“Excuse me… boys?” I cut in.

Vance looked at Luke. “What about you?” he asked.

“I’m in,” Luke replied.

“Helloooooo?” I called.

“You want to call Lee, make it official?” Mace asked.

I gave up, crossed my arms on my chest and tapped my toe.

“Yeah,” Luke answered on a short laugh. “He’s at dinner with Indy, Roxie, Hank, Ally, Tex and his parents. Welcome to Denver for Roxie. He’s probably ready to murder someone about now. He’d kill to get a high priority call.”

The guys looked at each other with amused faces.

“Um, pardon me but it is after midnight. I doubt they’re still at dinner,” I informed them.

They all looked at me.

“Shit,” Mace muttered.

“Probably shouldn’t call him then,” Luke half-grinned.

These guys.

“Does someone want to tell me what you’re talking about?” I asked.

“We’ll leave that to Crowe. Later,” Luke said then he de-materialized, poof, gone.

Same with Mace.

I didn’t ask how these boys seemed to appear and disappear without apparently moving. I had more important things on my mind.

“What’s that mean, speaking for me and protection?” I asked, turning fully to Vance.

“Jermaine and Clarence work for the same guy. Not good to have your boys in a showdown with a white woman in an alley and they get bested. Normally, Princess, you could expect retribution. Someone’s gotta talk to him to convince him not to send someone to put a bullet in your brain. That someone is me.”

I didn’t say anything partially because I didn’t want to think about a bullet in my brain and partially because he called me “Princess”.

“At the same time I make this rumor of you and me bein’ partners true. I give you my protection and they’ll take that into consideration before they, or anyone, thinks to move on you. It’ll mean a f**k of a lot more with Mace and Luke in. It’ll mean even more if Lee throws down.”

I knew he was saying serious stuff but the only thing I could think to say was, “Princess?”

He got close, his hands went to my h*ps and pulled them to his and he looked down at me. “You understand what I just said to you?” he asked softly.

I nodded but said, “Princess?”

He grinned and got closer, his shadowed face blocking out the small amount of light.

His voice still soft, he said, “You sleep in that big bed, wearin’ soft, lacy nightgowns, all those fancy sheets and pillows and fancy furniture in the living room. You live like a f**kin’ princess.”

“I’m not a princess,” I whispered.

“You are to me.”

Oh my God.

I didn’t say anything, couldn’t say anything. I just stood there and stared at his shadowed face.

He kissed my forehead and said, “Get your kids home.”

And then he, too, vanished into the night.

Chapter Seven

Wear Something Nice

The minute I swung into King’s the next morning I knew the night’s escapade had already made the rounds.

There were twice as many kids there than yesterday. They all looked at me when I walked in and the room went wired.

“God dammit,” I muttered under my breath.

“Hey Law!” Curtis shouted from across the room.

I walked to him, ignoring the eyes that followed my progress. “How’s your head?” I asked.

“Good,” he answered, grinning at me like a fool.

“You have a headache, dizzy at all?”

“Nope, nothin’.”

“You feel dizzy, you tell someone, yeah?”

He nodded.

I turned to Martin who was standing beside him. “You okay?” I asked.

“Definitely,” he nodded, pleased as punch to be a central character in my crusade.

I shook my head, shoved his shoulder, turned and saw May bearing down on me like a storm cloud. Without a word, she grabbed my arm, dragged me across the room and into the quiet hall.

“Thought you said you weren’t partnered with Crowe?” she asked, eyes bright again, this time her excitement was mixed with a shade of anger at not being in the loop.

“Um…” I said.

“And what’s this I hear ‘bout you two havin’ a date? You go out on a date with Crowe last night and didn’t tell me?” she kept on.

“It wasn’t a date, as such,” I hedged.

“You spend time with him last night, outside of kickin’ black boy dealer ass that is?”

“Well… yeah,” I admitted.

“He get in your panties?” she was relentless.

“May!”

“Well, did he?”

“No,” I answered.

“Did he try?” she went on.

My eyes slid away. This was none of her business, of course, but one didn’t really go up against May. She might be a soft touch but she was also a mother hen and a nosy, straight-talking one at that.

“Hon,” she said and I noticed her anger was gone, “this is the best news I’ve heard all month, maybe all year.”

My eyes came back to her. “What?” I asked.

“You need a man. Don’t know why the boys aren’t crawlin’ all over you, way you look. Hate to see you lonely, livin’ your life for a bunch of kids, most of ‘em won’t give you the time of day. Every girl needs to get her some and get it regular if she can. You need a life outside this place, and, what I hear of him, you settle him down a bit, Crowe might be just the boy to give it to you.”

I thought for a second about the herculean task of “settling” Crowe down a bit. It almost made me laugh and then I looked at May’s face and decided against it.

“May, it isn’t like that.”

She just looked at me.

“May it was just one, kind of, date,” I said.

“He ask you out again?”

“Um…” I hesitated and May leaned threateningly closer. “Yeah, tonight,” I admitted.

“Mm hmm,” she mumbled, crossing her arms and nodding at me.

I stared at her a beat.

Whatever.

Time to move on.

“I have work to do,” I said.

She stopped me as I tried to move away. “You really flip Jermaine on his back and kick him in the balls?” she whispered.

Slowly, I nodded.

“Girl, you’re workin’ on becomin’ famous,” she smiled and let me go.