Page 4 of Charlotte
How did I not realize this sooner?
“Are you okay?” Kara asks me.
I give her a smile that I’m hoping shows that I’m not at all completely uncomfortable right now.
“All good,” I say.
“I think you are really going to like this.”
I nod and turn my attention back to the man on stage. He’s wrapping up his speech.
“First up tonight, ladies, is a man looking for his very own Juliet. Welcome to the stage—Romeo!”
All at once, it’s like the whole audience is up on their feet. I feel even more out of place sitting, so I stand up too.
I can’t help but get caught up in the sexy moves of the dancer on stage. This may not have been a place that I would have thought to come to, but I can’t deny the effect I’m feeling watching him.
Two more guys follow Romeo. Each doing their own unique routines. Each one getting hotter than the last one. And each one stripping down to a brightly colored thong. Aubrey hands out shots to each of us, and I decide I need to get more into this night. I need to blow off some steam, and this is the perfect excuse to let loose.
I drink the shot down in one. The burn of the alcohol warms my already heated body. The energy flowing through this place is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before.
The lights dim on the stage as a guy named, The Lieutenant, dressed in only an American flag thong filled with dollar bills, exits the stage.
“It’s the moment you all have been waiting for,” the guy in the blazer returns to the stage. He waits for the crowd to settle before he continues, “A man who needs no introduction. The one. The only. Tommy Gunn!”
There is an explosion of sound that comes from the audience. Nearly all the women in the audience jump to their feet, clapping and cheering for the next dancer.
I sit down in my seat and take a swig of the ice water I ordered. The veil I forgot I'm still wearing flutters as I pick up the laminated drink menu on the table and fan myself to cool down.
Instead of a spotlight, there's a white screen with just a shadow of a man standing behind it. The music begins, and the bass pulses so loudly that it feels like a second heartbeat beating in my chest. The screen slowly lifts, and the man has his back to the crowd. He’s not dressed in a costume, but a tank top, jeans, and white sneakers. He turns and glances over his shoulder, but his dark blue baseball cap hangs low, covering his face.
He spins around and starts dancing in beat with the music. His feet and legs move as if they separate from the top part of his body. He runs forward and slides on his knees to the end of the stage right in front of me—our gazes locking.
