Victoria



*Three days later*

"Get my damn son from back there! He didn't do shit!"

"Ma'am, I'm going to need you to please calm the hell down," One of the officers said as he came from around the front desk. "We don't even know who your son is."

"Theodore Reed!" I yelled, banging on the desk. "I already told the other officers what his name was. One of the officers went back to get him but that was over a half an hour ago! Where the hell is my damn son?"

The officer sighed. "What's his name again, ma'am?"

"Theodore Reed the third," I rolled my eyes. "Are you going back there to get him or what?"

"First I need to see what he's in for and what his bail is sat as."

"Okay, well go on and do that so he can get the hell out of here."

The officer began typing things into his computer. "Well, I see your son hasn't went to trial yet to determine his bail amount."

My eyes widened. "What do you mean he hasn't went to trial yet? He's been in this hell hole for three days now! How much longer is he going to have to sit in this place when he's innocent?"

"Well that's for the judge to determine."

"My son is innocent and y'all need to take him out of this place!" I yelled. "I've been here trying to get answers for over an hour now and I keep getting the run around from everybody in here. My son has been sitting back there with all types of thugs and hoodlums for several days, he isn't like any of them. He's a hard-working father and he doesn't deserve to be treated this way. When is his trial?"

"Well the judge was out of town but she's back now s--"

"So you mean to tell me, you only have on judge? You don't have another judge on duty, so that there aren't other people like my son sitting around waiting on a trial for a crime they didn't even commit? What kind of bullshit is that?"

"I'm sorry ma'am, that's just how the system is run. If I could change it then I would but his trial is tomorrow morning at 8 AM. Visiting hours are going on for another hour. You can see your son if you want to. Do you?"

"Of course I do."

"Okay, well follow me."

The officer unlocked the gate behind the desks and began checking me before I could even go back and see my baby. It took them almost 20 minutes to check my body, my bag and even do a background check on me since they were so backed up with other people, but luckily I got to see Theodore. He's called me twice since being in here and I can tell just how rough it's been for him. If it's rough for him now, I can't imagine how shit will be if he actually gets convicted and has to go to prison.

"Baby, what the hell are they doing to you in here?" I immediately asked Theodore but he just shook his head.

"They ain't doing nothing to me Mama. It's not too many people back here so I'm in a cell by myself. Im not back there trying to make friends with anybody, I'm just trying to go."

"They been bothering you?" I asked, making him shrug his shoulders.

"Just giving me a hard time, that's all. You know, it's nothing I can't handle."

"Good. Don't let them make you their bitch, you better make then your bitch. But hopefully it won't even have to get to that point. Your trial is tomorrow morning. You ready for that?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "As ready as I'll ever be. I'm just ready to get the hell up outta here Mama. This place ain't for me and I miss my baby girl. How's she doing with Lindsey?"

"She's all right but she hasn't been staying with Lindsey."

He scrunched up his face. "Why? All this time y'all had me thinking she was staying with Lindsey. Where the hell is my baby at?"

I sighed. "I just forgot to tell you but I didn't want you worrying about her and I knew you'd be worrying a lot with her staying with Lindsey. I love Lindsey a lot but she's not ready to handle two kids. She's takes care of Daniel but could be doing so much more for him, and if I could, I'd take him too. And I don't want that Cashmere clown around any of grand babies. He's bad news. But she's been staying with me and your Dad."

He scoffed. "My Dad? If that's the case, then Milan must be there too. It's no telling what kind of women my Dad has coming in and out of that house. Why would you take her there?"

"Because I'm going to be staying there with them the next few months. I can't help the fact that Milan is there. If it was up to me, she wouldn't be there but that's not my decision to make. And as much as it pains me to say this, Milan isn't mean to Princess and neither is your father. Princess is doing just fine with us."

"Alright Mama," he sighed. "I just got a lot of stuff on my mind. I don't have anything to do in here besides sit and think and Princess has just been in my mind lately. Since I got custody of her, I've never been away from her for this long and I don't like being away from her."

"I know and you won't have to be for too much longer. What is it that you said you had to tell me but couldn't tell me over the phone?"

"The dumb cops didn't read me my rights after the arrested me," he whispered. "Hopefully that voids have the shit they got on me, 'cause if it don't, I might be going away for a very long time."

I waved him off. "No you won't. Don't even think like that. And if that doesn't void the charges they have on you then we'll try to have another trial to get you out of here as quickly as possible."

