Читать книгу Confessions of a Lapdancer - Литагент HarperCollins USD, J. F. C. Harrison, Professor J. D. Scoffbowl - Страница 6

The celebration at Corney & Barrow proceeded in the usual fashion, with obscene amounts of champagne being bought and consumed and the boys becoming louder and more annoying with every bottle.

I managed to keep pace with them by sipping water each time I took a mouthful of fizz so I didn’t get totally pissed. At least they couldn’t accuse me of being a lightweight.

As the barman called last orders, Luke gathered the guys around him and called for silence.

‘So, Brothers – the fun has only just begun!’ he slurred. ‘You’re all coming with me to a sexy little place I know called the Pearl, where we’ll get down to the serious business of celebrating.’

‘What’s the Pearl?’ I asked Tania, thinking it was some after-hours drinking den.

‘Oh, it’s a lap-dancing club,’ she replied, casually.

‘Bloody typical,’ I said. ‘He’s probably just trying to piss me off.’

Tania looked at me blankly and said, ‘Oh, right. Well, actually it was my idea, not Luke’s.’

Before I had a chance to find out how the hell Tania knew about a lap-dancing club, Luke had come over to pat her on the behind.

‘Coming then, sweetheart?’ he said to Tania, but looking directly at me. Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have been caught dead in a strip club. I hated those sorts of places. They were nothing but exploitation. But I couldn’t ignore the flagrant challenge in Luke’s eyes.

‘Oh no, Mr Cotterill, you’re not getting away with this,’ I said. ‘You’re not leaving me off the guest list.’

‘You’ll just spoil our fun, Geri Boy,’ he said.

‘I insist,’ I said.

‘Well, I guess my hot little babe here might need some company while I’m otherwise engaged,’ he continued. ‘But you’d better not spoil the party.’

Quite why Tania couldn’t see that Luke was using her as arm candy, I had no idea, but there was no point in me tackling her about it as she probably would’ve thought I was jealous. Far from it.

How the fuck could Daryll condone all of this? But perhaps it wasn’t a surprise. However urbane, he was a bit of an old lech himself. I felt he’d thrown me to the wolves by not preparing me for Luke’s relentless barrage of snide comments but then I had to remember what he’d told me when I joined Sloane Brothers: ‘If you want to play with the big boys, Geraldine, you have to beat them at their own game.’ Was Daryll checking to see if I was capable of that?

I followed Tania and Luke out of the bar to be greeted by a white stretch limo. Luke had hired it to ferry the Brothers to the club, which I found utterly laughable.

‘Want a ride in my pimp mobile?’ he asked.

‘I’ll make my own way, thanks, Luke,’ I laughed. ‘If I’d wanted to look like a chav on a stag night I would have worn Burberry and plenty of bling.’

And with that I hopped straight into a black cab, most satisfied that I’d got one over on the arrogant bastard right in front of his boss. If Daryll wanted me and Luke to be at each other’s throats, then he was getting just that.

By the time the Brothers’ stretch had pulled up outside the Pearl, my taxi had already dropped me off and I had made friends with the club’s two enormous doormen.

I watched in disgust as Luke fell out of the limo clutching a half-empty champagne glass and staggered towards the entrance to the Pearl dragging Tania behind him like a blow-up doll.

The two bouncers on the door blocked his path, while he stood waving a bunch of crumpled tenners in their faces.

I winked to let them know this was the party of pissed-up City boys I had the misfortune to be with, and handed one a crisp £50 note. And with that we were in.

‘As you say, Luke, I always wear the trousers so put your money away,’ I said. ‘No need to bribe security. Use it to buy me some very expensive cocktails.’

‘What about some very expensive cock, Miss Carson?’ he shot back. A comment he would never have dared make sober or in the office. ‘Although mine’s out of your price range.’

Tania stood next to him toying nervously with her long, red hair.

‘Hilarious,’ I replied, moving through the club’s entrance. ‘Just get inside, I can’t wait to see an animal in its natural habitat.’

The remainder of the investment team spilled out on to the pavement slightly the worse for wear. Even Daryll looked less dapper than usual, the handkerchief that matched his shirt sitting slightly askew in his jacket pocket.

Then Ryan Buxton came bounding towards me like an overgrown puppy, all ruddy cheeks and rugger-bugger enthusiasm.

‘So, Geri, are you up for this?’ Ryan asked.

‘I’m not missing this one for the world,’ I told him, avoiding the arm he was trying to put around me.

‘I thought you hated places like this, though. You always tell me how sexist they are.’

‘I’m not a big fan, no,’ I told him, ‘but I don’t get to see the Brothers at play too often and I was as much a part of pulling off this merger as anyone else.’

