I’d always thought the best part about going out was meeting new people. You never knew what kind of people you’d encounter. To someone drunk, just about anything was fun. With the lowered inhibitions and guard caused by drinking, you clicked with people in ways you wouldn’t if you were sober. Places like this set the stage. If these people were at the same grocery store as me, we wouldn’t even take notice of each other.
The third guy was Liberty and the two girls were Jana and Rita
Gianna turned to tell me she was going to the restroom with Rita. Not one minute after they took off, Jana surprised me by scooting closer to whisper in my ear the things she’d do to me back in her hotel room. I caught Levi looking at us with raised brows and a smirk. Glancing down at her, I got an eyeful of cleavage and shook my head to decline her offer.
I was shocked she’d even bother. Had she not taken a good look at the girl I was with?
Although, some of the things Jana had said, well I hoped Gianna didn’t get too drunk tonight.
Jana finally moved away when we saw Gianna and Rita winding their way back through the club to us. Gianna was grinning like a madwoman when she sat back down. I had no warning before she blurted out, “Let’s go to a strip club!”
Rita and Jana giggled while the guys shared a knowing look. I’d been in the middle of taking a drink of my beer and practically choked on it.
I turned to Gianna. “Why the hell would you want to do that?”
Her smile dared me to deny her. “Because I’ve never been to one and don’t you think everyone should go to a strip club at least once in their life?”
Everyone but you, I wanted to say.
Brooks heard Gianna and shouted, “Or at least once a month!”
Suddenly, he was no longer funny.
Gianna nudged me. “Come on, Caleb. It’ll be fun.”
“Um . . . okay,” I agreed reluctantly, not coming up with any good excuse to say no. For some reason, my instincts were screaming that this was a bad idea. I just couldn’t put my finger on why. It was a good thing I wasn’t too drunk yet. Actually, I was suddenly feeling very sober.
We took two taxis to the strip club. Gianna sat on my lap as four of us squeezed into the back of one. The strip club was only a couple blocks off the strip, taking five minutes to get there.
Something about going to a strip club with my girlfriend seemed all wrong. She wasn’t acting like anything was unusual about it. Her attitude was excited and outgoing.
Once inside the club, natural male instinct had my eyes roaming to the tits and ass on display. Girlfriend or not, it was unavoidable. But my mind was on the lap dance Gianna gave me last night. Then I was remembering how good it felt to be inside her. The only place I wanted to be was back at our hotel room.
As we all sat down in much more comfortable chairs than the dance club had, a waitress strutted over to take our drink orders. Brooks tried flirting with the waitress, only to get shot down. Didn’t he realize how often the servers at strip clubs got hit on?
I mostly averted my eyes from the half naked dancers wrapped around poles. Damn, some of them were athletic as hell. I didn’t know if I could even do some of the gymnastic type moves they performed.
Gianna had consumed four drinks at the last club, so when she had two more in the first half hour at that strip club, I began to get worried. Her bright smile eased some of my discomfort.
Everything was fine and dandy until Levi asked me and Gianna, “So, how did you guys meet?”
I choked once again on my sip of beer. Gianna giggled drunkenly before suggesting, “Why don’t you take this one, Caleb?”
“Um, well,” I started to say, not really knowing where to begin.
Gianna saw no reason to hesitate. “He’s my stepbrother!”
They all started laughing, assuming she was joking. Noticing how unfunny I thought it was, Jana asked, “No shit? Really?”
“Really,” I answered. To someone who’d just met us it might seem strange. Feeling the annoying need to explain and not wanting them to judge Gianna harshly, I added, “But my dad and her mom are getting divorced, so we won’t be stepsiblings for much longer.”
Rita sat up straight up in her seat. “That’s so scandalous! So, was it like forbidden love and you guys couldn’t help yourself?”
“How romantic!” Brooks clasped his hands together and exclaimed in a high-pitched, girly voice. How did I ever think this idiot was funny?
