Page 81 of Left on Read

Still torn about this entire situation, I fell into step beside him.

The club didn’t have a line, and once we’d paid our cover to the giant bouncer between the doors, we walked inside the club.

It looked nothing like I’d thought. For some reason I’d pictured dark colors and somber décor. The club was bright and clean and modern looking with tables and booths, a huge stage that dominated the back wall, a massive bar across from it, and what looked like a row of confessional booths with velvet curtains against the far wall.

“Pony” by Ginuwine blasted out of the sound system while a blond guy with the most incredible muscle definition I’d ever seen in real life danced along, wearing nothing but a pair of microscopic silver briefs and a smile.

I did a quick scan of the room. It was busy enough that all the booths and most of the tables were taken. About a dozen men sat amongst the crowd. At least we didn’t stick out too much.

“Grab that table, and I’ll get us drinks.” Ryan gave me a little shove toward a table for two in the back corner of the room, far away from the bar, the booths, or the stage.

I hurried over and slid into one of the chairs. The corner was darker than the rest of the club, almost like a light or two was burned out overhead, casting the area in shadows. I welcomed the dark because it would make it nearly impossible for River to see us unless he had built-in night vision.

Once I was settled, I checked out the guy on the stage. He was one of the guys from the photos River had shown me. Was that Gray?

Covertly, I pulled my phone out of my pocket and checked my gallery. Yup, that was him.

As I was putting my phone away, Gray reached up to grab something, gave the crowd a saucy grin, and lifted right off the stage, swinging and spinning as he continued to dance in midair like gravity wasn’t a thing.

“Damn.” Ryan put a beer in front of me and sat in the empty chair, his eyes on the stage and Gray’s impressive moves. “Now that’s quality entertainment.”

I sipped my beer nervously, half expecting River to jump out from the shadows and catch me stalking him.

The song ended, and Gray made his way to a platform with a crowd of people around it. That must be where they got their personal tips. River explained the system to me, but without a visual reference, it hadn’t really made sense.

“Relax.” Ryan kicked my foot.

“I’m trying.” I glanced around nervously.

“Try harder.”

I put my beer down, my stomach burning with jealousy as I watched Gray pull bills from the cleavage of multiple women with his teeth while others stuffed bills into his briefs.

River had told me that was what happened after a set, but seeing it and hearing it were two different things.

I pulled in a deep breath and pushed my insecurities aside so I could look at the situation logically and not through my lens of irrational jealousy.

Gray was careful not to touch any of the customers when he took tips from them, even going so far as to step back and shake his head when a few tried to get handsy.

That settled some of the turmoil still raging inside me. This was a job, and accepting tips was part of that.

Ryan tore his eyes from the stage when Gray finally finished getting his tips and waved to the crowd as he walked offstage. “All good?” He eyed me over the rim of his glass.

“Fine.” I forced myself to take another drink.

The next dancer was announced, someone named Stone. Why did that sound familiar?

The crowd went insane as a gorgeous guy was illuminated on the stage. Wait. That looked like Quinn, River’s friend who used to do porn.

“Jesus.” Ryan tilted his head to the side as Stone/Quinn began to dance to a sultry, jazzy blues song I’d never heard before. “How the hell does he move like that? Does he not have all his ribs? Are his hips not attached to the rest of him?”

“Maybe he knows how to belly dance?”

“Maybe I need to take up belly dance.” Ryan finished his beer and put the glass down, his eyes still locked on Quinn.

I nodded, unable to look away as Quinn did a backflip and somehow landed in a one-armed pushup. He did more of those impressive body rolls, working the floor and showing off all the skills he’d perfected filming porn.

When Quinn’s set was over, he didn’t go to the platform like Gray. Instead he knelt at the edge of the stage, sat back on his heels, and put his hands behind his head, his legs spread wide.

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