He sighed. "Alright, thank you for being here for me Mama."

It was the least I could do, he's my son. Of course I'd be here for him. I know I wasn't always the best mother in the past and I feel like I need to do so much to make up for everything I did to him, that's why I do so much for him now. I know I can't make up for the past, but showing him the love and affection he was missing out on as a teenager right now is what I have to do to keep him happy then I'm more than willing to do it. I want a better relationship with my son.

I smiled. "It's no big deal. Is there anything else you need me to do?"

"Oh, did you check my phone?"

"Yes," I said as I reached into my pocket to grab the folded up piece of paper that I wrote all of his missed calls on. "Your Grandpa called you, Donny called you, Princess' school called twice and an unsaved number called you five times. I don't recognize the number so I wrote it down."

I slid him the piece of paper and he nodded his head. "It's Mya."

I scrunched up my face. "And you didn't save her number?"

"It's a long story but I need you to do one more favor for me."

"What is it?"

"I'm sure you don't want to talk to any females I'm involved with but Mya and I were supposed to hang out the morning I got arrested, so we never got around to doing it. Do you mind giving her a call and telling her what's going on? I like her a lot Mama and I want her to know what's going on with me."

I sighed. I didn't want anything to do with any girls he's fucking around with but I'd make an exception for Mya since she's the only one of his female friends I actually like. Theodore doesn't have the best track record when it comes to women, so it was refreshing to see that he's changed his taste and finally found a wholesome woman like Mya. "Yeah, I'll give her a call as soon as I leave. Anything else?"

"Nope, that's it. Thank you Mama. I really appreciate everything you've done for me. I love you so much."

I smiled a genuine smile, something I haven't done in awhile. "I love you too baby."

Theodore and I eventually parted ways once visiting hours were over and I found myself in the front seat of my car with the slip of paper with Mya's number written on it. I took a deep breath before dialing her number.

"Hello?" She answered.

"Hey, is this Mya?"

"Yes it is. Who is this?"

"This is Victoria, Theodore's Mom."

"Oh, hi Miss. McDonald. How are you doing?"

"Considering the circumstances, I all right."

"What are the circumstances? Is Theodore all right? We were supposed to hang out a few days ago and I haven't heard from him. I've been calling him and he hasn't answered. There's a rumor going around that he's in jail, but I try not to feed into the gossip. What's going on with him?"

I sighed. "He is in jail."

"When is he getting out?"

"I'm not sure. His trial is tomorrow morning and hopefully the judge releases him tomorrow."

"I hope he gets out soon. You know, if there's anything you or your family needs then I'm here. How's Princess? Is she all right?"

I scrunched up my face. Damn. Theodore really told this girl everything about himself. If anything, I expected him to keep Princess away from all of his females but he must be serious about Mya. "Princess is doing okay. She's been staying with me and Theodore's father. Let me ask you something Mya."

"Sure, what's up?"

"I know the two of us met on our little yacht trip but we never really got a chance to sit down and talk. I never got to grill you about being with my son, my only son. Regardless of what he might tell you about me, I love him a lot and I really want to know where your head is at when it comes to him, so what are your intentions with my son? You know, he's a hard-working man and doesn't really have time for nonsense, especially since he's trying to raise his daughter on his own. How do you feel about her and the fact that he has a baby mama?"

"Well Miss. McDonald, I care about Theodore a lot and I know he has a lot on his plate, that's why I don't bother him about simple things like breaking dates or not being able to hang out. I understand he's trying to raise Princess by himself, and I respect that and I don't get in the way of that. I love Princess. She's such a sweet little girl."

"Do you know that she's sick?"

"Yes, Theodore told me about that. He didn't go into too much detail about her illness but he touched on it. I just don't bring it up much because I know how he feels about it. I try to keep his mind off of it as much as I can."

"Alright, that's understandable. So do you see yourself with my son well into the future?"

"Uh," she laughed. "I'm not sure right now. We're both so young but I really, really do like Theodore. I don't know if his feelings are as strong as mine, but hopefully we are together in the future. I'd like us to be."

"Well, between you and I, he likes you a lot too. I see that he's changed a lot being with you, and I like this change I see in him. Before I say I'm here for you guys' relationship, I wanna talk to you woman to woman."

"Oh, of course, that's fine. When are you free?"

"Right now," I responded. "I'm not from around here, so I don't know many places to go."

