Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 160684 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 803(@200wpm)___ 643(@250wpm)___ 536(@300wpm)
Effie nodded enthusiastically. Even if she didn’t love helping people, Chardonnay had just saved her from Satan’s mistress. So she’d do anything she asked.
“You’ll be on after the next dancer. I think Grady is going to enjoy watching you.”
“Who is Grady?”
“He’s Steele’s right-hand man. Steele owns this place, but Grady mostly runs it after our old manager, Mitchell, left. Don’t worry; no loss. He was a rat bastard.”
Right. Okay.
“And Lucy?”
“She’s the bar manager and the reigning queen of hell.”
The next woman moved onto the stage. And she was good. Sultry and sexy. There were a few moves she could tweak to make it even better.
But she was rocking it.
Effie watched her in awe. She hoped she looked that good. She also hoped like hell that her body didn’t give up on her. But she hadn’t had a back spasm in a long time.
When the dancer finished, Effie clapped until everyone turned to stare at her.
Oops. Was she not supposed to clap? Okay, so technically, the other woman was her competition. But she deserved to know she’d done a great job, right?
Chardonnay grinned over at her. “Just like April said.”
“Uh-oh, what did April say?”
“That you’re a bit nutty with a heart of gold.”
Great. Nutty.
“Come on, you’re up next. Let’s head backstage.”
As Effie got up to follow her out, she felt someone watching her. Turning, she looked to a back booth where a man sat. He was partially in shadow, but what she could see she approved of. Muscular, dark hair, trimmed short beard, well-dressed.
His gaze was intense as he stared at her. Then he looked away, dismissing her.
It was silly, but she felt a stab of disappointment. Chardonnay tugged her along and she nearly lost her footing.
“That’s Grady,” Chardonnay whispered to her. “Sexy, right?”
“Uh, yeah.” She probably shouldn’t be saying that about her hopefully soon-to-be boss.
“He’s a little odd. Standoffish. He isn’t the sort of boss you could sit and chew the fat with. There’s a definite barrier between him and us.”
Huh. That didn’t sound like he was that great of a boss.
“But since he took over for Mitchell, things have been much safer here. He insists that all the girls, dancers, and bar staff, are escorted to their cars. If they don’t have cars, then Pinkies covers their transportation home.
“Really?” That seemed amazing. She hadn’t been sure how she’d get home at night, seeing as the closest bus stop to her place still meant a four-block walk.
“Yep. Grady is really big on making sure we’re safe.”
All right. She was starting to like him more.
“And he hired additional bouncers. One that stands by the door to our dressing room and one out by the stage to make sure no one touches us. Some people think that being a stripper means you’re all for being groped or that you’re selling yourself in other ways. Not the case. I got a man back in my bed waiting for me, and he doesn’t want anyone else touching what belongs to him.”
“He’s all right with you doing this?”
Chardonnay raised her eyebrows. “I just paid off our condo, and I’m saving to take us on a cruise around the Caribbean. Yep, he’s fine with this. Show me what you got under the jacket.”
Nerves filled her.
Stupid. She was about to dance in this outfit in front of a bunch of people she did not know. And she was going to have to show more than a little bit of skin.
Which was terrifying.
Because while she thought her boobs were nice. They were also big. And they had stretch marks.
“This was a bad idea. I can’t do this.”
“Show me,” Chardonnay said in a surprisingly kind voice.
Taking a deep breath, she opened her jacket and let it fall off.
It was far warmer there than outside, but she still felt a bit chilled.
“This outfit is . . . interesting. Where did you find it?”
“Ahh, I made it.”
“It’s bright.”
“I like bright colors. Is it too much? Should I have toned it down?”
“Hey, it’s different. And different isn’t always bad.”
Not in her experience.
Nerves filled her. “This was a terrible idea.”
“What? No!” Chardonnay cupped her face. “Seriously? Babe, you have got it going on. And these curves? The patrons here are going to love you. If Steele was here, he would cream his pants.”
Jesus. What a thought.
“You are just his type.”
Effie wasn’t sure she wanted to be Steele’s type.
“I’ve got stretch marks,” she blurted out.
“So? Me too. Don’t worry. Ain’t no one going to be focused on a few stretch marks when you have these girls out.”
Right.
There was a change in the music.
“That’s your cue, babe. Good luck.”
Fuck. Luck was something that had never been on her side. In fact, she’d always been seriously unlucky.
But maybe things were changing. Effie set her bag down by her jacket and took a deep breath.
Then she forced a smile onto her face. She could do this. She could rock this.