Chapter 536: Mask Removal
The third floor was divided up into sections, or as they liked to call it, private rooms. Unlike normal rooms though, this one had an entire wall missing, allowing one to face the stage on which performances would take place. As for the rest of the club, Laz could see most of the dance floor beneath him but nothing beyond that as everything else was located below the rooms. In essence, it felt like you were part of the part without being part of the party. Laz had only gotten a taste of the rich life while staying at the hotel with the girls, but this seemed to be another facet of the same experience. While Laz wasn’t obsessed with the feeling, he had to admit it was a unique experience.
Even more amusing was the private bar located in each room, one in which the club could provide you with a bartender, or you could make the drinks yourself if you desired. While most trusted those appointed by the club, some were far too paranoid to allow that and preferred the own people do it.
When asked if he wanted someone else to do it, Laz briefly considered just making the drinks himself, but decided he would just go for it. A nicely dressed young man arrived to serve them drinks when Laz mentioned he didn’t care who the server was. Even before he began, Laz threw $500 on the counter and just told the man that would be his tip in case he forgot later. While most drinks were provided for free in these suites, that didn’t mean one should forget the one making them.
Laz sat down on a plush love seat after telling the young and fairly handsome bartender that he wanted his best drink before directing the girls to ask.
Amira didn’t know what to order, not having much experience with drinks at all.
"Ummm..." She hesitated to which Laz looked at the young man.
"Something unique for the woman? Sweet and savory?" Laz said, seeing her hesitation. The young man smiled, nodded and got to work.
"So you don’t need to ask for something specific?" Amira questioned, beginning to feel far more comfortable in this environment despite it’s new nature. What’s more, she even began to trust Laz’s judgement without question, whether she knew it or not.
"Not really. If you have a favorite that you want, order that. But if you have a want something and it’s just a feeling but your not sure a drink to match, just describe it. Any bartender with decent experience can come up with something. A skilled bartender can come up with many things... And a really knowledgeable one can make just what you want," Laz said, his attention drawn to the stage, as though looking at something.
"You seem to know a lot about this?" Amira asked.
"Yeah. I was a bartender for just over a year a little bit ago," Laz replied, grabbing the prepared drink on the counter.
"You? Really? A bartender?" Amira asked with a grin.
To that question, even the young man behind the bar perked up, interested in how a high class VIP used to tend bar.
"Yeah... It was an interesting time," Laz said without explaining more.
"Now speaking of interesting..." Laz then turned his attention to Brittany who had been standing and looking out of place.
"Uh... Hi..." She said as Amira and Laz turned their attention to her.
"So what’s the real reason you followed us?" Amira said, her entire demeanor changing with the subject change. While the things she’d seen since she met Laz had been like a strange dream, she wasn’t a fool by any sense. She knew a lying woman when she saw one, no matter which rung of society she came from.
Laz was interested as well. She had chased after their group after being invited up to the third level VIP, completely leaving Chaz behind in a blind fit of rage. Even now, if Laz were to look down, he could probably make eye contact with Chaz if he wanted since he could feel the man standing there and scanning the top level rooms. Unless someone was standing directly at the railing and looking down though, no one below could see them.
"I really wanted to meet Leo and since he might come up here after the show..."
"You’re not lying, but that’s not the full truth either," Laz said, his eyes a light shade of gold as he used his Heaven’s Gaze to judge her statement. While she looked normal and felt normal, the look in her eye Laz had seen earlier was something akin to bloodlust. As for why Laz allowed her to come despite that, there were two reasons.
One, the bloodlust was there, but wasn’t directed at him or Amira.
Two, he wasn’t worried that he couldn’t handle her if need be.
"I uh... don’t know what you mean?"
"Fine. Tell us a bit about yourself then," Laz said, not really interested in this song and dance number.
Amira had just spoken to the bartender and gotten a drink, one that brought an immediate smile to her face. Seeing this, Laz smirked a bit. While she was mature in some aspects, she was rather innocent in others.
’Hope I didn’t get her addicted to alcohol,’ Laz thought briefly.
