I went to work as normal on Monday. Adam came in around eleven thirty and sat at one of my tables. I asked Kelly to serve him. He ordered a black coffee and sat watching me work while he drank it. Then he left without saying anything. I sighed with relief but had to take a break to get myself together...again... Shit I hate the emotional stuff. It's the worst part about breaking up with someone.

Life strode on. I struggled with it, but did what I had to do. He never came back after that day, at least nobody mentioned anyone asking for me again. I figured he'd come to make sure I had gotten home okay and that I hadn't killed myself, so he didn't have to live with that kind of guilt. I was glad it hadn't been a stalker thing, and he'd do it every day.

I was two weeks into working the nights. It wasn't that bad. The touching and lured comments didn't affect me like they used to. On my second Saturday night, Cherie fell in the second dance session and twisted her ankle. We got her into the kitchen and packed it with ice while we waited for the ambulance. As I headed towards the floor, Robert pulled me aside. "Jasmine, I need someone to take her place, how about it?"

I swallowed and shook my head. "No, Robert, I can't do it."

"That's crap and you know it," he spat. "You know the steps. Just because you haven't stripped before means nothing." He waved his hand up and down in front of me. "You've got a great body, and it's not like you're completely naked. More like stripping to your swimsuit."

"Robert, please don't ask me to do this," I pleaded. "I can't strip. I feel sick thinking about it."

He huffed at me and waved his hand to dismiss me without a word.

The third dance session was due to begin at midnight. Around eleven thirty, Adam came in with two women and two men. A surge of anger gripped me when one of the women touched his face. He responded by wrapping his arm around her and kissing her. Adam rubbed her backside as she whispered something to him. He laughed and lifted his head. I stood not six feet away with a handful of glasses. He recognised me and held my stare. His face changed from pleasure to a pained expression. Then he took the girl's hand and led her to one of the booths with the rest of his party following. It took me a moment to regain my composure. I stormed off to find Robert.

"I'll do it!"

He held up his hands, confused. "Woah...do what?"

"Dance! Strip! Whatever the fuck you want me to do!"

Robert laughed and shook his head at me. "What's going on? Why the aggression?"

I took a deep breath to control my anger. "Sorry, I just got touched up and I thought fuck it. They're going to do it anyway, so I may as well make some extra money while they are."

He laughed and put his arm around my shoulder. "That's my girl, go get 'em tiger." Robert checked his watch and then said, "You better go and get ready. You've got maybe twenty minutes." He slapped my arse as I walked away and winked at me when I scowled at him.

The intro girls twirled onto the floor. Debbie smiled at me. "It's not so bad, Jasmine, pretend you're pissed and dancing in front of your mirror at home." I couldn't help but laugh. Debbie was a nice girl with a great figure and beautiful, smooth olive skin. She held my hand as we skipped through the curtain, then let it go as we coiled our legs around Annette's in a seductive pose.

The music started. I was amazed how the steps came back to me. I did as Debbie suggested, and my nerves disappeared. The idea of pissing Adam off made it more enjoyable. To make things even better, I knew he sat on the side of the room where I would dance and work the crowd.

I snaked and wove my body to the rhythm of the music, taking off one layer at a time. The noise of cheering and wolf whistles got louder. I made sure I stopped at Adam's booth when I stripped off the next layer. I stared at him just to be certain he recognised me with my face veil on. And yes, he knew alright. The look on his face was so intense. I couldn't help but laugh out loud in pleasure. I held my hands above my head and rubbed my naked midriff against one of his male companions. I swirled away as the man touched my stomach with his hand and cried out. "Oh...yeah baby! Bring it on!"

I continued from table to table. Now and then, I glanced towards Adam to catch him following me with his eyes. I made sure I was in front of his booth when it was time to remove the final veil.

As I gyrated my hips in front of them, the same man who had touched me earlier touched me again. I played up to him, stood with his leg between my knees and rubbed myself along it.

He threw his head back. I noticed he had the same star tattoo on his neck as Adam had. He took a huge breath and gasped, "Oh... Yes...fucking please!"

I tore off the last two veils to reveal the glittering midnight blue G-string, then twirled around, bent over and let the man run his hand over my backside.

Adam's face filled with fury. The crowd went wild as they always did at that point in the dance, but I heard none of it. I was trapped in a bubble with Adam. He, looking at me in rage, and I, challengingly back.

The bubble burst as the man I had been teasing seized my hand and made me straddle his lap. He shoved fifty dollars into my bra. "How about it, baby? You and me...because I would love to fuck you!"

Touching his face, I simpered, "I'm sorry. I don't like men." I spun away and skipped towards the curtain, unable to work the crowd for the extra cash.

A man stopped me and babbled something that I couldn't understand. The other girls worked the floor. I hoped Robert wouldn't get angry with me, but I couldn't do it.

As I opened the dressing room door, I was grabbed by the upper arm and spun around. Adam glared at me. His chest heaving with anger. "What the hell are you doing?"

I stared at him. The truth was I didn't know what I was doing or what I had hoped to achieve other than to piss him off.

Adam slammed his hand against the wall beside my head. The action made me cower. He gripped my chin. Pain flooded his eyes as he unclipped my face veil and let it drop. "Don't do this, Jasmine. Please don't do this."

I stared back at him, cocked my head and said, "What was your name again?"

Adam let go of my face, dropped his hand by his side and stepped back in disbelief.

I opened the dressing room door and left him standing there.

It wouldn't have been two minutes before Robert came crashing into the room. "That was amazing, Jasmine! Who said you couldn't strip?"

Drained, I sat on a chair and covered my face. "Please don't ask me to do it again, because I can't."

Robert squatted in front of me. "What do you mean you can't, and why didn't you work the tables? You'd have made a packet. They're going crazy out there. The money is yours to keep. I don't take any of it."

I shook my head again. "Robert. I can't do it again."

He patted me on the back and grinned. "I'll get the girls to talk to you. Get dressed. I need you on the floor."

What the hell is Adam doing?

Do you think he has any right to drag Jasmine aside like he has?

Photo copyright - Shutterstock.