Total pages in book: 121
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 122550 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 613(@200wpm)___ 490(@250wpm)___ 409(@300wpm)
No, she didn’t.
Luckily, all of her stuff was in her locker and there wasn’t anything lying around that could identify her.
“How mysterious,” he murmured. “Have a good night, Nyx.”
Jilly shook off the weird feeling she got from him and locked the door behind them with a sigh of relief.
Now she had to clean the room before she got ready. Who knew what they’d touched?
Awesome.
Nyx was back on stage and he couldn’t help but be mesmerized. Her movements took him away from the dark, seedy strip club he was sitting in.
His dick grew hard. That was disconcerting. That never happened without his express permission. Not since he was younger.
He’d always had tight control over himself. Maxim liked to joke that a good fuck might help him loosen up. But Regent didn’t want a quick, pointless fuck.
“Hello, the boss said you want a private lap dance with Jingles.”
He looked up at the man standing next to him. He was a big guy with a shaved head and tattoos up his neck. Intimidating. No-nonsense.
A good choice.
Regent nodded and stood, ready to follow him out the back where the lap dances happened. He had a mental map of this place. He tried to never go anywhere where he didn’t know all the exits and hidden nooks.
Victor walked beside him.
They moved past the front of the stage, and Nyx seemed to pause when she saw him.
That was odd.
He glanced up at her . . . there was definitely something about her. Something that pulled at him. But she quickly turned away before he could work it out.
Where would he have seen her before? Who was she?
“That dancer up there,” he said. “Nyx? Does she do private dances?”
“Nope.”
“Not even for extra? I’d be willing to pay twice as much as the usual fee.”
It was quieter back here as the guy led them to a door.
“She got offered three times the normal fee last week but turned it down. You’ll have to be satisfied with Jingles.” The big guy smirked at him.
Regent narrowed his eyes, aware of Victor behind him. He knew his brother had to be wondering what the fuck he was doing.
But he had to know who that woman was. It was burning a hole in his gut. Perhaps he’d speak to Santé. Then again, he didn’t want Santé knowing that he was interested.
The bouncer gestured to Victor. “Boss said he can wait out here. But he can’t go in.”
“I need to check the room,” Victor said.
The bouncer nodded and Victor slipped into the room.
“Does Jingles have a boyfriend?” Regent asked.
The big guy just glared at him.
Okay. He was loyal to the dancers.
“I can see why Santé hired you. If you ever want another job, you can get in touch with my brother. He’s always looking for new bouncers for his clubs. He pays well.”
Regent handed him a card with Maxim’s name on it. To his surprise, the other guy didn’t rip it up. But he didn’t seem to look at it either.
Victor came back out with a nod. All right, time to go visit with Jingles.
17
It was like a punch to the gut.
What was he doing here? She’d never thought he would be the type . . . not that there was anything wrong with visiting a strip club. She worked here and she wasn’t a hypocrite.
But he’d gone out the back with Seven . . . which meant a private dance.
As soon as she’d finished her set, she rushed off stage and ignored Keegan who was waiting for her. Instead, she’d headed to the other side and into the back hallway. It was dark, but she’d just spotted him heading into a lap dance room.
Other things went on in those rooms too.
Things she didn’t want to think about in relation to Regent.
“Nyx, what are you doing back here? It’s not safe for you to wander off like that.” Keegan placed his hand on her shoulder, making her gasp and shy back. “Hey, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”
A man turned to look over at them curiously. Her heart thudded as she recognized Victor.
Turning, she nearly banged into Keegan, who stood behind her. He was looking curiously down the corridor.
“Sorry. I thought I saw someone I knew, but I didn’t.”
There. That sounded okay, right?
“You wanted to chase after someone who knows your real identity? I thought you were keeping your two lives separate?”
Oh shit.
“I wasn’t thinking,” she said weakly. “Stupid brain. I need to go get ready for my next set.”
It wasn’t for another hour, and she hoped like hell that Regent Malone was far away from here by then.
Getting to her room, she shut and locked the door. Then she slid down it until her bottom hit the floor. Leaning her head on her knees, she took a few deep breaths.
She wouldn’t lose it here. She wouldn’t lose it here.