Chapter 2

Shit. Shit, can I say shit? I don't even think that was the right word for this specimen. There was a lot to drink from this tall glass of water, all six feet of him, maybe six one. And if falling flat on my face wasn't bad enough, I hadn't realised that my facial expression while looking at him was that of a drooling dog. When you're holding out a treat for them, just out of arms reach. Frothing at the mouth. And he returned the gaze upon me, hungrily. I could feel my palms getting clammy.

His tongue ran across his bottom lip before giving it a small bite, on purpose. He cocked a brow again, taking a step closer to me before brushing the loose hair across my face behind my ear, examining the bump on my forehead. An involuntary breathy noise fell from my lips. Oh heck, what is happening to me? He smirked slightly, and I lost myself in his eyes. He was dressed elegantly, too dressy for a strip club.

He was a business-type man wearing a faded dark blue tailored suit, taut across his arms. His neck was thick, masculine and struggling against the seems of his button up collared shirt. I started seeing two of everything again and began to sway. I couldn't tell it if was from the fall or the fact that this delicious human being was making me lightheaded. Very, lightheaded.

"Here, come sit down." He grabbed my hand and took me to one of the empty booths in front of a stage with a stripper pole. He sat me down, like a true gentlemen would, and took a seat in front of me. He glared up through his lashes and frowned as Tilly scooted in next to me, interrupting or intense gaze. She brushed her hand on my thigh for comfort and went to say something, but he cut her off.

"How are you feeling now? Can I get you anything?"

"I'm... I – I don't… think so?" I muttered nervously. Nibbling at my lip from his intense stare. I wasn't sure if he meant a drink, a night away with him, or his hand in marriage. His eyes widened as they darted behind me, trailing from one side to the other, like he was following someone. A flash of a malicious smile drew across his lips, but it was gone as fast as it had appeared. Unease tickled my veins. Something felt off, but I couldn"t quite put my finger on it. His jaw clenched, and he cleared his throat and stood. He smoothed his suit jacket down before leaning into me, hovering over my ear. I squirmed and drew in a breath. His scent burnt my nose, and I saw stars.

"Wait here," he murmured. "I'll be back for you later, princess."

Princess.

And just like that, whatever unease I had in my veins, was gone. "O… kay" I breathed, barely a sound. He turned to face Tilly, and his eyes narrowed.

"Look after her properly this time, will you?" he scolded her before facing me again, offering me a wink before storming off through the crowd, heading towards a big, buff tattooed guy that was waiting at the club"s entry. Only half his body stood in between the slit of the curtain. The security guard beside him not allowing his entry, though he was much smaller than the buff guy, he would stand no chance against him if that guy really wanted to come in here. The breeze from Mr. Fairytales departure mindlessly caused me to breathe his scent. I had inhaled so hard I got lightheaded again. And something tingled, between my legs. A little too intense. He seemed smart. Safe and secure. Like, a man. A real man. I giggled when I noticed Tilly, given her facial expression she must have had the same reaction to his scent as I did.

The big man pinned his eyes on me, cocked both brows and winked before he and Mr. Fairytale disappeared behind the curtain. There was another male that walked off with them, though I couldn't see him fully. From what I could make out, he towered over the two of them and wore a black leather jacket.

Tilly whistled. "Wow. Esme."

"Hmm?" I said absently, still focused on the curtain they had departed through.

"What the fuck just happened? You need to fall over more often if it gets you that kind of attention. And giiiirl, he was eye-fuckin" the shit out of you." Tilly blurted with her thick Ebonics accent.

Normally, I would scold her profanity with a comment like that, but right now, I couldn't give two toots. I was as fixated on that man as she was. Tilly and I both sat like wax statues completely dazed by this man, his smell, his voice, just… him. So much so that we both ended up in hysterics together after realizing we were both in the same predicament, bamboozled. Twitterpated. Flabbergasted.

In love?

I laughed at my own ridiculous train of thought. A short, oddly-dressed bartender hailed Tilly's attention as he approached us, carrying a full bottle of vodka in his dainty hand and three shot glasses in the other. Her infectious smile glowed once more. I could tell her and this man were quite fond of each other.

"Jesse!" Tilly called out affectionately for him. He slid into the seat opposite us and poured vodka into one of the long skinny shot glasses before sliding it across the table toward Tilly. His bright green eyes dazzled with mascara, eyeliner and glittered lids met my emerald green ones.

