Hot Redemption (17 page)

CHAPTER 16

Phoenix

Seriously? Had Epic really considered the idea that I might not still want to do the audition? Because what—he couldn't go with me?

Epic was turning out to be nothing like I thought he would be. Beneath his hard exterior was an intelligent, caring, loving, and sort of needy man. But damn, if his skills between the sheets and his magnificent body didn't make up for that one failing. Or even his heart, for that matter. By giving me his heart key last night he'd managed to slip into mine. Maybe I was insane like he said, but I was beginning to believe that a relationship between us might just be possible.

I made my way through the dimly lit club to the third floor. As soon as I stepped through the beaded doorway I saw two men leaning against a bar facing what was definitely center stage. I mean it was huge and smack-dab in the middle of the room.

Showtime! Oh joy!

I plastered on my best flirty smile and swung my hips with purpose. Both men's heads roamed openly over the curves of my body, but I didn't care. In this case, that was a good thing. They looked nothing like Epic. They must have been half his size, but both had muscular bodies that were showcased in their red plastic shirts. Mustaches rested above the top of their lips and curled up at the ends, just like Pappy's did. I supposed it must be the current style amongst a certain type of man—the type that liked to pay for their women. Neither of them had a chiseled face like Epic, but they didn't possess grotesque faces either—just kind of plain.

I stood directly in front of them. “Hi, I'm Nix. I'm here to audition. I was told you might have something for me to wear before we start?”

They both looked like they took decent care of themselves, but they were also complete skeezes. Being so close to them kind of made me feel a little nauseous. It was like I could read their lecherous thoughts about me on their douche bag faces.

“Nice to meet you, Nix,” Tweedle Dee said as his much-too-bright teeth glinted in the lights. “There'll be two parts to the audition. First, we need to see what you can do on the main stage, and if you please us, visually speaking, then we get to test out your lap-dancing skills.”

I narrowed my eyes as Tweedle Dum snickered, and yet I somehow managed to keep my smile in place. I was fairly certain that the lap dance portion of my audition had been a recent development. They'd probably added it as soon as I walked in the door.

I had a tendency to attract the worst kind of men, even in a place like this. “Yeah, sure, so what about the costume?”

Tweedle Dee spoke up again. “Just strip off what you're wearing. That'll be fine.”

“Is this a fully nude club? I thought it was—”

“We're not going to waste the supplies such as pasties if you're not worth it. If we hire you, which depends on if you perform well today, then we'll provide you with a costume of our choosing.”

I ground my teeth together. In a world like this; it was the survival of the fittest. And if I didn't put my foot down now, I might as well just lie down and spread my legs for both of them. I wasn't stupid. They were trying to see how far they could push me. They both were hoping I might be one of the clueless girls who walked into their club and thought everyone had to give them sexual favors in exchange for their job. I might not get the job, but I wasn't about to become a prostitute either.

“Not going to happen, boys.” I smirked as Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum's faces both fell into identical frowns. “This isn't my first time to a show. I'll dance for you. You can look, but there isn't going to be any touching of any kind.”

Tweedle Dee started to open his mouth, but I raised my hand abruptly to silence him. “And before you kick me out, I'd like to say one thing first. I may not be jonesing to be one of your probably many whores, but I can guarantee you that I'll make your club a lot of money. Now if you let me audition for you the proper way, I'll let you be the judge of my money-making skills and not my dick-sucking skills.”

Both men stared at me in shock for a moment before Tweedle Dee broke the silence. “Alright. But you better be good or I'm having Joey throw you out of here head first.”

I grinned with triumph. “Oh, I'll be good, baby. The best you've ever seen.”

Tweedle Dee snorted. “Yeah, we'll see.”

I made my way over to the stage and pulled myself up onto it, deciding not to bother entering from the back—it was pointless really. “So—music and lighting? Or am I just supposed to make do without them like the costume?”

