Bare

Chapter Eleven- Grand Re Opening

Making her way into the renovated dressing rooms, Gwen found she had her own area, specific with her name on the door-presented on a silver plaque with a floral border. However, the rooms were not  fully confidential, as they appeared more as dressing rooms from size and amount of open space as opposed to a bedroom or singular area. Yet, each one held a desk with makeup set in an organized placement, a sewing stand that gave the silhouette of each woman with the item of clothing they would be expected to wear that night, and a small chair not quite as long as a couch, but a bit longer than a normal chair. 

The words of ownership spoken to Gwen had been laced with threats of incarceration as he held enough knowledge of her drug addiction to lock her away for a long time. There was something about prison that terrified her-maybe it was the many stories she heard of people being taken advantage of behind bars or the crooked system itself. Either way, her imagination had only made things worse-as she was at Deacon's mercy. Not wanting to push this, she began to place the lingerie item set before her until hearing Owen's voice echoing in the hallway. Partially relieved, Gwen moved out towards him-only for him to be distracted from her attire.

"Owen?!" She summoned for his attention as he slowly lifted his gaze to hers, trying to keep the image of her clear in his mind before looking to her with a smirk. "Yeah, suga?" His accent appeared to leave off precious variables to seemingly unfinished words.

"Do you think you can get me a line for tonight?"

"No can do, I gotta keep myself clean."

She nearly fell over at the thought. Although handsome and borderline smart, Owen was the heaviest hitter she knew in regards to drugs, alcohol, and anything else in the risque underbelly of what had been prohibited by law. 

"You just cut it off, cold turkey?" 

He nodded, proud of himself, as she became annoyed. The girls she once took comfort in knowing she could go to then for a hit when she was desperate appeared to take the 'higher road' as well. They did not have the dark bags under their eyes or the constant nose bleeds from the sleepless nights suffering from withdrawals or the interior of their nasal cavities having taken the brunt if the drug's effect. Instead of inspiring her, as it may have done for others in her position, it angered her. It seemed as though Deacon managed to manipulate each girl-and Owen, beneath his employ, to be able to keep a clean staff and respectable establishment. But as she caught Deacon look to her with hidden anxiety forced silent behind a clenched jaw, she knew he had been jealous-and so she moved to the bar to flirt and only make him more angry. She wanted him to feel the annoyance that grew from his company from trying to seem prim and proper. Aside from that, she loved the unnamed game that seemed to be constantly at play since they had met. 

Batting her lashes as a new bartender who seemed incredibly nervous to be present, gave the perfect reaction from Deacon that she desired. The bartender, whose name she never got, but inexperience had been clear, was ordered away per Deacon's request before he then stood abreast Gwen at the bar. 

"We are opening in less than an hour, you have no reason to be at the bar."

"Perhaps I needed something to give me some energy." She spoke while motioning to the banana sitting in a basket behind the counter. She leaned over to get it as his eyes outlined every inch of her body. He had begun to memorize each beauty mark on her skin as he had seen more of her exposed than being clothed. As Gwen pulled back to face him, she peeled the banana, locking eye contact with him-before showing her ability to repress her impressive gag reflex. His pupils dilated in arousal as his lips came open as if going to speak or desperate for a breath. She continued to tease him by suckinf on the fruit until only the peel remained. 

"I should get to work." She spoke before tossing the shell of the banana into the trash and moved back towards the dressing rooms. Preparing her appearance for her "stage piece", she put on her sexy female sailor attire complete with a cute nautical hat set within thick curls and locked in place by seemingly thousands of bobby pins. The attire itself had been comprised of a 1950s-styled swim suit made up of a blue and white striped pattern that had been divided by a top and bottom to reveal a section of her stomach. But as she went to longer backstage to begin her introduction to the moment in the spotlight, she found Yasmine to be called forward first. And to make matters worse, Deacon announced her to the crowd as his 'diamond in the rough'-speaking her up, despite the fact she was inexperienced. 

While Deacon was fawning over the new girl, Gwen wanted nothing more than to get even, and so she sought out that bartender from earlier. She found him in the back room, carrying a few bottles of champagne out for serving until they smashed onto the ground from being startled by her. 

"I'm sorry…" he moved down to try and use his apron to dab up the mess before his gaze rose up the extent of her legs. There was something perfect in her smooth stems that drew his attention until it built to her own gaze. 

Meanwhile, Deacon charmed the crowd as Yasmine did a choreographed number of Marilyn Monroe's 'Kiss'. It was truly perfect from every second of lip synching to the outfit chose by the couture team that sat unnamed but highly rewarded with lengthy paychecks. But as Deacon had spoken Gwen's name, he found the stage to remain bare. Each moment he waited for her, his expression drew less and less committed to remaining charming. He excused himself from the crowd and to the back of the club to seek her out-finding her in a hot and heavy makeout session with the bartender. 

"You...you're fired…" he pointed to the bartender who was now trying to conceal an erection from behind his hands and blush stained apron from the strawberry champagne. "You, get your ass out there before I have you escort him out." Although she needed the job to survive off the streets, she was annoyed while being undermined by him. This showed in the way she wasn't afraid to speak to him as they were both unaware of the fact that the bartender had indeed, left them alone. 

"It seems to me as though Yasmine is your shining star." She spoke in a snotty attitude before moving closer to him, hands on her hips. 

"I don't pay you for your opinion...or you would be in my shoes...now entertain that crowd before I have to give them refunds for an act that didn't perform."

She glared before moving towards the stage until he spoke once more, forcing her to pause and turn for a moment.

"You best make them stand on their feet by the time they are done, or you can be looking for another job in the morning." He spoke in a threatening tone as she glared in his direction before giving him the middle finger in her mind, and finally moving to the stage. The beginning of Christina Aguilera's "Candyman" began to play as she made her first movements to the lyrics-hitting each note perfectly and bobbing her hips in perfect synchronicity to the beat until coming to the chorus. She watched as she held the attention of the audience, many pleased with the regular dancer they had grown familiar with to remain in a club renovated since its doors closed a few weeks prior. Others had hounded her for having remained clothed. 

Security stood close by in case things were to raise out of hand, but it seemed as though this wouldn't be the case as her act wouldn't even be finished. By the time the whispered portion of "sweet, sugar, candy man" could be played and synced with Gwen's lips, her fingers moved to the portion of her suit that tied between her breasts. Able to realize what was happening before the crowd, Deacon went to cut the show, but was too late from the cheering crowd, as her breasts became free for all eyes to see. The other girls back stage had their jaws dropping to the floor as Deacon looked to her with anger. She had never seen anger on a person like this before, as she left him no choice…