"Well we can go to Underwood Grille. It's in Buckhead."

"Alright, I know where that's at. I'll see you there in an hour?"

"Yup, that's fine."

"Alright, Bye Mya."

"Bye Miss. McDonald."

I took a deep breath and ended the call. Never did I ever think I'd be sitting down to lunch with one of Theodore's girlfriends, but I'm trying to make sure he makes the right decisions in life. I know what to expect from these dumb broads now and if I see any deception in Mya, then I can just dead things before they go too far.

Jazmine



"You know Theodore won't be too happy about this, right?"

I took a deep breath and nodded my head. I know Theodore will be upset with what I'm about to do but I've got my mind set on it. Promoting for clubs and parties is quick, easy money but it's not enough money for the lifestyle I'm trying to live. It's something I'll do on the side but I have even bigger plans for myself, that's why I decided to meet with Adonis today at Theodore's club.

I want a good paying job. One where I don't have to come in every single night unless I want to. And shit. I see the girls that work here and the kind of money they make every night. Some dance on stage for 20 minutes and leave with a grand. I'm trying to pay money like that. And with a job like this, I can still go to school during the day and still be able to pay for my books and tuition. So the way I see it, it's a win-win situation. I can go to school and still rake in a lot of money every night. The only draw back is that Theodore wouldn't let me work here, but Adonis would.

"Yeah, I know but this isn't about him. This is my decision."

"And you know I'm only the acting manager while he's gone and he can still trump my decision to hire you once he gets back, right?"

"Yeah. Damn. Why you keep trying to warn me as if I don't know the consequences of working here? I know what the fuck to expect so just hire me."

Donny smirked. "Before I do that, I need to see what you can do first."

My eyes widened. "Excuse me? I think you know just about everything I can do."

"Yeah, but that's in bed with me. I wanna see what you can do on the pole. Can you dance? Can you strip? Can you mind fuck all the people that come to this club every night? I know how you can be with me, but there's going to be hundreds of people here every single night looking for a show. We're putting our reputation on the line for you, so before I hire your mean ass, I need to see what you can do."

"Okay, fine," I said as I looked around for a pole. How hard can it be to swing around on the pole and look sexy? I do it all the time when Donny and I are fucking, so just adding a few more sets of eyes won't deter me from the money.

"Oh, not in here. Out in the main part of the club."

"Well the club is closed, so how can I get practice with no one watching right now?"

He smirked. "Don't worry about it. I'll round up my men and you get dressed in the back. I already got something laid out for you."

"Okay," I mumbled.

Donny led me to the back where the locker rooms were and he showed me the outfit he wanted me to try out in. The outfit wasn't anything too special, just a shiny hot pink boy short and sports bra set. I already bought a pair of heels since I figured I'd have to try out today.

"Get dressed and just come out to the front when you're done."

"What about my audience?"

Donny smirked. "Don't worry about it ma. I got it under control," he said as he began walking out but he turned back around before he got to the door. "What's your name gonna be?"

I shrugged my shoulders. "I don't know."

"Don't worry about it. I got'chu."

Once Donny finally walked out of the locker room, I got dressed in the outfit he laid out for me and slipped on my clear 6 inch heels. I was a little nervous to be dancing for niggas I don't even know but that money was the only thing making me do this. I mean, I honestly don't need to be working here. Now that my parents are divorced, my Mom already promised to pay for my tuition but that's only if I go back to school. So, I'm going back next semester, I'll pay for my expenses and I'll pocket the money she gives me. Shit. It's the least she can do for all the shit she and my Dad put me through.

I walked back out to the front of the club and saw that Donny rounded up his men just like he said he would. He had the bouncers, a couple security guards, two janitors and a few of the guys he and Theodore worked with. But the person that stood out to me was Aubrey. I know he and Theodore are cool again but I wasn't expecting to see him here right now.

Aubrey looked at me with a frown on his face. I guess I was the last person he'd expect to see today too, but he just took one of the seats directly in front of the stage I'd be performing at. He made me nervous. He made my heart race. Aubrey was the only guy that made me nervous, because even after all of these years, somehow his approval is something I needed.

"Hello! Jaz!" Donny waved his hand in front of my face, snapping me out of my thoughts.

"What?"

"Take yo' ass on stage!"

