Tim walked into their trailer, set his backpack down, and slipped out of his coat.
“Dang, it’s cold out there,” he grumbled, and hurried over to adjust the trailer’s thermostat. “It’s Texas, for God’s sake. It’s not supposed to get cold here.”
“Come here, baby,” Crystal urged, and opened her arms wide. “I’ll help you warm up.”
“Aww. Thank you, gorgeous.”
They hugged tightly, and kissed each other. Then she leaned back, and patted his chest. “How was class?”
“It was good,” he smiled. “I keep expecting it to be harder, but so far, I’m sailing through it.”
“That’s awesome. My super accountant,” she replied, and kissed his cheek. “Go change. I want to discuss something when you come back.”
Tim smiled, and headed for the bedroom. He’d been taking classes for almost a year now, and it was going great. College had exploded his world, and opened up possibilities he’d never considered, or thought were out of his reach. Now he was consumed with finishing his degree, becoming a CPA, and possibly opening up his own business. It was the type of future he’d never dared contemplate until he’d started working at A&A.
He’d flung himself headlong into studying. It was his third semester, and he’d enrolled in four classes, which was twelve credit hours. It would be a heavy load even for a normal student who wasn’t working; with his full-time job, he barely had time for sleep. And he’d resolved to take five courses next semester, and to attend both summer sessions.
Money’s always an issue, he thought tiredly as he undressed. Even with A&A’s help, I need to find a way to cut back somewhere; otherwise I won’t be able to afford five courses.
He needed to find a way to spend more time with Crystal, too. They barely saw each other during the week now, and tried their best to catch up on the weekends. But she wasn’t happy about the situation, despite his best efforts to explain how it would help them both in the long run.
That was probably what she wanted to talk about. Sighing, he slid a t-shirt over his head, and returned to the living room. “What’s up?” he asked, settling onto the couch.
Crystal smiled warmly at him from the kitchen. “Just a second.”
He couldn’t see what she was doing, but he was glad to see her smiling. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and it bobbed cutely as she worked.
A moment later she emerged from the kitchen carrying dinner on a small tray. “Ta da!” she grinned, and set it in his lap. After tucking a napkin into his shirt, she kissed his cheek, and flashed him a big naughty smile. “I know you probably already ate from a vending machine,” she said, returning to the kitchen for a cold beer. “But I missed you, and I wanted to do something special for you tonight. Besides, you’ve been working so hard lately, you’re losing too much weight.”
Eagerly he dug into the meal. It was excellent, and Crystal was right—he’d dropped some weight over the last several weeks. Eating a full, complete meal was a luxury nowadays, and he’d been getting by on vending machine food, pop tarts, and toast. His clothes were getting loose, but he’d been too busy to do anything about it.
“Thank you, baby,” he said between mouthfuls. “This is really good.”
Crystal smiled and watched him eat. She had another motive for treating him so well, but she wanted him to finish his dinner first. It wasn’t going to be an easy discussion, but she was confident she’d get her way eventually. She always did.
Finally he leaned back on the couch to sip his beer, and thanked his lucky stars. Classes were going great, and he’d just sailed through his mid-terms, so he had a rare opportunity to just relax and enjoy the evening. Crystal cleaned up quickly, and slid back onto the couch beside him.
“Mmmm. God, you feel good, Crystal,” he sighed, and hugged her. “I’m sorry I don’t have as much time to spend with you anymore. Honestly, it’s just temporary.”
“It’s okay, Tim. It’s for a good reason, and I know you enjoy taking classes.”
“I do, baby. It’s not easy, but it’s interesting and fun,” he said, and rolled his eyes. “I never thought I’d ever use the word ‘fun’ to describe accounting, but it’s true, and I’m really enjoying it.”
“That’s great, honey,” she said gently, and smiled at him. “You’re going to be great at it.”
“I hope so.” Then…there was no delaying it any longer…he looked up at her. “So, what did you want to talk to me about?”
She took his beer, and helped herself to a long sip. “I saw Rowdy and Shane today.”
His heart began to race, but he kept his face calm. “Really? Wow, it’s been…what? Six or seven months since we saw them. How are they doing? Everything okay?”
“Yep, they’re fine,” she said. “When I pulled into the trailer park, they were right behind me, and they stopped to say hi.”
He smiled briefly as he remembered the triumph of saving enough to buy her a matching Honda Civic. Now they had identical cars in the driveway, and he thought it was cute.
“We talked for a while,” she continued, “and Rowdy mentioned a club that’s hosting an amateur night this Friday.”
