Page 11 of Intense

Chapter 4

STEPHANIE

“Steph, wait up!” I call out to Kia. God, it feels wrong shouting my real name at another girl. But it’s her stage name, and I’d never go around shouting her real name for any of these monsters to hear.

She spins on her heel, brushing her platinum blonde hair over her shoulder. She pulls a wad of money from her bra.

“What’s up?”

I nod toward one of our changing rooms, and she follows me in.

“Oh, gossip time? Have you heard from Ben? He completely disappeared after the place went up in flames,” she rambles on.

She’s always been obsessed with Ben. I couldn’t give a flying fuck. He was an asshole—well on his way onto my hit list.

“No. Probably ran away from all his debt. That guy in booth six—did he say anything weird to you?” I ask.

He gave me the creeps, and when he touched me, I nearly smashed his glass and sliced up his face.

I’ve seen him here a few times before, but never danced for him. But tonight, he requested me personally.

And then he told me to meet him outside after my shift, which I politely declined. But that evil glint in his eye? It worried me.

I know men like him. The ones who don’t take no for an answer.

“Umm. Not really. Just the same as the rest of them. Fucking pervs.”

I tap my chin. Something isn’t sitting right with me. He’s not from round here, he has some kind of drawl to his voice.

“Okay. Just keep an eye out. Let me know if he comes back or asks for me again,” I tell her.

Her eyes narrow.

“Are you okay?” she asks.

I give her a smile.

“Yeah. Of course. I just... don’t want to find myself in a similar situation to when I first started dancing.”

Nearly all of the girls here carry stories like mine. Young. Naive. Dazzled by the fast cash. I might have had a scholarship into med school, but it wasn’t the full ride. I had to find a way to live. And with both my parents in jail, it was up to me to figure it out.

And so I did. In a club much worse than this.

What you don’t see is the dark side of this job. When you’re desperate to secure your future, your present becomes chaos.

I gave away something I can never get back. Let a man of my past persuade me to become more than a stripper.

Something I never wanted. Something I’ll never forgive myself for.

And no matter how many years go by, I can’t help but mourn what I lost. I can’t change my past, but I’ll be damned if I let predators likehimtake something from the next girl.

“I will. Go home. You look exhausted, Angel,” she whispers.

After a ten-hour shift and five hours here, she’s right. Luckily, tomorrow is my day off.

As I head to my car, I pull my jacket tighter, quickening my steps.

The dull streetlights make everything feel more sinister.