~*~ This is turning out to be a wonderful writing experience with the help of stephmck. She's a phenominal beta and an even better sounding board. Thank you!! ~*~ Chapter 1 It was uncharacteristically slow for a Saturday night. Justin wondered how many of the usual customers were with their families at the annual carnival down the street. He could imagine the men on the arms of their wives, pushing baby carriages while holding a toddler on their other hip. The same men who paid good money for a membership to the exclusive underground club no one would dare speak of in public. The place where almost anything could happen as long as it was kept hushed and anyone’s kink could be played out if the right price was paid. He glanced quickly through the curtain, checking out the night’s potentials, disappointed in the pickings. His rent was never going to be paid on time at this rate. Jimmy patted him on the ass, holding out a vial, shaking a small amount of powder onto his hand. Justin snorted deeply, closing his eyes, tasting the bitter flavor as he swallowed. He rarely shared drugs with the other employees, but he’d known Jimmy for a couple of years now. Jimmy was safe and Justin knew he’d never give him bad shit. “It’s show time, baby. Knock ‘em dead, kid.” The music began and Justin could feel the beat pounding under his feet. He’d wait a couple of minutes, give the men time to get worked up and then he’d go out and show every fucking person in the house tonight how he owned the stage. Young, hot and desired. That was his mantra. As long as he remembered that, he’d be okay. Fuck, this was only dancing. This was the easiest part of what he was expected to do. Saturdays were great! A stage show or two, make the customers happy and then home to his studio apartment where he could forget about this part of his life for the next twenty-four hours. The part of his life that had begun a half of a year ago when he decided to sacrifice his morals in hopes of one day having a successful future. He glided out on stage, confident in his ability to be what everyone wanted. The coke gave him a quick high and he almost felt invincible. It was too easy. He could be the shy schoolboy for some, experienced sexual predator for others. He played his roles well and that’s why he was one of the most sought after club boys, earning almost double what the others made in a night. He was used to being the dirty little secret the men didn’t want their closest friends finding out about. It didn’t matter too much what he actually did as long as he showed off his ass and cock. That’s what they were all here for anyway. It definitely wasn’t for his dazzling smile. But Justin enjoyed the show. He enjoyed the buildup of energy in the room. He loved the way the men responded to his movements. Justin noticed the older man in the charcoal gray suit immediately and winked at him while gyrating his hips seductively against the pole. The guy looked like a big spender and he could use the extra cash. A leak in the ceiling of his apartment had set him back the cost of three large canvasses and one not so inexpensive Ipod just the week before. He lifted himself from the floor, pulling up onto the pole, swinging his body sensually around it. Once, twice before he dropped down, falling to his knees in front of the suit, arching his back, giving the man a nice view of the outline of his cock. A hundred dollar bill appeared and Justin smiled. What kind of trick would the man want him to do? There was always something. He eased forward, crawling slowly over to the man and rose back onto his knees, spreading his legs slightly. With a grin, he reached for the man’s hand, guiding it to the top button of the brown, Suede vest he was wearing. “Would you like to undress me?” He saw the excited gratitude in the man’s eyes, all the while keeping his own sights on the large bill now lying on the edge of the stage. Horny men were way too easy. He smiled, slowly swaying to the music as large fingers began to work the buttons, opening them one at a time, leaving the vest hanging limply at his sides. When the hands went lower, he grinned and grabbed the man’s wrist. “Uh uh uh, “ he sing-songed playfully. Justin’s own hands rose to his chest, his fingers then sliding slowly down his body, making sure to rub firmly over his nipples and then further down to the waistband of his pants. With a quick snap, the top button was undone. He jumped up, turning around to give the man a good view of his ass, after all, he was paying for this… while making eye contact with the rest of his audience. He bent, reaching for his ankles, swaying his hips. As he rose back up, he tugged at the Velcro, pulling the pants off in one swift movement, tossing them toward the back of the stage. He closed his eyes, reveling in the cheers and whistles and then turned, kneeling down, sweeping up the money lying by his feet. Pushing it into the top of his briefs, he blew the man a kiss and worked his way to the other side of the stage. First rule in performing, be it singing, dancing or yes, even stripping. Don’t neglect any part of the room. You want the connection with your entire audience. This gains fans, which gains repeat visits and eventually, trust among the patrons in knowing you will always be worth their time and money. Justin never worried about unhappy customers. He always put on a good show. He dropped to his knees at front stage center, grinding his hips forward, humping the air as he leaned back on his hands. He showed off his cock, which was pushing an enormous bulge under the material of his white briefs. He always got hard from this. The men rarely turned him on and he rarely had fantasies about fucking any of them, but their blatant need, their unhidden desire for him got him off in ways he was sure any shrink would claim as unhealthy. He didn’t mind dancing. It was the one thing in this club he controlled. Everything else, well… if he reminded himself it was just a job, he could almost pretend to enjoy it. A few more minutes of dancing, if the sensual movements he was engaged in could be considered that, and he noticed another guy waving a few bills in his direction, trying to grab his attention. Justin nodded and decided to work a bit more for it this time. He descended the steps slowly; his bare feel cold against the linoleum floor. He reached the crowd and toyed with a few rowdy men, spinning, moving closer… so close he could let them feel his hot breath against their cheeks, until he spotted his target. A man; probably mid-thirties, dark