He blinked in confusion, then comprehension dawned. It took him an effort to breathe deeply and let it out slowly. “A club,” he echoed, fixing her with a pointed frown. “You mean a strip club, don’t you?”
She slowly nodded. “Yes.”
And just when he’d hoped she was finally losing interest. He took another calming breath, but it didn’t help ease the tightness in his chest. “You still want to try stripping, huh?”
“Yes. I know you’re uncomfortable with it, but just hear me out, okay?”
What else could he do without coming off as a total jerk? “Okay.”
“Rowdy and Shane both said it’s a nice club, and the management is super good about keeping the place clean.” She nearly tripped over the words in her haste to convince him. “They have their own security or bouncers, or whatever they call them. The dancers either leave the club in groups, or they’re escorted by a bouncer to their cars at the end of the night.”
He had to admit that much was encouraging.
“Well, you’ll like the next part too,” she said, and patted his chest. “The girls can choose who they dance for, so I won’t have to dance for anyone that’s creepy or dangerous.”
He managed to return her smile. “Another plus.”
“I know, right?” She nodded vigorously. “I really like that about this club.”
“Okay,” he sighed, and wearily nodded. “Sounds good so far. What’s the next step?”
She clapped her hands, and kissed him hard on the lips. “Well, Shane and Rowdy offered to take us to the club, and introduce us to the manager,” she said, and her eyes gleamed with excitement. “I’ll sign up to dance as one of the amateurs, and we’ll see what happens.”
Tim looked at her dubiously. “That’s it?”
“Well, the manager will be watching, obviously, and if he likes the way I dance…” She trailed off.
Tim looked at her closely. “If he likes the way you dance…what, Crystal?”
“Duh,” she said, and poked his chest. “We’ll talk to him about me becoming a dancer.”
He’d been afraid of that.
‘Conflicted’ didn’t even begin to describe his turbulent emotions. He knew how much she wanted to try dancing, and he really did want her to be happy. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that this was a really bad decision.
“Please, baby,” she implored quietly. “I really want this. I’m all alone at nights, and I’m sick of watching TV on the couch. You’re either at class, or studying…and that’s fine, but it leaves me all alone.
“Besides, the money I make will help us with your tuition,” she added, and twisted her hands together. “I need this, Tim, for me. Just like you needed college for you.”
She made her argument clearly, logically, then finished by tugging on Tim’s heartstrings…and it worked perfectly. When he sighed and reluctantly smiled at her, she knew she had him.
“Okay, Crystal. Let’s give it a try.”
“Thank you so much,” she exclaimed, and hugged him tightly. “I love you!”
“I love you too, honey,” he said, then shot her a hopeful glance. “Can I ask you something?”
“Of course!”
“Will you stop dancing if I ask you to?”
She hesitated, because she knew he wasn’t in favor of this experiment, and what if she didn’t want to stop?
I’ll cross that bridge when I come to it.
“Yes, honey,” she promised.
He desperately wanted to believe her.
He couldn’t sleep. Sighing, Tim stared up at the ceiling a while longer, then glided a hand over Crystal’s hip. She looked beautiful and peaceful as she slept beside him. Sometimes he’d watch her, and that would soothe away his worries. But tonight it just wasn’t going to happen. He slid carefully out of bed, tugged on shorts and a t-shirt, and went out to the living room.
If he couldn’t sleep, he might as well study. It was the only way he’d be able to maintain his 4.0 GPA.
The trailer was so quiet that he should have been able to concentrate. But try as he might, his troubled mind kept returning to Crystal’s request.
I can’t believe she still wants to be a dancer. No…a stripper. Quit calling it dancing, he thought to himself. At least be honest with yourself about what she’ll be doing.
The topic hadn’t come up for a long while, and he’d hoped it would never resurface. Trust Rowdy to stir her up again! But he remembered Shane’s warning, and didn’t intend to confront the lanky biker. Not that it would help anyway. Crystal’s heart was set on it, and nothing was going to dissuade her.
Besides, Shane’s probably encouraging her, too. He’s just not the same anymore.
Wearily Tim shook his head. Working full-time and taking full-time classes was half-killing him, but he was doing it so they could have a better life. He envisioned becoming a successful CPA, maybe working for himself, and earning enough money that Crystal could stay home and raise their children. She could work if she wanted to—but not as a stripper. He just couldn’t handle that.
He prayed that it would be a short-term thing, a phase she’d outgrow, and someday they could look back on it and laugh.
Hand-in-hand with that thought came the memory of his last chat with Shane seven months ago. “I’m rejoining my motorcycle club,” he’d said. “It’s where I belong. I haven’t been able to find work since I got laid off at the plant, anyway.”
