“Let me clarify that,” I say, pausing to put my hands on my hips, trying to balance in my one shoe. “It’s none of your damn business.”

“I’ve had my hands down your pants. I know what you sound like when you’re going to come.”

“Well, mister, you don’t.” I look towards the door again.

“Don’t what?” He asks, smirking.

“Know what I sound like,” I say, getting tired of this game he’s playing.

“We can take care of that right now,” he says. I look at him like he’s crazy, and shake my head.

“Um, no thanks,” I say, looking towards the door, wondering where the heck someone—anyone—is. Don’t they realize that I'm missing? Shouldn’t they be looking for me?

“Look, I'm sorry, but I just couldn’t do it. You’re too sweet. That’s why you shouldn’t be working here.”

“Well, too bad. I need this job, and I'm keeping it.”

“You’re innocent, Liz, a fucking virgin, and you want to work at a strip club?” he growls.

“First of all, it’s none of your business, but I'm actually not a virgin. Second of all, there was not one single question on my application for this place about my sexual history,” I say, completely pissed off.

“Who the fuck have you been with since we were together?” he asks. I can see his face turning red.

“No one! Geez, Louise,” I say, waving my hand in front of me.

“How exactly do you go from you having never, to now?” He asks, looking as confused as his question sounds.

“I never said that I was a virgin,” I snap. “You chose to hear that, and then you walked away, completely ignoring me when I tried to explain it to you. Which, by the way, was pretty damn embarrassing.” I say, crossing my arms over my chest, feeling almost as embarrassed as I did the night that we were together.

“Fuck me,” he whispers, running his hands down his face.

“Look, I really need to go. I'm sure Bambi is freaking out; I left her with a bachelor party,” I say, looking towards the door again, ready to run for it.

“We’re leaving,” he says, taking a step in my direction.

I stop and look at him. “No, I'm working. We’re not going anywhere.”

“You just resigned; it’s time for you to go home.”

“Wow, you got this whole caveman act down pat, don’t you?” I say, slipping back into my shoes. There is no way that I'm going to let him intimidate me.

“You come with me, or I’ll tell your mom what you’re doing during your free time,” he says, and I feel all the color drain out of my face. My mom can be pretty cool, but if he told her I was working here, I would have to explain why I needed a second job; I can’t see her being very understanding about that.

“I never thought that I could hate you, but you just proved me wrong.” I say quietly, as tears start to fill my eyes. My shoulders slump, and I start walking towards the door.

“Where are you going?” he asks me as I open the door. I don’t even turn around to answer him.

“Getting my stuff and going home, Trevor. Just like you wanted me to.” I see Bambi in the dressing room when I get there; she’s in front of the mirror adding more lip gloss.

“Hey! Ed said you were talking to someone when I went to look for you; is everything okay?”

“Um, not really. I'm leaving,” I say, pulling my pink gym bag out, and shoving everything that’s mine into it, while trying to avoid looking at Bambi.

“You’re leaving?” she asks, and I can feel her as she comes to stand next to me.

“Something came up and I need to go; I'm sorry for leaving you with those guys. I’ll talk to Mike on my way out so he can send someone else to help you,” I say, pulling my hoodie on over my top, stepping out of my heels, and into a pair of black, high-top Converses.

“I don’t care about that. I'm worried about you and why you’re leaving,” she says, hugging me.

“Ready?” Trevor asks, sticking his head in the room. We both turn our heads in his direction at the sound of his voice.

“What the fuck, dickwad?” Bambi yells. “Get the fuck out of here; can’t you read? This is a women’s only area, and unless you want me to give you a vagina, you need to leave.” She walks over, slamming the door in a stunned Trevor’s face. I giggle; no matter how bad this is right now, she made it worth it. “Are you leaving with that douche?” she asks, walking back towards me.

“No, he just came to tell me something,” I say, walking towards the door.

“Call me and let me know you’re okay,” she says, and it makes me want to cry. She has made working here fun, and has become a pretty good friend.

“I’ll call you tomorrow,” I say, opening the door, walking right past Trevor, Cash, and Mike.

“You okay, darlin’?” Mike asks, putting his arm around my shoulder.

“Yeah, I'm just gonna go home. I’ll see you tomorrow for breakfast; and thanks for the internship.”

“I’ll see you then, and we can talk,” he says, squeezing me to his side.

“Great,” I mutter, walking out into the parking lot to my Charger. I open my door and throw my bag across, into the passenger seat.

“Hey, we need to talk,” Trevor says, turning me around with his hand on my waist.

“No, Trevor, we don’t need to talk.”

“We’re friends, Liz. This isn’t you; I just want what’s best for you,” he says, trying to pull me into him. I take a step back, get in my car, and slam the door, engaging the locks before he can stop me or open my door. Turning on the car, I rev the engine, then roll down my window an inch.

