Antonis took another drag of his cigar as he mulled over this. A half-naked bottle-girl came up on the platform with two bottles of liquor in hand. She popped them and poured them drinks. Diamond animatedly drank his liquor while giving nods to whoever spoke to him in passing. He tried to give off an air of nonchalance, but every three seconds, his eyes would slither over to him, waiting for his response. Antonis continued to muse on it more.
“Everybody out there having a good time? Yeah! Yeah! We lit as shit in this club tonight, but let’s get even more lit with the baddest, sexiest woman in Uptown. Get y’all dollars ready for…H-to the-O-to the-N-to the-E— HONEY!”
The DJ yelled, and the crowd reacted, getting hyped as more energy entered the room. Antonis watched curiously as the atmosphere in the room changed. More people flocked to the stage, doing exactly what the DJ had told them as people fished into their pockets and purses for more money. The lights changed to sprays of white and light blue, and the music mixed out from the hard thumps of hip-hop to the slow groove of 8o8s and RnB.
On the stage, the curtain parted, and a woman stepped out, walking with the same precision that a model would have as if every stride counted. Antonis sat up higher, taking in the scantily clad honey-brown skin wrapped in a small white bikini barely hidden underneath a blue see-through mess skirt and crop top with white platforms that strapped up her calves.
Honey swayed her hips over to the pole, hooking all eyes in the room onto her, including him. Unlike the women before her on the stage, who aggressively shook their asses to the beat, Honey swayed with the music, rolling her hips and touching her body with a sensuality akin to an intimate performance in bed. She held the pole as she bent over and slowly shook her ass. Bills fluttered onto the stage as the audience watched her every move quietly. She swung around the pole, fluttering her legs with grace that reminded him of a ballerina.
She was different. Everything about her was different. Not only from the women he saw here, but from the women he had seen at any strip club, and he had been in the entertainment business for quite some time now. This woman was a sight to marvel, and even the crowd knew that as they all watched her.
Honey slid down the pole into a split, rolling her hips in a suggestive manner that made you wonder what it would be liketo be underneath her. Already, most of the stage was covered with money, and she hadn’t even taken her clothes off yet, but once she did— teasing the crowd as she slowly untied the straps and let her bikini top flutter to the ground— money fell down like it was hailing from the sky. Barks and applause could be heard.
“So, about selling here—”
Antonis turned a cold stare on Diamond, which caused the man to sit there speechless. Antonis turned his attention back to the stage, dark brown eyes watching every move Honey made. She walked closer to the edge of the stage, and for a brief second, their eyes connected before she slid down to her knees, popping her ass. More money rained. Antonis didn’t speak again until her performance was over. He watched as she picked up the money on the stage, stashing it into a bag.
“Who is she?” Antonis asked.
“Who? Honey? Oh, she’s one of our headliners here. She’s been working here for about..um..half of a year now. But she’s already a favorite here,” Diamond said, smirking as he looked at the large bag of money she was holding before he turned to Antonis. “The men love her here because she’s untouchable.”
“Untouchable?” Evangelos questioned.
“Not just anyone can touch her. She doesn’t just give lap dances to anyone like the other broads in here,” the man behind Diamond said, his eyes low-lidded, and the parts of his eyes that could be seen were webbed with red lines.
“I’ve been trying to talk to her since she got here,” Diamond admitted. “But she won’t take the bait. One of those standoffish joints that keep to herself. Rome, she got a man?”
His friend, high off weed, shrugged. “I don’t know. She got a kid, though.”
Diamond nodded. “Honey brings in the most money. Whenever we put out our fliers with her on them, the club is packed to the brim. Oh yeah. She’s there. Ay, Honey! Honey! Come over here.”
The brown skin girl passed the bag to the bouncer before she walked over to them. When she got to the top of the stairs, his guard unlatched the stanchion, and she walked onto the platform, her eyes taking them in with slight apprehension.
“Honey, this is Antonis Tsagkarakis. He owns the club,” Diamond introduced. Honey turned her eyes on him, but though Diamond had announced his status, her demeanor towards him didn’t change. Antonis smirked. She didn’t seem to be impressed by his title.
“It’s nice to meet you,” she said, and though she was half-naked, her bikini top back on, she still carried herself like a lady and offered her hand. Antonis took it and held it a second longer than appropriate. Her dark brown eyes looked into his before they turned apprehensive, and she tugged her hand back.
“I was entertained by your performance,” Antonis said.
“Thank you,” she said. She looked uneasy as she shifted her stance.
“Honey, your client is here to see you,” a girl called from below the platform. Honey looked in the direction where thegirl pointed to see a modest man, who wasn’t wearing the same stacked jewelry that Diamond and his men wore, but though he wasn’t flashy, his clothes suggested that he had money. Now, Antonis understood what Diamond’s friend meant by her being untouchable.
“Excuse me, but I have to go. It was nice meeting you,” she told him politely before she walked away, heading for her client, who hung towards the back. As she walked across the floor, various men approached her, but she declined and ignored them all. Antonis watched her all the way until she made it to her client, who she even managed to keep at arm’s length.
“You can sell in the club,” Antonis finally said. Diamond brightened, clapping hands with his friend behind him. Antonis fixed him with a serious stare, ending their celebration. “I’m going to make one thing clear with you— I’m very serious about my money. I don’t ever want to hear any excuses on why a return hasn’t made it to me because not only will I take your hand, but I’ll take the hands of your family too.”
The platform became deathly quiet despite the music playing throughout the club. Diamond looked at him nervously, along with his men behind him, who glanced at each other warily, and Antonis could see the flicker of regret cross their faces. A brief moment of silence passed before Diamond started laughing.
“I hear you, I hear you. You don’t play about your money,” Diamond said, chuckling tensely. “But I won’t disappoint you. This club gonna bring you the most money.”
“Start him off with two crates,” Antonis told Evangelos, who nodded and signaled to his guard, who would later make the drop to them with the drugs Diamond asked for. Antonis stood ready to leave, and his men followed suit.
“Wait,” Diamond said as he stood too. “You don’t want to stay and have a good time? I can have some of the girls have fun with you and your men in one of the private rooms.”
“No,” Antonis declined, “but I will be taking Honey off your hands. Send her paperwork to Evangelos by the end of tomorrow. She’ll start working at my club by the end of next week.”
Diamond stood speechless as Antonis left the VIP section and crossed the floor. For a brief moment, Antonis paused and looked across the room to Honey. She was in a private darkly lit area in the back where she was giving an exclusive floor performance.
