Ivan said, “The same way I take care of you for helping me: a couple hundred dollars here and there when they need it.”

Actually, Ivan had given Ida more than a few hundred dollars. But loyalty was priceless, and he had no complaints about her efficiency on the job, or her added perks.

She said, “But for what? I mean, you can see what I’m doing. And a few of her girls were busy tonight, but a lot of them were just…there doing whatever.”

Ivan frowned and said, “So, what’s the big deal? Obviously she uses these girls to get the crowd that she gets. And nobody’s complaining about it. We’re all used to seeing pretty girls around Lucina. They gravitate toward her. But I mean, what are you trying to say?”

He took a long swallow of his water and waited. He didn’t believe Lucina was a lesbian or anything. She was simply working her social network game.

Ida swallowed from her own glass of water. She asked, “So, why do you think she was so adamant about giving those football players a bunch of twenties to be ‘generous’ with? Generous how?”

Ivan laughed nervously at what Ida was insinuating.

“Come on, Ivan. Do I need to come right out and say it? It’s obvious.”

Ivan opened his mouth and said, “You think she’s passing these girls off to make more money? Is that what you’re saying?”

Ida just stared at him. “I mean, we’re grown people here, Ivan. And I don’t like how she kept referring to me as a girl, either. How old is she anyway, twenty-five, twenty-six? Well, she has a lot of damn nerve. And I don’t care where she’s from. She acts like a spoiled-rich girl. Everybody’s supposed to move to her drum.”

Ivan was getting more nervous by the minute. Ida talking about Lucina so passionately was turning him on, and he didn’t want her to notice it. But Ida had to admit it herself, the Brazilian girl was interesting.

Ivan shook off his excitement and kept his cool. “Naw,” he responded. “Something that obvious would be crazy.”

Ida stared at him again. “Okay. You just remember I told you so.”

Ivan drank his water and remained silent. He told himself, I guess I’ll have to find out now.

OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS, Ivan spent time interviewing several website salespeople who had responded to his solicitations for help. He had already sold a third of his ad space just from the waiting list that he had kept. But now was the time to go all-out. With the buzz they had created from the Chargers party, the entire city was becoming familiar with his website brand. IDPromotions.com was set to blow.