"You must be Esme." he doted as he poured another shot before dropping its contents into his mouth like water. Tilly threw hers down with him in unison, shaking her head as it went down her throat before turning to me, prompting my answer.

"Uh, hi. Yes – Umm Hello. I"m Esme." I stuttered my reply awkwardly. Clearly I was still in fairytale land. "Jesse, Esme. Esme, Jesse." Tilly beamed, wiggling her fingers for more of the liquor. "You'll have to excuse her. She's a little, flustered." She nodded to me. Jesse chuckled mockingly. "Yes, I saw your - very unglamorous introduction to my bar. You're lucky you didn't dent it. Now, that's a nice bump on your head."

"I didn't mean from her calamity." She giggled. She was talking about my rendezvous with Mr. Fairytale. When is too early to send out wedding invitations? I shuddered at my stupid brain.

"Wait. Your bar? This is your club?" I gasped. Jesse was Tilly"s boss. Even more embarrassing. "Yeah" he replied with a grin. He pulled his arm across the top of the booth seat, trying to look schmuck and cool. I mean, he was cute and trying to assert his dominance or whatever. But he had nothing on Mr. Fairytale, he didn't even have to try, he was just… perfect. My mind wandered into the abyss again before realizing that I should probably have something for my onset headache. "Oh. Nice. Sorry to ask, but do you have some Tylenol? I really think it will do the trick for the head."

"Oh, honey," he laughed, somehow humoured by my reply. "No, have one of these instead." Jesse's smile was impertinent as he poured the vodka into the third shot glass and almost slammed it before me.

"So, twenty-one hey?"

I wasn't sure if alcohol was the solution to my current situation. But nonetheless, tonight was my twenty-first birthday. I sure as heck wasn't going to let my two left feet ruin it for me.

"Yes sir. Umm." crap, my cheeks flushed crimson, was sir the right word? Should I have said ma"am? "Oh God" I breathed. I wasn"t one to insult a person, homosexuality was his choice, but I think I just did.

"I like dick, not titles. You"re fine." he asserted. A sigh of relief blew from my lips, thank god. I gasped at the sudden movement, I didn't get the chance to drink my drink, or even have the thought to drink it. Tilly had it down her throat before I could blink an eye, wearing a satisfied grin on her glossy lips. Jesse fixated a vexing frown at Tilly, then laughed.

"That wasn't yours, you cheeky bitch. I'll be back. I think we need something better than this." Jesse tapped the bottle with his nails and ushered off back to the bar. "Are you sure you're okay?" Tilly muttered with a creased brow. I smiled genuinely "yeah, I am actually. I'm totally fine." Beside a mild headache, I was truthful in my reply.

Maybe I was still on a high from Mr. Fairytale. Granted, if I hadn't of met him, I would have gone home. Me, in a strip club? Hard to believe. But now I had a reason to stay, he did say he would come back for me, and he called me princess. Like a damsel in destress. That was enough to send me off into dreamland. And the butterflies in my stomach to spiral. And the ones in my… pants.

I shrugged my shoulders. "Besides, I want to enjoy my night out. You've gone to such effort to make me look this way, and I'd hate to ruin it now."

Jesse returned with a bottle of tequila, a container of sliced limes, and a shaker of salt. "Ahh, yes. Show me. I didn"t get to see all of you before your face made love with my floor." I frowned. What the heck? When he said ‘something better' I had full intentions of maybe water, or something pre-mixed at bare minimum. Tilly giggled with excitement, pulling me slowly out of the booth. I winced, but managed. She gestured to all of me, showing off her styling and make-up craftmanship proudly for Jesse to admire.

My stomach churned from the unfamiliar sensation of eyes on me. Gay or not, I was not accustomed to being admired, other than from Tilly. Being centre of the attention made my skin crawl. Her hand glided through my long bouncy curled hair she styled, as she showed it off to him, talking about the brand of hair products and other make-up stuff that I didn't have any knowledge of.

All I could focus of was each of her fingertips sliding through my hair down to my butt cheeks. I arched and squirmed from the sensation. A little noise involuntary escaped my mouth again. Jesus, pull yourself together, Esme. Thankfully, the music was too loud, and no one could have heard that. Why was I this way?

Jesse whistled, clapping his hands. "Well done, Tilly. She's fire as fuck. As always, you do amazing! You'll be on the big screens soon, you'll see, if I'll allow it that is." He creased his brow.

