Cold-Hearted (6 page)

The boys and I rode or bikes down the black streets, our headlights the only light in the overcast night. The entrance of the Nautilus appeared over the horizon with it's bright pink neon lights. It wasn't the best strip club in town—the drinks were overpriced and the dancers weren't too attractive—but they had happy hour on Thursday nights. We had just made a lot of money from selling a huge load of weapons and it was time to celebrate and let loose.

“You ready to party, Ash?” Maverick, our veep, grinned and slapped his big belly.

I ran my fingers through my hair. “First round is on me.”

“I hope you're talking about lap dances because I'm definitely getting a couple tonight.”

“It's going to take a lot more than money to get a chick to dance on that nasty lap of yours.”

Maverick boomed out a jovial laugh and hit me on the back. The large bouncer let us in and we entered through a dark hallway that opened up to a huge room with chairs surrounding the stage. Private booths lined the left wall and a bar sat on the right with some passed out drunks.

The motorcycle club took their seats as a fire-red stripper with the biggest rack finished her dance. Hammer, the president of the club, went off to the bar to order us drinks. He was an older guy who has been with the club since its founding. Light gray hairs speckled his hair and beard but he was still built like an ox. I'd follow that man into the depths of hell.

The lights dimmed even further and the next dancer was announced. A bright spotlight hit the stage and a goddess flew through the curtains. Her long blonde hair cascaded off her shoulders and her blue eyes pierced me. The blood in my veins froze and butterflies fluttered in my stomach. My pants tightened as my cock came to full attention.

Who the fuck was this chick?

Hammer joined us and handed me a pint of beer, foam dripping down the sides of the glass. I nodded and took a sip. The cold brew slid down my throat and warmed me instantly. I drank more as I sat mesmerized, watching this girl parade down the stage.

I cursed myself for not remembering her name. It was Ruby, Emerald—something close to that. The rest of the boys cheered at her and I sunk further into my seat, taking in all the sights. Her feet glided across the stage like a ballerina. She turned around and slowly untied her top. My heart hammered in my chest louder and louder. She faced us and revealed her mountains. A spike of desire hit my crotch.

Those are the most perfect pair of tits I have ever seen.

My raging hard-on tried to break through my jeans. Before I knew it, the dance was over and my next conquest left the stage.

I had to have her.
One smirk from me and she'd be putty in my hands. I never met a woman who could resist me.

I asked the nearest employee that I wanted a private lap dance from the girl that was just on stage. My balls were hot coals in my pants and they needed to be emptied.

“Gotta have her, don't ya Ash?” Maverick chuckled.

I ignored him and followed the employee over to one of the private booths. He told me she'd be out in a minute and shut the curtains. I sat in the comfy seat and my palms were sweating profusely. Why was I so nervous?
This was just like any other lap dance, and I'd had thousands of them.

The wait felt like an eternity, but only five minutes had passed. The curtains whipped opened and in walked the chick from before. She was dressed in a black bra and panties that hugged her curves tightly. Drool escaped the corner of my lips.

She stiffened and stopped in her tracks when she caught sight of me. Her eyes widened and went back to normal as she closed the curtain behind her.

“I hoped it was you,” she whispered.

What did she mean by that? “How much for a lap dance?” I asked, pulling out my black leather wallet.

“For you, it's on the house.” She smiled and every part of me burned with hunger.

No chick had made me feel like this before. What was happening to me?

I grabbed her hand and led her over to me. A spark jumped through her and zapped me. It must have been a static shock. She swung her long silky leg over and straddled me. Her big chest was only inches away from my face. My tongue must had rolled out of my mouth like one of those cartoons as I stared at her massive cleavage.

“What was your name again? I forgot.”

“It's Sapphire,” she replied in a soft and sensual voice.
I could listen to that voice all day.

“No what's your real name?”

Her hips gyrated as she grinded against me. “It's Nicole.”

My erection grew even bigger. “My name's Ash,” I choked out.

She knew exactly what she was doing to me. “It's nice to meet you.” She smiled. I'd wage wars for that smile.

Nicole stood up and faced away from me. She ran her hands down her sides, her nice ass swaying side to side to the beats of the music. She planted her butt right on my crotch, rubbing hard against me, holding herself up with her hands on my knees. I was getting so close.

Nicole unlatched her bra and dropped it to the floor. Still facing away from me, she leaned back against me. Nicole's soft hair was pressed against my face and I took in a deep breath of her divine scent.

She put my hands in hers and traced them up along her soft skin. “You're so smooth,” I murmured in her ear.

