“What happened to you?” Elle asked, watching me in the mirror.
Tia’s eyes widened at my disheveled appearance. “You didn’t use the conditioner I told you about.”
Star eyed me with raised brows. “What did you do to your eyelashes?”
They sat me down and fixed me up in ten minutes. I was so grateful I nearly burst into tears.
“Thank you so much,” I said and hugged them when they declared me ready.
They all towered over me, mostly because of the sky-high heels they wore, but also because I was short, having inherited my Japanese mom’s build instead of my Swedish Viking dad’s height. I shot them a shaky smile and rushed out to the bar.
It was still early, but the club was already filled with patrons. Business was definitely booming, and it helped that this was the only strip club around for miles.
I pulled out my order pad and greeted the two bartenders, Martello and Stephen. They were here most nights and good guys if you didn’t try to give them a shitty tip.
My eyes didn’t linger on them long; instead, they were drawn to the man standing next to the stage. I could find Sebastian no matter how crowded the room was. Call it my secret superpower. The most useless one at that, but I always seemed to know where he was.
His blond curly hair was sticking up like he’d been running his hands through it. The muscles in his arms bulged when he crossed them over his chest, making me swallow. He was perfection in a six-foot-three package, and I’d felt an inexplicable attraction to him from the moment I first saw him a year ago.
Our interactions were limited to the occasional nod and looks—creepy stalker stares from me and assessing gazes from him.
Not that I’d tried to get his attention. I had no time to date. And the head of security, who was also a member of the local motorcycle club that owned the strip club, was definitely not a suitable match for a single mom.
Word was they’d gone legit, but nobody seemed to believe it. And I didn’t really make it my business to find out more about the motorcycle club. All I knew was Sebastian moved to town about a year ago when he also started working at the strip club.
I’d never seen him with a girl, but he might have one stashed away somewhere and didn’t bring her to the club.
Once I finished staring at him for the five seconds I allowed myself, I got to work.
The rest of the night kept my creep level to a minimum since I didn’t have time to do more than take a few sips of water every now and again. They really needed to hire more staff.
After fending off another slap to the butt, I leaned against the bar, eyeing the clock. One hour to go.
“Take a break. You look beat,” Stephen told me and nodded to the door.
I wasn’t about to argue since my feet felt like I was walking on nails. My new shoes would find a new home tonight in the trash can. Definitely not as comfortable as they looked.
“I’ll only be five minutes,” I called out, quickly making my way to the back.
Once in the dressing room, I pulled out my phone to check my messages.
Stella: Your kids are savages. They didn’t eat any of the cheese sauce, only the pasta. And who doesn’t love ice cream?
Stella: I mean, not that I gave them any. At least not much. Sorry, but they asked so nicely.
Stella: And they’re now sleeping like the little angels they are.
Stella: Hope you’re not creeping on hot security guy again.
I rolled my eyes and replied.
Me: They’re allowed ice cream, just not too much or the sugar will keep them up. It’s really more for your benefit than mine.
Me: And I’m not creepy. It’s only natural that my eyes would pass over him every once in a while. He’s here all the time.
Stella: Of course…
Me: Shut it, you’re making it sound like a bigger deal than it is. I should never have told you about him.
