Private ~ H.S

Prologue

I looked up at the building standing in front of me – my teeth biting into my bottom lip as I noticed the suggestive woman's silhouette printedon the sign above my head. I took a deep breath and forced myself to ignore the way my heart was thundering inside my chest – and how every part of me was telling me that this was so, so wrong. That I needed to just turn around, and walk away right now.

Come on, Lia. Come on.

This is for him. You need this job for him.

I suppressed a whimper and swallowed the heavy lump in my throat before I stepped forward and pushed myself through the door – the loud music blasting from the speakers in the club startling me as soon as I walked in.

I found myself quite shocked by how many men were in the room – and I had to hold back a scowl at the way they cheered so loudly for the half-naked women dancing in front of them.

Ugh. Sleazebags.

"Hey lady," a new voice coming from behind me made me jump and quickly turn around – and I found myself facing a skinny, tall man who looked like he was in his mid-30s, "can I help you? This is a Gentlemen's Club, you know. You aren't exactly a gentleman."

"I...I know," I replied quietly, "but...but I-"

"Speak up, will ya?" He interrupted me harshly, "It's loud as shit in here, you know."

"S...Sorry," I cleared my throat, "I just...I-I wanted to inquire about...getting a job here," I forced myself to speak louder.

"Oh, is that so?" The man's eyebrows rose, "You want to work here at Flamme, do you?"

"Er, y-yes," I replied reluctantly, "yes, I...I'm interested."

"Hm..." he stroked his chin and briefly looked me up and down, "well, you look good enough I guess. Come and follow me – my office is just past the changing room."

I nodded. "Lead the way."

He nodded back, and I followed him through a doorway covered by a beaded curtain, past another door labelled 'Changing Room' and through one final door labelled 'Nick Anderson – Manager'.

"Right," he sat down at a small desk and invited me to sit in a chair opposite him, "first of all, I'm Nick Anderson, manager and owner of this place. You can just call me 'Nick', though. And you are?" He gave me an expectant look.

"Er...Aurelia," I replied as I sat down, "Aurelia Scott."

"Aurelia? That's a bit of a mouthful," he said, "you got a nickname?"

"Yes," I nodded, "people closest to me call me 'Lia'."

"That's better. A lot easier to say," said Nick, "so, Lia, why do you want to work here, exactly?"

"Er, well...to be perfectly honest..." I began, "I have a son who's just turned one, and I...ever since he was born I've been relying on my sister for support. But I wanna stop that now. I just need a job with a good salary that will pay me enough to support him on my own."

"On your own?" He raised an eyebrow, "What happened to the kid's father?"

"He's..." I gulped and held back a grimace as I was reminded of my son's father, "he's...not in the picture. He never was, and he never will be," my face hardened a little.

"Right. Well, if I hire you, and you're good, then you'll get a good salary to help your son," he told me, "but I'm warning you, Lia: this club does not hire any random broad who just knows how to twerk. This place is one of the most popular Gentlemen's Clubs in the area for one reason, and one reason only: I make sure that the enticement is always there. It's so easy to get bored of a girl who doesn't know how to do anything except bounce her ass. You gotta actually know how to dance. Have you ever danced at all?"

"Er...well..." I bit my lip, "not really, but...I'm a fast learner. I can find good dance routines, a-and I can study and memorize them pretty easily."

"Well, alright. I'll take your word for it," said Nick, "you're hired."

My breath hitched. "R-Really? I am?"

"Yep," he nodded, "you're pretty hot. I think my punters would like you. You just need to learn how to move. You can learn on the job by picking up some basic moves from the other girls – but you'd also better keep your word on learning online dance routines, too. Oh – and for privacy reasons, you're gonna need to work under a different name."

"Oh, o-of course," I nodded vigorously, "thank you."

"Yeah, no problem," he replied, "just one last question though: would you rather work day shifts or night shifts?"

"Er...day shifts, if that's possible," I said, "I don't want to be away from my son during the night."

"Alright. Fair enough. Day shifts it is," Nick said, "you can start next week. I'll give you my email so that you can send me all your measurements – 'cause I'll need to get my costume girls to find some outfits for you."

"OK," I nodded again, "thank you so much."

"Don't mention it," he said dismissively.

I got his email and quickly left the building – letting out a shaky sigh since I could hardly believe what I just agreed to.

I should've been excited, I know. It's a new job – I'll finally be able to support my son without my sister's help. But as soon as I left that building, I just felt sick to the stomach.

Jesus Christ...I can't believe this.

I can't believe I'm actually going to become a private dancer.

A/N: Hey guys!! I posted this Prologue sooner than I thought I would but I'm just so excited to start this lol. I hope you liked it :) xx