Chapter1
"Any woman can sell pussy. But it takes a special woman to sell anexperience."
Ronnie rolled her eyes so hard I thought they might get stuck. “Girl bye,” she muttered under her breath beside me. “She tryna romanticize this shit.”
I nudged her sharply and whispered a quickshhh, but it was already too late.
Madam’s voice cut through the room like a knife. “Is there something you ladies would like to share with the class?”
The room went still.
Five of us were sitting in a semicircle of plush velvet chairs. The lighting was low and warm, soft enough to flatter but bright enough that Madam could see every twitch of our faces. She stood in front of us like a headmistress—tall, curvy, gorgeous,and wrapped in a fitted black dress that hugged her hips. Her hands settled on those hips as she waited.
I opened my mouth to smooth things over, but Ronnie’s messy ass beat me to it.
“You said we’re selling an experience, right?” she asked.
Madam lifted one perfectly sculpted brow. “Yes. What about it?”
Ronnie shrugged like she wasn’t two seconds away from getting us both thrown out. “I mean that’s cool and all…but at the end of the day, we just selling pussy, right?”
Lord. This damn girl.
The air got tight.
Madam’s eyes narrowed even further. The almond nail on her index finger tapped slowly against her arm. “It’s notjustselling pussy, little girl,” she said calmly.
The calmness was what made her intimidating.
She continued, “If you want to do that, you can take your young ass out on them corners and sell it with the dope boys.” She stepped closer, heels clicking softly against the polished floor. “But inmyestablishment, my girls sell an experience.” Her nail lifted and pointed directly at the door. “And if that’s not for you, you can get up right now and walk out. The choice is yours.” There was deathly pause before she added, “You have five seconds.”
Shit. This woman wasn’t playing.
Before Ronnie could open her mouth and make things worse, I jumped in. “My apologies, Madam,” I said quickly. “She don’t mean no harm. Her mama dropped her on her head when she was a baby.”
A small smirk tugged at Madam’s lips.
I smiled politely. “We understand. Thank you.”
Silence stretched across the room while Madam studied us like she was deciding whether we were worth the trouble. The other women glanced over, curiosity all over their faces.
Finally, she nodded once. “I like you,” she said.
I blinked.
“You’re amiable.”
I had no idea what the hellamiablemeant in this moment, but I wasn’t about to ask questions. “Thank you,” I said instead.
Madam’s gaze slid back to Ronnie. “Control your friend,” she warned. “Or she’s out. There’s a line of women waiting to take her place.” Then just like that, she turned and continued the speaking to the group like nothing had happened.
I felt Ronnie's heated glare on me. I turned my head to look at her. Her mouth was set in a straight line and her pretty face was all twisted. I placed my index to my lips for her to stay quiet. She pinched my exposed thigh in response. I pinched her back. Harder.
"Bitch," she hissed under her breath.
My lips quivered as I held in a chuckle. I loved his bitch, but she was a menace sometimes.
Madam continued her introduction before those sharp eyes landed on each one of us for a moment. "Before we get into the orientation, let's do some brief introductions." Her gaze landed back on Ronnie. "Starting with you since you were so eager to share." There was a hint of edge in her tone but warmth in her eyes, nonetheless.