‘You’re not wrong there, darling,’ he said, nuzzling my neck while no one else was looking. ‘Come in and join the fun, then.’

The interior of the club was surprisingly plush if clichéd in its style, with padded red and black leather booths, mirrored walls and mirror balls, with four or five dancing poles arranged on different levels, some with tables around them.

A petite brunette with enhanced breasts jiggling in her bikini brushed past me on her way to the stage and I flinched. What the hell was I doing in a lap-dancing club?

The things I did to advance my career …

Our bonuses were being announced the next day and my colleagues were discussing figures in voices loud enough for everyone to hear how loaded they were and how much more loaded they expected to be within twenty-four hours.

‘How pathetic,’ I said to Tania, who had momentarily been abandoned. ‘It’s all big cars, big bonuses and big dicks to them – except they probably have tiddlers!’

Tania laughed politely.

‘Oh, I’m sure there’s more to them than that, Geri. They must have some talent, after all.’

‘I wouldn’t bank on it, Tania,’ I said. ‘You haven’t been my PA long enough to work that out yet.’

Tanya turned to smile at her man and I glimpsed a steeliness in her eyes.

Daryll beckoned us to join the Brothers at their large banquette.

Not long after we arrived, one of the club’s dancers, a pretty girl with long, dark hair and olive skin who was dressed in a red spangled bra top and thong, approached our table and Luke beckoned her to one side.

‘What’s he up to?’ I whispered in Tania’s ear.

‘Oh, he’s just arranging to have a private dance.’

‘Jesus, how can you sit by and let him do that? Do you have no self-respect?’

‘It’s not about that, Geri …’

I didn’t want to hear any more.

‘Excuse me, Daryll,’ I announced. ‘I can’t sit here and watch this. I’m going to the bar.’

He nodded but Luke jumped up.

‘What, you not man enough to hang around, Geri Boy? I knew you wouldn’t last.’

Words seemed pointless so I gave him the finger and stalked off.

I went to sit on a stool at the bar and ordered a vodka and tonic. I picked out the wedge of lemon when it arrived and crushed it hard in my fist till the juice ran down my arm, wishing it was Luke’s smug face.

‘What did that lemon do to deserve that?’ said the barman, offering me a napkin.

‘Oh, nothing – I was just imagining it was someone’s head,’ I explained.

‘Wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of you then, madam,’ he grinned.

‘I’m not that scary,’ I said. ‘Except when provoked by an idiot who thinks it’s funny to call me a boy just because I wear trousers.’

‘Take no notice. You look real smart to me.’

‘Thanks … But I do feel a bit buttoned-up here and I’m supposed to be celebrating. Look at them,’ I said, pointing to the Brothers. ‘Allegedly the cream of investment banking. They didn’t want me here being a killjoy but a strip joint is not exactly my idea of a fun night out.’

‘Ah, we get a lot of City boys in here letting off steam,’ he said. ‘They’re pretty harmless and they empty their wallets so we love ’em.’

‘You try working with them, though. I wish I’d stayed in New York now.’

‘Ah, I love the Big Apple,’ he said. ‘Worked the cocktail bars. How long were you there?’

‘Six weeks, on secondment. Got back to London to find my boss had employed a Playboy bunny as my PA and she was going out with my nemesis.’

‘Moral of story: don’t turn your back for a minute. Want another vodka?’

‘OK, go on,’ I said, turning to check what the Brothers were up to. ‘Can I ask you something?’

‘Sure,’ he said. ‘Go ahead.’

‘Do you think it’s possible for a woman to be sexy if she never wears a skirt?’

‘I love a good bottom in tight jeans. But, well, nothing like a good pair of legs.’

‘I thought you might say that.’ My knees haven’t seen the light of day outside my bedroom since school sports day … I thought to myself.

But he’d already disappeared off to the other end of the bar to serve a rather irritated-looking little man and one of the dancers had mounted the adjacent podium to start her show. As I watched her spin and move expertly up and down the pole, I realised it was just as much about technique as sex appeal. These girls had to be seriously fit to do this stuff.

Then I glimpsed a tipsy but animated Tania chatting to a good-looking, dark-haired guy at the other end of the bar. As soon as she realised I’d seen her, she moved away and came up to join me.

‘You don’t look too happy,’ she said, as if I was her best mate rather than her boss. I didn’t know whether she was confident, over-friendly or just cocky.

‘I just can’t believe why anyone would want to spend any time in a place like this. It’s for blokes too ugly or too dim to get a shag elsewhere. I don’t think women should encourage it.’

