She paused to say something to the bouncer standing at the bottom of the steps, then she was making her way up.

I moved away from the railing, going over to sit on one of the couches to wait for her.

“Hopefully there’s something left in these,” she yelled to be heard over the bass that was throbbing through our feet and into our bodies. “It’s wild down there,” she added, handing me a glass as she sat down beside me.

I drained my drink and set it on the table so my hands were free to grab her legs and pull them over my lap. A smile tugged at my lips at the black ballet flats she’d put on because There’s no way I am walking a marathon around that place with ice picks strapped to my feet.

“How’s everything down there?” I asked, slipping her shoe off and rubbing her tired soles.

We were alone in the VIP section for the night.

We had a couple celebrities interested in coming, but we pushed them off until the official open, so we could have the balcony to ourselves to observe the goings on.

“They’re good. The newer bartender is stressed but the seasoned one is picking up the slack. She’ll learn. She’s made of tough stuff.”

The newer bartender was a passion project of Saff’s.

Just like with the Gallagher boys, Saff could never turn away a kid who looked like they’d fallen on hard times. Or simply lived hard lives.

The bartender, Cass, had just turned nineteen a week ago and had been thrust into bartender training and alcohol safety serving classes.

Saff had found her living near a bodega, getting hassled by a couple of assholes who saw a young, pretty, defenseless woman and figured they could get away with anything they wanted.

She took her back to Brooklyn, cleaned her up, tossed her into her old apartment, and told her she was about to be making a fortune in tips.

I had a feeling our future was going to involve a lot of similar stories. And given our pasts, I was all too happy to give back and give some kids like the ones we’d once been the leg up they needed in life.

“I have no doubt. Your gut is almost as accurate as mine,” I said.

To that, Saff whacked me in the chest with her knee.

Which just so happened to part her legs.

And I couldn’t exactly turn down an invitation like that, now, could I?

My fingertips danced across her ankle, then slid inward and up, teasing up her calf, the side of her knee, and, finally, her inner thigh.

Saff’s eyes sparked as she let her leg fall open for me while my finger traced the line of her panties.