RIO

The club was one gigantic room with a platform stage at one end. There was an assortment of booths and tiny tables in the front and a bar at the back. On the stage, six nude women writhed and shimmied to the music. Topless waitresses in spandex shorts and knee-high boots ferried trays of drinks to the booths and tables.

Sergio nudged him. “To the right. We will wait there.” They made their way through the crowd to an unoccupied booth against the far wall. Laurie slid onto the pink leather seat. His pants stuck to something sticky.

He must’ve made a face, because Sergio frowned at him. “You are okay with this place, this does not alarm you too much?”

“I wouldn’t say alarmed, necessarily,” Laurie said. “Do you go here often?”

In Lonely Satellite, RIO is the strip club where Sergio Sarmento takes Laurie Sparks to meet journalist/topless waitress Cerise Cherry.

It's a classy joint.