“Break a leg, girl,” Amber said as she gave her a comforting smile. Honey kissed her Jesus piece necklace before she removed it from her neck and hung it up on the side of her mirror. Whenever she performed, she didn’t like wearing it. It felt wrong to her.
She looked in the mirror one more time, popping her lips to make sure her lip gloss was applied evenly, and once she was satisfied with her look, she headed out of the dressing room and for the stage.
Briefly, she thought about her son, her reason for living and breathing, her motivation for standing out on that stage and enduring those beady eyes on her body and Antonis Tsagkarakis.
C H A P T E R
3
“WELCOME TO THE GENTLEMEN’S CLUB,” Theo told Nikos as they entered Antonis’s strip club. Nikos had only been there one time before when his brother Aris needed to pick something up from their uncle. Nikos had only gotten a chance to catch a glimpse inside then, but now he was in the thick of it, watching as half-naked women danced on poles. The floor was packed with men sitting near the stage as they watched the main performance, while others played with their own personal dancers who gave them lap dances. Money fluttered through the air, and booze passed around. Nikos found himself grinning as he took in the scene.
Theo clapped his shoulder and led him over to the bar.
“Let’s get you a drink,” Theo said as he signaled over the bartender. “To celebrate you working with us now. This is Nikos Drakos, Antonis’s nephew and my cousin.”
“Welcome to the Gentlemen’s Club,” the bartender said. “I’m Rickman. If you ever need a good drink, come to me.”
“I’ll take you up on that offer then now. An Old Fashioned on the rocks,” Nikos told Rickman. The bartender took down his order along with Theo’s and started making their drinks. Theo was going to drink to celebrate, while Nikos would drink to forget. He didn’t see much point in celebrating, especially when he didn’t want to be here. Already, he missed his home and the sky.
When Rickman finished, Nikos took a sip of his drink and could immediately feel the burn. It was exactly what he needed. He nodded his approval to the long-haired bartender, who smirked as he tossed his towel over his shoulder. Nikos looked through the crowd and saw a few women’s eyes on him, looking at him as if he were their prey. Nikos grinned. This wouldn’t be so bad after all.
“I told you you’re a pretty boy,” Theo said, taking note of those same stares.
“Theo!”
A half-naked woman barreled over to them before she threw herself on his cousin. Theo grinned, hugging the red-haired girl back affectionately. Nikos lifted a brow as he took in the milky skin on her lean body. She was tiny and petite, and the most she could shake was her curly red hair.
“Amber, this is my cousin, Nikos. Nikos, this is my…uh…close friend, Amber.”
Amber did not seem at all phased by the uncertainty of the title of their relationship. She grinned, turning hazel eyeson him. Just before he could speak, two women walked past, making eyes at him as they did, swaying their hips seductively as if they were trying to trap a bear with honey.
Amber chuckled. “I can already tell you’re going to be trouble, pretty boy.”
Nikos smirked, turning on his charm. He couldn’t help himself. It came to him by nature.
Nikos grabbed her hand and kissed it, causing his cousin to glare at him. But Theo had nothing to worry about. Though she was a beautiful girl, Amber wasn’t necessarily his type. He didn’t necessarily flirt because he wanted someone. For him, it was breathing air. It came naturally.
“And what trouble are you trying to get in to with me?” Nikos asked, and Amber’s eyes sparkled as she blushed.
“You’re so different from your brother,” she said, shaking her head. Nikos lifted a brow in question, and Amber explained herself as she leaned her weight on her right hip, fixing him with a knowing smile.
“Your brother used to come through here, and all of the girls wanted him too. He had the whole tall, dark, and handsome look going for him. But he was so aloof that none of the girls could even get close to him if they tried.”
That sounded like Aris. When his brother was in business mode, nothing else mattered to him. That was why Nikos had been surprised when his brother returned from America with a beautiful woman like Mia on his arm and didn’t marry Evangelia Petraki, even though it was what their father had wanted. His brother had always been dutiful and loyal, willing to do anything their father asked for. When he put love before that, it had been something that surprised them all, though Nikos couldn’t blamehis brother. If he had the chance to be with someone as beautiful as Mia, he would drop everything for her too.
“But I can already tell that you won’t be like your brother,” she said. “You’re definitely going to be trouble, but don’t try to break too many hearts. We have a ship to run in here.”
“And definitely don’t try anything with Amber,” Theo warned him as he possessively wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
“But I thought she was just your close friend?” Nikos quipped. “That means there’s a possibility that Amber wants to know what it would be like with a real man.”
“You jackass—”
“Now, now, boys. No need to fight over me,” Amber said, grinning. “Though your cousin’s right, Theo. If you won’t take the bait, someone else will.”
They watched as she switched away, heading towards the back.
“I like her,” Nikos said and quickly stepped to the side to evade the weak punch Theo threw. Theo sighed, shaking his head before he began to inconspicuously point to areas and people in the room, showing him around in the lazy fashion that Nikos expected of his cousin.
