Free STRONGER by Lexie Ray Page B

making sure I wiped down every surface of my skin.
    By the time I left the bathroom, the Don was already half dressed.
    “There she is,” he said, grinning. “Was I a little too much for you, doll?”
    I smiled shakily and said the most flattering thing I could think of. “It was just so big.”
    Don Costa threw his head back and laughed. “I can tell we’re going to get along great,” he said. “I know this won’t be the last time we enjoy each other’s company.”
    I retrieved my underwear from the floor and stepped in to the thong. My pussy felt wet, slippery, strange. The Don fastened my bra for me as I held my hair up and out of the way. He turned me around and kissed me again, almost softly.
    He reached into his billfold again and drew out two Benjamins. He tucked them into my bra, getting one last grope in for good measure.
    “These are for you and you alone,” he said. “Mama doesn’t get a cut of these. Your official ‘tip’ was included in the money I gave her, so she doesn’t have to know about this little tip.”
    “Thank you,” I said, a little confused. Was Don Costa encouraging me to lie to Mama?
    “I’ll make the offer one more time,” he said. “All you have to do is give me a name. I’ll make the son of a bitch who burned you disappear.”
    It was tempting, but I only smiled and went looking for my uniform.
    After we were both fully dressed, Don Costa held open the door for me. Cocoa waited out in the hallway.
    “Hey there, lovebirds,” she said, beaming. “How’d everything go?”
    “Like a dream,” the Don said, slapping me on the ass as I walked past him and into the hallway.
    “Well, you were in there long enough,” my roommate jokingly scolded. “You’ve squandered practically the whole night.”
    “I wouldn’t call what we did squandering a night,” he said, grinning suggestively. Cocoa whooped and laughed, slapping her knee.
    “I knew it,” she said, still giggling. “Our Jazz is a good girl—everywhere except the bedroom, is that what you’re telling me?”
    The Don winked rakishly. I knew my smile probably looked sickening on my face, but I wore it like a mask.
    We went back downstairs, where the crowd was feverishly applauding Mama. Her set was over. I realized that I had no idea what time it was. Was everything really almost over? The world had slowed down while Don Costa plowed into my body. Customers had changed inside the nightclub and the line outside had vanished.
    “We’ll be closing in thirty minutes,” Mama announced to groans and disappointed shouts. She held her hands up. “Now, now, you know I can’t slow down the march of time. I can only help you enjoy it a little better.”
    There were wolf whistles and catcalls to this statement.
    “Finish up your dinners, finish up your drinks, settle up your tabs, whisper sweet words to that special someone,” Mama rattled off. “And tip my girls. They live to make you happy.”
    “Are you okay?” Cocoa whispered to me. I nodded quickly and smiled.
    The curtains closed and Mama emerged on the floor again. She made a beeline for the Don’s table.
    “Well, well,” she said saucily, putting her hands on her hips. “Look who decided to return to grace us with his presence.”
    The Don laughed almost sheepishly. “What can I say, Mama?” he asked. “You have a fireball on your hands with this one. I’m lucky I didn’t come away burned.”
    I flinched at the obvious reference to my scars but didn’t say anything.
    “Well, it looks like you wore Miss Jazz out,” Mama said. “I’m going to send her away early. I bet a shower and bed will do her a world of good.”
    She marched me across the floor and to the staircase leading up to my room.
    “You’ve done good, honey,” she said, kissing me wetly on both cheeks. “You’ve earned more money than any other girl tonight.”
    I felt like I was going to faint, but I tried to smile for Mama. She was proud of me. I had helped the nightclub by