly as we entered the club.
She captured everyone’s attention without mumbling a word.
We were escorted upstairs by security to a section that was secluded and overlooked the entire club.
“We got Honey in the mutha’fuckin’ building yall. Make some noise!” Everybody went crazy as the DJ dropped what I knew was her theme song.
I fell back and allowed her to have all the spotlight because this was her moment, and I was good with that.
Harmoni and I took turns dancing and throwing ass.
Our section was filled with dancers. The club fucked with her, so they were sending shots, hookah, food, and mixed drinks back-to-back.
We were having a good time, and what made it better is that I didn’t have to come out of pocket.
It felt like college days but with money, an indescribable and undefeated time of life.
Sliding a few bills into the stripper’s waist, I threw the rest of them on her back.
She was shaking her ass in all kinds of directions.
To me, stripping was a sport. People looked down on these women, but they were doing the same shit Olympians do in different clothing.
Their confidence was out of this world and the shit they put their bodies through to put on a show made me have nothing but respect for them.
One of the dancers came over and introduced herself to me. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to realize this was the person Harmoni was talking about having history with because they hadn’t taken their hands off one another since she sat down.
I blocked them out and entered a world of my own, dancing to the music in my seat.
The more I danced, the more my body started to feel a sudden rush of heat.
It felt like the liquor was causing it for about a minute, but when the hairs on the back of my neck started to rise, I scanned my surroundings.
There weren’t many people in VIP, but when my eyes cut to the left, I found the culprit.
Mr. Denver.
He was dressed in all black from head to toe making black and pecan become my favorite colors.
From how the diamonds on his neck, ears, and wrist danced under the dim lighting of the club, I knew there wasn’t shit moissanite about them.
When our eyes met again, I knew he’d been watching me for some time because I could see his shoulders relax.
His tongue traced his bottom lip, making a chill hit my spine.
Shit.
One arm was stretched out on the couch and the other was around the cash in his hand.
Two dancers were shaking their ass in front of him and from the blank expression on his face, I couldn’t tell if he was focused or bored.
He flicked a wad of cash in the air making it rain on them then gave me his eyes again.
He nodded his head in the opposite direction, a signal for me to come to him.
I thought I was seeing shit until he curled his finger once in my direction.
If I was sober, I would’ve been stubborn and told him absolutely not, but the liquor erased all that.
Turning in Harmoni’s direction, my eyes widened seeing her with the stripper’s nipple between her lips as she straddled her lap.
Not wanting to disturb them, I shot her a text letting her know I was a few sections over then stood pulling my dress down to no avail.
My thighs were eating it up and I lowkey loved it.
The closer I stepped; embarrassment filled my veins because all I could think about was the picture.
I was giving myself the ick all over again.
I wanted to run to the bathroom and gag.
There were probably so many parents that threw themselves at him, so sending it likely felt planned.
The thought alone made me want to turn around, but when I looked down, my feet were steps away from his section.
He stood, extending a hand to me which I accepted, and he helped me up the two stairs. I slid onto the couch with ease, putting a little distance between where he originally was, but he sat directly beside me. The woodsy cologne he wore had a pear undertone that damn near made me moan.
“Miss Lane,” he greeted me.
“Mr. Denver,” I said in an amused tone trying to hide my unsteady breathing. I was about to move away again, but he caught my hip and slid me closer, so our legs were now touching.
“It’s loud in here and I don’t like raising my voice, mama. It’s good for us to be close. Is that okay with you?” His lips were just a few inches shy of my ear. I nodded. “Good and Mr. Denver is for the hallways. We in the real world, Miss Lane. My name is Vayce.”
I pulled back so we could be face to face. I extended my hand. “Jersei.”
He accepted it with a smile, showcasing his straight teeth.
The nigga was fine in his work clothes but seeing him in whatever designer he wore had me feeling like a dog in fucking heat.
His pecan skin was littered in detailed tattoos from the lower part of his neck to his wrist. Vayce had a different glow to him.
I don’t know if it was the fresh Caesar cut and his deep waves or the fresh sneakers on his feet, but damn .
“Jersei,” he repeated, taking down the rest of whatever he was sipping. Without saying a word, he ordered another round with the move of his finger before giving me his attention again. “This don’t look like your cup of tea. What you doing out in The Grove on a Saturday?”
My brow raised. “I could say the same about you. I feel like I just saw my favorite teacher out or some shit. It’s like you know they have a regular life but to see it, it’s kinda weird,” I chuckled, and he flashed a smile.
“Nah, Zion left for the summer this morning and so I wouldn’t be sulking, my cousin brought me out, but as you can see, she is busy. ”
Vayce looked past me and into Harmoni and I’s section. I kept my eyes on him because I didn’t want to see whatever they were currently doing. His brows raised. “Honey your cousin?”
“Yep. Our mamas are sisters.”
“Small world,” he threw a fresh stack then handed me one.
I peeled it and started throwing bills on the dancers.
“To answer you, I’m celebrating a successful school year.
Summertime is my time to recharge and connect back with myself.
I never go out during the school year. I like to focus.
The strip club is my start of fucking off. ”
“Hmph,” I nodded, throwing more money. “Feelz is definitely the place for that.”
He didn’t respond, but I could feel his eyes on me.
“Nah, mama. It’s not confetti. You throwing the shit like you throwing bread at birds,” he chuckled, taking the stack from me.
I tried to fight my laugh because looking at it, it lowkey did.
I watched as he peeled some ones and demonstrated how to maneuver my wrist. “Think of it as more of a release. Let that shit flow. Try it,” he handed me the rest of his stack.
I repositioned my body and released the bills with a slight flick of the wrist as Vayce just showed me. When I looked back at him, he was grinning like a proud parent.
“Much better.”
I appreciated him teaching me versus judging. As I was preparing to throw more, he grabbed my wrist midair and hovered over my ear again.
“I want to let you know that you make everybody in this bitch look regular, Jersei,” he pulled back, allowing his eyes to travel the length of my body, spending extra time on my legs before finding my eyes again. “Black is your color.”