I shifted in my seat uncomfortably, ready to answer Rita’s question, but Gianna beat me to it again. “It is so not love!”
Exotic dancers forgotten, Levi leaned forward. “So you two aren’t serious about each other?”
“We’re serious-” I began.
Gianna cut me off, swaying slightly away from me. “We’re just having fun. No love involved. That makes the best relationships, don’t you think?”
Levi and Liberty both looked at me in admiration. “How’d you get your girl to agree to that?”
This conversation was pissing me the hell off. Wanting off the subject, I snapped, “Love just messes things up.”
Jana and Rita both got loud in their protests. “That’s such typical guy bullshit!” Jana whined.
“Total crap!” Rita agreed, then addressed Gianna directly, “You shouldn’t put up with that.”
Gianna tilted her head to the side thoughtfully. “I don’t know. I’m kind of liking the idea. Makes things easier.”
Made what easier? Why did her words cause me anxiety?
Jana and Rita gathered around her in some sort of girl-support cocoon that shut us guys out. “You don’t have to put up with that from a guy! You’re so beautiful. I bet you have guys falling at your feet, all eager to love you.”
I gripped my drink tighter.
Gianna rolled her eyes, not taking them seriously. “Most of them aren’t worth my time.”
“And this douche is?” Rita asked, pointing at me with a thumb.
“Yeah, he isn’t all that,” Jana rudely chimed in. Now I felt like rolling my eyes. Little more than an hour ago she was begging me to screw her, the two-faced slut.
These drunk bitches were pretending I wasn’t sitting a yard away from them as they talked shit about me to my girlfriend. What did they know of me and Gianna? I was worried they’d infect Gianna with their stupidity. I had the sudden urge to get my girlfriend away from these people. They weren’t good enough to be around her in the first place. It was like a princess hanging out in a whorehouse.
“Oh shit, you’re in trouble,” Liberty joked. When the quiet person in the group spoke up, it was a sign the situation was escalating.
Gianna waved her hand in the air nonchalantly. “Don’t worry about it, I’m not.”
With incredibly bad timing, one of the strippers came by asking, “Does anyone want a lap dance?”
Gianna perked up, holding her hand out to me. “I need some cash.”
“What the hell for?” I asked in alarm, not liking the calculating look in her eyes.
“Just give me the money, Caleb,” she ordered in an exasperated tone.
I took out my wallet and handed her some twenties. Snatching them out of my hand, she leaned over to kiss my cheek. “Thanks, babe.”
She gave them to the stripper saying, “My boyfriend needs a lap dance.”
“Gianna, what the hell are you doing?” I exploded. If I wanted a lap dance, I’d get it from my girlfriend. That was what the hell she was for.
She looked at me angelically. “Sheesh, lighten up, Caleb. Learn to have some fun.”
Brooks laughed obnoxiously, making me want to break his nose. Levi thumped my shoulder in encouragement. Liberty appeared to be the only one wary of a girlfriend getting her boyfriend a lap dance.
Brooks shouted, “That’s how every girlfriend should treat her man!”
What, by making him pay for a lap dance he didn’t want in the first place?
Rita and Jana looked disgusted and annoyed. Stupid drun
k bitches.
I was angry with Gianna for making a spectacle of our relationship. Surprisingly, I was also slightly hurt she’d treat what we had like it was nothing. It occurred to me that perhaps she was acting out just to mess with me. Was she trying to teach me a lesson?
The suspicion was growing stronger. If so, two could play at that game.
It was time to start the show. I slouched back in my chair and patted my lap for the stripper. I discreetly watched Gianna’s eyes narrow. I turned my head to full on look at her and saw her paste an unconcerned smile on her face.
The stripper swayed over seductively with a wicked smile on her face. I had to admit she was hot. Nice body, fake boobs, lots of platinum hair, pretty enough face. Normally I’d be pleased by the attention, enjoy the sexually charged moment. Having a girlfriend I was committed to changed everything. Even if my girlfriend was acting like a brat in need of a spanking.