"Yep. I know. It got her the attention she needed. And he's coming back later, so I must have done something right. I polished it off with water-resistant powder too, so the sweat won't rub it off, if you catch my drift." She chuckled and performed some kind of victory dance. She spoke as though I wasn"t there, like I couldn"t hear her silently screaming to the rooftops that I was still a virgin.

Tilly wanted to be a make-up artist, though that was a pretty big dream. I don't think she would ever leave this place. The nightlife was her thing, as was sex. And money.

They both giggled to themselves, and my belly warmed to the idea of maybe experiencing more than my first kiss tonight. Jesse poured three shot glasses of tequila, pulling a few slices of lime for us, before pushing a shot glass toward me with a cocked brow and a smug smirk.

"It's only fair you go first. It's your birthday." He grabbed the salt-shaker and plonked it where my hand leant on the table. "Be fucked if I'm letting you out of my club sober anyway, regardless of how many times you hit that pretty little head of yours. Come on, Virgin Mary, let"s go" he wailed his hands "up up up. Let"s make some memories and forget them all." he demanded.

Alright, alright, I got it, sheesh. Drink till I'm drunk. That probably wouldn"t be hard. One would probably do the job anyway since I"d never had a drink before tonight.

"How do I… I haven't… What do I do?" I stammered, wracking my brain at the three objects. Tequila, lime and, salt. In which order I was supposed to do it, I had no clue. Tilly grabbed my hand and slid her tongue along the top before sprinkling some of the salt along the wet area. I gulped; the sensation of her tongue along my skin left me in a state of freeze, and the tingling between my thighs stared to surface again like it did earlier.

I squirmed in my seat, taking a deep breath to refocus. She and Jesse smiled at my incompetence. "Lick the salt, down the tequila, suck on the lime. It's easy. Got it, babes?" Tilly's tone was enough encouragement. Fuelled by adrenaline and her energy, I went for it. The salt tormented my tongue, and the burn of tequila slid down my throat. I shuddered. It felt like I had swallowed a barbed wire. Its viscous temperature scalded the sides of my oesophagus, then my stomach.

Feeling it burn my insides. It was enough to make me want to throw up the contents of my guts there and then. And just when I thought it was over, I was hit in the mouth with the sour hit of lime. What the heck?! Who ever thought of this was in need of a narcotic. People did this? For fun? Oh. It made sense now. The hit was almost immediate. The warmth in my belly, a buzz. One that I welcomed. This was nice. I wanted more.

"Happy birthday to you, baby girl" Tilly toasted, repeating the same method I did. To my surprise, her expression was just as twisted as mine when she got to the lime. I had thought she would be used to this. Given she was here five nights a week, drinking.

"Not too nice, was it?" I laughed, scrunching my face in sympathy. "Nope! But fuck it, we're young. We're hot as fuck. We are here to celebrate you! – Keep them comin", Jesse. We're not done until we fall… uhh… or rather, stay, fallen." Tilly toasted and we clinked glasses. She had been waiting so long for this moment.

Tilly sprinkled another row of the salt on our hands, and by the fifth round, the salt, tequila, and lime all started to taste plain, like nothing. Though, something felt different. The unease from earlier returned. I had this horrible feeling brewing in the pit of my stomach, building and building. Did alcohol make unease worse? I didn't want or need that. Not tonight. I was finally enjoying myself. It was an all too familiar feeling. Like someone was watching me. I looked around, but no one out of the ordinary was lurking or even looking in our direction.

Jesse was tapping away on his phone, scrolling senselessly. Tilly was watching one of the girls" performances on the poles the other side of the club, cheering her on. And everyone else in the place was doing the same.

Up until now, I hadn't actually had the chance to look at the place. I plucked up the courage to peer at the girls. They were nice to look at but not as beautiful as Tilly. She deserved more than this place. Some had gang tattoos, others just looked cheap. No wonder Tilly made a killing here. The more I looked at the place, the more I felt all kinds of wrong. Dirty. Misplaced. I shuddered, apprehension becoming more prominent. Maybe I"d had too much to drink, too much too soon.

"Something"s not right" I blurted to Tilly.

She shrugged me off casually. "That's tequila for you, babes."

I shuddered once more, feeling a chill in the air that blew up my spine. No. This wasn't happening. Not tonight. I was imagining things that weren"t real. No one is there. No one is watching you. Just shut up and move on.