Tim had simply nodded. He hadn’t been sure what to say.
“I won’t be able to hang out anymore, Tim. It’s not a good idea anyway,” he’d shrugged, “because club life is seriously different from normal life.”
They’d shaken hands, and exchanged a few more words before Shane had walked back to his trailer. And that had been that.
When they’d first met Shane, he’d been easygoing and quick to laugh. Not anymore. Tim honestly didn’t recognize the person Shane had become. He wasn’t sure what to expect when they went out this Friday, and he hoped the old Shane would make an appearance. But he wasn’t holding his breath.
Finally he gave up on studying, lay down on the couch, and tried to shut his mind off so he could sleep.
“Fuck, Shane! Enough already!”
“So we’re agreed?” The dark-haired biker fixed Rowdy with an intent stare. “Crystal will gradually take over for Raven, and start making deliveries. Then we’ll expand the number of delivery girls as the demand for our product grows.”
Rowdy sighed loudly. “Yes, damn it. How many times do I have to agree?”
“Fuck, Rowdy. I’m just confirming everything,” Shane grumbled. “Our operation is ready to grow, we need to clarify things with Joe, and Raven needs to start working on Crystal.” He took a deep breath. “It’s not theoretical anymore, dude. We’re putting shit together, and it needs to work. It needs to work perfectly, because I’m not going back to fucking prison.”
“I get it, Shane,” Rowdy assured him, and finally sat up. He’d been laying back on the couch in the Blades’ clubhouse conference room. “Relax. Joe will be on board, I guarantee it. I’ve spoken to him a few times in the past, and as long as we pay him, he’ll do anything we need. No questions asked.”
He headed over to the refrigerator, pulled out a beer, twisted the cap off, and then took a long pull. “Raven is definitely ready to stop making deliveries,” he said after he’d finished drinking. “You know she’ll help put the hook in Crystal, so that’s not an issue. She is seriously pissed that Crystal got to fuck you, though, and she can’t stand Crystal now. I never saw it before, but she’s got a serious mean streak in her. I mean she really hates her!”
Then he laughed, and shook his head in disbelief. “Fuckin’ Crystal can’t wait to start stripping. Bitch is a freak, dude. Friday can’t come fast enough!”
Shane grinned. “No kidding. I’ve never met a woman who was so fucking anxious to become a stripper. She can’t wait to take her clothes off on stage.”
“Damn straight. I wish more women were like her,” Rowdy chuckled. He walked back over to the couch, and sat down. “You remember that night in your trailer, after you saved her from that big fuckin’ redneck?”
“Yeah, sure.”
“She loved smoking pot. Did you see her face? She sucked on that joint like it was the best thing she’d ever tasted. It was obvious she wanted more, but her lame-ass husband got in the way.” He leaned forward. “Shane, we should start her on Meth right away. She’ll love that shit, and it will hook her quick. You know it will.”
Shane slowly nodded. “I’ve thought about that, Rowdy. Believe me, I’ve given it some thought…but I think it’s too soon. Crystal isn’t even stripping yet. Let’s get her settled in, and then we’ll have Raven put the hook in her.”
“Why wait?”
“Because she’s married,” he retorted. “Her husband will be watching her like a hawk at first, and he’ll notice if she’s on Meth. It’s a risk we don’t need to take, especially when Raven will continue making deliveries for us. We have time to work on Crystal.
“I don’t want to rush things, Rowdy,” he insisted. “There’s too much at stake. If we lose her, then we’d have to use one of the club’s groupies. Bad idea.”
“You’re the boss,” Rowdy shrugged. “But it should be pretty easy to recruit other strippers to make deliveries for us.”
Shane stared at the ceiling for a moment, then reined in his impatience. “The problem isn’t finding girls to deliver drugs. That’s pretty simple. We offer them money and Meth, and they’ll be happy to make deliveries. That’s not the challenge.”
“What is the challenge, then, smart guy?”
He gave Rowdy the finger before responding, “The challenge is what the hell we do with them when they’re too fucking addicted to be reliable. It’s going to happen. You and I both know it. At some point, our mules are going to be too strung out on Meth to make deliveries.” His eyes grew serious. “We can’t just let them go.”
“I can take care of any security issues,” Rowdy said softly. “It’s my job, Shane.”
“We’re not getting into the murder business, Rowdy.” Shane’s voice was final. “You take care of threats to the club that come from the outside. I’m damn sure Lobo doesn’t want you taking care of delivery girls. That’s way too close to club operations, and we don’t want cops sniffing around our Meth operations.”