‘Lighten up,’ said Tania. ‘There’s nothing wrong with using what God gave you.’ She leant forward and gave a conspiratorial smile. ‘I’ll tell you something funny, Geri. I’m sure one of the reasons I got this job was because of my legs! I saw the way the personnel manager was looking at me so I played up to it. It’s so easy to manipulate some guys.’

I stared at her in disbelief. ‘Tania, why are you telling me this? I had to work damn hard to get where I am and to earn respect in this team and you come along and tell me I could have got there quicker by wearing a short skirt?’

‘No, that’s not what I meant …’

‘Tania, please, just leave me alone.’

I left her at the bar and took refuge in the ladies’ loo. Just like the women in the club, she flaunted herself effortlessly and that just wasn’t my style. Tania Peck was a man’s woman. I suppose my style could be summed up as look but don’t touch.

She revealed; I concealed. It was as simple as that.

I couldn’t delay my reappearance any longer, so took a deep breath and rejoined the party. My timing was poor. Luke was busy enjoying his lap dance, which he’d chosen to have in public rather than in the private booth.

It seemed to me he was getting into it a little too much as I could see him groping the dancer and it didn’t take a genius to work out this was a breach of club rules.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a couple of giant figures approaching, but before they could reach him, Tania strode over, shooed away the dancer without a word and straddled Luke, fully clothed.

Her pneumatic frame came into its own, arching, twisting and circling over him as she ran her hands through his blond hair but moved out of reach every time he tried to grab her.

The security staff soon backed off as the mood lightened and the other guys started laughing and wolf-whistling.

But when she turned round to grind her bottom inches from his face, Luke ran his hands up under her skirt and grabbed both cheeks before slapping them.

‘Bad baby,’ he said. ‘I’ll tell you in future when I want you to dance for me. I don’t want these guys getting an eyeful of what’s mine.’

Tania ignored him and carried on gyrating until the end of the next track, to Luke’s obvious discomfort. Then she dismounted and snatched the £50 note Luke had in his hand to place in the pro-dancer’s garter.

‘Thanks, Lukey baby,’ she announced, ‘that will pay for my cab home – alone!’

Luke’s face was a picture and the Brothers were rolling in the aisles, which riled him no end. It was so good to see him being played by a girl.

‘Bravo, Tania,’ I clapped.

Luke saw me laughing and turned on me like a wounded beast. ‘That turn you on, Geri Boy? Maybe you’re more of a man than we thought!’

He clicked his fingers to summon one of the dancers – a pale honey-blonde wearing a tight red bikini top and short denim skirt.

‘OK, I’ll pay you £50 to do a private dance for my colleague here,’ he said to her, pointing to me, ‘and £50 more if you snog her afterwards, full tongues.’

‘We don’t kiss the customers, sir,’ she replied. ‘And we can’t dance for a customer who doesn’t give consent.’

‘Jesus, you girls are no fun,’ he said, his face dropping. ‘How about you, Tania, why don’t you dance for your boss? That would be a great way of getting to know each other, don’t you think?’

‘Leave Tania out of this,’ I said, pulling Luke over to one side. ‘I don’t know if you’re on some kind of bet to see how far you can wind me up, Luke, but you won’t break me.’

‘What makes you think I’m trying to break you? I’m just trying to have a little fun here. Women like you are all the same. You’re so bloody obsessed with success that it turns you into hard-faced old boots.’

‘I’ve had just about enough of your shit for one day,’ I said. ‘You’ve been on my case since the moment I met you and I will not tolerate you talking to me like this, especially in front of our boss.’

‘Oh Christ, Carson,’ he said. ‘You don’t get it, do you? If you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. And by the way, I wouldn’t fancy you if you were the last chick on the planet, you’re so bloody uptight …’

‘Fuck off, Cotterill, you know nothing about me, who I am or what I’m capable of. Just get out of my face.’

Daryll saw what was happening, from where he was standing with some of the Brothers, but did nothing. I could only conclude that Luke’s juvenile behaviour had been condoned by the boys’ club, as if they were putting me through some perverse kind of jousting competition to see who would be knocked off their horse first. It was all in a day’s sport for them.

I had to do something that would completely floor Luke. What would wipe the smug smile off his face, short of punching him?

Suddenly I knew instinctively what to do. I strode over to Ryan, beckoning him with my index finger. He looked around, hesitating and waiting for their approval. However, he knew what side his bread – and his bed – was buttered on, so he followed me over to the dance area.

I slowly unbuckled my jacket, peeling it off and easing my black polo neck jumper over my head, revealing a skimpy black camisole over a black lace balconette bra.

Blinking under the harsh spotlight, I felt utterly exposed but I had to brazen it out. Luke had successfully upped the stakes and was standing with his arms crossed, waiting to see what I would do next. Would I stand or would I fall? There was no turning back now …