The words were out before my eyes adjusted again. By the time they did, I realized that I might have just snapped at the hottest guy in the club. He was sitting in the corner, nursing a drink in a short, wide glass.
Where he was, it was difficult to make out the exact color of his eyes, but they were dark. He shifted forward and into a shaft of bluish light from the bar, and suddenly, I could see that there was so much more than darkness to them.
They were a vibrant, almost golden shade of brown. Light and darkness seemed to swirl in them. Amusement and irritation, if someone forced me to venture a guess. His hair wasn’t as dark as I’d first thought either.
It was a light brown with streaks that ventured more to the milk-chocolate side. He kept it shorter at the sides than at the top but not styled in that douchey, sweeping fringe kind of way.
There was no scruff on his strong jaw, but he had a five o’clock shadow that hinted at a slight scrape if I were to touch it. I wouldn’t, but for some reason, I really wanted to.
Great. Now I’m even starting to think like the horny asspigs who want to touch something that’s not theirs to touch.
He lifted his chin slightly, a frown tugging his dark eyebrows together as he watched me. He lifted big, long-fingered hands and showed me his palms. “Don’t look at me like that. All I did was ask if you’re okay. Because no, you don’t look it.”
I sighed and let my scowl melt away. This guy didn’t look like he was about to grab my butt, at least. “I’m sorry. I just needed a break from all the groping. I thought you were about to pull me into your lap or something.”
That same amusement I’d spotted in his gaze earlier flashed again as he shook his head. “No, that’s not really my thing.”
“What is your thing then? You come to strip clubs to sit in a dark corner and watch from afar? Kind of like a voyeur.”
His full lips rose into a sexy smirk, and he shook his head again. “Nope. Wrong again. Strip clubs as a whole aren’t really my thing. That’s why I’m sitting here. I can’t leave, but I don’t really want to stay. It’s all a bit tacky if you ask me.”
Before I could respond, the smirk vanished, and his eyes widened for a fraction of a second. “Not that you’re tacky. I’m sorry. I know this is your job. I didn’t mean to sound condescending.”
“You did sound condescending, but it’s fine. You don’t need to apologize. I agree. It is tacky, but so are a lot of things that people like.”
“True.” He lifted his glass to take a sip of the amber liquid inside, then propped his elbow on the counter and held the glass between his fingers. “I’m Marco.”
“Addy.” I probably shouldn’t have given him my real name but whatever. I wasn’t getting a creep vibe from him, and if he didn’t frequent the club, it wasn’t likely I was going to see him again anyway. He probably wouldn’t even remember my name by the morning. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“It is?” He cocked his head. “How do you know?”
“It’s nice to run into a man here who isn’t handsy and horny.”
“How do you know I’m not horny?” he asked, but the corners of his mouth rose despite the fact that he was obviously trying to hide his grin.
Despite how shitty my evening had been this far, I laughed at his joke. “At least you seem to be content to get handsy with yourself later if you are.”
His nostrils flared in surprise. “Is that your way of telling me to go fuck myself?”
“If you want.” I shrugged, unable to stop a smile from breaking through. “As long as you leave me and all the other girls here out of your hormonal urges.”
“Request noted,” Marco said, then motioned around the room with a swirl of the glass in his hand. “You don’t seem to enjoy your job very much. You certainly hold disdain for your customers.”
“It’s my first night.” I let my gaze wander around the room, spotting several tables trying to get my attention. “I have to pay my rent in a few days, and despite what I might think about this place, they pay well.”
“I see.” A contemplative gleam came into his eyes as he ran a finger along his jaw. “I would imagine you would get good tips as well.”
Something in the way he was suddenly looking at me was different. There was a new edge to his tone, too, one that was familiar to me after just a couple of hours in this place. He thought I was hot, and that was why I got good tips.
“I’m a lesbian,” I blurted out. Under any other circumstances and in any other place, I would have taken the compliment. I also might have flirted a little now that I knew he thought I was hot. Considering I thought the same about him, we might even have hooked up.
But the circumstances were what they were, and the place was what it was. I couldn’t change that, but I desperately didn’t want him to come on to me.
Talking to him was a tiny but bright spark in my hellish night. Elena was busy onstage, and I really needed to speak to someone who wasn’t trying to get into my pants. I needed to regain patience and fortify my sanity against the groping that was to come.
Marco was providing a small safe harbor for me at the moment, and I wasn’t ready to leave the harbor for the shark-infested waters beyond yet.
His head dipped to one side as he eyed me questioningly. “Okay? You didn’t need to tell me that. You’re a beautiful girl, which is why I think you will probably
