“Alright, ladies. Let’s get ready to make some cash then.” I smile and head over to my makeup station as the other girls head over to the floor.

I’ve been hiding in the back for the last twenty minutes. I’m not really sure why, but my game seems to be a bit off tonight. I keep telling myself it has nothing to do with Hemy. The truth is, I’m not very convinced. I could never convince myself of anything when it came to him. I went to sleep with him on my mind and woke up with him on my mind. I guess not much has changed over the years.

“Shit. Stop thinking, Onyx.” I rub my hands over my face and take a deep breath. “He’ll only hurt you again. Don’t do this to yourself. You finally got rid of that pathetic little girl that was nothing but a doormat for him.”

I curse to myself when I feel a hand grip my shoulder. I have no idea who it is or how much of my rambling they have heard, but I suddenly feel really nervous. I’m not ready to explain Hemy to anyone. I’m not sure I’ll ever be.

“What’s going on, Onyx?” Jade takes a seat at the makeup table next to mine and starts digging through her makeup bag. “Something’s been bothering you since last night. You can talk to me . . .”

“I’m fine.” I force a smile and look at myself in the mirror. My blonde curls are wild tonight and my makeup is a little too dark on the eyes. I look a lot different than I did four years ago. I can’t even imagine what Hemy must have thought when he saw me at the party last night. He seemed a little shocked, but couldn’t seem to keep his eyes off of me. It made my heart race, making it hard for me to think straight.

I let out a little laugh and stand up, fixing my black lingerie. It’s barely covering anything, yet it makes me feel more confident and alive than I have felt in years. “You know I just get a little stressed on free nights. I worry about you girls roaming around where I can’t see you all. That’s all.”

Jade gives me a look as if she wants to say something. She almost looks nervous. She opens her mouth a few times and then shakes it off before starting in on her makeup. “Yeah. I know,” she says softly. “We do fine though. You taught us all well. Stop worrying so much.”

I stand here for a few seconds before I realize that Lily isn’t here yet, or that I’ve seen. The girls usually show up together since they’re roommates. “Where’s Lily?”

Jade nervously clears her throat while walking over to the closet to grab her outfit. “She’s here. She’ll be back in a minute. She’s, ah . . . showing someone around.”

“Alright,” I say softly. She’s definitely acting a bit strange right now and I’m not so sure that I like it. “I’ll see you out there.”

“Sounds good. See you in a few.”

After walking through the door, it takes my eyes a couple minutes to adjust to the dim lighting. The music is playing loud and the room is filled with a light fog so I can barely make out Ash and the other girls dancing at tables for the overly eager dirtballs.

I barely get ten feet into the room before I am called over to a table. Although I’m still feeling a bit off, I shake it off and walk over with a seductive smile.

“Hey, boys,” I say sweetly.

“Mmm . . . very nice.” One of the three men holds up a handful of cash as I lean over and grab his tie, winding it up in my hand. I hear him let out a little moan, so I wrap it tighter and pull myself to him, straddling his chair.

“So you like it rough, big boy?” I yank his hair back and starting moving my hips to the music, grinding myself against his erection.

He bites his bottom lip and gets ready to place his hand on my ass, but I yank his hair as hard as I can, causing him to growl. “Damn, you’re rough, baby,” he says with a hint of laughter. “I would love to see the things you do in bed.”

“That won’t be happening,” a deep, rough voice growls behind me.

My heart instantly drops to my stomach as soon as the words leave his lips. It doesn’t take me having to look behind me to know who it is. I’ve heard that voice a million times before and I’ll never forget it. The only difference is, now it has a deeper edge to it.

“Excuse me,” the guy below me bites out. He lets out a sarcastic laugh and places a possessive arm around my waist. “She’s in my lap. Wait your turn. If it ever comes.”

With my left hand, I choke him with his tie while yanking his head back with my right. “Don’t ever touch me again.”

The guy starts choking and I look back at Hemy to see his fists balled at his sides. I don’t need him to protect me. He has a history of fighting and that’s the last thing that I need him doing right now. He would kill this guy. This douchebag is nowhere even close to Hemy’s huge build.

“Don’t even think about it, Hemy.” I push away from the guy and he starts fighting for air and pulling at his tie. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Crazy, bitch,” the guy chokes out through breaths.

Hemy looks down at the guy with a hard look, so I place my hand across his chest and push him away.

He takes in a deep breath and exhales, his jaw steeled. I can tell he’s fighting really hard right now to keep his control. “I could ask you the same,” he growls. “This place isn’t you.”

“Ha!” I walk away from him, but he keeps following at my heels. “Like you have room to talk. You’re a male stripper. Do I need to remind you of that?”

He grabs my arm to stop me from walking. “Yeah, and I’m a piece of shit. That is the difference.” He turns me around to face him and backs me up against the wall with his arms and body blocking me in. “You are too good for a place like this. What the hell, Onyx? You could get hurt here. I would fucking kill someone for hurting you. Do you get that?”

I find an empty room in the back and push him into it. Then I turn away and fight to calm my breathing.

Neither of us speak for a few minutes.

“What are you doing here, Hemy? How did you . . .” I stop as I put the pieces together. “Damn you, Jade,” I whisper.

I feel the warmth of Hemy’s body as he steps up behind me. A part of me wants to lean into him, but the rational part of me moves away. “I can’t stop thinking about you, Onyx. You’ve been on my mind every day for ten years.” He wraps an arm around my waist and presses his body against mine. It feels good. So damn good. “Don’t tell me I haven’t been on yours,” he whispers, leaning into my ear. “Tell me I’ve been on your mind.” He pushes my hair behind my ear before brushing his lip piercing up my neck. “Say it.”