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A FLIMSY DISGUISE COULDN’T PROTECT ME
KARINA
Maybe this wasn’t the best idea.
I being at Cherry Pops and spending time with Bunny, but the girl was sometimes too much. I stared down at the outfit Bunny asked me to try on. A black leather bikini top covered my chest and a matching short skirt hugged at my hips, barely covering my behind. To top off the outfit, I had knee-high fishnets that hooked on to the skirt and a pair of red fuck-me heels.
I should have been ok with the clothing choice. It was like what I usually wore at Risqué Dreams lingerie, but the outfit style wasn’t my problem. I would have been fine if I were in a professional setting, not that Cherry Pops wasn’t professional in their own way. It just wasn’t modeling. There was more to it. There was dancing and undressing for men who tried to get a small taste.
Dressed like the way I was, in a place like this, would give people the wrong idea. I was not a dancer. Still, I walked over to Bunny as she sat by the makeup station.
“Damn, girl. I still don’t understand why you don’t join the dark side.” Bunny chuckled as her eyes trailed up and down my body.
“You know exactly why.” I crossed my arms. Bunny gave me a bright smile, knowing damn well it only irritated me more.
“Of course, your reputation, your father’s legacy, and you don’t enjoy being touched.” Bunny poked my shoulder.
That wasn’t all of it, but it was my main reason for not become a stripper. Unlike Bunny, I wasn’t exactly a dancer. I couldn’t climb on a pole, and I sure as hell didn’t have the confidence to shake my ass in front of people.
“Someone was asking about you.” She shrugged as if it were something she forgot to mention.
I raised an eyebrow, though I wasn’t surprised. Someone was bound to ask about me. I used to be one of the top runway models for Risqué Dreams, the biggest lingerie store in the world. I was also the daughter of Dmitry Vasiliev. Yet, I still asked, “Who was it?”
Giving me a sly grin, she winked. “Nathan James.”
Nathan James... It was Nathan James Rainer, if I remembered correctly. I furrowed my eyebrows, trying to hide my contentment.
Although I was glad he found me, I wasn’t ready to face him. I hadn’t seen him since my father’s death. My head replayed the countless chances we had to be close that were ruined. Nathan closed himself off. He left me. And after making a fool of myself more than once, I didn’t know what to do.
Fear pricked at my skin. “I don’t think I can face him.”
“Who says you need to if he doesn’t know it’s you? Wear a mask.” Bunny walked over to a nearby dresser and grabbed something before she walked back over to me. She placed a small black mask into my hands.
I shook her head, holding it back out to her. “I am not going out and seeing him like this.”
“Oh, come on. Miss Risqué needs to do something a little naughty.”
“I do not.” I crossed my arms.
I knew not to be swayed by my friend. Bunny was seductive, a master in the art of manipulation and sweet talk. She could get her way by just opening her lips, except with me.
So instead, Bunny used one of her other many assets, a good grip. Her bionic hand grabbed mine, pulling me out of the dressing room.
“He’s going to think I’m a dancer.” I tried to protest as she dragged me down the hallway lit by red hues.
“You’ll be fine. You should know first-hand he’s respectful. Remember when he used to come here with us? He never touched any of the girls.”
Unfortunately, I remembered. Nathan never had his eyes on the dancers unless we forced him to stare. He was too busy doing his job. Besides, Nathan had seen my body before and touched my skin. He’d definitely look, maybe even touch, and know it was me. But he didn’t know for sure that I was there. “Why come to a strip club if he’s not looking for dancers?”
“I told you, he’s looking for you and he knows more than anyone that you’d be here. Now put this mask on unless you want him to know who you are.”
I stared down at the black plastic mask with cat ears. It was a stupid idea. A flimsy disguise couldn’t protect me. Sure, it did well in books and movies, anything fictional, but this was real life. I wasn’t a superhero trying to conceal my identity. I was a model. My body was a dead giveaway. He’d notice who I was in seconds, even with the damn mask.
Still, I supposed it’d be nice to talk to him again. He wasn’t Adam, and I felt comfortable around him. Not to mention, my father had so much trust in Nathan. But unlike my dad or Adam, Nathan leave me in my time of need. That alone made me not want to put my faith in him again. I put the mask over my face, grateful that it covered the tip of my nose and eyes.
The disguise was meant to conceal, not give me any superpowers like invisibility or confidence. But that’s what I needed, confidence to be in a room with Nathan. “I can’t do this.”
“Go, he doesn’t know who you are.” Bunny stopped, forcing me to come to a halt as well. My eyes focused on Bunny as she trailed a finger over my shoulder and whispered. “You can be anyone you want to. You’re not Karina. Not when you enter that room.”
I closed my eyes. Then who would I be? Who could I be, a kitty like the mask on my face? I shook the thought from my head and sighed. Just this once... to get Bunny out of my hair, I nodded in agreement. I would pretend to be someone else.
My fingers grazed the edge of the black velvet curtain. I pulled it open and took a step inside. The curtain slipped from my hand as my eyes laid on the dark-haired male, sitting on the couch.
Here goes nothing.
