Keep Me Close

Nalley P.O.V.  (Warning: descriptions of S/A) The morning air was cold as I exited the Smoke Room. It was the gentleman’s club that I worked at where the men were anything but gentle. It was the kind of club where wealthy men came to smoke expensive cigars, drink top-shelf liquor, and give money to the beautiful women who lavished them with dances and whispers of sweet nothings. Mr. Oliver, the club owner, knew how to take care of his workers. The men were allowed to look, but not touch. However, there was the occasional slimeball that would ignore the rule and threaten the girls if they ever tried to run their mouth to Mr. Oliver. It’s best to know when someone is bluffing, especially if they have the means to destroy your reputation and your way of living. Fortunately for me, Mr. Oliver caught one of my clients breaking that exact rule. Giovanni Santos. He is one of the most notorious capos from the DeLuca crime family. He is in control of the lower ranks, wise guys, and they cater to his every whim. Giovanni Santos doesn’t have to get his hands dirty when he has numerous men willing to do it for him to stay in his good graces. I wouldn’t even try to deny any rumors heard about him since he is known to be like a ticking time bomb. I’ve had the pleasure of having him as my regular and he has taken every chance to make our interactions a living hell. However, Mr. Oliver has started keeping a close eye on Mr. Santos this past week ever since I started making myself scarce when Mr.Santos stopped by. Tonight Mr. Oliver finally caught him in the act when Giovanni cornered me and gave me no choice but to give in to his demands. He dragged me to a seat in the back of the club where I was forced to give him a lapdance. Five minutes into the dance when I had turned my back to him, I felt his slimy hand slowly crawl up my spine and unclasp my top. I almost froze completely until I remembered the consequences I would face if I stopped. Instead, I made sure one of my hands discreetly kept the piece of clothing in place. Before he had the chance to remove my hand and the top, Mr. Oliver appeared with one of the security guards, Danny. Mr. Santos was escorted out of the building and had his membership revoked. When Mr.Oliver returned he instructed me to pack my bag and go home for the night. I suppose he noticed how shaken up I was from the altercation. It’s how I ended up walking to my apartment in the cold. Thankfully I changed out of the skimpy outfit and into a pair of light gray sweatpants, a white long-sleeved shirt, a pair of simple running shoes, and a thick trench coat. I lived two blocks away so I didn’t mind walking the distance in the cold October night. It’s around three in the morning which means that it’s still dark outside and the streets are fairly quiet. However, that silence was interrupted by the sounds of footsteps walking closely behind me. I didn't want to turn around for fear of losing my footing and falling, so I decided to increase my pace. As I did this, I noticed how the sound seemed to increase at a faster pace. Ultimately this caused me to break out into a full-on sprint. I never was a great runner, but I knew that I had to drop my bag to do two things: lighten my load and create an obstacle for whoever was following me. I also knew that I needed to get my keys out of my bag while running at the same time so I could enter my apartment. Because I was distracted, I ran into something so hard that I almost thought it was a wall. If only it weren’t for the pair of hands that tightly gripped my arms, cementing me in place. “Where do you think you’re going?” I could physically feel my blood run cold at the sound of that voice. It could have only belonged to none other than Giovanni Santos. It took me a second to muster up the courage to look him in the face and when I did, I was greeted with a look of pure rage. If looks could kill I would have been well beyond six feet under by now. The brute of a man looked like he wanted to shoot me right where I stood. I could feel his grip tightening on my arms and I couldn’t help but grimace from the pain it was causing me. “I know you talked to Oliver.” He said in a tone that sent a chill down my spine. “I-I swear I d-didn’t tell him anything.” I tried to keep my voice from trembling, but I failed miserably. Before I could even react, I felt his hand connect with my cheek. If it weren’t for his other hand maintaining its deadly grip on my arm and my frozen body, I would have crumbled to the hard cemented ground. “Don’t lie to me you b***h! You didn’t think I would notice Oliver hovering around me all week? How stupid do you think I am?!” I didn’t respond or try to defend myself because I knew he wouldn’t see it any other way. I just kept silent and my eyes downcast so as not to feel the heat of his fury. “ Now I’m going to get what I paid you for,” he said as he grabbed a fistful of my hair and began dragging me to a nearby ally. “Ricky, keep a look out while I finish some business.” During the chaos, I completely forgot that there was someone behind me. I guess that someone must be one of Giovanni’s soldiers. Panic finally set in as I realized what he was suggesting. He had paid me five hundred for the dance and an extra three hundred to keep me quiet. Now that he had been caught and his membership taken away, he wanted to ensure his money was well spent. I knew I had to think quickly and when I finally got my frozen limbs to work, I began flailing my arms in every direction to get him to let go or readjust his grip. Instead, my backside made contact with a brick wall so hard that I could feel the air being knocked out of me. “You should have kept quiet when you had the chance princess,” Giovanni gritted through his teeth. I could feel one of his hands grip my throat and tighten just enough for me to breathe, but keep it as a reminder of the danger I was in. I looked at his face and saw that the anger had transformed into lust as he began to lean down and kiss my neck. “Stop!” I yelled, but it fell on deaf ears. I tried pushing, but it was like pushing an immovable boulder. Then I could feel his grip on my neck move down and started unbuttoning my coat and pressing his body against mine to keep me in place. Once he unbuttoned my coat, he grabbed one of my arms in one hand and held it above my head while the other started to drift toward my waistband. I knew I had to do something so I began to scream at the top of my lungs. He slapped my face again and this time it caused my lip to split open. “Shut the f**k up!” he said as his hand returned to my waistband. I could feel him slip in my underwear and at that point, I began to close my eyes and disconnect myself from the situation. I didn’t register that I was crying until the salty taste hit my lips. This is it...