I rolled my eyes and just walked up on stage. I wasn't completely naked but the stares I got from everybody made me feel completely naked. Aubrey stared daggers into me as I approached the pole. I reached my hand out to grab the pole but I missed and almost busted my ass.

"Damn. I don't think she's ready Donny," One of the guys said as they all began snickering.

I rolled my eyes as I grabbed on to the pole and kept my concentration. I wasn't gonna look like a dumb ass in front of these niggas. Immediately, the music started playing and Ciara's 'Ride' blasted through the club.

"I'm starting you off with something slow," Donny spoke through the microphone. "Once I see you can handle this slow song then I'mma move you on to the good shit."

I closed my eyes, took a deep breath and just danced to the song as if it were only Aubrey and I in here. I twirled my body around the pole, shook my ass and crawled towards Aubrey. It felt like he and I were the only two in here; the only two that mattered. I dropped down into a split in front of the pole and as soon as I was about to get up, the music changed.

"The music is gonna be constantly changing during your sets, so just keep up and don't miss the beat," Donny told me as O.T. Genesis' 'Thick' came on.

I slid down the pole, twerking my ass off. I wasn't much of a dancer but I could twerk and I could wow a crowd. And I think I was doing just that. I wasn't hearing any complaints from Donny's friends, only whistles. I laid on my back, spreading my legs wide as I continued shaking my ass and that's when I saw the money falling on top of my body. I danced on top of the dollar bills, guys stuck them in various parts of my outfits and they floated in the air the more I danced and the more Donny's friends were intrigued by my show.

But I wanted to take it a step further to guarantee my spot. I stepped off of the staged. I ignored every single one of Donny's thirsty friends, including Donny who was probably expecting a show from me, but I went straight up to Aubrey and stood behind his chair. I slid my hands down his broad chest until I got to the top of his grey Nike sweatpants. I could see hid dick print through his sweats, which showed me I was doing something right.

Just as I was about to pull away from him, Aubrey grabbed a hold of my arms and pulled me in front of him. Aubrey looked up at me with big, awaiting eyes and I immediately felt my heart sink. I missed Aubrey and I didn't realize how much I did until this very moment. I placed my legs on each side of his chair and was about to start grinding on him but the music shut off.

"The show's over!" Donny yelled over the mic.

I scrunched up my face and turned to him. "What? I didn't even finish."

"No need. I don't like what I'm seeing."

One of his friends sucked his teeth. "Damn nigga. Stop all that shit. I think lil mama did good," he smirked.

"Me too."

Aubrey smirked as he looked my body up and down. "Yeah, me too," he mumbled so only I could hear, but that made me smile.

"Nah, she don't got what it takes," Donny retorted.

"Man, if Prince was here, he would've given her the job immediately."

"Well Prince ain't here and I'm in charge so I'm making the decision."

I folded my arms. "Why don't I have what it takes? I danced good and everybody seems to think so except for you."

"Because I'm not impressed."

I rolled my eyes as I stood up from Aubrey's lap. Donny's jealousy was really starting to show. One minute he wants me, the next minute he doesn't. Now, because I danced for Aubrey, it's an issue. I don't understand what he wants from me. Whatever Donny and I had going on is done and in the past. He needs to be a grown man and get past the shit because I'm over him.

"Fine," I snapped. "I don't need this shit anyways. Fuck you."

Donny shrugged his shoulders as he walked away from everybody. He's a bitch ass nigga if he's going to let his jealousy get in the way of the club making money. One of the workers swept up my money and placed it in a bag before I walked back to the locker room to change. I was pissed. I know I did good on the stage, I don't know why Donny's being such a bitch just because I danced for Aubrey.

I took off the outfit Donny had given me and threw it on the floor. Now, there's no way I'm going to get a job here. If Donny wouldn't even give me the job, I know Theodore won't. I got the potential to work here, Donny just needs to set his feelings aside and be more professional. I pulled my jeans up over my hips and was just about to button them when I felt a cold pair of hands grab my waist. I looked down at the hands and I knew they were Aubrey's. I recognized them even though he had tattoo's covering them now.

I turned around so we were chest to chest and looked up at him.

"Why you doing this shit? You too good for this Jaz."

I slightly frowned. "It's my decision Aubrey."

"I know, but I don't like you doing this shit."

"Well you didn't seem to have a problem with it out there," I said as I gazed down at his gray sweatpants. I could still see that he was hard. "And it doesn't look like you have a problem with it right now either."

