In the light of the following day, the previous night seemed like a dream. Had I really agreed to be the sex toy of one of the scariest men in the mafia for money? A guy who’d ejaculated all over my face when I refused to give him a blow job?
Yes. Yes, I had.
Although I was nervous as all hell, I felt no lingering shame in the transaction I’d made. Last night had been the first sexual encounter I’d ever had with someone. But despite the innocence of my body, I was an educated woman, and there was nothing wrong with two consensual adults doing whatever the hell they wanted to together. Some might think living with Jade and working in this club had helped me come to that conclusion, but honestly, I’d always believed that. If people weren’t hurting each other or anyone else, then who the hell cared what they’re doing behind closed doors if it made them happy? Or who they’re doing it with?
As I parked my car in the back lot at work, I was surprised to see security at the door. I was even more surprised when he walked right up to my car and scanned the area around us while he waited for me to get out.
‘Is something going on?’ I asked him.
‘I’m to escort you inside, miss. And I’ll be here to walk you to your car when you finish your shift.’
He was big and brawny, even larger than Enzo. ‘Oh…uh…okay. Thank you.’ This was new, but I wasn’t going to argue about extra safety measures with the hours I worked. It wasn’t uncommon for homeless people, or worse, to be hanging outside the club when we left in the early morning hours.
He saw me safely inside and stepped in with me, taking up a position outside the break room where we had some tables and chairs, along with some snacks and drinks. I put the sandwich I’d brought in the fridge, then started taking off my coat as I went over to the wall of lockers. I found an empty one and stashed my phone, purse, and coat inside.
When I unzipped one of the pockets of my purse to drop my keys in there, I caught a glimpse of Enzo’s watch that I’d taken off his nightstand last night. Quickly, I zipped it back up before someone came in. I’d brought it with me so I could return it to him, assuming he came by tonight. He’d never really said anything when he dropped me off at my car last night about when I would see him again. Just that it would be ‘soon.’
Grabbing a clean apron from the hooks on the wall next to the lockers, I tied it around my waist and then went to the bar to grab a notepad and pen. Bell was bartending tonight, and I was glad. She was much more pleasant to work with than Rob, but unfortunately, she only worked part-time so I only got to see her once a week. Twice if I was lucky. ‘Hey,’ I greeted her.
‘Hey, Sera!’ Bell returned my greeting with a smile. ‘How’ve you been, hon?’
‘Good,’ I told her automatically. Bell was in her late thirties, tall and lean, with long blond hair she usually wore in some kind of braid and deep brown eyes. She looked amazing in her uniform of black slacks, a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, a black vest, and bow tie.
‘Oh, I have something for you,’ she told me as I was about to go check the table of three that had just come in.
‘For me?’
She handed me a padded envelope with my name written on the front. I opened it up, and inside was a piece of paper and a cellphone. ‘Why am I getting a phone?’ I asked her.
Bell shrugged, then walked over to the other end of the bar to get the drink order from a gentleman who’d just sat down.
I pulled out the piece of paper. Six numbers were written on it. A lock code? I tried it on the phone and the screen came to life, showing me there was a text message from ‘E.’
With an uneasy feeling in my chest, I opened the message.
Keep this phone on you at all times. This is only to be used for conversations between you and I. If it rings, I expect you to answer it. If a text comes in, you have five minutes to respond. If you don’t answer my call or don’t respond to my text, I will assume the worst and come find you. Trust me when I say, unless you’re in immediate danger, you don’t want that to happen for many reasons.
I know your shift tonight is from 8pm to 2am. I will expect a response letting me know you have the phone in your possession no later than 8:05pm.
I checked the time. It was 8:04pm. Quickly, I punched out a text.
I have the phone, but I’m not supposed to have it on me while I work. I’ll need to put it in my locker.
His response came right away.
You have the manager’s permission to keep this one on you. If anyone gives you any shit about it, just let me know. Remember what I said.
Unsure, I looked around the bar, and then slid the phone into the front pocket of my apron, wondering what the hell I’d gotten myself into.
Two hours into my shift, I felt the phone vibrate against the front of the hip. When I set my tray down on the bar and pulled it out, I saw there was a text from Enzo.
What time is your break?
I glanced at the time.
In five minutes.
Because I was new, I had to take my break early in the night. But I was just grateful they gave me thirty minutes together and not two fifteen-minute breaks, which wouldn’t leave me with much time to eat.
I waited for a response, but none came, so I put the phone back into my apron and took the drinks Bell had set on my tray over to table five. I was starving, and I had to pee like nobody’s business, but I tried not to think about my bulging bladder as I checked on my other tables and told the waitress who’d be covering for me who might need what while I was on break.
At 10pm exactly, my phone buzzed. I had just set my tray down on the bar and was heading toward the private restroom marked for employees only in the back of the bar near the break room. I waited until my most urgent need was taken care of and my hands were washed before I pulled it out and read the message.
Go into a bathroom stall.
I frowned.
Why? I’m hungry and I’d like to eat while I have a break.
Just do it, Sera. Let me know when you get there.
I looked around the restroom like I would find the answer written on the wall somewhere. When I didn’t, I slowly walked back into the stall I’d just come out of. Maybe if I did as he asked, he’d leave me alone and I could get on with my night.
I’m in the stall.
Put one foot on the toilet seat and take a picture of what’s covering your pussy. Then send it to me.
He wants me to send him panty pics? That’s why I have this phone?
I don’t remember agreeing to this. Besides, I’m at work.
Send me the picture, Sera. Or I’ll come down there and throw you onto a table in front of the entire goddamn club and take it myself.
I hesitated. Surely, he wouldn’t do that.
I’m waiting, Sera.
