Total pages in book: 21
Estimated words: 19281 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 96(@200wpm)___ 77(@250wpm)___ 64(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 19281 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 96(@200wpm)___ 77(@250wpm)___ 64(@300wpm)
I accessorize with a black velvet choker band that features a silver spider at its center, and of course, the outfit is topped with a witch’s hat, a beautiful one I’ve had since high school, that’s covered in black lace and decorated with dark iridescent feathers and little plastic spiders. As I pull up the thigh-high stockings netted with a spiderweb pattern, I feel positively bewitching.
Autumn promised to meet me in Club Red’s lobby, and when I arrive, I find her looking equal parts cute and sexy, her hair in pigtails, and wearing denim shorts, a red gingham shirt tied just below her chest, and cowboy boots. A massive tattooed man has his arm around her.
“Sabrina, you look great!” Autumn steps away from her man to give me a quick hug, both of us being careful not to disturb the other’s costume or makeup.
“You look great, too!”
“This is Duke, by the way,” she says, stepping back. “Duke, this is Sabrina.”
The big man gives me a polite nod, though he barely takes his eyes off of Autumn. Physically, he’s so different from Garrett, and from Autumn’s firefighters, though all four of her men are handsome. What a lucky woman she is.
I don’t know if I could even handle four men, but I’d welcome the opportunity to try. An image of my four housemates instantly comes to mind, but I push it away—hard. I need to forget about them. I’m here to have fun tonight, and hopefully meet someone new. Wouldn’t it be something to date a male revue dancer? Autumn’s firefighters used to dance here, after all, so it could happen.
“Did Garrett and your other guys come tonight?” I ask Autumn.
She tips her head toward the hall that leads to the showroom. “They’re inside, getting drinks.”
“I need to get back to my post,” Duke says, his voice deep and gravelly. “Nice to meet you, Sabrina. Hope you two have fun.”
After receiving a parting kiss from Duke, Autumn leads me to the showroom, where there’s a big crowd already, at least ninety percent of it women wearing very revealing costumes. I instantly realize I need to adjust my expectations for the evening.
I’m not going to stand out among all of these beautiful women; none of the dancers will probably even notice me.
CHAPTER FOUR
I catch the negative thoughts a few seconds after they sink in. I guess living with four men who don’t even seem to notice that I’m a woman has eroded my self confidence. But realistically, the odds are very low of making a meaningful connection with someone here when there’s so much competition. If the dancers are coming into the audience to mingle, they’ll probably be moving woman to woman pretty quickly, spreading themselves thin. Oh well, I can still have fun with my new friend.
“Don’t your guys mind you coming here?” I ask Autumn. “Aren’t they jealous?”
“I haven’t seen the show in a long time,” she explains. “I just wanted to come for the party, since Duke is working, but actually, being here is giving me warm memories of when I first met Trevor, Adrian, and Duke.” She shakes her head, looking lost in her thoughts. “It’s pretty wild how I got together with all four of my men. I’ll have to tell you about it sometime.”
“I have been curious,” I admit.
Garrett’s standing next to a table and gives us a wave as we approach. As we get closer, he offers up a vivid yellow drink in a martini glass to Autumn.
“Is this a lemon drop?” she asks, squinting at the glass. “It’s never looked quite so yellow.”
“It’s called scorpion venom,” Garrett says. “There’s a special drink menu tonight. It was the closest thing to a lemon drop,” he adds.
“Ah, that explains this.” Using the tips of her red-painted nails, she fishes a neon plastic insect from her glass before letting it fall back in with a splash.
“What would you like to drink, Sabrina?” Garrett asks, turning my way.
I smile and shrug. “Oh, I don’t know. Surprise me.”
As Garrett pivots to head to the bar, Trevor and Adrian are there, pulling out chairs for us to sit at the table they’ve claimed. They compliment my costume, and the four of us talk for a couple of minutes until Garrett returns, though it’s hard to hear all of the conversation with Janet Jackson’s “Black Cat” vibrating from the room’s sound system.
“Just in time. The show’s about to start,” Autumn says as Garrett hands me a cocktail. Mine is also in a martini glass, but it’s blood red and has a black spider attached to the edge of the glass, one of those rings kids wear. I lick the liquid from the plastic and put the jewelry on my finger after thanking him for the drink.
“Sounds like it’s a good time for us to go find Duke,” Garrett says.