“Mhm,” I say. “Let’s get you drunk and see what happens.”
“Trust me, if you get me drunk… the only thing I’ll be doing is you.”
I roll my lips between my teeth to stop from smiling, but then say… “So, you can only do that when you’re drunk?”
I don’t really think that, but messing with him is fun. He holds my gaze, smiling.
“Definitely not.”
A small part of me wonders if that is true. He acts differently when he’s drunk. Though… I guess we all do. Myself included. I never would have had the courage to talk to him if I hadn’t been drinking that night—let alone go home with him. I’ve alwaysneeded a little help in the confidence department, especially after Derek.
“Do you think it’s normal for people in relationships to do this sort of thing together?” I ask. “Not that I think we are, I know we aren’t, I just mean… you know.” I shrug, looking away as I guzzle the rest of my drink.
JJ chuckles. “I think that if both parties think it’s okay, then it’s okay. It’s not for everyone.”
“You’d be okay going with a partner to a place like this?” I ask carefully.
“Yeah, as long as we trusted each other. Something like this takes a lot of trust and honesty. Communication.”
I nod. “My ex never would have done this. He didn’t even like me talking to Rudy and Maxwell.”
“He sounds like an asshole.”
“I like to say he wore the asshole crown.”
When JJ gets his drink, we stop at the bar to get me another one, then make our way to the main stage, passing one of the side stages.
The main stage dancers choose the music, while the dancers on the side stages just dance continuously to whatever’s on, kind of like backup dancers. As Rudy and Maxwell said, there are two seats right up front withreservedsigns on them. We take them off and sit as the dancer that’s up there now, doing a cowboy routine, finishes up.
“Do they come out together?” he asks.
“Most of the time, yeah.”
I finish my drink, putting the empty glass on the small shelf beneath the stage. When the waitress comes by, I request another, and JJ cuts in to say she should put it on his tab.
“Fine, but we’re using my cash for the stage.”
JJ chuckles. “Fine.”
“Have you been to a strip club like this before?” I ask.
“Not in years.”
“Respectfully, do you do anything fun?” I grin at him.
He smiles, but it’s not quite happy. “I try.”
The waitress brings me another drink, and I sip it more quickly this time. They go down easier the more you have, and that’s the problem.
The cowboy leaves the stage, and the music fades into something less country and morePony—as in the actual song “Pony” from Ginuwine. The stage is empty for only a few moments before Rudy and Maxwell come out.
“Oh, wow,” JJ says with a chuckle.
I grin as I take in their outfits. Maxwell is dressed as a cop, while Rudy is wearing a black and white striped prison suit—and by suit I mean booty shorts and a crop top.
“Never seen this one before,” I say.
The music gets louder and faster, the guys start doing their routine, dancing on the pole, the ground, along the end of the stage. At one point, Rudy is twerking in front of JJ, who looks like he’s having the time of his life. I hand him a ten, and he slips it into Rudy’s waistband. He blows him a kiss before moving along to the other side.