Nicole placed my hands on her chest and I squeezed her mountain peaks tightly—one-hundred percent real. How could a chick be this hot? The throbbing desire in my pants was ready to explode. I pinched her nipples and Nicole moaned softly.

Fuck! I was too close! I couldn't blow my load in my pants. Not yet...I had to have her first.

I lifted her ass off of me and set Nicole down. “Let's go back to my place,” I whispered.

Nicole stared into my eyes and smiled. “I'm sorry but I don't go home with customers and I definitely don't sleep with them.”

No girl had ever refused me before. The blood was pounding in my pants, reminding me of my desperate need. What was so different about her? She didn't seem like a normal stripper.

I was tempted to ask her to finish the lap dance so she could take me to to end. The pain in my balls was growing. I needed to unload fast. I grabbed a couple hundreds out of my pocket and smushed them in her hand before leaving through the curtains.

I looked around the room for another stripper that would fuck me or blow me—anything to take away this desire. The other MC members were all getting lap dances from various girls. Maverick needed two girls to fill his entire lap. It was too late to find another girl. I ran to the seedy bathroom to find my release.

Why did I tell him my real name! It just came out. That was such a rookie mistake. The girls backstage would be shaking their head at me now.

His leather vest looked so good on him, showing off his big muscles. His patches on his left breast stated: Dark Steel MC and Sgt-at-Arms. I wasn't sure what that meant but it sounded badass. I grinded against Ash, rubbing his giant erection right between my cheeks. The blood in my veins boiled as his hands touched me all over. I'd been with so many customers before but this one was different. He was strong, confident, and so god damn sexy. Desire pooled between my thighs. I got lost in the moment as he grabbed my breasts. I'd never wanted a man more than now.

Suddenly, Ash pushed me off him. I didn't want to stop. He wanted me to go home with him. My brain struggled with the decision. I so desperately wanted him to take me right there in the booth. All I'd have to do was bend over and keep my mouth shut as he pounded me. Nobody would find out.

But that was wrong. I didn't want my first time to be in this strip club. In the end, I was always a good girl. I told him the same thing I told every customer—I couldn't go home with him. Ash handed me two-hundred dollars and bolted out of the booth.

Two-hundred dollars.
The lap dance was only thirty.

I ran out to tell him thank you but he was already gone. I looked for him everywhere and eventually found him coming out of the men's restroom.

“I wanted to give you my number before you left,” I said, handing him a scrap of paper with my digits written on them.
Another rookie mistake.

Ash looked down and his eyes flared. “I'm really going to call you.”

My cheeks flushed. “I hope so.”

The motorcycle club left and Nautilus was almost completely empty. I went backstage and changed back into normal clothes.

“Nicole, who was that last customer you had? He was so dreamy.” Cherry asked.

“One of the guys from the motorcycle club.”

“Did you get his number? I'd love to ride a piece of meat like him.”

“Sorry Cherry, I didn't.”

I decided to leave out the fact that I gave Ash my number. Cherry was beyond beautiful and this biker was going to be all mine. I said my goodbyes to everyone at the club and left for home.

—

I pulled up to the tiny blue townhouse that Jenny and I rented. It sat at the end of a row of houses that all looked exactly the same with bars on the windows. We weren't in the nicest area but rent was cheap and the landlord let us do whatever we wanted.

I opened the front door to discover Jenny sitting at the breakfast bar, nursing a glass of wine.

“Why didn't you text me when you were coming home?” she blurted out.

Dammit. Why couldn't I ever remember to text her?

“I'm sorry, Jenny, I totally forgot. Things got a little crazy by the end of the night.” I set down my purse at the door and flung my heels off.
The sudden relief of being without shoes was heavenly.

Jenny took a sip from her glass. “You better text me next time.”

“I will.” I gave her a quick hug and she was still rigid with anger. But a second later she loosened up and accepted me.

“Can I get you a glass?”

I nodded. I definitely needed wine after tonight.

Jenny went to the fridge and pulled out a bottle of red. It was cheap but it was better than nothing. She poured me one and I downed it in seconds, not even taking the time to savor the flavor. The alcohol went to my head immediately.

“Long night, huh?” Jenny poured me another.

“You could say that again.” I grabbed the wine bottle and we both sat down on the crumb-filled couch in the living room.

Jenny looked into my eyes. “Oh my god, you met someone tonight.”

How did my face give away everything so easily?

I turned towards her. “How the fuck did you figure that out?”

“You have that glint in your eyes. You've never had it before so this guy must be amazing if he was able to hold your attention.”

I flushed at the thought of Ash. I didn't know much about him so why was he so captivating? We barely even spoke to each other and I already gave him my number. What kind of girl was I? The stripper cliché kept flashing across my mind.