Aubrey grabbed my chin and lifted my face up so I was looking him directly in the face. "You know I don't have a problem with looking and you know how you make a nigga feel Jazzy. I can't help myself when it comes to you."

"Jazzy? I haven't heard that name in awhile," I laughed, making him smile.

"'Cause nobody else should be calling you by the nickname I gave you." Aubrey's hands slid down my waist, past my hips and placed them on top of my ass so he could pull me closer. "You know, I really missed you Jazmine."

I smirked. "How much did you miss me?"

"I can show you better than I can tell you."

"Show me then."

I gasped a little when Aubrey snatched my arm and pushed my hand down his sweats so I could feel how hard he was. Aubrey kept his hand on top of mine as he began stroking his dick. "That's how much I missed you baby girl. Now, you can have me when and where ever you want me Jaz. That's up to you."

"Well, as much as I'd like to take you up on that offer, I'm gonna have to decline," I said as I removed my hand from his pants. Of course I wanted to fuck Aubrey. He was my first everything and just seeing him here, made me yearn from him even more, but him showing me how hard he is from me dancing isn't proving to me how much he missed me. It only shows me that he wants to have sex with me just as I want to with him.

"Damn, so it's like that now?"

I nodded my head. "You're gonna have to try a little harder than that Aub," I said as I pulled the bra over my head. "Making me feel your dick ain't gonna make me run back to you. And you've known me long enough to know that shit isn't enough for me. You get where I'm coming from?" I looked up at Aubrey and he wasn't even paying attention. He was too busy staring at my bare chest to hear anything that was coming out of my mouth. I laughed as I walked up to him. I lifted his face up. "I said, do you get where I'm coming from?"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah."

"Good, so ju--"

Aubrey cut me off mid-sentence by pressing his lips against mine. Just the feelings of his lips being against mine again felt good. I haven't kissed Aubrey in years and I forgot just how good his lips felt against mine. Aubrey slipped his tongue into mine and slipped his hands below my ass. He picked me up and carried me over to the lockers that were in the back. He sat down on one of the benches with me still in his lap but it wasn't long before he kissed down my neck, down my chest and stopped once he got to my boobs.

Aubrey did always have a way with his mouth, and it's the reason we got into so much trouble as teenagers. Aubrey took each of my boobs into his mouth, swirling his tongue around every inch and nibbling all over my n*pples. I felt like a little girl again. I always did when I was around Aubrey. He made me feel like that defenseless teenager that put her all into making our tragic relationship as perfect as possible, but that's what I learned over the years. Our relationship was short of perfect but we loved each other, a lot. And it was moments like these where we could just reconnect, as if years of pain and humiliation never happened, that made me love him so much and made me so vulnerable to everything he did to me.

I pulled away from Aubrey, since I knew I was worth more than a fuck in the back of a locker room at a strip club. I pulled away from him but his lips only stayed connected to my chest. I wanted to push him off of me and tell him to leave me the hell alone but I just couldn't. I couldn't bring myself to do it. And the more he nibbled on my chest, leaving bite marks and hickies everywhere, the more I fell for him.

Aubrey's hands slid up my back and gripped my shoulders so I wouldn't be able to pull away from him. He finally removed his mouth from my chest, just enough to say, "I miss you Jazzy." He went back to kissing all over my chest and neck again before he lifted his head up again, "And I'm not gon' do this to you here. You deserve better than this. You deserve a whole lot better than the shit I've given to you over the years and I'm sorry for everything." He went back to kissing on my chest, this time a lot slower and steadier. He kissed up my neck until he got to my lips where he placed one more kiss. "I wanna take you out, you know, get you away from this place for awhile."

"Aubrey, I--"

"I don't care. I'm taking you out tonight. Wear something nice, a'ight?"

"I'm busy tonight. How about tomorrow?"

He sighed. "That's fine too. I really wanted to see you tonight though."

I smiled as I climbed off of his lap. "I got you tomorrow."

If I wanted this job, I wasn't going to let Donny stop me. I was gonna show my ass up here tonight, dance my ass off and see what Donny has to say about that. Once he sees how much money I'll be bringing in, he'll have to hire me and it'll be less stress on me once Theodore is released from jail.

I tried to walk away from Aubrey but he grabbed on to my arm and pulled me back so I was standing in front of him. "Jazzy, don't play me. Like on some real shit, I missed you and I'mma be pissed if you play me and stand me up like you used to in high school."

