Beautiful Strangers (3 page)

   
I talked to my stranger for at
least thirty minutes. I believe that is the longest I’ve talked with anyone on
the phone since I was in junior high and I still hadn’t managed to even get his
name. He all but promised me I would hear from him soon and that was that.

  
The photo shoot was a blast!
They made me up like a fairy. And of course I had to wear the clubs signature
mask. Ritchie had even hired a hot male model to pose with me. He had to wear
the signature black mask the customers are required to wear as well.

  
It was all very fast paced and
Ritchie let me know not to be surprised when I saw the billboards showing up
all over the city. He was going all out for this bash it seemed.

  
“Before you go Grace, Stacey
mentioned something about letting you dress the girls for Halloween. How would
you feel about working with Reggie on that?” Ritchie asked.

  
“That would be great.” I almost
hugged him, but Ritchie was not the kind of man you hugged ever. He is my boss
after all. Besides he is really scary in a Tony Soprano sense.
 

   
The rest of my week was pretty
good, other than awakening to nose bleeds and having a constant nasal drip. I
know I need to quit snorting so much speed but who wants to have the shakes,
the runs, the chills and the shits. Not this girl!

  
I had some flirty text and
really intense phone sex with my sexy, masked, no name man. But Evan on the
other hand was becoming a real pest. Texting and calling non- stop! Ugh, if I
didn’t need him for my supply, I would have cut him out a long time ago.

 
Evan: Grace we need to talk.
 
I need to see you, you can’t hide out
forever.

   
Get a fucking clue, ass hat. I
will not be toyed with by you ever again, now it’s my turn. He was right about
one thing though. I would have to see him eventually, by the looks of my
dwindling supply. I’d be out in a few more days.
   

  
On a positive note, Reggie
called me about our budget for the Halloween costumes. Reggie is our stage
manager, make- up artist/house mom of sorts. She also happens to be Ritchie’s
sister, so to say that I don’t trust her with anything personal is an
understatement. We agreed we would get started after the weekend.

  
Then I had another call from
Ritchie with some really awesome news. Jaxson Hayes’s manager called they
wanted to rent the club for his next music video, they want to hire me
exclusively to star in it. They were really impressed with the advertising
posted throughout the city. And they may have also mentioned that Mr. Hayes
really enjoyed the clubs atmosphere. All he needed was a yes from me and
Ritchie would have the contract waiting next time I returned for work.

Let the good times roll….

  
Things were looking up and I had some cherry Garcia and an Alfred
Hitchcock marathon waiting for me. My plans were shot all to hell when a
distraught Jocelyn showed up on my doorstep.

  
“That son of a bitch,” she sobs throwing herself down on my sofa. “He
promised he would leave her and that he was ready to give her the house and
move in with me. I sat there waiting for him for over five hours and he never
showed,” she cried.
  

  
“Jocelyn, I’m sorry I didn’t know you were so serious with him.”
Him
meaning Robert Drake, silver haired devil number three.
Jocelyn seems to mostly attract older married men.

  
“I don’t want to say this to upset you, but most of them never do leave
their wives. My asshole of a father never left. He paid his mistress off, to
just go away,” I sadly told her.

  
I would have never found out about her if I hadn’t been told by his
lawyer when he died. And I would have never found out that Evan was using me to
get back at my father for breaking his mothers heart but I kept that to myself,
no need in dragging Jocelyn into my fucked up world.

    
Evan wasn’t my brother or anything that would be down right sick, but he
sought me out and got me in this shit of an addiction just to hurt my dad.

  
That fucker!

  
“Have you tried calling, maybe something came up?”

  
“Yeah and his bitch of a wife told me to stop calling or they would file
harassment charges. What am I going to do?” she cries.

  
“I tell you what we are going to do. Either you are going to sit here
feeling sorry for yourself enjoying my cherry Garcia or we are going to get
dressed and go to Pandemonium and find you a hot piece of man!” I smack my
hands on my hips.
 

  
She looks up with her sparkly green eyes wiping away her tears. She
grins at me and giggles, “I vote for a man.”

   
“Ha! That’s my girl. Let’s take a cab so we can get fucked up Jojo cat,”
I cheered. Jojo cat is the nickname I gave her when we first met our freshmen
year of college.

  
I loaned Jocelyn some slut gear and freshened her face. Hell I even did
her hair, look at me being all nice and shit, I thought. I did an extra hit of
speed before we left.

  
“Damn, Jojo, we look hot!” I
told her as we stepped out of the cab.

Behind the mask!

   
Pandemonium was an old
warehouse converted into a dance club, they had the biggest dance floor in the
city and it was packed tonight. I live for nights like this when we can cut
loose from everything and everyone. We make our way to the bar to get some
drinks. We shouldn’t have to wait long, my girls are pushed up and getting
every guy in the places full attention.

   
I wore a black bustier with a
hint of peek a boo lace lining my cleavage, paired with my favorite denim mini,
and favorite black Jimmy’s. I had my hair pulled into a high pony tail showing
off my black angel wings tattoo on my back. All of my tattoos were gifts from
Evan. I have seven of them total.

   
“What are you fine ladies
drinking tonight?” asked the bartender.

   
“We’ll have four Lemon Drop
shots and two Budweiser’s.”

   
“Not wasting any time are we
ladies?” The bartender laughed.

   
“Nope, not even a little bit,”
I said as we downed our shots and pounded each one down on the bar.

