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Chapter1
Kaitlyn
“I’mafraid they’re going to hurt me.” Fawn’s whispered words left Kaitlyn squeezing her eyes closed.
Growing up in the system wasn't easy, and Kaitlyn had often found her younger self stuck in uncomfortable, difficult, or even downright dangerous situations. She had hoped the freedom of becoming an adult would mean she didn't have to deal with the often painful and stressful experiences she had faced as a child.
But becoming an adult had only seemed to make her life harder, not easier. The problems that plagued her only grew more complex. Plus, Kaitlyn often felt there were no good options to choose from to fix anything.
“Just hang in there and tell them I'll have the money as soon as I can, okay?” Kaitlyn couldn't leave her best friend to face this situation alone.
Nearly a week had passed since Fawn vanished between leaving her shift and making her way to her car and the cops didn't seem to give a damn.
Why would they? The girls were both strippers, just doing what they had to do to survive. While Kaitlyn wasn't the type to go home with anyone, Fawn had several times becauserent can’t be paid with morals, as she loved to say.
“Who's that? A hot date?” A girl named Serenity walked by and tickled Kaitlyn's face with a deep purple feather boa.
This brought Kaitlyn back to the present and reminded her she was at work and tonight was an important night, possibly the only chance she'd have at making enough money to get her friend out of trouble.
With an uncomfortable smile at Serenity, she whispered, “I think I might throw up,” as she tucked her phone into her clutch.
Serenity’s lip curled in disgust and she gave Kaitlyn the side eye. “Ew,” she said under her breath before hurrying off.
Feeling totally out of place in the incredibly rich hotel conference room that had been set up for the women to change and prepare, Kaitlyn remembered that tonight she’d be auctioned off to the highest bidder in some uppity charity event for rich folks.
These weren’t her people; these were elite women, and she’d only been invited to be the Wild Card, literally. The date that no one knows what they’re going to get beyond her face and body.
No one here knew she was a stripper, and sheer luck had landed her in the right place at the right time to score an invitation.
Of course, with every second that ticked by, it felt less like luck and more like a nightmare. While it had been made clear to her that she was being auctioned off for adate, she was smart enough to know that most men expected more than just her time on dates. And given these men were paying for the delight of her company, she had no doubt they’d expect more bang for their buck.
With a deep breath and unsteady fingers, she adjusted the neckline of her beetroot-colored dress, well aware she’d messed up. The color for the event was purple and all the girls had come with some shade of the rich, elegant color, but Kaitlyn’s dress leaned more toward a deep red-purple than a pure purple.
Kaitlyn’s off-shoulder evening gown pooled at her feet, leaving her feeling like every step might be her last as she stepped back to take in her entire reflection in the mirror. She certainly looked the part of an upscale, elegant woman for the night, but deep down, she knew the truth. If anyone here found out she was actually a stripper, she'd be dragged out by her hair.
Still, that was part of the allure. Being able to sneak in places she shouldn't have been welcome added an extra thrill to the night. If any guy tried to get something out of her she wasn't willing to do, she knew how to shut them down.
Though if Fawn was here, she’d be telling Kaitlyn to go for it and have some fun, let loose, enjoy herself. Fawn very much believed in having a good time right here, right now, regardless of what it might do to the future. Of course, that wasn't how Kaitlyn lived her life, but with her friend weighing heavily on her mind, she couldn't help but imagine her friend’s advice.
Adjusting her shining black hair for the last time, she swallowed hard and met her hazel gaze in the mirror. Tonight was the night she'd get the money to save her friend. She couldn't back out. She couldn't back down. She needed to step up, keep her chin up and get the biggest possible paycheck for the night.
Behind her, the door opened and the aide walked in, giving a subtle nod to let her know that she was next. Beyond the still open door, she could hear the sound of the announcer auctioning off the girl that was going before her. The crowd didn't sound too big, and that helped put Kaitlyn at ease.
She followed the aide out to the edge of the stage but couldn't see past the heavy curtains on either side that blocked her view of the crowd.
The bid for the girl in front of her jumped from twenty-five hundred to five thousand, and Kaitlyn's eyebrows lifted as the woman scanned the crowd with a hurt expression. Kaitlyn had no doubt this girl thought that a date with her should be worth a million dollars, if not more.
But to Kaitlyn, used to making about four hundred dollars a night, the opportunity to make thousands seemed almost too good to be true. Though she'd signed up for this charity auction as the Wild Card, she was the one that got to keep eighty percent of what was bid on her. Eighty percent of five grand would mean taking home four thousand dollars - or more than a week’s pay - in one night.
The woman's disapproving look spurned some poor unfortunate soul into bidding six thousand for her. As the auction wound to a close and the girl was sold off to the highest bidder, Kaitlyn couldn't control her thundering pulse. The mixture of pure excitement, adrenaline, and terror flooding her veins left her faint under the edge of bright lights of the stage.
While she was used to being on stage in front of people, it was generally in a very, very different manner. And while she did enjoy her job to a point and loved the power and money it afforded her; this was a different kind of situation than she'd ever been in before. Usually, men paid for the pleasure of looking at her body; now they were paying for the pleasure of her time. It was a very different situation, and one that left her feeling very out of her element.
The aide at her side nodded as the person speaking into the microphone said her name to the crowd. Kaitlyn walked up the couple of steps, her dress in hand, before releasing her skirts, pasting a smile on her face, and walking to the x on the carpet.
A hush came over the crowd as the aide gestured her to give a spin before all the eyes watching her. Kaitlyn managed a graceful turn, then smiled at the crowd, tilting her head in the way she used to get extra tips while working.
“Five thousand.”