However, Gianna started this game and I planned on winning it. Teach her a lesson of her own. I sat there seemingly willing while the stripper grinded on my lap. During most of the dance, I stared into Gianna’s eyes.
The stripper wore nothing but a thong, making me get hard with the combination of that and her movements. It didn’t help I was having flashbacks of Gianna doing some of the same moves on my lap the night before.
The stripper rubbed her boobs against my chest and whispered in my ear, “You’re cuter than my usual customers.”
I didn’t comment back. Maybe the stripper was into me or maybe she made every guy she straddled believe he was that rare customer who actually turned her on in return. This situation was all wrong. I wasn’t supposed to be in a Vegas strip club with my girlfriend looking on while a stripper ground herself into me.
Moving my gaze from the tits in my face to the hurt in Gianna’s eyes she was trying to hide with a phony smile had me ready to admit defeat. Maybe winning wasn’t worth it. Whatever the hell game she was playing, it was causing her pain. The last thing I ever wanted to do was hurt her. The thought drove me crazy.
The stripper finished off her performance, whispering in my ear again, “I’m off in an hour.”
Yeah, how much would that cost me?
Guys like Levi or Brooks would’ve taken her up on that. The old me would’ve had her in my hotel room in an hour and a half, making Dante find somewhere else to be.
But that was the old me.
The stripper was in her early twenties and she wouldn’t have been the first female I let think I was older than my years. Not that I hadn’t been with older girls with them knowing full well I was too young for them.
Abruptly, the thought of older guys doing the same with Gianna popped into my head, making me see red. Which was ridiculous since I was the only guy in Gianna’s short sexual history. As much fun as I’d had getting laid in the past, the thought of Gianna acting the same way disgusted me. Whether it made me an asshole or not, I couldn’t help feeling that way.
The stripper sauntered off, on the prowl for her next easy money. Lost in a mass of conflicting thoughts, I stared off after her.
Levi got my attention by saying, “Hey, man, when you’re done having fun with Gianna, can I have a little fun of my own?”
I pushed his shoulder to get him away from me. Incredibly pissed off, I couldn’t shake the feeling of doom. I was playing a game with Gianna tonight I didn’t fully understand. Had I made the wrong decision with the stripper? In retrospect, Gianna could have been testing me in a way I’d just failed.
Gianna got up, announcing she was going to the restroom with Rita. Before I realized what was about to happen, Levi grabbed her around the waist to pull her down on his lap. “My turn. How about giving me a lap dance, Gianna?”
Gianna hands went up, maybe to wrap her arms around his neck, maybe to push him away.
I didn’t wait to see. Standing up, I yanked her off his lap, giving him a killing look and debating whether or not to start a fight in a strip club. I definitely didn’t want to be dragged out of here by the gargantuan bouncers.
Looking unhappy, Gianna laughed humorlessly. “What’s the matter, Caleb? We’re only having fun. It’s not like we’re in love.”
So that was her game.
I retained my grip on her arm and told the idiots we’d met tonight, “We’re leaving.” No reason to exchange numbers, except for maybe Liberty they were all dumb shits.
Our new friends looked a little alarmed, but didn’t make a move to interfere. That solidified it. I knew I’d never physically hurt Gianna, but they didn’t know me well enough to make that call.
Maybe there were instances when meeting new people was a waste of time.
Gianna called out, “It was nice meeting you guys!”
Stepping out into the warm Vegas night, she turned to me. “I thought we were having fun?”
CHAPTER SIX
“True love cannot be found where it does not truly exist;
nor can it be hidden where it does.”
-David Schwimmer
CALEB
Tonight was not going as planned. Gianna had managed to throw all my words in my face. My idea of a committed relationship with no love involved hadn't turned out as planned either.
We were driving back to the hotel sitting on opposite sides of the backseat in our taxi. Gianna had her eyes closed and was leaning her head against the window. I stared at her for a whole minute as she ignored my presence.