Tweedle Dee made his way over to the empty DJ booth and climbed into it. “I'll give you some music, just to be fair.” He chuckled to himself.

“Yeah, fair.” I grumbled under my breath before smiling brightly up at him. “Alright, well, how about—”

Tweedle Dee waved his hand at me. “I didn't say you'd get to pick the music, just that you'd have some.” Tweedle Dum laughed openly as I narrowed my eyes at Tweedle Dee. With a flick of his wrist, music suddenly began to blare from speakers that were placed around the club but out of view.
Nice
.

I took a moment to let the music begin to roll over me, to seep into my system through my pores. When I danced, I always let the music be my partner. It led me with a steady hand and told me exactly what to do. It never let me down.

A steady deep bass thumped, causing my pulse to beat in time with it. I rolled my neck and listened as the singer's hypnotic voice spoke directly to my soul.

“Every day I've tried to resurrect myself, from ashes of my life of yesterday, but each time's been a little harder trying to arise, that now I feel I'm really down to stay.”

It was an early Chameleon song, and I immediately recognized the sultry tone as Epic's, now that I knew it so intimately. His voice was a thing of beauty and the pain that it held wound itself around my heart and squeezed. I began to move slowly, letting Epic's sweet tones caress my skin lovingly, which caused goose bumps to erupt across my flesh.

“Every day I've tried to re-invent myself, for who I think I am I cannot be, but as I metamorphosis and shed my painful past, I lose my too few friends and family.”

Yes, I'd heard the song before, and I'd loved it, but I'd never really listened to the lyrics, like really listened. Of course what I knew now about Epic changed the meaning of the words for me, and sadness washed over me. He was so full of deep-seated emotional angst. I could only hope that one day I could heal him the way he was slowly beginning to heal me. It was in that moment that I decided I'd spend the rest of my life trying.

I gyrated slowly as I let my dress slip from my body, my nipples were tight little buds as I pictured myself dancing for Epic in a room all by ourselves as he sang his heart-wrenching song for me and me alone. Suddenly the chorus broke out and I followed my urge to grip the pole in the center of the stage. I began to swing around, doing various acts of aerial gymnastics.

“I can't seeeee—What will beeee-come of me?”

Epic's voice screeched with pain as I danced for him. Because that's what I was doing, I was dancing for him, and I'd never stop. The chorus dropped off and the music flowed back into the slower melody of another verse.

“Every day I've tried to repossess myself, from overwhelming anger in my soul, but though there's light at tunnel's end, it's so damn far away, that now I feel I'll never reach that goal.”

I slid to the ground and thrust my pelvis in the air, imagining the burnt sienna color Epic's eyes would be if he were standing close enough to touch me. And, oh, how I wanted him to touch me. I writhed on the ground, running my hands over my own body, pretending that soon my touch would be replaced by Epic's firmer one.

The chorus slammed into me again and I quickly rose to swing around the pole once more.

“I can't seeee—What will beee-come of me?”

The song came to an end soon after that with a few instrumental bars and low unintelligible growls from Epic. I finished up my first dance and as the music stopped I blinked into the bright lights and focused on Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum for the first time since Chameleon's song had started. Both of them were silently staring at me, mouths agape.

I swung my head back and forth between the two of them, waiting for some kind of instruction or comment.

“Ummm…” I cleared my throat. “Do you want me to do another song or—”

“You're hired!” Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum said almost in perfect unison.

Pleased and yet surprised, I raised my eyebrows. “Okay.” I mean, I knew I was good, but I didn't think that even I could win these two skeezes over with only one song.

Tweedle Dee hurried down from the DJ booth, his tight pants displaying just how much he had liked my dance. “We're going to make you a star, baby. A star!”

I grinned. Having the distinction of being a top money-maker for guys like Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum would keep them off my back for the time being. And that's all I would need, because it wasn't like I was sticking around for them to become emboldened enough to start propositioning me again.