“Okay, fine,” Rowdy replied, then raised his hands in frustration. “Then what the fuck do we do with them?”
“I’m not sure, but let’s give it some serious thought, all right?” He looked over at his friend. “Aside from Crystal, we need to make sure we pick delivery girls with no connections. No family. No kids. Ideally no close friends. We need isolated, vulnerable, and preferably poor women as delivery girls. We’ll catch their interest with money, and then use Meth to control them.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Rowdy grinned at him. “It’s good to have you back, man.”
“It’s good to be back. I’m not cut out to be a civilian.”
“I had my doubts there for a while,” Rowdy admitted, and eyed Shane carefully. “You looked awful comfortable hanging around with Tim and Crystal.”
“I was, for a while. Tim and I spent a lot of time together,” he admitted, then grinned. “I spent more time with Crystal.”
That made Rowdy burst out laughing. “I still can’t believe that whole situation. I know Crystal loved getting fucked, but the way you make it sound, Tim liked watching his wife get fucked even more.”
“Yeah, man. It was great,” Shane chuckled, shaking his head. “Crystal is awesome in bed. Just like you said, she’s a freak, and she loved being watched. She loves to perform. I think that’s why she wants to be a stripper. She’s a natural exhibitionist.”
“What the fuck is her husband, then? That dude’s a closet freak.”
“Tim’s a voyeur, I guess. Hell, I’m not sure,” Shane admitted. “He fuckin’ loves Crystal. Holy shit, I’ve never seen a guy so happy to be married to someone. Crystal loves him, too, she told me that several times…but she wants more than suburbia. She’s definitely a party girl.”
“You think Tim knew that you and Crystal fucked when he wasn’t there?” Rowdy asked. “Does he know Crystal called you most of the time, and asked if she could come over?”
“No.” He was certain of that. “She wouldn’t say anything to Tim, and neither would I. It was just physical, anyway. She’s happy with Tim, and I’m not looking for an old lady.
“Besides, towards the end, Tim wasn’t getting as much out of it. I honestly think he was ready to break it off. It was fun while it lasted,” he shrugged. “With and without him.”
“Shit! If it’s just physical, then I’m perfect for her,” Rowdy said emphatically, completely ignoring Shane’s last sentence. “I need to hook up with her. I’m not letting her husband watch, though. Fuck that shit! He can wait outside the door or something.”
Shane cracked up. “Whatever, dude. Just let her get settled in as a stripper, and making deliveries for us. That’s our priority. Once we’ve got the hook in her, and she’s making steady deliveries, she’s all yours. I’m done.”
Rowdy eyed him thoughtfully. “Done, huh? Raven will be really happy. Y’know she’s been wanting you to come see her.”
Shane’s smile slowly disappeared. “Yeah. I know. The problem is her husband. We shared a prison cell for almost six months. I know him pretty damn well, and it’s hard to think about fucking his wife while he’s in prison.”
“Buddy, Raven’s husband is in jail for another twenty years or so,” Rowdy said gently. “You shouldn’t worry about his feelings or whatever. Raven shouldn’t be alone, not when the two of you are so good together.”
“That was a long time ago, Rowdy.”
“It wasn’t that long ago, and anyone can see that you two still have feelings for each other,” he replied, then shrugged. “It’s a shame that you two aren’t together. That’s all I’m saying.”
Shane flipped a bottle cap at him. “Look at you! Mr. Sensitive.”
“Fuck you,” he retorted, then offered Shane a rare, sincere smile. “I’d just like to see my best friend happy. That’s all. Raven makes you happy, Shane. You should do something about it.”
Shane tilted his bottle up, and finished it. “You’re probably right,” he allowed. “I’ll give it some thought.”
“You do that, buddy. In the meantime, I’m going to be giving Crystal some thought…like how the fuck do I get that chick naked?”
Laughter echoed through the conference room. Then Shane looked over at Rowdy with a serious expression. “Rowdy, I want to tell you something as a friend. As a brother.”
“Holy shit.” Rowdy sat up straighter. “You’re getting serious on me. What the fuck?”
“Just listen, Rowdy. Just hear what I’m about to tell you.”
“I’m listening, Oh Wise One!”
Shane waited a minute for the wise-ass grin to leave Rowdy’s face. It finally dawned on him that his best friend was truly serious.
“You need to stop living your life between your legs,” Shane said quietly. “I’m serious, man. I get that you like women. Hell, we all do. It’s just that moving from pussy to pussy, always on the prowl, is going to catch up with you sooner or later.”
“Dude, I always wear condoms.”
