“Marcus, what’s good, my dude?” Jay came over, breaking the tension.

“Chilling,” he said to Jay, but kept his eyes on Pain. “I know y’all didn’t come down here to cause trouble?”

“Pardon that.” Jay nodded in Pain’s direction. “My dude didn’t know shorty was with you.”

“Well, he does now. Y’all go in and have a good time, but keep that nigga in check.” Marcus had a chill in his voice that served as a warning to anyone within earshot.

“You got it, Marcus. We’d never disrespect your club,” Jay said, leading his team inside.

Billy waited until the men had passed through the entrance before speaking. “What was that all about?”

Marcus shrugged his wide shoulders. “Wasn’t about nothing. I seen duke grab you and I stepped in. What kind of dude would I be if I didn’t?” He acted as if he didn’t see the suspicious look Billy was giving him. “Shall we?”

“Yeah, okay,” she said and took his arm, “but you and I are going to have a serious talk this evening.”

Marcus gave her a heart-melting smile. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.”

The two of them strolled off arm in arm like two lovers. It was nice, but short-lived as Marcus’s Lexus GS300 was parked a few feet from the club. It was a 1993, but he kept it in mint condition. The car was fitted with wooden panels and modest twenty-inch rims. Billy reached out for the passenger door, only to have him step around her and do the honors. Billy smiled through the windshield at Marcus as he walked coolly around to the driver’s side. She had to remind herself to thank Yoshi for the hookup.

Yoshi lounged at the bar, sipping a Long Island iced tea. There were some crumpled-up bills in the net purse she carried around the club, but it was nothing to write home about. She had made a few dollars doing lap dances, but the fish weren’t really biting just yet. The patrons who had been there for a while were borderline shit-faced and broke, but dudes had been pouring in for the last half hour or so. New faces meant new money and she was damn sure gonna get her share.

“Hey, pretty lady,” Black Ice said, taking the stool next to Yoshi’s. He was dressed immaculately in a black shirt and matching slacks. His black gators were polished to a mirror shine, as was the gold buckle.

“Hi, Ice,” she said in a very uninterested tone.

“Not yet, but I will be.” He flashed his diamond-studded teeth. “How these tricks treating you tonight?”

“Can’t complain. You know I handle mine.”

“And that’s the problem.” Ice leaned in to whisper in her ear. “You’re handling yours instead of letting the best man for the job take care of it.”