I was driving home from a co-worker's retirement party on a frosty Saturday night in November last year. The party was at his house about twenty miles outside of town. Chuck and his wife Connie had purchased the place ten years before to retire to. They'd been fixing it up and decided when it was perfect, Chuck would retire. They didn't complete the repairs, but Chuck retired anyway when he turned sixty-two.
I was jealous of his acreage, his retirement, and his happiness. Hopefully, I'd get there in another fifteen years or so. It was around midnight, and I was the last to leave the party. I'd been talking with Chuck for about an hour when Connie said to wrap it up. I'd had my last drink at about ten because I knew it was a long drive home. I wished Chuck and Connie well, then drove my old beater Tacoma home.
About eight miles from the city limit, the temp gauge on my truck started climbing. I was in the middle of nowhere in the middle of the night. I turned the heater on full blast and rolled down the window so I wouldn't bake to help cool down the engine. I'd replaced the radiator the week before, and it had worked fine driving back and forth to work all week. I made it another four miles or so until I decided to pull over before I blew a head gasket or the engine seized up.
I saw a dirt road in my headlights as I slowed down, leading to the South, and pulled down it to get off the highway. I sat for a few minutes, cursing my truck as I tried to figure out what to do. I'd been the only one on the road since I left Chuck's house. It was a cold, starless night with the possibility of snow by morning. So, walking into town would be painful if I made it there at all.
My cell phone was dead, thanks to the USB cord not making complete contact when I plugged it in before leaving for the party. I was screwed.
Luckily, I remembered seeing a strip club just outside the city limits on my way to Chucks. I thought I saw the glow of its neon sign and parking lot lights off in the distance. I had no idea when it closed, but if I could find someone there to call a tow truck for me, I'd buy them a beer.
I locked the truck up, secretly hoping someone would steal it. I then started walking on the shoulder of the road facing traffic. The last thing I needed was some drunk slamming me from behind as I walked, leaving me to die in a ditch. I still had alimony payments to make, and if I weren't dead, my ex-wife would definitely kill me.
It took me longer than I thought, stumbling along the side of the road, unable to see what lay ahead of me. I passed a couple of dead animals and was glad I didn't step on them. There were more bottles than cans, and I nearly twisted my ankle and fell when my foot stepped on a Corona bottleneck.
As the bright purple neon sign got closer, I read the name, The Last Oasis. The strip club's parking lot was pretty empty. I counted six cars spaced far from each other in the parking lot, each parked under a light post.
I guess it would be easy to smack a drunk in the head and rob them way out here, then escape into the night or maybe kidnap one of the girls as they headed out to their cars. I hoped they had security for the girls.
The music made me wince when I opened the heavy door to the club. Not the song itself but the volume of it. I coughed as I breathed cigarette smoke, hoping this wouldn't take long.
The club was dimly lit, and there were two stages with dancers on each one. They were in the midst of disrobing for the gentlemen seated around each stage. The two girls looked at me, smiled, and continued swaying and gyrating for their patrons.
A glance at the bar revealed a professional football-sized gentleman sipping what I assumed was coffee from an old-style porcelain diner cup. He looked at me, deemed I wasn't a threat, and then turned back to the cute goth bartender.
A topless waitress who had seen much better days asked if I wanted a drink. Her face reminded me of Betty White at ninety. Only Betty was much prettier.
I told her, "No, thanks. My truck broke down, and if they had a phone, could I use it?"
She looked at me like I was an idiot, "What's wrong with your cell, sweetie?"
I shrugged and said, "Dead battery."
As we talked, the song ended, and the two girls collected their money and left the stages. Before I could ask if someone had a cell and might call a tow truck for me. I locked eyes with a gorgeous Asian girl with blondish hair as she took her place on the stage closest to me. A voice announced that 'Jade' was now taking center stage and to please welcome her. I heard sporadic applause as she stepped onto the stage and looked around. Her eyes widened when she looked in my direction, and my brain clicked.
It was Dae, my closest friend's adopted daughter. I'd attended her high school graduation and gave her a hundred dollars as a gift. That was before my ex-wife got addicted to painkillers and ran off with her supplier. They both eventually went to rehab, and now I supported them with alimony because he was and still is a loser, but she loves him.
I thought Jerry mentioned Dae was going to college locally. She'd certainly matured since I saw her at the graduation party.
Dae gave me the evil eye as I left the waitress and walked over to the stage. I sat down and watched Dae swing around a pole in six-inch red heels and white lingerie, complete with white stockings. She didn't need those heels to make her long, toned legs look better. She'd played basketball in high school and was about five feet eight. I'm six foot, and the top of her head was at the bottom of my chin when we'd play 'horse' in their driveway.
As Dae swung around the pole, her straight blonde hair, which had streaks of pink in it, swished around her head like a whip. She wore red and white bunny ears, which matched her red heels. She'd look around at the two guys gawking at her, grinning at them. When she looked at me, I thought I would burst into flames. Her glare was intense. I looked behind me, hoping to see someone standing there she didn't want to see.
Dae continued cavorting and teasing her two admirers, getting ones and fives tossed before her. She'd swoop them up and put them in her panties. Then, continue teasing them. I just sat watching as the waitress returned, asking me if I'd like a drink. I told her yes, a coke. She sighed and said she'd be right back.
Meanwhile, Dae removed her top to reveal the sweetest breasts I'd seen in a long time. I watch a little porn occasionally, but it's been since my wife left that I'd seen any up close and personal.
They looked firm and full as they jiggled. Her tiny areolas were a couple of shades darker than her skin tone, contrasting nicely with the white lingerie she was slowly removing.
When the song ended, she walked to each guy and scooped up the newer tips, said something to each one, and then confronted me.
She knelt before me and asked, "Mister Wagner, what the fuck are you doing here? You better not tell my dad."
I was taken aback by the dirty words coming out of that sweet mouth. It was disgusting and sexy at the same time.
I explained, "My truck broke down, and my cell died. I need to call a tow truck and get it towed. I was hoping someone here would call for me. That is until I saw you, Dae."
Her eyes glared at me as her nostrils flared, "It's Jade here, Mister Wagner. If my dad finds out I'm doing this, he'll kill me and quit paying for college. I have one more dance, and then I'm off. I'll call and give you a ride. You have to swear you won't tell him."
I smiled, "I swear, Jade. I'll be a good boy, and thanks."
Her expression changed to a sly smile when I said, "Good. Now tip me so nobody suspects we know each other."
I grinned, then took a five from my wallet and dropped it in front of her. She cooed and nodded, then got ready for the next song.