"My name is Brittany..."
"We know. Moving on," Amira said between sips.
"Uh... well... my family is kind of rich and they set me up with Chaz. And when I heard Leo was performing, I really wanted to come but he wouldn’t take me. I was finally able to convince him by telling him this place was a high end strip club..."
Amira spit out her precious drink and laughed, not expecting this shy girl to be so good at deception. Even Laz smirked a bit, amused by the circumstances.
"Well... you weren’t too far off since they do having dancing poles, although that’s more for club goers that want to show off than anything else. And besides, considering how some girls are dressed... and even some guys, he might just get the show he wants or one he doesn’t want," Laz commented.
Amira laughed outright while Brittany hid her smile.
"So why did he need to go? Couldn’t you have invited another friend to bring with you?" Amira asked in a straightforward manner.
"I... uh... I don’t really have any friends I could ask to do this with me anymore, so he was my only option..."
"Then why did you ditched him the first chance you got to come with us?" Laz asked, his tone going from light to heavy in a heartbeat.
"Well... that’s...."
"Alright. Alright. Enough. I want you to be straightforward with me or I will ask you to leave. This whole shy girl routine might work as both a barrier and a temptation to other guys, but I’ve seen far more convincing actresses than you who did it way better..." Laz finally said, setting his drink down and looking up at her face.
"I... I don’t know what you..."
"SECURITY!" Laz called over to the door, to the man who knew was standing outside.
"WAIT!!! Wait... ok... FUCK! OK! I’LL FUCKING TALK!!!" Brittany said, her normal voice a notch higher than the sweet one she was using before.
The man stepped through the door at Laz’s request, but Laz just nodded his head and then shook it, letting the man know it was alright and he didn’t need anything. The man then closed the door without a word and went back to his standing position. This wasn’t a new thing for him.
"Is this how you treat all beautiful women?" Brittany asked, sitting down and leaning back while taking a deep breath.
"Only those that lie to me," Laz said, returning to his drink now that he tore off her mask.
"Sometimes we lie to protect your fragile egos you know," Brittany responded, before yelling over to the young bartender to pour her some southern comfort on ice.
"Never had to worry about that, although I will admit some of my women are pretty good liars when they want to be..." Laz said, laughing at his own thought.
"Right. Never had to lie to you but good liars all the same. You’re fooling yourself... And did you say women? And you’re ok with this?" Brittany asked turning to face Amira. AS far as Brittany was concerned, Amira was gorgeous and couldn’t understand why she would allow him to have others.
"What do I care? I not his woman. Besides, I honestly think he lying about them anyway..." Amira said, having been drawn into the conversation again.
"So... a high class hooker?"
"Fuck you no..."
"Then why the fuck are you here with him?"
"None of your god damn business, that’s for sure," Amira said, returning to her drink.
"EH? Secrets huh? MMMmmm."
"You have no need to learn of my secrets. But if you want to keep sitting here, you’d better give me a good reason. Either that or feel free to leave. Door’s over there." Laz said, pointing at the exit.
Alright. Fuck... why the hell couldn’t you just fall for my sweet act?"
"Cause I could literally see it hurting your face to have to keep making those weird expressions while speaking like that. How the hell can someone blush on command? That’s pretty new for me," Laz responded, honestly interested.
"It’s just some makeup I’m wearing. When my face gets hot, it heats up and becomes more visible. As for how I heat my face up... straining the muscles in your jaw will do it when trying to keep your mouth shut works, for example."
"OH? Intersting...."
"Why the hell am I talking about this?"
"Cause you haven’t answered my real question and don’t want to. So you avoid and follow every topic that comes up to get out of it."
"That was way too gut punch of an answer."
"Then get on with it."
"Fine. Fine... What reason do you think a girl would go with a guy she loathes to a place she doesn’t want to be and then be seen as a slut by running off with the first better option that comes along?" Brittany asked, bouncing the issue back to Laz.
Strangely though, it was Amira who answered, since she was in a slightly similar situation.
"Because she wants or needs something. And going this far can only mean..."
"Revenge?"
"Revenge!"
