Stepdaddy Savage Read Online Free PDF Page B

and moan your step-father’s name, Dolly?”
    Touché .
    He nods curtly in agreement. “Yeah, I guess we’re both not qualified to star in the fucking Brady Bunch .”
    “Yeah, but we are definitely a Modern Family ,” I joke. He doesn’t answer.
    I say nothing for the remainder of the drive into New York City. Not even when Graham doesn’t stop to pay toll when we cross from New Jersey. I have no idea how he got to a point where he has so much power, people know him and fear him, but I know I should feel lucky that he likes me enough to give me a VIP pass into his world. At least for tonight.
    Our first stop is on the lower East side of Manhattan. It’s his strip club, and it’s called Assets . Mom used to work there before they got married, and I guess this place reminds me that this man, sexy as hell or not, is still married to my mother.
    He double-parks in front of the entrance with the pink and white neon light flashing, and even though the billboard looks colorful and inviting, underneath it, there are two, huge bouncers, a lot bigger than the ones I saw at Hot N’ Bothered in Williamsburg, in black raincoats and frowny faces. It looks like a dingy place, despite its preppy zip code.
    “You’re taking me to a strip club?” I try to blink away my shock. He opens his door and steps out, walking around the car and opening the passenger door for me.
    My heels hit the ground before I get out of the car, and I feel the bite of the New York chill in my bones and shiver. I don’t get out. Not yet, peeking over his shoulder and examine the row of brownstone townhouses the club is sandwiches between.
    “Problem, Dolly?”
    “Yeah, I’m too young to hang out in strip clubs.”
    “Your mom didn’t seem to think so when she brought you in to work when you were fucking fourteen.”
    “She didn’t have a choice. You do.” I swallow my shame. Why does he have to be such an asshole and bring up my mom?
    When he sees that I don’t budge, I bet he’s not happy about me letting him wait in front of his bouncers in the pouring rain outside, he grabs my hand and jerks me into his warm body, slamming the car door behind my back. Under the sheets of rain, I feel a lot more agreeable when he ushers me into his club, passing the bouncers who nod in his direction in awe and fear. We slip through a dark, narrow hallway leading to another pair of closed double doors, the floorboards beneath us creaking with the beat of the sleazy music coming from the inside of the club.
    He pushes the second set of double doors open and we’re inside. There’s a stage in front of us, T-shaped with a short catwalk. A pole stands on each end, three in total, and on each of them is an almost naked young chick with a pair of high heels. My stomach lurches and I twist toward the front door again before I realize Graham is holding into me tightly.
    “Let me go,” I whisper, my tone almost inaudible. But he hears me. Even through the music blasting in the background, “West Coast” by Lana Del Rey, he hears me and my cheek is now pressed against his broad strong chest. I want to scream and cry, but can’t even bring myself to lift my gaze and look into his eyes. I’m so confused. He holds me. No, he clasps me, almost like a hug, and murmurs into my ear.
    “You know why I brought you here?” he asks.
    “To taunt me about my mom?” My voice is shaking and my unshed tears are stinging the back of my eyeballs. God, I hate him so much. Him and my mom. All I ever wanted is a shot at a normal life. I thought I had it up until now, even though mom cared more about her time with Julio than her time with me, and now…now Graham is trying to push my limits, and I don’t even know why.
    “No, kiddo. I’m doing this because I fucking care about you. Look, just look.” He takes my jaw between his fingers and direct my face to the stage. My vision is blurry with tears but I keep it together. I watch the strippers as they move, grinding the poles