I winked at Tweedle Dee, who was standing over by the bar looking a bit flustered as he tried to cover a wet spot on the front of his pants. “I'll see you later, boys.” I waved and then turned to leave. Neither of them responded to me, but I heard the low murmurings of their voices as they no doubt discussed the money signs I had placed in their eyes.

My audition had taken less than twenty minutes, but I left the room with my head held high without any of my orifices having been violated.

Just before I pushed out the front door of the club, a large hand grabbed my arm and pulled me back into a rock-hard chest. “Careful, baby, there are cameras everywhere.”

The hand relaxed and I turned to look up into Epic's pinched face.

“I was worried.”

“I can take care of myself.” Besides, Epic had definitely been there with me in spirit.

Epic's nostrils flared and he ground his teeth together before relaxing. I knew he was having an internal struggle. Finally, he sighed. “I know. So did you get the job? You weren't in there for very long.”

I rolled my eyes. “Don't sound so happy about the prospect that I may not have been hired, because I was. My audition didn't take long because I wasn't going to give them any kind of sexual favors like they wanted.”

Epic's eyes flashed red with his anger. He started to turn, but I snagged his hand. “Let it go. You can't go around beating the shit out of everyone that propositions me, especially in a place like this.” I squeezed his hand and nodded to the door. “I know you only came early to watch out for me. Do you want to come with me for a bit before you actually have to work?”

Epic's eyes flipped through an array of colors before finally settling back to normal. “What do you have in mind?”

“Probably exactly what you do.” I pushed through the door and ran at top speed for my aerial scooter, knowing that Epic wouldn't be far behind. Sure enough, just as I was about to hop on my scooter, Epic's arms wrapped around my middle and he swung me around while I tried to contain my laughter.

“Stop, the cameras,” I said breathily.

Epic set me down on the ground begrudgingly and I slipped onto my scooter triumphantly.

“Race you.” I turned the ignition and revved the engine.

“Nix, no! You're going to get yourself killed!”

“Who wants to live forever?” I called over my shoulder as I sped off. I laughed into the wind, loving the way it felt rushing against my overheated skin.

“Nix, slow the fuck down!” Epic snarled as he pulled up beside me and grabbed my handle bar to force me.

I rolled my eyes but was secretly pleased that he cared. “You're the one who bought the damn thing for me.”

“And I'm seriously regretting that decision right now.”

We paused at a stoplight.

“I bet I could change your mind.” I batted my eyelashes and bit my lower lip. I leaned forward so I could whisper in his ear. “I might have a problem. I think I'm an adrenaline junkie or something, because I'm seriously worked up right now.” I snaked my tongue out to run along the shell of his ear. “Now who can I get to help me out with my little issue? Surely not a stick in the mud like—”

Epic's mouth came crashing down over mine, effectively stealing my words. His scent enveloped me with a sense of comfort and at the same time revved up my hormones even more. I rocked forward and cupped his hard length through his pants.

“Get a room!” someone yelled with annoyance, following their words with an angry honk.

Epic and I pulled away from each other and laughed. “We should probably take this somewhere else. For no other reason than someone from the club might see us, if they haven't already.”

“Yeah. Even worse, we may kill ourselves on the aerial highway.” Epic pulled me back into him again.

“Epic—” I protested against his demanding lips.

Not until more horns began to honk did Epic finally disengage from our kiss.

“Come with me,” he growled while sliding me over to his scooter until I was in front of him. In seconds, he changed gear and sped off. My scooter hovered in the area where I'd left it. He'd purchased upgrades when he bought the bikes. The upgrades included automatic security locks that shifted on whenever the floor panels sensed the driver was gone. Lots of people fell from scooters these days and instead of others helping them, the people snatched the poor saps' vehicles and fled.

My scooter should be safe from being stolen. People will just have to drive around it. Fuck them.

“Hold on, Nixie baby.”

There was barely enough room for his large frame, so I was pushed up flush against him. He tucked my head under his chin and sped off.