Kitten [18+] ✔️

Ch. 2 - Victor

Tamara's going to kill me.

I told the guys no strippers – I very clearly told them – suggesting that we just go to a bar or something for this party. Get some drinks, play some pool, live like the college bachelor I never had the chance to be. And we had gone to a bar... before rolling up to a place called 'Nirvana Au Naturel'.

The neon sign was the only indication that the building was anything special, but I knew the moment we pulled over that they were up to something. I was already tipsy from their 'pre-party', but I wasn't drunk enough to willingly enter a strip joint. John and Adam had to practically drag me into the dark club, reluctantly settling into my seat at a booth they'd reserved close to the stage.

"You know, this bachelor party is going to be pretty useless if Mara knows I was in here," I muttered, defeatedly lifting a shot of whiskey and lime to my lips. "Cause a dead man can't get married."

John snickered at that, elbowing me in the side. "Don't be such a fuddy-duddy, Vic. Strippers are a staple of bachelor parties, we couldn't just not go to a club," he teased, his gaze drawn to the stage as a busty blonde danced to the head-pounding beat.

Everything was too hot, too loud, too pungent as colognes and perfumes mingling with sweat assaulted my senses. I kept my eyes trained on the sticky tabletop, ignoring the scantily clad women all around me. Nowhere was safe to look, not the stage, not the floor, not the dozens of other booths occupied by patrons and women.

"Oh c'mon," Adam huffed, pouting as he returned to the table. "The blonde barely even looked at me – just a wink? The fuck."

"Maybe she would have paid more attention if you gave her this," John teased, waving the hundred-dollar bill in our faces as the song started to change tempo.

"Nothing on the floor is worth a hundo," Adam bit back as the DJ announced the next dancer and Maroon 5's Animals started blasting through the club.

"Holy shit."

Adam's exclamation drew my attention, the very same words nearly falling from my lips at the sight that filled my eyes.

Baby I'm preying on you tonight,

Hunt you down, eat you alive,

Just like animals...

Like animals...

I looked up at the wrong time. A damned goddess was prowling onstage, her long, shapely legs moving with the grace of a panther in strappy stilettos. Smooth olive skin was interrupted only by a scrap of fabric barely containing her bust and a skimpy black thong with a cat tail attached, the tip swaying with her silky hair and ample hips. A pair of cat ears poked out the top of her head, and a black collar with a bell was wrapped around her neck.

Maybe you think that you can hide,

I can smell your scent for miles,

Just like animals...

Like animals...

"It seems our loyal groom here likes kittens."

John's voice pulled me out of my trance as the 'kitten' flicked a man's nose with that tail, swallowing and turning my glare onto him. He looked entirely too pleased with himself, wiggling his brows suggestively as I tried to keep my eyes away from the stage. It had suddenly become a much more difficult task.

"Jeez Vic, you're already here! What difference will it make to Mara if you're enjoying yourself or not?" he asked, shoving the brown bill into my hands and my body towards the stage. Adam was already hanging out at the edge, whistling as she pulled away from someone else with a bill tucked into her collar. I didn't realize John had joined in at my side until he hollered as well, my heartbeat spiking as I was suddenly pulled in by magnetic amber eyes.