Page 4 of Power Play

His eyes immediately light up just at the sound of his wife’s name, and that brings me a stupid amount of happiness. I love Mrs. Adams; she was like our team mom back in college, always feeding us, taking care of us, and making sure we were acting right with the ladies.

“Nah, son. At least not in that way,” he says with a smile. “But, let’s get down to business, I know you have other places you need to be. You ready to start on Monday?”

“Yeah, I’m moving Rory here on Saturday. I already have our place all set up with our things. And I’m sure you’re not surprised that you were right about the daycare. She’ll start there on Monday.”

“Well, of course I was right,” Bernard says with a wink. “Here are your keys to the rink. You already have your office, and I think we’ve gone over everything else. The teams all excited, I mean with your history on the team in college, and the NHL, I think they’re all a little intimidated.”

“Thanks for everything. Especially this opportunity. You know, without this, I would have probably never come back.

“Rex, I’ve known you for thirty years. You went through a rough patch, but that doesn’t make you a bad person.” Bernard reaches his hand out to shake mine, I return the gesture but pull him in for a hug at the last minute. We’ve always been close. “Now, go have fun. I overheard Trevor and his mom talking last night when he was over for dinner, sounds like you’ve got some plans.”

Trevor and his parents are close. He goes to their house for dinner every week, so it’s no surprise he was talking to them about our plans. Trevor and I used to get into some shit when we were growing up, even more so in college. Which might be why I’m so close with Bernard, as he had to whip our butts into shape sometimes, never letting our mistakes impact the team or our futures.

“Well, that wasn’t what I wanted to hear,” I laugh, trying not to sound irritated. “I told them just a beer and some dinner, but of course your son never listens.”

“He’s just like his old man. We don’t listen too well.”

“Ain’t that the fucking truth,” I say with a laugh. We say goodbye, and Bernard invites me to the house for dinner soon before I leave to go call Trevor and figure out what plans he’s made for the evening that I’m sure I’m going to hate.

2

SAWYER

Another night working here at Atlantis, which means another night of dealing with my pushy ass boss and coworkers.

Molly, the owner, and my boss, is constantly trying to push my limits, always telling me it’s “for my own good.”

This bitch doesn’t listen.

She also doesn’t take no for an answer, which is why I’m sitting here listening to her beg me to go out on the floor again.

Why can’t I just tell her no? Actually, not no, but fuck no. I mean, aside from the fact that she’s one of my good friends and my boss, of course.

She’s pushy, but she does understand when to stop if she can tell I’m really against something. She’s never forced me to do anything; she just tries to see what she can get me to try, even if it’s only once. She always says it’s about getting me to live a little.

“Sawyer, come on. Just try it once,” she whisper-shouts in my ear as she shakes another cocktail at the bar.

I’ve been working for her, here at Atlantis for the last six months, and honestly, I love it. Molly took over this club five years ago, and what started as a seedy, run-down “titty bar” that no one wanted to step foot in has turned into a high-class strip club that’s always packed, even on a Wednesday. She didn’t change what it was or take anything away, but she remodeled the entire place and added precautions and safety measures for both the employees and the clients. Her goal was to make sure that everyone felt comfortable and safe, which obviously worked because now it’s constantly packed and one of the most well-known strip clubs in New York City.

When Molly hired me, I told her that I only wanted to bartend, which honestly has been a lot of fun. I still get weird looks from people when they find out where I work, but I don’t really give a shit about their opinion of me. I’m working here for a reason, doing what I need to do to follow my dreams. If they have a problem with that, fuck ‘em. Besides, even if I were stripping, there’s nothing wrong with it. I don’t do it, but that’s just because it’s not really my style. Which is why I usually just leave this job out when people ask what I do. I don’t have time for their judgment or pretending I actually give a fuck what they think about me.

“Why, Molly? I’m doing just fine back here bartending, plus I like it. Why does it matter? Don’t you already have enough girls competing for shifts? Adding me in would just be more of a headache, so I’ll make the drinks, they can serve them, and do their little dancey dance,” I tell her with a wink.

Yeah, if I came out from behind the bar, I could make a lot of money, which is almost enough for me to say yes, but not quite. It’d be nice to save up what I need by the end of the year, but I’m making progress on my goal as it is. Molly keeps bringing that up every time she tries to convince me, but it hasn’t worked yet. I have goals, but I’ll meet them on my own accord.

But I can promise, this isn’t it.

“I know you are, hun. But you never know until you try, and honestly, I think it might be a nice outlet for you. You’re fucking hot. I just know they’d eat that shit up. As for the other girls? Hell, some of them need a fire lit under the ass, and you just may have the match.”

“What are we talking about?” Serena, my friend and one of the dancers says as she walks up, waiting for her table’s drinks.

“Nothing,” I tell her quickly. Obviously too quickly, though, because she perks up, looking at Molly for answers now.

“I was just offering up a serving shift if she was willing to give it a shot,” Molly says, feigning innocence, and outright ignoring my glare.

She’s so far past innocent it almost feels ludicrous to joke about. I once watched her dance naked on stage with two other dancers, all grinding on each other, at a bachelor party’s request. The money they made... Yeah, I don’t think they thought twice about getting up on that stage.

“Yes! Do it, just once! You never know unless you try!” Serena yells, her eyes filled with excitement.

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