* * *
The vibrations of the booming music had seeped into the sidewalk as I approached the club. I smiled, greeting Jamie—one of the bouncers—before slipping past him.
Loud music and chatter surround me as I stepped inside. I greeted Marco and some of the girls as I passed through the crowd, heading straight to my dressing room.
“Ay, mamacita,” Silvia groaned as I entered the room. Surprisingly, she had her bob parted off to the side. Multiple silver chains hung around her neck, and today’s hoop earrings were bigger than usual.
She was devouring the biggest cheese grilled sandwich I had ever come across. I couldn’t help but laugh as she plopped down onto the couch.
I grabbed my waist apron. “That for me or the sandwich?”
“Both?” she cutely smiled and I shook my head with a timid smile. “Oh my God, Nirah, you look—” she cut herself off and started going off in Spanish. I couldn’t help but chuckle, and blew her a kiss.
“Save those kisses for Giovanni,” she winked at me. “Or is it Jordan?” she grinned and I rolled my eyes.
Playfully, I stuck my tongue out. “It’s actually Silvia.” She simply laughed and nodded her head at me in agreement. “I have to go. I’m serving till I’m needed on stage so if you need me, I’ll be smiling and dancing in compliments.”
I headed out and started taking orders. For every compliment I got, I smiled and thanked them.
It’s not that I hated receiving compliments, it was just that they never really complimentedme, it was always my body. Don’t get me wrong, I love my body of course, I worked hard for it.
I had trouble accepting compliments, and I had always known the reasonings behind all my self conflicts. But, I just couldn’t bring myself to admit it or say it out loud, because thenit simply meant that they were right. That they inevitably got to me.
“Earth to Nirah,” Marco said as I daydreamed with a drink in my hand. “Everything okay?” he crossed his arms over his chest and I met his gaze with a smile.
“Yeah,” I nodded. “Sorry, I was just thinking.”
“It’s okay,” he shook his head. “Go serve that customer their drink and then head over to tables five and seven in VIP for me, okay?”
I nodded and walked up to Giovanni’s table in the VIP section. His face held an ear to ear smile. “Here you go,” I handed him his drink.
“Thank you, gorgeous,” he winked and I smiled in return. As usual, he showered me with a variety of compliments. Although he was almost ten years older than me, he was still really cool. He kept his friends in check and didn’t make me feel uncomfortable or anything remotely close to that.
After serving him, I made my way over to my next table, scanning the club.
“What can I get for you tonight?” I smiled. I looked up to find the greenest eyes staring back at me. “Oh, for fucks sake,” I sighed, dropping my shoulders.
“What?” he tilted his head to the side. “No preppy voice, no big smile?” he asked and I rolled my eyes in response.
“Yep,” I nodded. “Confirmed stalker.”
“And here I thought I had the biggest ego in the city.”
“You do,” I confirmed without hesitation. He wore an expensive dark grey suit, and the lights in the club danced off his shiny wristwatch. The first two buttons of his white dress shirt were undone, and I spotted the ink on his chest. A chill settled in core. “What can I get for you tonight?” I repeated myself.
“I haven’t decided yet,” he gave his head a slight shake.
“Well, if you don’t order now, someone else will take your order later because I need to be on stage,” I said as I shifted my weight onto one leg.
“I guess I’ll just wait till you’re done,” he merely shrugged his shoulders.
“Oh, good Lord,” I mumbled under my breath. “Look man, I have shit to do, so if you don’t order now, someone else will come back later, and it sure as hell won’t be me,” I clarified and I—for the life of me—could never decipher his facial expressions because fuck, there weren’t any.
“I’m really concerned as to how you got either of your jobs, because I’m certain it wasn’t for your friendly natureormanners.”
I pouted. “You’re concerned about me? That’s cute,” I pressed a smile onto my face. “If you don’t like the customer service, just leave,” I forced a friendly smile. Friendly nature?Says the jerk who basically threatened me at my job after I tried being nice to both him and the blonde.
“I’ll order when you’re done performing,” he once again said and I bit down on my teeth with frustration.
