tabby

be more covered than the normal G-string and pasties that you’ll wear for the following dances.”
My shoulders slumped as I measured the span of each item. He was correct; they were bigger. “But did they have to be leopard print and a cat?” The whine in my voice couldn’t be hidden.
He placed a swift kiss on my neck. “Yes, for the same reasons as before. Miss Kitty needs to be a cat. Tonight she’s a leopard.”
“Fine.” I stomped my foot like a spoiled little child as he laughed.
Smacking my ass, he said, “Get dressed. Fast. Before I come in and do my job as your dresser.”
And with that, he closed the door behind him, shutting me in the bathroom with the costume I didn’t want to wear. “I’m timing you,” he called through the door.
“Fine,” I said under my breath as I pulled my tighter and more-revealing-than-normal street clothes off over my head.
A few minutes later, standing in front of the mirror, holding my furry tail and wearing my knee-high black leather stiletto boots along with the leopard costume, I had to admit that I looked hot. Add in a few whisker spots by my nose and I’d look exactly like an exotic, sexy cat.
“You win,” I said as I exited the room, leaving my tote in there. Part of Arin’s act would be to retrieve it for me, treating me like his boss.
Two piercing whistles ripped through the air.
“You are one sexy tabby.” Bae winked, and for the first time, I blushed as he called me tabby instead of flushing with anger.
“You are going to have the crowd eating out of your hand.” Arin rested his hip against my makeup vanity with his arms crossed. While he was able to wear dress pants and a collared shirt with the sleeves rolled up to reveal his toned forearms, Bae stood stiffly in his suit and tie.
Noticing the tie was crooked, I sashayed across the room, swinging my tail in a circle. His eyes tracked my every motion and grew darker the closer I stepped. When I stopped, I was within an arm’s length. I reached up to his tie and straightened it. “Is this what you were hoping for?”
Other than the fact that my hands shook, you couldn’t tell how uncomfortable I was. Even the sexy purr in my voice didn’t sound like me, which was good, as I had to keep reminding myself. Tonight I wasn’t Tabitha Blue, FUCN’A student. I was Miss Kitty, stripper and dancer extraordinaire. Confident and poised. A sex symbol to toy with men’s emotions.
He swallowed, and when he spoke, his voice sounded gruffer than usual. “It’s exactly what I hoped for, for tonight.” His hands went to my waist and pulled me in despite the activity going on in the rest of the dressing room. “But I prefer my tabby when we’re not here,” he said next to my ear, sending a shiver down my spine.
I wanted to kiss him, to thank him, and I thought I saw the same longing, the same desire, in him. But he released my waist and stepped back, smoothing down the tie I’d just fixed.
A throat cleared behind me before speaking. “Ahh, Miss Kitty. May I say that you look pawsitively foxy tonight, even if you are a beauty in spots as a leopard.”
I bit my lower lip, not ready to turn around and talk to Ed, but Bae gave me a quick jerk of his chin, and his eyes instilled a push of added confidence. Plastering on a sensual smile, I spun around. “Ed,” I purred, “I’m so glad you approve. My team and I talked it over and thought that this would create an appropriate appreciation for me and leave them wanting more.” I used my tail to slice a path over the mesh between my breasts. Ed’s gaze followed my tail as he licked his lips. The light press of Bae’s fingers against my lower back was the only thing that kept my shiver of disgust repressed.
He brushed past me to stand off to the side, allowing Ed to see me, but only part of me. Holding out his hand, I watched as Ed took it, giving it a quick but firm shake. “Ed, it’s so nice for you to come back here and wish Miss Kitty well.” He stepped closer to Ed and then used his arm to urge him out of the room. “I was hoping to run into you, as I wanted to go over a few minor changes we made to our line-up tonight, and I wanted to have your input before I gave them all to Mike.”
The moment the door closed behind Bae and Ed, leaving me alone with Arin and a few other dancers in another section of the room, I slumped. Wherever Ed’s gaze had touched, I felt oily, dirty, and I wanted to scrub myself with a strong-bristled brush to remove it.
Two warm hands rubbed up and down my bare arms, lending their warmth to wipe away my cold. “It’s okay. He’s gone. Bae or I will keep him away from you, I promise.”
I nodded, but his words didn’t fully reassure me. I needed Kasim. Wanted my dark knight to hold me in his arms. When he purred, something I didn’t think he even realized he was doing when he held me, the sound gave me a reassurance and safety like nothing else. But I couldn’t have him. We couldn’t be seen together. Instead of acting like my security, as our initial plan called for, Kasim was now our silent observer. No one would see us interacting together. That way he would have the freedom to move around amongst the patrons and to follow them outside the private club without people wondering why my bodyguard was not at my side or running point.
“You know he’d be here if he could. And he’ll wrap you in his arms tonight at the hotel after we’re all done for the