"I promise I won't."

"And you gon' give me some p*ssy too," he demanded, instead of asking.

I folded my arms. "I'm gonna give you some p*ssy?" I laughed. "Boy, you're gonna have to come better than that."

"Damn. What kinda game you expect me to have? I've been locked up for five years, so I ain't get a chance to practice. If I was horny, all I could do was pull out my picture of you and jack off 'til my shit went limp. Gimmie a break Jaz."

I laughed. I can't even lie and say I wasn't a little uncomfortable, because I was, but I didn't expect too much from Aubrey. "I see you haven't changed since high school. You've still got your same sense of humor."

"It's the same Aubrey. I just got older and better looking."

"Better looking indeed," I smirked.

"I can say the same about you. You so damn beautiful Jaz. You know I can't resist chocolate."

I laughed. "Shut up Aubrey." I backed away from him and stuck my hand out. "Come on, walk me to my car please."

"Anything for you Jaz."

I helped Aubrey up, I finished getting dressed and the two of us walked out of the club. Aubrey followed a few feet behind me the entire time out of the club, only because he was looking at my ass. But I didn't care. I used that as ammunition since Donny was starring at us hard as hell as we walked out. I hope he's upset. I smacked my ass and mouthed to Donny, "Kiss my ass."

He didn't say anything back. He just looked at Aubrey and I over the rim of his glass as we walked out. As soon as we got outside, Aubrey began walking beside me as I walked towards my car.

"Daaaaaamn," Aubrey dragged out once we approached my car. "My baby's ridin' round in a BMW. The fuck you been doing? Mommy and Daddy?"

"No, more like your friend."

"Oh," he chuckled. "Theodore. Y'all fucking?"

I rolled my eyes as he pulled my door open and I got inside. "Don't start that shit Aubrey. Theodore and I have been living together the past few years but he and I having sex is just something that's never happened. Like I told you in high school, we were never attracted to each other and we still aren't. The only reason I've even stuck around this long is because of Princess, so miss me with that shit. If this is what you're gonna be on then I don't want shit to do with you o--"

"Sorry. I'm sorry Jazmine," Aubrey sighed. "I was locked up for so long so all I got to do was think about the shit y'all coulda been doing but I believe you. And I should've believed y'all in high school instead of letting E.J., Ava, Hazel, Sonya, and all them other niggas working under E.J. cloud my vision and steer me in the wrong direction. I fucked up, and as a man, I can admit that shit. I'm sorry."

I sighed. "I accept your apology."

"Thanks Jaz. Can I get your number?"

"Nope. My number is the same, so I hope you remembered it."

Aubrey chuckled. "Of course I do. I'll call you later though."

"Alright, bye Aubrey."

"Bye gorgeous."

I rolled up my window and pulled out of the parking lot with a smile on my face. Maybe rekindling things with Aubrey won't be such a bad idea. He's still the same Aubrey but I can see that he's changed so much, and it's for the better. I like this new Aubrey, I just hope the old Aubrey doesn't begin to resurface.

Goldie



Miss. McDonald and I sat down at the table in the back of Underwood's Grille. I was a little nervous about meeting with her one-on-one, since all of our other encounters involved Theodore. I know how ruthless she can get when it comes to Theodore, so I hope she's good to me.

"Oh Mya, you're so beautiful. A whole lot prettier than the other hoocie's Theodore's been with," she snickered as she took her Chanel shades off and placed them inside of her Chanel tote bag.

I smiled. "Uh thank you, I think."

"Oh, it's a compliment sweetie. Take it. You're young and beautiful, quite like how I am."

I laughed. Maybe this lunch won't be so bad. "So uh, what prompted you to make the move to Georgia? And how are you liking it down here?"

"Well, I haven't actually moved. I'm still living in California with my fiancee but I decided to visit down here so I could spend some more time with my family. Theodore and I were really close when he was younger, then he got involved with the wrong people in high school, hence him having Princess. Don't get me wrong, I love Princess and I'd do anything for her but I can't stand her mother and I can't stand what she did to make Princess. She tricked Theodore into having her just so she could have some sort of 'come up' off of my family."

"Oh," I mumbled. I didn't know all of that happened with his baby mama. He doesn't speak about her at all, so I assumed they had some issues going on, but nothing to that extent. "I didn't know all of that happened."