“Just so you learn a lesson from tonight, I'm going to clue you in; you know, since were friends and all.” I say sarcastically. “First of all, friends ask each other about their lives. Second, a friend would wonder what circumstances would cause someone to work somewhere that they never would have before. And last, but not fucking least, a friend would never threaten another friend.” With my parting words, I rev my engine and let the gravel fly behind me. My car fishtails right before I get to the stop sign. I turn up Nickelback’s “Animals” on my car stereo, stick my hand out my window, and flip Trevor off. As soon as I roll up my window, tears start sliding down my cheeks from the sadness and anger I'm feeling. I trusted Trevor at one point, and just like my brother, that trust was not earned, and now I'm more stuck than I was before. I have to find a way to earn the money that I need to save my business, without getting my mom involved and making my brother do time.

Trevor

“Well, I have to say, that went well; don’t you think, friend?” Cash asks, while patting my chest before he walks off. I'm completely stunned, stuck in place, wondering what the fuck just happened. “Yo! T, are you coming, or what?” He shouts from across the parking lot, snapping me out of my stupor. I lean my head back, looking up at the night sky. Seeing a shooting star, I make a wish; I close my eyes, let out a breath, and walk to my truck, knowing tomorrow is a different day.

Chapter 2

Liz

Waking up to the floor creaking above me, I roll over and look at the clock, seeing that it’s just after nine-thirty. I know that Mike is eating breakfast, then going to sleep. Part of me wants to avoid going upstairs; I want to hide under the covers of my bed like I did when I was little, and pretend that my life is perfect and normal. I want to pretend that Trevor didn’t threaten to tell my mom on me, that my brother didn’t steal my money, and that I wasn’t at risk of losing a dream that I have worked so hard for. I toss the covers back, jump out of bed, grab a pair of pink sweats from the floor, pull them on, and head up stairs.

“Hey, darlin’,” Mike says, as I come through the basement door.

“Hey,” I mumble, heading to the coffee pot.

“We need to talk about last night, darlin’.”

“I know,” I say, pulling a mug down, pouring coffee, cream, and two Splendas into it. I hop up on the counter and take a sip of coffee. “I'm sorry about last night. Trevor caught me off guard, and I was upset. I didn’t mean to take it out on you.”

“I know that you’re mad at him, but he really is just trying to look out for you.” I almost tell him that he’s really only looking out for himself. Just like everything with Trevor, it’s all about him. Instead, I bite my tongue and nod my head. Who knows? Maybe in the alternate universe that Trevor lives in, he really is helping me. Too bad for me, my business loan, car loan, and shop rent doesn’t exist in his universe.

“Your dad was my best friend,” Mike says, his face getting soft. “The day you were born, he was overjoyed. I was depressed; I never really thought of being a father. But when I found out that Susan was pregnant, I knew that I would be the best dad I could be. Then Susan took off, and I had no way to get November back. I had no idea where her mom had gone with her. So when your dad told me that he and your mom were expecting a little girl, I was jealous. I wanted that for myself. Then you were born, and your dad handed you to me and told me that I was going to be your godfather. He said he knew just by looking at you, he couldn’t imagine having someone take you from him, so he was going to share you with me.” He chuckled, rubbing his jaw. “Your dad was a good man and a great friend.” I nod my head in agreement. I can feel tears stinging my nose again. “I'm giving you the money, Liz. The money Tim stole from you and your mom. No more bullshit about working for it. You did work for it, and then it was taken from you. So now, I'm going to do what your dad would have done. I'm giving it back to you.” I start shaking my head. “If Tim turns up, he owes me, Liz; you’re not doing this shit anymore. I'm helping you out. You can stay downstairs in the apartment as long as you want. Now, I'm going to bed. I left the check in an envelope on the table near the door. Make sure you take it.” He kisses my forehead, leaving me speechless sitting on the counter.

“Hey Mom,” I say, walking into Temptations. After Mike left this morning, I pulled myself together, finished my coffee, and picked up the check from next to the front door. I wrote Mike a long thank you note, not only for the money, but for always being there for me after my dad passed away. Then I went downstairs, showered, and got dressed in a pair of wide leg jeans, a black ribbed tank, and my black cowboy boots. Around my hips, I looped a wide black belt with a huge turquois buckle that I also sell in my store. I stopped at the bank on the way to the store and deposited the check. I paid my business loan three months in advance, the same with my car payment. Then I called the owner of the building we lease our shop from and paid the back rent and a few months in advance.

“Hey, honey. These came for you.” She points to a large vase of assorted lilies. I noticed the smell when I walked in the store but thought they were from her fiancé. I walk toward the counter and find a card. My heart is in my throat when I open it, wondering if they’re from Trevor. My name is written in a woman’s handwriting on the outside of the card. I slide my finger under the edge of the small envelope, pull the card out, and flip it over.