Page 18 of Ruthless God

I answer, “Sadly, not much more than that.”

“What if I said I felt a connection with you?”

“God, please don’t be one of those guys. This is just a dance, Ghosty, nothing more than that.”

“You dripped your juices all over my hand. Do you do that for all of your clients?”

I stand, getting pissed off at the tone he’s using.

“One, that’s a fucked up thing to say to someone. Two, of course you’d assume it was all because of you.” I gesture toward him. “My dude, I can’t even see your face. Why on earth would I be turned on because of you?”

I turn to leave when he grabs my arm, spinning me toward him. The crazy thing is that I don’t feel fear. I feel excitement.

“I apologize. That was uncalled for.” His tone softens. “Can we start over? Please?”

“Sure we can, but it’s going to cost you another grand.”

He reaches into his jacket, pulling out a stack of cash.

“There’s ten grand there, Cecely. It’s all yours.”

“What’s the catch?”

“There's no catch. Promise.”

My eyebrow lifts and I'm silent as I think. Part of me knows I should turn around and walk away, but the other half is curious.

I say fine, “We can start over. But you better not try anymore shit.”

“Deal.” He waits a beat. “So, Cecely, how long have you been working here?”

“On and off for a few years. It helps pay for school.”

“Ah. The age-old dilemma of why one strips. I'm not judging by the way.”

“Thanks for clearing that up.” I smile. “And it might be stereotypical, but it's the truth. I'm also dancing because my friend needs help with his medical expenses.”

I don't know why I say this out loud. This guy doesn't know me and couldn't care less about Harvey and his medical issues.

He surprises me by saying, “I'm sorry to hear that. I'm sure that has to be hard for both of you.”

“Yeah. It really is. What about you? Did you really only come in tonight because of the theme?”

He's silent for a moment. “Partly. I also came in because I'm lonely.”

I don't know what possesses me to say, “I get off in an hour. Maybe we can grab a cup of coffee or something.”

There aren’t many places open when I leave after my shift at the club, but there is an all-night diner down the street that has amazing coffee. Picking a place like this lets him know that I’m not trying to take him back to my place or to a hotel. I don't want this guy to think that I’m trying to offer him something that I'm not willing to give up.

“That would be nice.”

I say, “Well, thanks for the 10 grand. It will help Harvey out a lot.”

He says, “Glad to help.”

I open the door and lead the way out. He follows close enough that I can feel the heat from his body. When we reach his table, I turned to face him.

“I'll see you soon.”

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