“Before I leave, I would like to talk to the girls,” I stated, while sticking my wallet in my back pocket and grabbing my phone.

“And, there he is, the emotionless Jett Colby. It was nice to see your vulnerable side for a second.”

I gave Kace a pointed look. Like he had room to talk. He was a brick wall, and when it came to emotions, he was impossible to talk to.

“This coming from the man who doesn’t know how to smile.”

“All that matters is that my dick knows how to smile.”

“Is it still smiling with Pepper?” I asked, knowing full well that I’d seen them together again.

Pursing his lips, Kace looked me up and down while slowly nodding his head. “It’s not very becoming of you to sit outside of my room and listen. You’re better than that, Jett.”

“Seems like you could do better yourself,” I teased Kace. “It’s called an orgasm, try giving her one.”

“Ahh, your dick is feeling sour, so you have to take it out on me. Fair enough,” Kace teased back as he patted my crotch.

Jumping away from him, I punched his arm, and said, “I don’t know why you hide your love for me. Just admit it, you want in my pants.”

“Nah, I’d be afraid it would take me too long to find that needle dick of yours.”

“Take your valium today? Because, fuck, I haven’t seen you this lively in a while,” I replied, walking out of my room and toward the stairs. “Is Lyla out of the picture now?”

“She was never in the picture,” Kace lied.

“Who are you trying to convince? Me or yourself?”

“Both,” he replied, while following me down the stairs. “It wasn’t meant to be. We’re too different.”

“Plus, she wants nothing to do with you, can’t blame the girl. You can’t really make up for all three inches of you, no matter how amazing the motion of the ocean is.”

“Well, aren’t you a fucking comedian tonight? You trying to sharpen that jagged sense of humor so you can try to win Goldie back? Not sure how that will go.”

I turned and eyed Kace with a smirk. “Low blow man, low blow.”

“Hey, and I thought you liked a low blow,” Kace responded, while wiggling his eyebrows.

“Lame, dude, straight up lame.”

He laughed behind me as we walked down the stairs and headed toward the Toulouse Room, where all the Lafayette Club presentations took place. It would be sad to no longer hear the girls practicing under Kace’s watchful eye, but it was time to move on. I was changing, and so was the club. The girls needed to move on, and if that meant giving them a little push, then I would.

I walked into the Toulouse Room, where all the girls were wearing their Jett Girl clothes with their masks strewn across the floor, mingling with their heels. They were laughing and most likely gossiping about my date with Goldie, because I’d been receiving little jabs from them since I asked Goldie out.

Getting the girls involved in my relationship was the last thing I wanted to do, but when I needed their help to deliver a phone to Goldie, I really didn’t have a choice. So, their ribbing was something I had to swallow. The worst part was, they knew how much it bothered me, but they still did it on purpose.

“Well, if it isn’t Scott Disik,” Pepper said, making me stop in my tracks.

“What the fuck do mean by that?” I asked, concern in my voice.

“You know…” Pepper said, motioning to my clothing.

“Oh, fuck,” I said, as I turned around to head back up to my room to change, making all the girls laugh, even Kace, the asshole, who stopped me.

“Don’t worry, you pull off loafers way better than him,” Kace winked at me.

“I think you look smashing,” Tootse, the oh-so-innocent one said, while coming up behind me. “If I was into cock, I would do you.”

“And that means a lot coming from her,” Francy called out from behind us.

“Why are you so nervous?” Tootse asked, as she wrapped her arm around mine and pulled me into the room. “It’s not like you haven’t had sex with her.”

“It’s more than that, Tootse.”

“Yeah, he’s trying to actually expose himself to her,” Pepper added for me. “For our little Jett, that’s hard. The little rich boy has to show his scars.”

I eyed Pepper and said, “With the amount of Kace’s dick you’ve taken in, I would have assumed the edge in your voice would have eased by now.”

Pepper’s mouth flew open as Kace pushed me from behind.

“Oh, please, like everyone didn’t know,” Babs chimed in.

I took a glance over at Lyla, who seemed to be removing herself from the conversation and playing with a button on her shirt. It was easy to see, as an outsider, that she was uncomfortable with the conversation, and there was only one reason why, she had feelings for Kace. I could tell from the moment I saw them together. They had an electricity between them that was only found between two people who were truly meant for each other; it was the same spark that singed when Goldie was in my arms.

“Maybe not everyone…” Pepper trailed off.

Changing the subject, I started to discuss what I’d gathered them all in the Toulouse Room for. “Ladies, I want to thank you for meeting me before I head out on my date.”

“Are you trying to get dating advice from us?” Francy asked.

“No. I want to talk to you about the future of the club.”

At the mention of the club and the serious tone in my voice, they all sat a little straighter and dropped the sarcasm that usually laced their features.

“What’s going on with the club?” Babs asked, concerned. She was practically a founder, so I could understand her concern.

“After the end of the month, I will be shutting it down.”

“What?” They all shouted at once, except for Lyla, who could care less about the news. She said she was temporary, but after being here for a while, I thought that maybe she would change her mind. I guess not.

“How can you do this to us?” Pepper asked. “Where the hell are we supposed to go, Jett?”

“Are you going to kick us out?” Tootse asked with tears in her eyes. Francy gently wrapped her arms around Tootse and pulled her into a hug.

“Jett, are you serious?” Babs asked, looking almost mad.

These were the exact reactions I was expecting from the girls, and I’m glad I got them, because if they could care less about the club, then I would have felt like what I was doing for the past couple of years meant absolutely nothing.

“Ladies, you know I only have your best interest in mind, right?”

“I thought so,” Pepper said, while folding her arms across her chest. “But then you go and take away our jobs, so I’m a bit confused.”

“Pepper, I would never do anything that would hurt you; you know that. I’m only here to help you, so that’s why, when the community center at Lot 17 opens, I want you all to be a part of it.”

Confused looks faced me, as the girls tried to understand what I was telling them.

“I’m open about most things, but a strip club at a community center may be a little too eccentric,” Francy stated.

“I agree, that’s why you will be utilizing the education you’ve been earning the past few years to help out the community. I will pay you, and if you would still like to stay at the club, you are more than welcome to stay here for as long as you want. I want you ladies to use more than your bodies. I want you to use your brains, your hearts, and your souls. You are some of the most amazing women I’ve had the privilege of getting to know, and it would be my honor to have you working at the community center. We will have classes ranging from dance to cooking, to exercise. There’s a spot for all of you, and I’m open to whatever you would like to teach. Tootse, you could easily give sewing lessons. Francy, you could help with the day care, because I know how much you love children. Pepper, easily, you can run dance classes. There’s a spot for each of you.”

“What about Kace?” Babs asked, while nodding at him.