Miss. McDonald nodded her head. "I know and I figured you didn't know, but that's just a heads up for when you meet her because you're going to meet her. She's going to pick a fight with you, but fuck her. You look better, you're smarter, you've got your head on your shoulders and you've got bigger goals than just fucking my son to get a pay check. So avoid her as much as possible because she's bad news."

"What's her name?"

"Nicole and watch out for her scheming sister Tee Tee. She tried to pin a baby on my baby too. That's how we fell out. Because of those whores. Are you trying to get pregnant off of my son?"

"No, no, of course not," I replied. Getting pregnant was something I didn't want to do right now. "Maybe in a few years but I want to be in a stable relationship first."

Her eyes widened. "Like marriage?"

I nodded my head. "Yeah. I want to be married if I'm having kids with anyone."

She smiled. "That's understandable and refreshing to hear. Most young girls your age aren't thinking like that. Where are you from?"

"Um Georgia."

"And what do you do for a living? I know Theodore said you're still in school, but you have to be working. What are you doing?"

The big question.

I knew she'd ask that and Theodore didn't want his family knowing that I was a dancer but I can't lie to his Mom. I'm already in good with her, lying to her would just make the situation worse. And it's not like I'm trying to make a career out of dancing. It's just something I'm doing to get myself through school.

"Um actually Miss. McDonald, I'm a dancer," I replied. She was silent; silent for awhile, so I started talking again. "I-I'm not a professional dancer but I dance at a club, Theodore's club. That's actually how the two of us met. I've been one of his top dancers for the past few months. We ultimately didn't want his family to know since I'm not trying to make a career out of this, but I couldn't lie to you. I wanted to be truthful and start things off as honestly as possible, especially since I'm just dancing as a means to get myself through school. I couldn't lie to you about what I do."

Miss. McDonald took a sip of her water before nodding her head. "So, you're a stripper?"

I sighed. "Not technically. I don't take off my clothes."

"So who do you dance for? Old men or just my son?"

I frowned a little. "I dance for anyone that's at the club."

"Including my son?"

"Uh..."

"Oh, I know all about those clubs. I know there's private rooms and what not, and I already know what bosses do in those private rooms with their employees. Have you been fucking my son in those private rooms?"

My eyes widened. "Excuse me?"

"Just answer the question."

"Um uh we have before but not recently since we've been seeing each other exclusively."

"Interesting," she chuckled.

"So, how do you feel about this?"

"I don't like it at all."

"B--"

"But I can see that the club hasn't gotten to your head and neither has my son. Don't let him or that club shit derail you from the dreams you had before you got to that club. I don't agree with you dancing but if that's what you have to do to put yourself through school then I can respect that. And I can see what my son sees in you. You're hard-working and you're going places Mya. By the way, can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"What's your stage name?" she laughed, making me laugh too.

I felt comfortable around Miss. McDonald. A lot more comfortable than I thought I would. I was afraid to come talk to her, but even more afraid to tell her about my profession. I'm just glad she could understand me and what I'm doing.

"Actua--"

"Mya Golding?"

I looked up at the two detectives standing above Miss. McDonald and I and I almost shit my pants. It's gotta be something about Banga. I knew it had to be, but I played it cool or else they'd charge me for killing him, if he's dead.

"Yes, that's me."

"We'd like you to come down to the station for questioning."

"For what?" Miss. McDonald asked.

"Because we need to ask her a few questions about how her boyfriend ended up unconscious on the side walk in front of their apartment building a few nights ago. Now, we're not going to ask you again to come down to the station with us Miss. Golding. Because if we have to ask you again, you'll be walking out of here with handcuffs."

I turned to Miss. McDonald. "I'm sorry Miss. McDonald."

"No, go on sweetie," she waved me off. "We'll have to take a rain check on lunch."

"Of course."

I took one last sip of my drink before I got up and walked out of the restaurant with the detectives. I have to remain cool, because if Banga is dead, then they'll be able to pin his death on me.

~~~

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300+ Comments.

How was this chapter? How do you guys feel about Theodore still being in jail? Will he be released? Why is Victoria so adament about helping Theodore out all of a sudden? How do you guys feel about Jazmine trying to work for Donny? How will Theodore react to her possibly dancing at his club? How do you guys feel about Aubrey and Jazmine rekindling their relationship? Should they or should he focus on Lindsey? How do you guys feel about Goldie and Victoria having lunch? Did Victoria take Goldie being a dancer nicely? Is Banga dead?