"I think I want to leave." I fidgeted my hands in angst. Maybe the alcohol was a bad choice. "Nuh uh, we're not doing this. I'm not letting that little introverted voice in your head pull you out of this one. Come on, babe, this is you're twenty-first. What's up?" Not wanting to bother her with my pathetic little fear of the shadow man in my room I had running a menace in my head, I thought of something else to tell her. I didn't want to bring him up now, or ever. She'd think I'd gone mad, or drunk. She would never let me live it down, make it worse. I had a hard enough time trying to keep those thoughts, and him, out of my head. I didn"t need her adding to it.

I grimaced. "It's just, there's lots of people looking at me."

"Yes…" Tilly nodded her head and looked me up and down in a way that made me squirm. "You're hot as fuck, that's why." She gestured to all of me, my outfit, my hair, my breasts. And there it was again, the tingle. The flirty comment, lingering in my head. Making that spot between my thighs ache once more. I swallowed, hard. Crap. This keeps happening. Jesse plonked his phone on the ground, tuning onto our conversation. "Yes. She is. Hey, why doesn't she come work here? We could use someone like her. She would make a killing." Jesse's tone was blunt, like I was an object or something money could buy. He spoke as if I wasn't here. I frowned, as did Tilly.

"She isn't like that, Jesse."

He ignored her and turned his attention toward me. "I could make you a decent income."

"Thanks. But no thanks." I forced a polite smile, my throat thickening to the thought of someone seeing my naked body.

"Ahh, come on, look at you." His reply was vulgar, forceful like I was being cornered.

I shivered, feeling another chill up my spine and a growl as it ripped through my ears. Instinctively, I inhaled through my nose, and the smell of pine, blood, moisture, and earthy cologne bombarded my brain. My eyes widened, and panic washed over my face. I darted my head around, my heart pounding from my chest. No one masked or dressed up like the Grim Reaper was here. Only normal-looking people. I swallowed hard.

"What are you looking for?" Jesse drawled, repeating the same action as he scanned his club.

I shook my head. "Nothing. I-" Jesse grabbed my arm, pulling it further along the table. "What will it take, huh?" I yelped from the intrusion, and Tilly's eyes widened, she broke eye contact from me to something, or someone, behind me. Her lips parted slightly, before a sideways smile beamed across her face.

"I believe she said no, Mr. Ventry." a hoarse masculine voice behind me growled at Jesse. His eyes narrowed at his hand on my arm; Jesse had a tight grip but let it go quickly. I turned and let a sigh of relief, seeing it was Mr. Fairytale. His nostrils flared. Jesse scooted out from the seat and stood at the opposite side of the table from him.

"Whitlock. What are you doing back in my club? Don't you and brothers have your own club to frolic in?"

"Yes, we do. But we have business to attend to" he slid into the booth opposite me again, filling the spot Jesse was previously sitting in.

"So long as your brothers don't come in here and start shit, there won't be any problems, right?"

"Not unless you forget your place Jesse. I"ve kept my brothers at bay, for now." Mr Fairytale didn't break eye contact from me as he spoke. I knew he was with more than the big buff guy. Though Mr. Fairytale… Whitlock, rather, didn"t seem the leading type. His blue eyes content on mine as he split a wicked grin. My belly warmed, diminishing all my worry.

Jesse sighed. "Good. You're the good one. Please make sure that-"

Mr. Fairytale snapped a glare at Jesse with a snarl, cutting him off. He spun on his feet and quickly disappeared behind the bar.

"Hello, princess." he purred, a little too steamy if you ask me. But nonetheless, I blushed, tucking the stray hairs that dropped over my face behind my ear. "I had to come back to see you before I go, I wanted to make sure you were alright." He reached out and grabbed my arms with both hands, trailing over the tender area Jesse had squeezed. I panted and bit my lip to mute it. I got lost in his words and eyes, again. Acting entirely on drunken buzz mode I muttered a reply. "Thank you Mr. Fairytale. Hmm" I giggled to calling his name and swayed a little. I gasped, realizing what I had said, my eyes flung wide open. He chuckled, "Mr. Fairytale? Is that who I am? Come to rescue a damsel in distress?"

"I didn"t need saving" I mean, I did. But he didn"t need to know that.

He turned his brow and glared at the empty glasses beside me. I gulped, and my head fuzzed to the alcohol that swam in my belly.

"Didn"t you, princess?"