Jenny put her hand over her mouth and gasped. She leaned over and whispered, “Did he take your virginity?”

“No way!” I shoved Jenny away hard. The glass of wine she was holding tipped slightly and spilled a little red on the carpet. “Oh crap, let me go get some paper towels.”

I rushed to the kitchen and returned with a whole roll of paper towels. We dabbed the stain on the carpet until there was only a faint blotch. Our carpet was already full of red wine mistakes.
There was no way we were getting our deposit back.

“This guy must really be something. I've never seen you act this way before. What's his name?”

I contemplated whether I should give her more details. The wine was messing with my head. “His name's Ash.”

“Wow that justs screams sexy.” Jenny didn't even bother drinking out of a glass anymore. She palmed the bottle and drained it into her mouth. “He might be the one to finally make you a woman.”

I shook my head but deep down she could be right. He was the only man I'd ever felt this way about. He might be the one. “This is stupid. I met this guy at a strip club. Not exactly my style of a fairy-tale romance.”

Jenny put her hands on my shoulders and focused on me. “You need to forget about fairy tales. This is real life, Nicole. Don't let it pass you by. Just let the guy stick it in.”

We both burst out laughing. But her words hit me in the gut. She was exactly right. I spent too many years waiting for my prince to come when there's no such thing. Too many movies and books conditioned me to wait for the perfect man. But that man didn't exist.

“Enough about you. I met a guy today too.” Jenny beamed.

I grabbed the bottle of wine from her and took a swig. “Tell me all about him.”

“Well I haven't exactly met him yet.” Uh oh. Here we go again.

“His name's Eric and I met him through one of those dating apps. We've been sexting back and forth all day.” Jenny pulled out her phone and almost showed me the dirty texts until I waved her phone away.

“Jenny, do you really want to go through this again?”

She cocked her head to the side. “What do you mean?”

“Come on, you know exactly what I mean. Remember Harrison—the guy who really turned out to be a girl.”

Jenny giggled hard. “Yeah that was rough. I almost turned lesbian for Harrison. But Eric is going to be different.”

“What about Gary who actually turned out to be a fourteen-year old boy?”

“I'm still waiting for him to become legal so we could date. He was so mature for his age.”

I rolled my eyes. “I think you really need to find a job, Jenny. For one, I can't afford the rent by myself. And two, you'd meet plenty of real guys outside who were the right gender and age.”

“I've tried, Nicole. Really I have. I've been to dozens of auditions but I haven't gotten any callbacks yet.”

Jenny was trying to make it as an actress but the competition was extremely rough. Ever since she graduated college she'd only landed a couple commercials. They paid well but the money didn't last.
Nobody had the heart to tell her that her dream probably wasn't going to come true.

“Why don't you try something part-time. Maybe waitressing? Or I could get you a job at the club.”

“You want me to dance?” Jenny downed the last of the wine and slammed the empty bottle on the coffee table.

I shrugged. “We could use the extra money.”

“Well I have an audition tomorrow. If I don't hear anything back, then I'll try it your way.”

I smiled. “Sounds like a plan.” I stood up and my knees wobbled from the wine. “I'm going to hit the sack.”

Jenny yawned and nodded. “Me too.”

I stumbled into my room and tripped over a layer of dirty clothes, crashing face first into my bed. I was so exhausted and ready for the night to be over. I closed my eyes and Ash's lean build and tattoos invaded my head. I grinned and blissfully fell asleep.

—

The next morning, I awoke with a spitting headache. The sun blazed through the windows and burned my eyes. I grabbed a pillow and buried my face in it. The memories of last night and Ash came back to me. I reached my hand out and felt around the bed for my phone. I must have left it in my purse at the door. I had to find out if Ash tried to contact me.

I used all the available energy in my body to lift myself up off the bed. I wiped dried drool from my cheek and realized that I fell asleep in the clothes from last night. I took my first step and the room spun, my head jackhammering with a hangover. I used the walls to hold myself up as I made my way down the hallway and to the front door.

My cellphone was right where I left it, in my purse by the door. I turned it on but nothing happened. The screen was blank. My battery obviously ran out and my charger was all the way back in my room. Jenny was in the kitchen cooking some sausages and singing an Ariana Grande song out loud.

She poked her head out. “Want some breakfast, Nicole?” The smell of greasy food almost made me vomit. I groaned and crawled to my bedroom.

I undressed and climbed under the cool bedsheets. I plugged in my phone and turned it on. I waited a few moments—no missed calls. I sighed and pulled the covers over my head. What if Ash never called me?