“I’m not talking about diseases, you dumbass!” Shane snapped. “Sooner or later, you’re going to fuck the wrong woman, and she’s going to be a nutcase or something. Or she’ll be married. Or she’ll be related to someone who’s connected. Or she’ll be underage,” he said intently. “You hear what I’m saying? Slow the fuck down. Pick one or two, and stick with them. I’m not saying you need to find an old lady…but Rowdy, you need to slow down with the women.”
Rowdy’s face was uncharacteristically serious, and Shane knew that his message had sunk in. He tilted his beer and finished it, then threw it into the trash can, and looked over at Shane. “You know my dad’s dead, right?” he murmured.
“Yeah.”
“He died in his early fifties. My granddad, he died at the same age. My great-grandfather, same thing,” Rowdy said, and exhaled slowly. “My family has a history of early-onset Alzheimer’s disease. The chances of me seeing sixty are next to zero.” He looked out the window for several minutes before meeting Shane’s eyes again. His face was pale, haunted, and Shane realized he was genuinely scared. “You ever seen someone die of Alzheimer’s?”
“No,” Shane softly replied.
“They don’t actually die of Alzheimer’s, that’s the bitch of the thing. See, Alzheimer’s is a thief. It slowly but surely takes everything from them. First it’s their memory, and it’s just little things, like they can’t find their keys or they can’t remember the name of something. A person laughs it off, and moves on with their life. Then one day they can’t remember their way home. They can’t remember the conversation they had just a few hours earlier.” Rowdy’s head dropped, and his voice shook as bitter, hateful memories circled in his head. “They can’t remember their son’s baseball games, or the fact that he doesn’t have a ride home from the baseball park.”
“I’m sorry, Rowdy.” Shane wasn’t sure what else to say.
“Then they can’t remember family members,” he continued tightly, and wiped his eyes. “Ever sat in front of your dad, the man you love and idolize more than anything in the world, and he doesn’t know who you are? Doesn’t remember your name or your face. Doesn’t remember the good times you had, or the fact that he taught you everything, including how to ride a fucking motorcycle?”
His voice hitched several times, and he had to clear his throat before he could continue. When he was finally able to form words again, tears were streaming down his face.
“It fucking hurts, Shane, and you’re powerless to do anything about it. Alzheimer’s doesn’t stop there, though, as if that wasn’t bad enough. It steals their ability to function as a person, and they end up in a fetal position, completely withdrawn from the world. Whoever they were is gone, stolen by the disease. Their personality, their pride, their soul, it’s all slowly stolen from them. Finally some random infection comes along and kills them.”
“I’m sorry, man,” Shane quietly repeated.
“Whatever. Thanks, man.” Rowdy wiped his eyes again. “It’s like Alzheimer’s doesn’t even have the guts to kill them. It’s the worst kind of thief. It steals everything of value from someone, and then leaves something else to put them out of their misery.”
He walked over to the bar, filled a shot glass with tequila, and downed it. Then he downed a second one. “I don’t want to see fifty,” he muttered, leaning against the bar. “I can’t. I’m not dying from Alzheimer’s. I don’t care if I have to ride off a cliff, that fucker isn’t going to steal anything from me.”
He poured a third shot and downed it, then looked into the mirror behind the bar, and met Shane’s eyes in the reflection. “I know where I’m going after I die, Shane, and I’m okay with it. God wouldn’t want me anyway, because I would seriously kill that motherfucker!”
Sobered, Shane looked down at his beer for a moment. “Yeah. I guess I’d feel the same,” he finally murmured.
When Rowdy returned to the couch, he brought the bottle with him, and chugged directly from it. “You’re my brother, Shane, and I appreciate the fact that you give a shit about me. Really, I do. But I’m going to live every day however the fuck I want, and I don’t care if it kills me in the end,” he said firmly. “It’s definitely better than what’s already waiting for me. Any death is better than an Alzheimer’s death.”
Shane wasn’t sure if the tequila was helping, or if Rowdy’s normal smart-ass personality was breaking through again…but he was relieved when the younger biker flashed him a wolfish grin. “Besides, tigers don’t change their stripes. I couldn’t stop chasing pussy even if I wanted to, and I definitely don’t want to stop when there are chicks out there like Crystal.”
Chuckling, Shane rolled his eyes, and grabbed a shot glass of his own. Rowdy filled it to the brim, then raised his bottle in a toast. “Here’s to chasing pussy, and living each day however the fuck you want!”
“Fuckin’ A!”
“Fuckin’ A!”
Shane slammed his shot glass down. “Now let’s go chase some pussy!”
“Finally! Let’s get the fuck out of here already!”