“One..two…threee..go!!!!”
Jeanine winced at the harshness of the manager's voice. James’ voice was always throaty like he suffered a dry cough or a sore throat.
She was relieved he wasn’t focused on her, he didn’t complain about her amateur dancing or her failure to arch her back properly like the other girls.
Tonight was a big night, James had invited a couple of billionaires and he had promised to entertain them.
Owing to that, he had placed all his best dancers in front, leaving Jeanine at the back.
“Jeanine, can I have a word with you?” He asked before she left for the stage
She rolled her eyes, thankfully he couldn’t see her behind her mask.
“I don’t want you on stage tonight” he stated firmly. “I can’t have you ruin things for me”
She bit her lower lip. She needed the money, she could have easily skipped work but her rent was due.
“Mr James, just give me this chance, I won’t fail you”
She had said it so many times that she doubted if he was going to believe her. Her job as a stripper was very important to her even though she sucked at it. It wasn’t as easy as when she babysat during the day or when she worked at the diner on weekends.
James sighed and ran a hand through his disheveled hair.
“Just look at you” he sneered
Her feet were wobbly in the seven inch heels, she wondered how the other girls danced perfectly in it.
The glitter made her skin itch and the heavy make up irritated her.
The first time she walked into the club to apply for the job, James had thrown her out because she couldn’t do a simple twirl. She had come back the next day and the day after that and he had no choice but to hire her. She had made a couple of bills, it wasn’t much but it was better than nothing.
“Please let me go on stage tonight, I have bills piled on my table. I need to pay up”
She hated that she had to beg him but that was the only way she was going to survive. She didn’t like the smell of cigarettes or the breath of men that reeked of alcohol but she had learnt to ignore it.
“Jean”
She hated how he pronounced her name, he made it sound like Jon. She looked up to him, her eyes watery from the heavy makeup.
“Do not ruin things for me” he wagged a finger at her. “I’ll let you go on stage tonight but the spotlight won’t be on you. You’d dance at the farther end of the stage”
She smiled and thanked him, it was better than nothing anyway. She wasn’t used to being the spotlight and they were way better strippers than her so she didn’t mind.
She was rather thankful and relieved at the thought of making a little money. The exhaustion she had felt from working three jobs and doing schoolwork morphed into hope. If she tried her best tonight, she could get twice her usual pay.
She moved to the farther end of the stage, close to the speakers. She had doubts anyone was going to see her because of the poor lighting but she hoped she was able to pick some money off the floor when the men sprayed the ‘stars’ of the night as James had put it.
It was a different crowd from what she was used to seeing. The men were dressed in suits and had an air of importance about them. She was impressed, she hoped one day she’d be dressed in a suit and talk business with any of them.
The song started, slow and sensual. She watched as the other girls moved and she tried to imitate them. She struggled as she held onto the pole and kicked her feet.
James taught them that the ultimate trick was to lock eyes with whoever they were interested in and charm them with their sensual dance moves.
She watched closely, looking for whom to lock eyes with. When she remembered her electricity was going to be out the following week, she danced harder, arching her back even more and holding her feet up high.
As expected, the men were attracted to the stars of the show and they showered them with money. Her eyes widened at the bundles of money, if she could get one bundle, that would be enough to cover her rent and other bills.
She moved to the spotlight, tired of getting no attention. James was going to give her an earful later on and maybe fire her but she didn’t care, it was better to take the risk than do nothing.
She found her target at the end of the room. The other men seemed smitten by the other girls but he didn’t look like he wanted to be there and he ignored advances made by the strippers. His mouth twisted into a frown when a man beside him whispered something into his ear.
He fumbled for his phone and typed something quickly before shoving it into his pocket. The only way she could get his attention was if she danced in front of him.
So she moved to the other side of the stage, placing each leg in front of each other in what she hoped was a sexy catwalk. She grabbed the pole and began to move her hips as she had seen the other girls do. She saw James from a corner shaking his head disapprovingly, she was certain she was going to get fired.
The man lifted his eyes to her and they locked eyes for about two seconds. The man quickly looked away, his irritation deepened.
She felt her heart thump against her chest, she felt so stupid. What she thought was seduction was probably her moving her body in an amusing way.
Tears pricked her eyes but she held them. She didn’t want to ruin James’ business.