I stared down at the phone. A whole lot of emotions were running through me right now, including disbelief, anger, and annoyance. But the heavy feeling I suddenly had in my lower belly overrode them all. Biting my lip, I balanced my foot in its high-heeled shoe on the toilet, stuck the phone underneath my skirt, and snapped a picture of my ruffled panties. I had to take two more before I got one that didn’t look like a blurry, black glob of nothing. Quickly, before I could change my mind, my heart pounding beneath my ribcage, I sent it to him. His response came right away.
Thank you.
I stayed in the stall for five more minutes, waiting for my phone to go off again with another message, but it never did. Feeling slightly confused, and weirdly, more than a little turned on, I put the phone back into my apron and went to get my sandwich out of the fridge. It tasted like cardboard, but I swallowed it down, knowing I’d need the energy to get through the last six hours of my shift.
The rest of the night went by without interruption from the phone in my pocket, and when I finally closed out for the night and said goodnight to the rest of the staff, I limped out to my car with the security guard beside me. My feet were fucking killing me. He didn’t try to assist me, but instead kept scanning the lot like he expected monsters to jump out from behind the parked cars at any moment.
And even though I told myself I wouldn’t do it, I couldn’t help but look for a blacked-out SUV waiting for me in the lot. But it wasn’t there. Just my car and Bell’s, and what I would guess was the security guard’s.
I pulled out the phone and checked it, but there were no messages I might have missed as I got into the car. I thought about messaging him to tell him I had his watch, but just the thought made my cheeks heat with embarrassment. Plus, it was late. He was probably sleeping. So, I laid the phone down on the passenger seat next to my purse and started the car. The security guard raised his hand in a wave as I drove away, and I watched him in my rearview mirror as he walked over to the car I didn’t recognize. Wasn’t he going to wait for Bell? Should I stop and tell him she was still in there?
But before I could make up my mind, he was pulling away.
I headed back to Jade’s, feeling weirdly disconcerted, a lot nervous, and if I were going to be honest with myself, a little let down. It took me a while to fall asleep that night, but once I did, I slept like the dead, waking up just in time to make some dinner and get ready for my next shift. Either Jade had stayed out all night, which wasn’t unusual, or she’d snuck in while I was asleep and was still crashed out in her bedroom. Eating and getting ready had managed to keep me distracted for a while. But now my anxiety was back in full force as I thought of something.
Was he expecting me to just show up at his hotel every night? Or was I supposed to just go about my business and wait for him to contact me? He hadn’t said anything, and since I’d never done anything like this before, I wasn’t sure what he expected of me.
I checked my phone again. Nothing. So I went into work and tried to forget about the fact that I hadn’t heard from him all day. When my shift was done, I counted out my tips and decided to just go home. But by the time I got back to Jade’s apartment, I was a frazzled mess. Part of me was hoping he’d found out where she lived somehow and would be here waiting for me, and the other part was trying to convince myself I needed to pack a bag and run away as fast as I could before he found me again.
My phone vibrated and made a little ding sound right after I made it through the door and set my stuff down on the counter. My heart began to pound as I picked up the phone and opened the text message.
Goodnight, baby girl.
I paused for a moment, and then typed,
Goodnight.
I turned off the screen and set the phone back down on the counter. Then, keeping my mind carefully blank, I went in and took a shower and pulled on a nightshirt and some pajama shorts. I went to the fridge, but we were out of yogurt, so I added it to my grocery list and grabbed a banana instead, taking it and a glass of water with me over to the couch. Setting them on the coffee table, I unfolded the blanket lying at the foot, spread it over the couch cushions, then picked up the remote and turned on Netflix.
I was halfway through the next episode of the show I was watching when the phone on the counter rang. Throwing the blanket off my lap, I jumped up off the couch and ran over to answer it. ‘Hello?’
‘What are you wearing, Sera?’
His voice made shivers skate over my skin. I walked back over to the couch and turned down the volume on the television. ‘Seriously?’ I asked him.
‘I want to know what you sleep in,’ was his response.
Looking down at myself because I’d completely forgotten if I was even wearing clothes the moment I heard his voice, I told him, ‘A dark blue nightshirt and a pair of red plaid pajama shorts. Probably not the sexy vision you were hoping for.’
But he just said, ‘That’s exactly the vision I was hoping for. Goodnight, baby girl.’
‘Wait,’ I said before he could hang up. ‘Are you still there?’
‘Yes.’
‘Um. I was just wondering when I can expect to see you again. I’ve never done this type of thing before and I…I wasn’t sure if…’ I trailed off.
I heard him inhale and exhale, like he was sighing. ‘I’m not sure,’ he told me, and I could hear the frustration in his tone. ‘But when you do, I’d like my watch back.’
I started to tell him I’d grabbed it by mistake, but he interrupted me before I could give him the lame excuse I always gave everyone when I actually had to hand something back to them.
‘Why do you do that?’
‘Do what?’ I asked, even though I knew exactly what he was talking about.
‘Steal things,’ he said. ‘I know you don’t do it for money. Is it just for fun?’
My eyes stung with tears, and I blinked them back, although I could still hear them in my voice. ‘No.’
‘Then tell me why.’
‘I don’t know why,’ I whispered.
He was quiet for a few seconds. ‘Okay. Get some sleep, Sera.’
Then he hung up the phone.
‘Okay,’ I said softly. Setting the phone on the table, I went back to my purse and grabbed the charging cord that had come with it, plugging it in. Then I grabbed Enzo’s watch and put it on my arm. It was too big for my wrist, so I slid it up to just beneath my elbow. Leaving it there, I went back over to the couch and hit play on the remote.
I didn’t sleep much that night.
Or the next.
