Page 35 of Titan

A minute later, one of the girls came around and asked me if I wanted a drink, so I ordered water after she scanned my membership number from this app Remi made me download on my phone. You could also use it to book sessions, but Remi had told me it was safer for me to go through her if I wanted to remain relatively anonymous. My brother was probably aware I’d joined under a fake name. He clearly had cameras around this building as he took security seriously. I didn’t want to think about it or address the situation. He hadn’t told me I couldn’t see the girls at his club, even though he’d banned Enzo. He likely didn’t think he had to when it came to me.

The two girls who were dancing finished up their sets. They stepped down off the raised podiums and walked towards the bar. My eyes fixed on the door behind it where I knew the staff room lay.

The moment Theia walked out, I was instantly aware of her. Her light brown hair was tied back into a ponytail. She was wearing a black underwear set with a red harness over the top of it that criss-crossed across her body. Her black heels were sky high with little red details. She walked across the room like she owned it and demanded everyone’s attention.

I barely noticed the girl setting down the water on the table in front of me. I was too busy watching Theia step up onto the dais in front of me. She took a hold of the pole and surveyed the room. Her eyes didn’t linger on me, almost as if she hadn’t taken anything in, but she was doing it for effect. The music changed. The dark, sultry beat pumped through the speakers, making my skin prickle. Theia spun around the pole once, her body undulating with the music. She slid her other hand along the front of her body. Then she hooked a leg around the pole and things really began.

The way she moved transfixed me. How she spun around the pole with such elegance. The way she contorted her body, drawing attention to its curves and edges. There was a certain confidence to her like she knew everyone’s eyes were on her. I couldn’t look away to check, not wanting to miss a single second.

Letting go of the pole, she was bent backwards, placing her arms out with her legs above her, hooked around the pole as she spun. For a split second, her eyes landed right on mine. I could see the way they widened at the sight of me. Remi would have told her I was coming to see her tonight, but I doubt she’d been expecting me to watch her performance.

The atmosphere shifted. Theia’s attention was on me as she continued to spin and extend her body out. There was a certain intensity to her performance that hadn’t been there before. She grabbed hold of the pole again, changing position as she moved one leg down and held it with her free hand as the other extended upwards. I hadn’t realised how flexible Theia was, but I should have known, given she was a pole dancer and a sex worker.

My hand went to the glass in front of me, taking a hold of it and bringing it to my lips. She shifted, landing on her feet on the floor before spinning around the pole and undulating her body with the beat again. Her free arm extended outwards as her leg hooked around the pole. She rocked to the beat, almost as if she was putting on a show just for me, which I didn’t know how to interpret or react to. Why would she have changed things up because I was there? There was no reason for it.

I set the glass down after taking a sip, my eyes never leaving her body. My feelings towards her hadn’t changed, but I admired her ability and the strength she must possess to perform this routine. It was easy to see how much she enjoyed herself as she did it. The way her eyes twinkled at everyone’s attention. How she played up to it.

Her attention went to the rest of the room as she continued to dance, but it kept drifting back to me every so often, almost as if to make sure I was still watching. As if I could drag myself away now. Theia had this way about her that demanded all of your attention. She could be fully clothed right now, and I’d still want to watch her every movement. The lines she made with her body were beautiful.

When she finished her first routine, she moved straight into a second one. It was less intense, the beat slower and more sensual, but no less engaging. I don’t know how much time had passed while she danced. My entire focus was on her. Every inch of this woman who intrigued me far more than she should.

When she finally finished her set, she smiled at me before she stepped down off the podium and moved toward the bar. I sat back against the bench and rubbed my hands along my thighs. It was then I realised my body had reacted to the sight of Theia dancing. It made me lean forward and adjust myself, cursing under my breath. I was uncomfortable with the involuntary arousal my body displayed. I didn’t feel any desire to touch myself or for sex. This shit happened without me wanting it to.

What did I do with the knowledge my body had found Theia dancing arousing when I didn’t feel attraction towards her? I hadn’t even considered it sexual when I was watching her, so this was awkward. How on earth would I face her now?

It took several minutes for it to go down. The whole time I was wondering what the hell I was going to do. Theia had seen me. She knew I was there. I couldn’t run away. She might know something was wrong. Usually, I could act like nothing was bothering me, but something about Theia had me turning to honesty every single time. I didn’t want to lie to her.

Enzo had told me I was brutally honest on far too many occasions. He didn’t appreciate it, but he was a little shit, so I didn’t care about hurting his feelings. I did care about Theia’s feelings and opinion of me.

You don’t have to tell her your dick got hard watching her dance, Gil. No one needs to know about that. It didn’t mean anything.

I had to get my shit straight. She might not have thought anything of me having watched her performance. She wasn’t going to question me on whether I’d got aroused by it. I’d merely tell her I was curious and leave it at that. Didn’t need to be a big deal.

Standing up, I downed the glass of water before walking toward where Remi was hanging out at the bar. She looked up at me when I approached with a smile.

“She’s quite something, isn’t she?”

“Yes.”

“Room four. She’ll be along soon.”

I gave her a nod and decided not to question her about what she’d said earlier. Instead, I made my way to the room. I sat down on the sofa, putting my hands in my lap as my eyes darted about the place. It was where we’d met the last two times. Maybe it was Theia’s regular room. I hadn’t asked.

The longer she took to arrive, the more nervous I felt about the whole situation. I shouldn’t feel so out of my element, but I wasn’t good at navigating relationships with other people. Especially not women. I mean, I was fine with the girls I’d known for a long time, like Remi and Enzo’s best friend, Alissa. I was still getting to know Ari, but she wasn’t hard to get along with. She reminded me of Edric in a lot of ways. They had similar temperaments.

Theia entered the room, diverting me away from my churning mind. She’d put on a black silk robe and her feet were bare.

“Hey,” she said with a smile as she shut the door and padded towards the sofa.

She took a seat on the other end from me as if conscious of how much I liked my personal space.

“Hello, Theia.”

She fiddled with her ponytail for a moment before looking at me. I didn’t know what to say now she was here. Should I bring up the fact I’d watched her dance? Or should I move on to why I was actually here… my fucked up day. I didn’t really want to talk about it now. There wasn’t much I could say that wouldn’t draw her further into my world. I’d told her I didn’t want her to be involved in the illegal nature of it.

“You watched me dance.”

I rubbed my thigh, not quite relieved she’d brought it up, but glad I hadn’t needed to make the decision myself.

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