I didn't reply, I merely bit my lip. I knew it would be another brain to mouth malfunction if I did.

"Hmm. I could get used to that. Princess."

He continued, his tone firmed. "But, You fell pretty hard. You really shouldn't be drinking."

I couldn't tell if he was condescending, or genuinely concerned for my wellbeing.

"Uhh. I"m just going to go, over there." Tilly muttered awkwardly. I"d almost forgotten she was here. And, I was so intent on my gaze with the man opposite me that I hadn't even noticed her talking.

The buzz in my belly was mixing with the butterflies and it was definitely messing with me and my ability to think, see, and speak straight. Tilly left and I frowned at Mr Fairytale, pulling my arm from his hands.

"Excuse me, sir." – I put emphasis and attitude on the ‘sir' part – "but I can drink however much I like. It's my birthday, and my head that I whacked on the bar so… Butt out." I crossed my arms proudly in front of him. I don"t know where that came from, assuming I needed to thank the alcohol for making the introvert in me disappear.

He tilted his neck and chuffed from his nose, a slight grin curling from his mouth before he leant over the table and hovered inches from my lips. I immediately felt small and froze in my tracks. He trailed his minty warm breath to my ear. I whimpered and gulped twice to lodge the swell in my throat. My breath hitched, and my heart pounded in excitement.

Crap.

"Watch that mouth, missy. Or I'll kiss that sass right out of you." he whispered. My skin flared with goosebumps at his flirty threat. I wasn"t totally against the idea. My lips parted, eliciting a breathy moan as I melted into my seat. My cheeks burnt crimson, and a deep chuckle formed at the pit of his stomach.

"You want it don"t you?" he breathed, his eyes burning into mine. His shirt could barely hold itself together, his muscles were so taut against it as he leant over the table. From this angle his neck was even thicker than the last time, veiny and broad, the buttons on the collar done up to the top. I wondered how he could breathe, it was so tight around his throat. His sleeves were rolled up halfway up his arm, revealing a gold watch and remarkably toned limbs. Could he be anymore perfect?

"If you stare any harder, I"m going to take that as a yes." His tone was low and seductive, but he wasn't wrong. I could barely keep myself together. "I… I - I…" I fumbled my words.

He chuckled again. "Meet me here later then, when you"re ready." he handed me a card.

"But…"

"It wasn"t a question." he breathed.

I panted and mindlessly nodded. I think at this point, I could quite possibly do anything this man asked me without hesitation. He was just so… dreamy. And persuasive.

"Okay, but why?" I stammered.

I probably should have said no. This man was a stranger, and why would anyone want anything to do with me? Especially a man like this. But I did want to discover more.

He smirked at my timidness. "Because I want to get to know you more, but not here."

"Me?" My eyes widened.

"Yes, you." His gaze drifted hungrily over my body again.

"Why?" I gulped to the intensity of his hunger, my breath staggered, the tension pulling. It didn't add up. Was he vision impaired? I wasn"t a model. I wasn"t the type of girl men like that want. He tutted, as if he knew what I was thinking.

"Don't do that."

"Do, what?" I bit my lip.

"Dismiss your beauty. You are beautiful; you aren't like these girls." He gestured his hand blindly toward the girls dancing away to their hearts content without clothes, without breaking eye contact. "These girls are merely pathetic, desperate zirconias. But you?"

He stood, stepping toward me and planting his index finger under my chin. I followed it willingly and got to my feet. Even standing I felt so small before him, not that he was overly tall. Taller than me, by a foot at least, but he was more muscled dominance than height. My chest now mere inches from his, I forced myself to breathe.

"You are a diamond."

My lips parted, eliciting a shattered breath and shook my head. "But… you don't know me."

"I'm trying to." he breathed, inching closer to me than before, somehow without touching. I gulped, dropping my eyes down. "And I like diamonds, Esme… I know one when I see one, you are the diamond. And I'm the gemmologist." Wait.. How did he know my name?

I stirred. "How did you…" but he cut me off, curling his finger a little firmer under my chin, correcting my contact back to his.

"And I know that this diamond doesn't belong here."

I lost my breath for a moment, taking a minute to adjust. "Where do I belong?" I whispered.

"With me."

My lips dried form my unsteady breath and before I knew it, his minty flavoured lips were all over mine. His fingers curled at the nape of my neck and pulled me up slightly, onto my toes. Everything ached and throbbed, my core lightened and warmed as I melted into him.

Fuck.