Chapter 1: Introduction
The club was dark as sin and thick with heat, the humid August air unforgiving against her bare skin. Luna sashayed across the stage beneath the maddening glow of purple and blue lights, her pulse booming loud enough for her to hear even over the throbbing bass of the music. The sticky air made her skin glisten with sweat, and she arched her back as the bills rained down. They were a colorful, waging storm, a chaotic torrent of fives, tens, but never enough ones.
She watched through hooded eyes as the wads of cash flittered around her like leaves in the wind. The clamoring cheers and catcalls of the audience painted a raucous symphony in her ears, but Luna felt disconnected. She had heard it all before. The dance, the routine, it was nothing more than background noise.
She trailed her fingers through the air, curling them as if to caress the shadowy giants in the front row.
Tonight, she thought, would be different. That spontaneous thought unfurled in her mind as swift and sudden as a lightning bolt in the night, a shocking surge of excitement that made her heart still with anticipation. She wanted to feel alive, to feel something raw and primal and untouchable. She wanted to reclaim herself. And tonight, she was going to let the crowd take control, to let go of her inhibitions and indulge in the primal desires that had long been buried beneath layers of shame and hesitation.
She would let them fuck her on stage, with the neon lights dancing upon her sweat-slicked body.
Luna met eyes with her best friend, Anika, who stood huddled at the side of the stage. With a nod, she gave her silent acknowledgement. A smile crept across Anika's lips as she offered her support; she, too, longed to see Luna experience a moment of pure, unbridled freedom from the world that weighed so heavily on both of them.
Anika gestured for the stage manager to come closer, a man well-versed in the sordid affairs that took place within the dimly lit club.
"She's ready, Nico," Anika shouted, her voice barely audible over the thumping music. Nico's gaze drifted toward Luna, appraising her with a cool detachment. Luna watched him as he raised a hand in the air, flagging down a burly, tattooed bouncer.
Moments later, the bouncer escorted the audience to the stage, creating a swarm of hungry, rabid men who were anxious to get up-close and personal. Luna could barely contain the trembles of excitement running down her spine as Nico gave her a nod of approval.
As the first man approached, she opened her legs, baring her body to his touch. His hands were rough and eager, finding her hips as he lowered his mouth to her breasts. She gasped, her head falling back as he traced his tongue around her nipple.
The sensation sent a shudder through her, and she felt her heart racing in double time as the crowd cheered her on.
The man's grip tightened on her hips, pulling her closer as if attempting to fuse their bodies together. The pressure built between them, his erection grinding against her wetness through the thin fabric of her thong. Luna braced her hands against his shoulders, feeling the sinewy muscle cord beneath the drenched fabric of his shirt.