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I sat in the armchair, the room stuffy with cigar smoke, the music so loud that every word of conversation had to be shouted. I spotted Theo when he made his entrance, two guys following from a short distance away. When he found me, he took a seat, the small round table between our chairs.
The girls danced on the stage in front of us, bills sticking out of their panties, their tits out.
Once he sat down, the topless waitress walked over and took his drink order.
He pulled a cigar from the inside of his jacket and lit up. “What happened to your girl?”
“We’re still together.”
“Really?” He watched a girl bend over right in front of him, spread her cheeks on the way up. Then she strut back to the pole to do a fabulous spin. “You fooled me.”
“I’ve got to keep up a pretense now.”
“Why?”
“Long story.” I nodded toward the rear. “Let’s head to the back.” We headed to the private area, where the high spenders came to play. It came with a monthly membership for the most loyal patrons. That’s why the hottest dancers were back here.
We took a seat, the music at a more manageable level, the women in heels that looked like glass. They spun around the poles and flipped their bodies upside down, doing it all effortlessly, their arms toned from the physical demand.
Two girls came over to give us lap dances.
“No thanks.” I shooed them away. “We’re here for business.”
They moved on to the next client.
“Just because you’re pussy-whipped doesn’t mean I can’t get a lap dance.” He set the cigar between his lips and looked at the brunette who’d walked away.
“Come on, you know they’re lame.”
“A woman grinding on your dick is not lame.”
“When you’re in a crowded strip club, it is. Besides, I prefer free lap dances.”
“Money tight?” he teased.
“I prefer the kind of sex you don’t have to pay for.”
“Then you aren’t paying the right price…or the right woman.” He relaxed his arms on the armrests with the cigar between his fingers. “What pretense?”
“Dante’s having me followed.”
“Why?”
“He knows I’m—” I hesitated before I continued, making sure I used the right words to describe it. “He knows I’m seeing Scarlett.”
“If he knew, wouldn’t your head be off your shoulders right now?”
“He still needs me, so he can’t fuck things up. He acts like his daughter is everything to him, but she’s taken a back seat to his money.” I drew the smoke into my mouth and let the scent settle on my tongue. “As long as he still needs me, I’m untouchable. But that will change.”
“So what pretense are you trying to maintain hanging out at a strip club?”
“I want him to think we stopped seeing each other. Back to my bachelor ways.”
“Why do you care if he knows?”
“He told Scarlett about my prison stint,” I said sourly. “So he’ll do something else to turn her against me. If he doesn’t know about us, then we can continue our relationship without interference. I don’t want anything to ruin this for me…”
“Hold on.” He pulled the cigar out of his mouth. “She knows everything and didn’t take off?”
