Now the line of women she had jumped were checking Tender out, exiting the men’s room with a man. “Aiight, my name iz Tender.” Tender shot evil daggers with her eyes in response to the women’s menacing stares.

“Hope you don’t expect me to believe dat. What kinda name iz dat? … Tender … Though you do look a li’l young and innocent.”

“Straight up! I’m fa real dis time.”

Huh, if only you knew, Tender mused to herself. There wasn’t a thing innocent about her anymore. “Dat’s what they call me. And dat’s what you’ll call me till I say different.”

“Oh, yeah? Anyway, you look familiar. Where you from?” he questioned.

“Whut’z dis? Twenty-one questions? You da po’lease or sumthin’?” she shot back.

“I don’t know why you even went there wit dat. But I’m da furthest thing away from a cop you’ll eva see in ya life,” he assured her. “Fa real!! You dissed me wit that comment … You just ruined my whole day …”

“Look, ummm,” Tender stuttered. “Well, what’s your name?”

“Q,” he interjected.

“Yeah, Q. I apologize if I offended you. I wuz only playin’.

It’s not dat serious,” she explained. “Anyway, I’m from Philly. And you?”

“Me, too! Damn, it’s a small world … You don’t know who I am? You neva heard of me? Q?” he answered, throwing his name out there again for good measure.

Tender took another look at his face. She thought long and hard. Then it came to her; she had heard of Q, a music mogul. caching, the cash register in her head rang. In a chance meeting, she had come face-to-face with the man. She couldn’t believe her luck.

“Wanna dance?” he whispered in her ear, while leading her to the middle of the makeshift dance floor. Only by holding hands did they manage to stay together. The crowd was mad thick.

Q was a very good dancer. His moves were fluent and his steps were on beat. She wondered, Was his sex as good as his dancing? having already made up her mind that she was going to give him some.

As they danced, Tender looked around the party trying to spot Kat and Goldie. Had she brought her cell phone with her, she would have gotten the numerous messages that they had left her.

They had left the party with two dates. They’d see her back at the hotel. Tender wasn’t a dummy though. She figured when she didn’t see them that they were on a mission, chasing money. She was cool with that. It didn’t bother her that she was there by herself. Because she was with a person she wanted to be with. She was in a position that either of them would love to be in.