Internally, I shake my head as the DJ, Lacy, speaks up. “Alrighty, sit back and watch as the beautiful, magnificent, Tink comes out to give you all the show of a lifetime,” she says into her microphone.
Releasing my breath, I slowly make my way on to the stage and do as I’ve done every night I worked. Wowed the crowd. My song, ‘Mindfield’ by Crucifix, begins playing. Each time I dance, I have a different set for the three times I go on each night.
Blocking everything else out but my music, I step up to the pole and begin my dance, pretending to be dancing alone with only one man in the audience.
A man I could never have. One because he’s beautiful and perfect. Two is due to my brother being who he is. Three did I mention he’s beautiful and perfect. With his longer hair, trimmed close to his face, beard, and of course I can’t forget the tattoo, you can see the tattoo on his left arm. I try not to think of how far up the art really goes.
Then there’s the fact he’s got these eyes that if you meet his gaze you become enthralled under his spell.
As my song comes to an end and the next one ‘Love is a War’ by Jelly Roll and Struggle Jennings starts, I wonder what made me pick these two songs for tonight. I mean ‘Mindfield’ I get completely because it describes my life to the fullest. People judge me for being a mom at nineteen, for living in the place I live in. I lose myself in the pain and I can’t find my way back without the music bringing me back. ‘Love is a War’ just goes on to finish what the other song didn’t speak of. My demons eat me alive and there’s nothing to stop them. I’d die protecting the only thing I know is worth doing over.
My daughter.
If not for Mrs. Martinez, who lives next door to me, I don’t think I’d ever find someone to watch Piper. And if that were the case, I wouldn’t be able to provide even the smallest thing for her. Which makes me feel like the worst mother in the world.
If I had to pick my poison, I wouldn’t have to choose since I’m drowning in the stuff that my demons pour on me. It would take a war to defeat the battles within me to win.
As my music comes to an end, I do my ending number by sliding down the pole upside down coming to the floor. I kick my legs out flipping myself until I’m on my feet facing the crowd with a smile on my face. Winking at them, I give a little wave and head to the back of the stage as one of the girls comes out and grabs the dollar bills for me. This is what Victoria set in place for me. She didn’t want me out there longer than I had to be. I danced and got off the stage.
“It’s the mystery of you that keeps the lap dance numbers going up since you started two months ago,” Victoria stated with a smile when she explained this to me. I didn’t ask her to explain further not wanting to know the rest of the reasoning.
I step off the stage and grab my robe right away, sliding my arms through the sleeves and tightening it closed.
This was my last dance of the night and I was more than ready to change and get out of here. I need to get home, shower, kiss my daughter good night, and fall asleep on the rickety couch I use for a bed.
“Tink, can I speak to you for a second?” Victoria asks as I start heading to the dressing room. I hadn’t even seen her standing there.
“Um, yeah is everything okay?” I ask nervous about what she’s going to say. She’s the only one who knows about my daughter and the only reason she knows is due to if there’s an emergency I can leave.
“Come to my office,” she murmurs, nodding in the direction to said office.
Oh no.
Did I do something wrong?
Following her into the office, I’m not surprised to see her husband, a member of the Devil’s Riot, sitting on the couch off to the side. What does surprise me though is seeing Cane, another member of the club and the very same man I find beautiful, standing on the opposite side of the room.
“Um, what’s going on?” I ask nervously as Victoria closes the door behind her.
“You need to sit down,” she declares.
“Just tell me. Am I fired?”
“What? No. You’re not fired but I need to inform you the cops are at your apartment. They called here looking for you while you were on stage.” I feel myself going pale at her words.
“Is Piper okay?” I ask.
“We don’t know. Shots were fired and they found Mrs. Martinez dead.” Victoria breaks the news causing my knees to weaken, before I hit the floor, an arm wraps around my waist.
No. No. No. This can’t be happening.
Chapter Two
Cane
I’ve been mesmerized by this woman from the first day I saw her take the stage. After that first night, I asked Vi to make it where she only dances, she doesn’t pick up her tips and I didn’t want other men touching her.
I knew I wanted her but I had to be cautious in going about my plan to make her submit to me. I could tell she’s not in the same lifestyle I choose to lead. I’m a Dom and I don’t hide it from my brothers. I don’t hide shit from them. Or more like I don’t speak of my past that was not a good start in this world. If not for Stoney, his uncle Croc, and the rest of the club, I’d probably be dead right now for the things I endured when I’d been eight.
I have a certain taste in things I like sexually and at first, I had a hard time coming to terms with myself, until Shadow. He was a prospect when he went down to the Franklin Charter for the club and when he came back, I found a moment to approach him about it since I’d noticed he was somewhat similar to me in the way he acted with the women around the clubhouse.
Reason I had a hard time coming to terms with my being a Dom was I didn’t want to be like him. My father who Croc didn’t allow to leave that day so long ago. No, Croc had been outraged along with Stoney at the news of what he’d done to me. He ended up disappearing and my mother signed over her rights to me without a problem. Probably because the club threatened her. Momma B took me on as one of her own but I stayed in the clubhouse with Stoney and Horse since they were my actual family.
When Vi hired Parker, we looked into her like we do others and found she was related to someone we didn’t want associated with our club. We’d debated letting her go but from everything Nerd found on the woman she didn’t have anything to do with him. Not after what he did to her. I saw the police reports and the pictures, but there was no way to tie the asshole to what she’d been through that night. Nor was there a way to get the motherfucker who did rape her considering Parker didn’t inform the police of the name of the man who raped her.
We also knew she had a daughter to take care of, she ended up with her after what she endured. It’s for these reasons alone the club didn’t fire her.
“What . . . she’s . . . no,” Parker murmurs, shaking her head. I tighten my arms around her as she becomes frantic. “I . . . need to go.”
“Easy, lil mama, you need to stay calm,” I whisper against the top of her head. I don’t know where that name came from but it suits her. I’ve seen her with her daughter and know without a doubt she’s so much like Rachel and the other ol’ ladies at the club. Fiercely loyal to their family.
In Parker’s case, her family being a sweet two-year-old girl who looks just like her mom.