Page 19 of Sin

“Okay.”

He kissed the top of her head. “I guess it’s time to start your training. You’ll be working with Sarah, the floor manager. Let’s go find her.”

Ares took hold of her hand and led her back to the club floor.

****

The rest of the day she followed Sarah around. The beautiful statuesque woman was surprisingly nice. For some reason, Adira thought she’d be a mean girl, but Sarah was nothing but kind. According to her, she was glad to hand over the hostess duties because she was always needed on the floor.

At five thirty, Adira changed clothes. The dancers were finishing their makeup, and one of the women went to Sarah and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. Adira hadn’t realized she was gay, not that it mattered. Her father had a hang-up about same-sex couples that she found utterly ridiculous. Sarah gestured for her to follow and handed over a tablet. Adira looked down, realizing it was the VIP schedule. Only two men were scheduled at six, but at seven two groups were booked. Her job was to keep the semi-private alcoves clean, order drinks, remove empty glasses and bottles, as well as book the lap dances.

A big, muscular man walked up and stared down at her. He was easily six and half feet tall with tattoos all over the place, wearing a cut with the Death Riders MC logo on the front and the name Bruiser stitched into the leather.

“Anyone gives you problems, you let me know,” Bruiser told her. He smiled, or at least she thought it was a smile. Could’ve been a grimace but he seemed nice enough and she felt better having him nearby.

The first hour her heart pounded with anxiety, causing her to double-check everything to make sure she was doing it all correctly. She didn’t want to mess up her first real job. The first VIP was a man with considerable girth, and it wasn’t his cock. His belly hung over his belt and there was a slightly sweet yet rancid stench wafting from him. He ordered a Long Island iced tea and she placed the order on the tablet. The bartender would get the message and ask one of the servers to deliver it.

The second man had to be in his seventies. He seemed pleasant enough and pulled out a wad of money. He had an air of loneliness that made her sad. Whatever happiness he gleaned from The Pussy Willow hopefully brought him a moment of companionship.

As the night progressed, and the groups came in, Sarah made her way over to greet them so Adira could learn how to interact with multiple men. They certainly kept her busy ordering drinks and snack foods, cleaning up and making sure their lap dances stayed more PG17 than X-rated. It was a little disconcerting to see mostly naked women so close, and she kept her gaze averted as often as possible.

She saw Ares in passing. Even on a Thursday night, the place was busy. The assortment of men ranged from rednecks to college, preppy guys. Catcalls could be heard over the music. Money was held up in the air as the dancers slid and gyrated around the stage. He walked over to talk with her once, and she remembered how he said he never mixed business and pleasure, so she stayed as professional as possible.

“Everything okay?” he asked.

“Yes,” she replied. “Sarah is wonderful. It can’t be easy running the floor as well as helping me.”

“Hey, don’t knock yourself short,” Sarah said with a smile before turning to Ares. “She’s picked everything up quickly. You hired well, Boss.”

Adira’s cheeks warmed at the compliment. “Thanks, Sarah.”

Ares shifted his gaze back to her. “When time is up, the men will go next door. Sarah, show her how to log in their allotted time with the whores next door.”

“Will do,” she said cheerily.

He nodded, shot one more look at Adira, and then left.

Sarah leaned in close. “I think he likes you.”

She shrugged, not sure what to say to that. She didn’t want anyone to know what was happening between her, Ares, and Hunter, especially since this—whatever this was—had an expiration date. Which reminded her, she had to make sure they didn’t fire her once their interest in her ended.

“I don’t like using the word whore,” she said. “They’re sex workers.”

Sarah smiled. “Good luck trying to get men to switch the verbiage.”

At the end of the night, when the club had closed, she was cleaning up the VIP area when Sarah approached.

“Do you need a lift home?”

“Oh,” Adira said. “I don’t want to impose.”

“No imposition. As soon as Jenny comes out, we can drop you off.”

“Then thank you. I’ll be searching for reliable transportation this weekend.”

A few minutes later, Jenny hurried from the dressing room and grabbed hold of Sarah’s hand, giving her a quick peck on the lips.

“We’re dropping Adira off at her place,” Sarah told her.

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