   
I felt my phone vibrating in my
back pocket. I have a text from blue eyes asking to see me. I texted him the
address to the club and told him to find me on the dance floor. I was ready to
meet the man behind the mask. I am feeling on edge. Grabbing our beers we make
our way to the dance floor.

   
Jojo cat was definitely feeling
better. She finds a random college guy. I spot her making out with him in a
booth in the corner. I, on the other hand, was content dancing by myself, when
I was interrupted being grinded from behind. I felt the heat within me rise.
When I went to glance over my shoulder, to see who my new partner was I was
pleasantly surprised to hear a familiar rugged voice whisper “Hello Gracie” in
my ear. Sending shivers down my spine.

   
Even with barely there lights
and the ball cap pulled down covering his eyes I knew it was him. And damn
could he dance. He looks so good in regular clothes and not dressed in some
business suit. He was wearing a white v-neck tee and a pair of faded jeans, and
brown boots.

  
I want more than anything to
jerk that cap off his head and run my fingers through his hair and get a good
look at his face. He still hasn’t told me his name, even though I asked twice.
We joined Jocelyn and her young thing at their booth.

    
“Hey girl this is Bradley. We
are going to head to my place. Will you be alright to get home?” she asked,
eyeing my company.

  
Yea I will be more than fine if
I could take my nameless guy home with me.

   
“Yea I’m good. You better call
me tomorrow though,” I told her as she hugged me bye. Well Jojo cat strikes
again, I chuckled to myself after she was gone.

   
“So are you going to tell me
your name, or am I going to have to refer to you as hey you forever?” I asked
him.

  
His jaw tensed as he answered,
“How about we get out of here first then I will tell you.”

   
“Um okay, you better not be a
murderer or serial rapist. But the feeling I have in my gut tells me your not,
so let’s go,” I told him teasingly.

  
When he took me by my hand I
felt a spark. I could swear he just shocked me. Out in the parking lot he
pointed to a black’57 Chevy. This guy keeps getting more interesting.

   
“So,” I asked casually, “your
place or mine?”

  
“I figured you’d be more
comfortable at your place.” He said squeezing my hand.

   
“Sure I live at Pine Meadow
Apartments in Hermitage, you familiar with them?”

   
“I know the area.”

   
I started to wonder if I was
making a mistake. This guy won’t even tell me his name and I don’t know jack
shit about him, I think to myself leaning my head against the passenger window.
It’s not the first time I took home a strange man, but he wasn’t exactly a
stranger was he?
 
But the way he keeps
hiding his face with his ball cap has me wondering what he is trying to hide
from.

  
“You okay over there?” he asked.

  
“Oh yea I just hope Jojo is
okay,” I waved my hand in a not so important air.

   
“Jojo cat seemed more than good
to me,” he laughed. I gave him a few directions to my complex and got out to
put in the security code at the door while he parked his truck. In case he
turned out to be a weirdo, I didn’t want him knowing my pass code.

   
I invited him in turning on my
living room lamp. When I turned back around he had taken the cap off and I
truly got my first full look at his face. Holy Shit! Jaxson Hayes was standing
in my living room. I tried not to look dumbfounded while trying my damnedest to
play it cool.

  
“So guess I know why you were
reluctant to tell me your name or remove the mask.” I take a deep breath and
continue studying him. Is this for real? Somebody better pinch me, I must be
dreaming here.

    
My inner kitten is shouting,
hell yeah! But the rest of me
is
as anxious as a
virgin on prom night.

  
“Well when most girls find out
who I am they immediately want everyone to know they are with me, so I try to
fly under the radar when I go out. The paparazzi are always hot on my ass
looking for their next big story. And I didn’t want to lie to you,” he
explains.

   
“I can appreciate that,” I said
taking a seat on the couch.

   
“This is kind of awkward now,”
he laughed.

   
“It doesn’t have to be,” I said
patting the spot beside me on the couch.

   
We sat in silence for a few
minutes and he finally started to talk. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I don’t normally
do this,” and he gestures to me.

   
I asked, “What, you don’t
normally pick up women and take them home?”

  
“No, I don’t really trust many
people. Everyone seems to just want a piece of me. Plus you are about to sign a
contract to star in my video,” he answers looking tense.
  

  
“Well I don’t want anything from
you but thanks for picking me. It sounds like it will be fun,” I sighed.

Sex on a stick….

   
This is not what I was
expecting. What happened to the teasing control freak?
 
He took my hand and began rubbing the back of
my palm, making circles with his thumb.

   
“You have really taken me by
surprise Gracie. You wanted me before you even knew who I really was, and
that’s not happened to me ever, and it’s damned sexy.”

   
“I have never been so attracted
to a stranger,” I admit. Why am I breathing so hard, and why am I so nervous I
ask myself. “Because this man is sex on a stick,” I belt out before I can stop
myself.

   
“Did you just call me sex on a
stick?” he asked trying not to burst out laughing.

   
Oh hell, my cheeks are burning
with embarrassment. I can't believe I said that aloud.
 
I shifted a little so that I was facing him
and caught him staring at my thigh were my skirt had risen almost exposing that
I wasn’t wearing any panties.
 

   
He bit his lip and I playfully
asked, “See something you like stud?”

   
Without warning he thrust me
back on the couch hovering over me crushing his mouth into mine. I swear when
he kissed me fireworks exploded in my core which was now becoming very moist
and swollen. He pulled his mouth back from mine and I greedily followed not
wanting him to stop.

    
“I’m sorry but I find myself
wanting to rip your clothes off and fuck you right here,” he moans.

  
“Don’t apologize and definitely
do not stop,” I growl like a lioness ready to devour her kill.