Chapter 4 - Gianna

I glanced at my reflection in the mirror, before looking across the room at my friend Octavia, or Tavi for short, to where she leaned against the wall. Her long blond hair pruned to within an inch of its life as it always was when we were going out to perform. She smiled at me, as she caught my eye.

“Ready for the same old shit?” she asked with a wry smile, before adjusting the purple corset style lingerie she had on tonight. Neither one of us enjoyed our job, but we stayed because it paid well, and both of us wanted out. We were saving for better things. And working here gave us a fast track to getting what we needed. More than a standard job ever could, and that was what continued to bring us back.

“Ready as I will ever be.” I flicked back my long dark waves over my shoulder, already uncomfortable in the heels I had on tonight. “I think these shoes were a bad idea.” I grumbled, and I heard Ettie, one of the other girls giggling as she applied another layer of mascara in preparation for us starting our shift. We were currently in the backstage area all adding the finishing touches, making sure we looked our best.

“But you look hot, Gi-Gi.” She told me with a wink. “And you know that is what sells. They make your legs look amazing! Get you plenty of tips tonight, I bet.”

I rolled my eyes in response. I wasn't so sure of that, but I don’t know what I would do without those girls. They always picked me up when I felt down, and were always there for me. I knew we were labeled as being trashy for working in such an establishment, but each and every one of us were decent girls, with our very own reasons for being here. Not that anyone cared for that, especially the guys that came to watch us dance. We were here to do a job, and that was all they wanted. It didn't matter to them that we didn't want to be here...

“Let's get going, our turn on the stages, I do believe.” Frankie spoke up from her space in front of one of the dressing tables, telling us the shift change was due, meaning the girls currently dancing would be moving onto circulating around the bar serving drinks. Any way to encourage the customers to spend their money.

I took a deep breath, already looking forward to my finishing time, imagining sitting down upon my sofa with a hot chocolate before settling down for bed. And then, I walked out of the door into the dark corridor which led to the newly furnished bar, which was already beginning to fill up with customers.

I made my way to the usual stage I danced upon… the one I preferred as it was hidden away in the corner just past the entrance, so it often meant I got missed. I gave Shayla a hug as she finished her dance, which already earned a few cheers from the few men sitting at the tables surrounding the small stage.

I stepped onto the stage, once more cursing the heels I had chosen for tonight. They were going to be the death of me… or my feet at least! They were so not comfortable, and most definitely not easy to walk in, let alone dance in... but like Ettie had told me, I had to think of the tips they might earn me. So, I did what I did each night, and put on my professional face as I began my much practiced dance moves.

I had done dance professionally growing up, learning since I was a young girl. And I continued through high school and then through college too, alongside my degree. Though never in a million years had I expected to use my dancing skills to do something like this. But, it was giving me the opportunity to make my escape. An escape from a life that I could not return to.

“Show us your tits!” Some random guy in the crowd bellowed toward me, and I bit my lip to hold back my anger. All our clothes stayed on. Admittedly, there were very few clothes, but that was what earned us the money, and encouraged the guys to pay to come and sit at the stages.

And, thankfully, our boss expected nothing more of us than dancing, though a few of the girls I wasn’t particularly close with did do more for extra money if asked, but I did not go there. I would not lower myself to that. And while I was more than used to comments such as this, they still got under my skin.

One of the bar security men stalked straight over to the guy, muttering into his ear. No doubt giving him a warning to behave himself, making me smile. Hopefully, I would have no more issues with him tonight, but I highly doubted he would be the last...

I did what I so often did and allowed my mind to log out. Shift into thoughts of better things as I allowed my eyes to drift across the bar as I twisted and curved my body in time to the music. The moves were almost automatic now, as I did them so often, as my thoughts wandered while I allowed my eyes to linger over the crowd.

Only to meet the gaze of a handsome man. Tall, tattooed and strong. He was standing with a small group of other men, all laughing and joking as they chatted it seemed, but he looked as uncomfortable in here as I felt. Yet his dark eyes felt like they were eating me up. But there was something different about him that intrigued me, and I had no clue why…

I continued to dance, knowing my boss would be watching us all, and I would get in trouble if I allowed myself to become distracted. But as I continued to dance, doing my best to keep the customers happy, my gaze kept falling on the handsome stranger, who’s big brown eyes appeared to be waiting for mine…