"Quit pretending to sleep, Gianna."
"Caleb," she paused, "It’s in both of our best interests that I'm pretending to sleep."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" I asked in aggravation.
Her eyes remained closed. "I don't want to be the drunk, crazy girlfriend. I think I've made enough of a fool of myself during this trip."
I grabbed her arm and dragged her towards me. "Come here, princess."
She tried to pull away. "Just leave it alone, Caleb."
"Leave what alone? I still don't understand what the hell is going on!"
I noticed the cabbie looking at us in his rearview mirror. When she didn’t respond, I let it go for now. Minutes later, we were dropped off in front of our hotel and I handed the driver money before rushing in after Gianna.
We traveled in silence through the hazy hotel casino, up the elevator and into our hotel room. As I shut the door, flipping the latch, Gianna escaped into the bathroom. After ten minutes she hadn’t come out and I couldn’t hear the shower running.
Moving over to the closed door, I put my ear against it.
Dammit!
She was crying.
Restless, I knocked on the door. "Baby, open the door."
She didn’t answer, but I heard the faucet turn on.
I said calmly, but in a tone that let her know how serious I was, "Gianna, I will break this door down. I really don't want to have to pay for it, but I will."
She opened the door a minute later with her face freshly washed. Leaning against the doorframe, she asked quietly, "What?"
"Why were you crying?" My tone was harsher than intended, but I didn’t like what I was feeling. Everything that happened tonight was crap, wrong and unnecessary.
She stared down the floor. "I wasn't crying."
"I heard you," I managed to say in a softer voice. I wanted to reach out and hold her, but something about her posture told me she'd prefer I didn't.
"I'm tired. I'm going to go to sleep." She circled around me, bending over her bag to pull out something to sleep in. Past girlfriend experience would’ve probably helped me in this situation. Unfortunately, I was flying blind here.
Coming up behind her, I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her back onto my lap as I sat on the bed. Burying my face in her neck, I took in all that was her, needing to make things right between us again. "Please tell me what's wrong, princess. You're killing me."
"It's no use.” She shrugged her shoulders in a jerky movement.
"What’s no use?"
&nb
sp; She turned sideways on my lap to look me in the eyes. "Let's just have sex, Caleb."
Her words were jarring. The way she said them making it seem crude. I ignored her obvious ploy to distract me. "No."
Her face was pure disbelief as her dark blonde eyebrows rose. "No?"
Raising my thumb, I stroked her silky cheek. Her flinch was far from reassuring. Tightening my arm around her, I had the urge to somehow chain her to me so nothing could ever tear her away from me. "Baby, please talk to me."
Her eyes welled up with tears. It hurt to watch.
She sniffled and said in a hoarse voice. "You had a hard on."
I had to choke back my laughter. She must have felt my chest shake because her eyes narrowed. "Gianna, if you don't want me to get a hard on for other girls, then don't throw naked strippers onto my lap."
Her bottom lip pouted adorably. "Did you want her?"
"No," I returned without hesitation.
"But you had a hard on for her!" she protested.
I shook my head, wishing we weren’t having this conversation. "Gianna, guys can't help things like that. Did I have a hard on? Yes. Did I want to use it on her? Not one bit."
"Oh," she said in confusion, obviously not in complete understanding. She met my eyes again and asked with hope in her voice, "So, what you're saying is that it was involuntary?"
"Exactly."
She stared at me for so long I began wondering what she was thinking. Her expression brightened somewhat and she almost smiled. "Okay, Caleb, I forgive you for that."
Was there something else I needed to be forgiven for?
"I need a drink," I muttered to myself and set her on the bed so I could walk over to the mini fridge where I’d stored the alcohol we didn't drink last night. Pulling out a cold beer, I contemplated a wine cooler for her, but left it, deciding Gianna was more than drunk enough already.
When I turned back around, she sat on the bed with a playful look on her face. "I like you, Caleb."