Page 24 of Dance of Devils

Bile and sick swirl in my stomach.

“Look, we doing this or not, kid?” he snaps. “If not, again, there’s the door.”

He grabs my wrists and yanks my arms down to my sides. He grins as he fumbles with my breasts, grabbing and squeezing and groaning in sick pleasure as I try to escape to a black hole inside my mind.

“Mmm, baby, you might have small ones. But they’re still pretty sweet,” he grunts. “Show me.”

I look away, hating myself, life, the world, Lou, as I lift my shirt. I shudder when he grabs the cups of my bra and yanks them down to paw my bare skin.

“On your fucking knees, Brooky,” he rasps, his face red, eyes gleaming, breath coming faster. “Better make it nice, baby. Your job’s on the line here. If it’s no good…” He winks at me. “Well, there’s always other holes for my dick, yeah?”

My stomach heaves. I can actually feel the vomit trying to surge up my throat as I drop to my knees in slow motion.

Suddenly, there’s a pounding at the door.

“Lou, we got a problem!” Zak, Lou’s head bouncer, roars through the door. “I’m gonna need you out here!”

Relief floods through me like cleansing fire.

“Goddammit!” Lou hisses, his face sweating as he lurches from his chair and fumbles to button his pants and buckle his belt again.

I get to my feet, trying to pull away as Lou reaches out and grabs my tits again.

“Rain check, Brooky,” he wheezes, shoving past me and toward the door. I tug my bra back into place and drop my shirt back down just as he yanks the door open.

“Hey, Lou, thank God.”

Maya. I could cry. Or kiss her. Or both.

She shoots a quick look past Lou in my direction, nodding her chin just enough to let me know.

I got you.

“Couple of high-roller types. Armenian mob, maybe?” She sighs with exasperation. “Someone spilled a drink on one guy’s suede jacket, and he’s accusing one of the waitresses…” She shakes her head.

“Shit’s getting rowdy, Lou,” Zak mutters, also shooting a quick glance past his boss toward me. But this isn’t a look of concern. It’s tinged with anger.

Maybe something approaching jealousy.

Great.

“I’d kick ‘em all out, but they’re on your VIP list, so…”

“Fuck,” Lou sighs. “Yeah, I’ll take care of it.”

He storms past the two of them in the direction of the VIP rooms. Zak is muttering to one of the other bouncers on his earpiece, turned away, when Maya slips into Lou’s office and moves to my side.

“Hey,” she says quietly, her eyes searching my pale face. “You okay?”

I smile uncertainly. “Yeah…”

“Did that motherfucker?—”

“You rescued me at the last minute,” I croak, my voice breaking as I reach out and squeeze her hand with mine.

“Maya!” Zak nods his chin at her. “They want you in room three to help Lou smooth shit out. Get your ass going.”

“Okay, okay, no need to get rude,” Maya flashes the sort of smile at Zak that she usually reserves for the shittiest, most offensive customers.