Page 46 of Toeing the Line

She tugs on the ribbon and lets the scrap of fabric fall to the floor, revealing a barely-there red lace balconette bra and thong panties. I swallow hard as she straddles the pole and slides all the way down, her head thrown back in ecstasy.

I turn toward Zeke and his gaze meets mine. He looks comfortable, leaning back against the booth, his arm stretched along the top of the seat behind me, his legs spread apart. His eyes flicker back to the stage and I follow them to where the woman is now crawling across the stage, topless, toward Caro. Caro stands with bills tucked in her cleavage. The woman smiles, a sweet flirtatious thing that has Caro leaning forward. Then she takes the bills with her teeth.

“Whoa,” I whisper.

A waitress appears at Zeke’s side and he chats with her. She’s wearing at least one-hundred-percent more clothing than Veronica, but just barely. She leans over, a sexy dark fringe just brushing her long dark eyelashes, and I wonder how she keeps her breasts from completely spilling out of her deep V-neck black shirt. Zeke doesn’t seem to have a problem with it, and they smile and laugh as she takes his order.

I feel the sickly heat of envy from the way he looks at her, the way his eyes follow her ass as she walks away.

“Did you see that?” Caro shouts from the front row.

Veronica is now back to the pole, having somehow maneuvered so that she’s holding herself almost completely upside down between her thighs. It’s athletic, impressive, and I start to feel depressed. There’s no way I can do that. But I give Caro two thumbs up just the same.

The waitress returns with two beers and four waters. I reach for a beer, but Zeke nudges a water toward me. I frown as he keeps eye contact with the pretty, dark-haired waitress, who keeps touching her slender neck as they chat.

I suck down the water, and then grab the beer and take a long pull. It’s not good, some cheap watered-down domestic. But it does the trick.

Zeke leans toward me and I flinch. He laughs and curls his fingers around the back of my neck as he leans into my ear.

“Megan says they have back rooms.”

“Who’s Megan?”

“The waitress,” he says, nodding behind him.

I look at her and the brunette gives me a sweet smile and a surprisingly shy wave.

“Back rooms? For what?”

He lets out a little laugh. “What do you think? For private dances.”

“Who wants a private dance?”

“It’s where you’ll make the most money,” he says. When I frown, a victorious smile curls the corners of his mouth. “You know, when you’re working here. I figured you might want a private lesson.”

“Oh, right. Of course. Fantastic,” I say, taking another long swig from my beer. “Let’s do this.” I feel his eyes on me, boring into the side of my head.

Zeke rises as Aly arrives, Freddy just behind her. She waves as she helps Freddy on his crutches down the ramp toward us.

“What’s going on, brah?” he says, giving Zeke his fist to bump.

“Just showing this bright young lady her career options,” Zeke deadpans.

“I’m so excited for you, Fayebug! All the beautiful possibilities!” Aly says, her eyes tracking Veronica on stage as she takes a wild, sweeping twirl around the pole.

We all clap as she saunters off the stage after her surprisingly athletic performance.

Once they help Freddy into a chair, Caro tugs Aly into the chair next to her and stuffs some bills in her hand.

“Come on,” Zeke says in my ear. “Our room is ready.” His voice is a little lower and hits the ache deep in my belly.

“Where?” I look at him as the lights flicker around us.

Before I can object, he laces his fingers with mine and I follow him toward where the luscious Veronica is posing in an open doorframe, her sultry eyes locked on me. I look over my shoulder and see Aly pointing at me, her eyes wide. Caro lets out an encouraging cheer.

“Hey Coop!” Freddy shouts. “Remember—no sex in the champagne room!”

My cheeks flush hot as Zeke nudges me into the room. It’s quieter and a velvet-covered bench lines the far wall. Zeke sits down and pulls me down next to him, stretching his arm along the back of the bench. I can feel the heat from his arm against the back of my neck as the slow, sensual music starts up.

---