The sound of loud music reverberated across the room. Nothing made sense to him, his mind was occupied by other thoughts and contrary to Henry’s suggestion, the strip club or the girls clad in scanty clothes didn’t help ease the tension he felt.In three days, he was going to lose his father’s company. He felt a knot in his chest and he downed what was left in his glass in one gulp. He watched as the other men sprayed the girls and cheered them on, he envied how relaxed they were, not bothered by what was going to happen. His relationship with his father was not the typical father and son relationship. They disagreed on so many things even though they were the spitting image of each other. His father had always feared that his son would end up a lonely man or if he kept on sleeping with different women, he might lose himself. Aiden didn’t care about any of the things he had to say, his parents had found love which was perfect but he wasn’t interested in finding love. The tho
Tears blurred her vision as she held her tote bag close to her chest with one hand and her car keys in the other. James had fired her, there was no point begging him. She earned the least and she was only taking up space backstage.What upset her wasn’t losing her job but the fact that she couldn’t pay her bills and the man at the club had looked at her like she meant nothing. She was probably never going to cross paths with him but it still hurt. She wondered if he had looked at the other girls like that or if he was just disappointed in her and her inability. She tried to start the car but it won’t budge just when she thought her day couldn’t get any worse. The car was a hand me down from her father for her eighteenth birthday. It was well over six years but she still tried her best to maintain it, it was all she could manage until she could afford a decent one.She sighed and wiped her tears as she thought of what the problem could be. It was a cold night, the flimsy dress
Twenty eight hours left…. Aiden was on his third cup of coffee, his eyes were droopy. He had no bride yet. He never imagined it would be so difficult to get a woman to marry him even though he had endless options. He understood that even if the marriage was temporary, whoever he was going to get married to was going to be part of his family for that period. He valued his family so much that he didn’t want to be involved with anyone who could cause them problems. They were not over his father’s death, the last thing he needed was unnecessary drama. “How about Stacy?” Henry suggested Over the past hour, he had gone through a list of women who he thought were eligible to marry his friend “Stacy?” Aiden scoffed. “That woman is obsessed with social media, I could never trust her around my house. Also, I can’t stand being around her” Henry shook his head as he drew a line across her name. Aiden slouched in his chair. He imagined his father looking down on him with a frown on
Ten hours left….. Jeanine's eyes widened at the sight of the magnificent office space. She had quickly remembered where she had seen his face, she had seen him in adverts for Ray.co. She clutched her bag as she took in every detail of the office while waiting for Mr Aiden Braithwaite.After second thoughts, she decided to give him his card in person and thank him for being kind to her. “Mr Aiden would have you in his office now” the secretary announced and motioned for her to enter the adjoining office She walked in to the sound of the rapid tapping of a keyboard as his eyes were focused on the screen of his computer.She felt sweat gather on her palms and underarms. She hadn’t felt this nervous the night she saw him at the club. He didn’t acknowledge her presence at first and she contemplated walking out and leaving his card with the secretary. Why did he ask her to come in when he was going to ignore her? “Please have a seat” Aiden said and motioned to the chair oppos
She lay on the bed, eyes wide open. Everything was happening so fast, so unreal. One minute, she was living in a shared studio apartment and the next minute, she was in Aiden’s penthouse. She shut her eyes and wished her brain would stop overthinking. She had done many menial jobs in the past, some of which she wasn’t proud of like when she was a stripper but getting married for money wasn’t something she’d ever imagined doing. It sounded dishonest, she was getting married to him because of what he could offer her not because they were in love. She had always imagined that her marriage would be one based on love, they’d live in a white picket fence and fill their house up with beautiful children but she was all wrong. She sighed as she stretched out, taking comfort in how silky the pillows were. She wondered how much they must have cost. Her bathroom had a jacuzzi, who just randomly had jacuzzis in their house? She shared a studio apartment with two students and a family of mice
Heavy thoughts stacked one upon another like bricks. Responsibilities and obligations. His company. Family. His wife……He had almost forgotten that he now had a wife, technically, soon to be wife. When she signs the contract, it will be official. What was he supposed to do with her? He wondered. What was he thinking, accepting a total stranger into his home? Not to mention that she was a stripper, that could tarnish his image. When she walked into his office, he had a hard time placing her face but those blue eyes reminded him. She looked so different in her school’s cardigan, plain jeans and regular sneakers, her face was free from all the layers of makeup and he admitted that she looked way better than the last time he saw her.It was kind of her to return his card but that was the least of his worries at that time. When he asked her to be his wife, it felt like the words tumbled out of his mouth due to his desperation. Was he going to throw all his father worked for because he r
It felt good to have had such a sumptuous meal, it was way different than the burgers and fast food she lived on for the past few weeks. Dinner had gone okay, nothing too special, she spent the night focusing on her food, avoiding eye contact and nodding or mumbling okay when she should. He had such a big presence, he was the kind of guy that would walk into her class and everyone would notice him, they’d want to be his friend because he was so cool and charming. She was the exact opposite of that, it was almost like she was invisible which was why she didn’t know what to say to him when he tried to start a conversation. He was probably talking to her out of pity. She hated pity so much, yes, she was struggling but she worked hard for everything she owned and as his wife, she was going to work hard to earn every check he paid her.She smiled as she sunk into the soft sheets. She liked the way he smelled, it made her feel heady in a good way. Maybe it was part of the reason she
“Mrs Jeanine Braithwaite” he allowed the name roll on his tongue, almost savoring how it sounded.It had been four days since she signed the contract and he took over his father’s company. It was also the first time he slept peacefully without having any nightmares, it felt good. Jeanine was occupied by school, she spent her evenings in the library and she ate dinner alone while he buried himself in work and he drank more coffee than he should. His father was right, getting married wasn’t horrible at all. She had her space and they barely crossed paths. His personal assistant had covered every expense she needed which was none. She rejected the cadillac he’d given her and she claimed that her Volkswagen was working just fine even though he doubted that. She had missed her appointments with the fashion designers because she was either at the library or doing one charity work or the other. She never got in his way which was kind of strange for him. There was never a woman who