His touch sent chills through her body, like an electrical current flipping on the switch to her pussy. It scared the hell out of her, and her legs trembled. Struggling to swallow back the lump in her throat, Baby didn’t trust herself to speak. She couldn’t muster up a simple head nod. Her feet were cemented in place, not wanting to move and chance Lucky dropping his hand.

When he didn’t let go on his own, she finally said in a soft whisper, “I can’t come back if you don’t let me go in the first place.”

His hand fell to his side and his face turned a deep shade of red. She stared at him for a moment before sashaying away.

As she waited backstage, Baby Jade did some stretches to limber up. Her body was buzzing. It was strange that the loud, grating sound of Mickey’s voice didn’t make her want to claw out her eyeballs. There’s a first for everything.

“Gents, let’s give a nice big round of applause for Coral! What a sweetheart. And for all you Lolli and Barbie fans, they’ll be back again in a little while. But now it’s time to step it up a notch. If you haven’t had the pleasure of seeing our next dancer in person, you have been missing out. You, my friends, are in for a treat. She’s gorgeous, leggy, busty, and exclusively at Bottoms Up. Give it up for our one and only Baby Jade!” The crowd went wild with catcalls and applause.

Baby Jade glided one arm through the curtains, slowly extending it to the crowd. The anticipation only made them more excited. It was important to maintain control over the crowd in a setting like this. People could get hurt. The bachelor party had been drinking for hours. They were probably harmless, but accidents still happen.

With her arm through the drapes, she placed one finger up to her lips without revealing her face. She gave the crowd a sexy “Ssshhh” to help quiet them down. The shock factor must have worked because silence fell over the room.

Baby Jade slipped her leg through the curtain, which was Mickey’s cue to start her music. By the stillness of the crowd, she knew that all eyes would be on her. She wrapped her leg around the curtain and used it as a pole, sliding up and down with her back to the crowd.

As the song continued, Baby moved toward the pole in the middle of the stage. She coiled her body around the pole before spreading her legs and sliding to the floor in a perfect split. As soon as she hit her mark, the audience went wild. Her own body throbbing as the blood surged thinking about Lucky’s moist lips, creating an adrenaline rush.

A man sitting at the edge of the stage waved a handful of bills in the air. She twirled her hair, smacking the man in the face with her ebony tendrils. She imagined Lucky’s hands moving up and down her body, exploring as she shimmied out of her teddy right on point and strategically held it over her breasts for a few seconds, creating a frenzy before slipping out of her thong. Her body automatically cranked out the moves until she finished right on cue.

Perfection. All the way to the point of the crowd chanting for an encore, which was always a huge ego boost. Mickey didn’t let the girls give encores unless it was their final set of the night. It was one of the few things he and Baby agreed on. You always leave them begging for more.

“All right fellas, calm down. Yes, that was real. Yes, that actually happened, and yes, it will happen again. Baby Jade will be back to grace the stage soon. In the meantime, we’re going to take a few minutes to prepare for the Bottoms Up one and only original, Jewella!”

Baby snatched up her tips and slipped on her robe before heading back toward Lucky. Jewella squirmed on a stool next to him, trying to inch closer. Her hand rested on his shoulder. She reminded Baby of a dog in heat. And poor Lucky looked miserable.

As she approached, Lucky looked at her with pleading eyes. “I tried to get her to leave me alone, but she wouldn’t move. I think she needs to go sleep it off or something. She seems pretty messed up,” he explained.

“Does Mickey know?”

“Doubt it. He was in the DJ booth the whole time, and I didn’t want to leave the front door. Besides, I liked the view.”

Dammit, that grin!

She was smart enough to know he was definitely flirting with her. He liked her. A lot of guys liked her, but the butterflies in her gut told her this one was different. He was more intense and didn’t feed into the usual club drama.

Since she couldn’t think of a witty comeback, Baby Jade decided to ignore his last comment. “Well, she’s next on stage. Someone’s going to have to let Mickey know. There’s no way she can go on like that.”

Neither of them budged.

Finally, Baby Jade relented. “Fine, I’ll tell him.”

Lucky’s response? That panty-dropping grin.

Mickey was in the back room lighting a cigarette. She was surprised he didn’t already know about Jewella. He usually kept an eagle eye on her. Wasn’t that the whole point of her babysitting job?

Once she filled him in on his girlfriend, she stood back and waited for him to blow.

“Shit, Baby. I told you to keep an eye on her. This is exactly what I was talking about.”

“Don’t give me that bullshit, Mickey. She’s not my responsibility. I was on the damn stage. Remember, my job?”

“You and lover boy out there are trying to fuck with me.”

“Yeah. The guy I met yesterday and I are plotting on how to fuck with you. It’s how I spend my days.” Baby rolled her eyes.

“Well, Jewella can’t go out there on the stage. What the hell am I supposed to do now?”

Baby Jade knew what he was getting at and wanted to beat him to the punch. “Don’t look at me. I was the last one on stage.” She waved her hands in front of her chest.

Mickey rubbed his forehead. “We need to get some new blood in here.”

“Yeah, because I’d say your girl is about done.”

“Get the hell outta my way,” he said storming passed her and out of the office. He stomped across the bar to the front door.

“What’s wrong with her?” he asked Lucky.

“I don’t know, man. She won’t leave. I think she might be high or drunk.”

“Oh no, she’s sick. It happens every night after a fifth or an eight ball,” Baby Jade chided.

Mickey shot invisible darts in her direction with his beady eyes. “Dammit, Baby. Shut the fuck up.”

She remained quiet, but not for Mickey. It was because she saw the look in Lucky’s dark eyes. He was fuming and she didn’t want him getting into a fight with his boss, especially his first night.

“Go tell Coral to get her ass on the stage,” Mickey directed at Baby Jade.

“She was on right before me.”

He grunted. “I don’t give a shit. Find someone. And I need you in early this week to put in some daytime hours to help with interviews. This shit’s getting old.”

Baby made an executive decision to give Coral a break. She made her way through the crowd to let Lolli know she had to take Jewella’s set. The girl was pissed, and for good reason. All the dancers had been covering for Jewella for far too long. If Baby hadn’t been the last one on stage, it would be her up there and Mickey wouldn’t have taken no for an answer.

Mickey’s hoarse voice belted across the room. “Baby, get your ass back over there. You’re on stud duty!” He jerked his head toward Lucky. “Lolli get your shit together. We don’t have all night. Your set was supposed to start five minutes ago.”

Baby Jade shot Lolli a sympathetic look.

“Well, that wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be,” Lucky said as she sidled up to him on the stool.

“That’s easy for you to say. I got a few more sets added to my night.”

“In the meantime, you get to hang out with me. Now is that really a bad thing?”

Those fucking dimples are going to be the death of me! He was dangerous. Far more dangerous than she had anticipated, and it was the last thing she needed. Baby didn’t know how she was going to get away from him, and the worst part, she didn’t know if she wanted to try.