and good-looking. A little more muscular than he usually preferred, but not enough to deter his intentions. Justin placed his hand against the man’s chest, pushing him back into his seat and turned around, lowering down into his lap. The man’s hands reached around, resting on Justin’s thighs as Justin’s hips began to move. He gripped the arms of the chair and lifted his ass slightly, rubbing forward and back, grazing the denim material under him. One of the hands on his thigh began easing inward, closer toward his cock and Justin ground down a little harder. There were rules, to protect himself as well as the customers, but this man was hot and Justin was on a coke-induced high and the hand now on his dick felt too fucking good. He knew it wasn’t allowed. Bear, the six-foot five, three hundred pound bouncer would undoubtedly be out momentarily to put a stop to it, but Justin didn’t care. Not right now. And it seemed neither did the other patrons. The bills were appearing out of thin air, waiting to be taken. He leaned his head back against the man’s shoulder and let the large hand stroke his cock through the thin material, while he rubbed his ass against the erection he could feel beneath him. He felt lips against his ear. “My name’s Tommy.” Justin didn’t answer him. He didn't give a fuck who this man was. He ground his ass down again, the impression of the cock rubbing against his crack making him impossibly harder. He glanced up and realized Bear had appeared to the left of the stage, moving closer and Justin signaled to him, shaking his head. He knew if he wrapped this up quickly, maybe he wouldn’t be in too much trouble. He pushed the guy’s hand away and rose up, turning to face him. Leaning down, Justin grabbed the money from Tommy’s free hand and slid his finger seductively down the man’s chest. “If you want more, come back and ask for a private show. You won’t be disappointed.” Tommy swallowed and Justin licked his lips. Icing on the cake. He slowly made his way back to the stage, his briefs beginning to sag from the weight of the money being stuffed into them. Justin turned toward the crowd and smiled before the lights went dark and Bear ushered him quickly to the back. ~*~ Thomas Payne knocked back another double whiskey and watched the beautiful men of Babylon. There were definitely no clubs that compared to this one in the small town he’d grown up in. No, the town he lived in until recently barely tolerated such behavior as same sex couples and he’d found himself the topic of much gossip when he’d come out about his relationship with Rick. It was nice to know there were places like this that not only tolerated it, but celebrated that love shouldn’t be defined by such nonsense as body parts. He loved men. He’d always loved men. Hard bodies, masculine muscles and nice, tight… Okay, so maybe love wasn’t the attraction in Babylon. The point was, who had the right to tell him who he should be attracted to? Especially when there were men like Brian Kinney in the world. “Like a kid in a candy store.” Tommy smiled and motioned the bartender for another drink for himself and Brian. “You know I don’t get out much these days.” “Oh, yes. The husband waiting at home with a very short leash.” “Just because you don’t know the meaning of the word relationship…” Brian grimaced and sipped his Beam. “First Mikey, leaving to set up house in Oregon, then I meet you and think you’re alright, only to find out you’re dickless, too. Why the hell would any fag in his right mind want to tie himself down to one person? Who the hell wants to fuck the same ass seven nights a week?” “I feel anything but tied down, and we’re not completely monogamous. There are exceptions.” “Only because you see me once every three months and you enjoy the company of my cock.” Tommy shrugged. “I just don’t need anonymous fucks anymore. I’m not interested. Oh! Unless you count a guy I saw last night. Perfect fucking ass, cock out to here,” he said, motioning a good eight inches with his hand. “I would’ve nailed that guy in a heartbeat.” Brian cocked an eyebrow. “I went to that club, you know…Liaison? The one that opened up a few months ago? There was this blond kid there, had every guy in the place hornier than fuck! You should have been there.” “I don’t pay for fucking.” Tommy snorted. “I wasn’t fucking. I was relaxing. Enjoying the entertainment.” “Pfft, entertainment. I’ve heard there’s nothing but snotty-nosed little twinks in that place.” Brian finished off his glass, eyeing a muscled, dark-haired stud at the end of the bar. “Sorry. Not into underage cock.” Tommy sighed, watching Brian step back from the bar, about to go after his target. Word was, Brian used to be the king of Liberty Avenue before he did a runner and packed it up, heading off to New York City. From what Tommy had seen in the last year, Brian’s status was legendary and everyone wanted a piece of the legend. “I’ll see you tomorrow at the meeting. 9 o’clock sharp?” Brian turned around, now halfway to the backroom, the trick hot on his heels. “Better make it 10 o’clock.” Tommy nodded, finished his drink and left Babylon alone. Rick was away on travel and wouldn’t be back until next week and Tommy was already counting down the days. ~*~ “What the fuck do you think you were doing out there last night?!” Justin tried to ignore Kenny, which was proving quite impossible now that everyone in the hallway was interested in the yelling match going on. “I was making money for the fucking club!” “You know the rules, Justin. The customers Do. Not. Touch! Not on the main floor! It causes problems and I don’t need any fucking problems! You understand?! Things could have gotten out of hand!” “Fuck, Kenny. The guy was harmless and the crowd was eating it up. I don’t see what the big deal is.” Justin stepped aside, trying to push past the other man, trapped when Kenny grabbed his shoulder. “You might think you own this place because you’re a big attraction, but it’s my club, not yours. You stick to the rules or you’ll be out on your ass.” Justin rolled his eyes. “My ass brings in a lot of money.” Kenny stepped back, changing tactics. “Could be bringing in more.” He shook his head. “Not negotiable.” “That no fucking rule of yours costs me, Taylor.” “But everything else I do makes up for it. Now if you’ll excuse me…” Justin looked expectantly at him. Kenny made a show of standing in his way, but then casually stepped back to let him through. Justin couldn’t wait for his shift to be over. For now, a hot shower and his art was the best he could look forward to.