Midnight Flock

Chapter 8: First Night

A/N: What would be a chapter without a note from me?!?!?!?! I can't believe we're already on chapter 8. Damn.  You guys rock! Thank-you for reading and voting, and I get a kick out of your notes. I'm glad you all are still with me and enjoying the story thus far. Please forgive any typos or grammatical errors you find in this chapter. My beta dared go on vacation *cue gasps of horror* I know! But, I didn't want to deny you guys a chapter so I am just going to throw it up and pray there aren't any horribly glaring issues with the story line. I like to pretend I'm capable of perfection, but the sad reality is, I'm not. So, without further adieu, please enjoy Chapter 8. (side note, the boys make an appearance at the tail end of this thing and the next several chapters will be chalk full of the GB boys.) 

"My feet are killing me." Trish complains for the tenth time tonight as we're at the bar collecting the last order of drinks for a large group in our section. They are tipping us well every time we drop their drinks off, but they've been getting a little handsy as the night has gone on.

"It might have something to do with those four inch heels you're wearing." I nod to her feet and the stilettos she's got on. "I don't even know how you walk in those at all. I'd break my ankle if I tried." She laughs good naturedly at me.

"They make my ass look good in this uniform and my tips are better. You've seen how those guys are just throwing money at us. You'll see how your tips change when I'm not there." She was confident that the only reason she was getting tips was for the way her body looked and not just because maybe the guys were loose with their money, or appreciated our hard work. I scoffed at myself. In this place, that certainly isn't the case. It has to be because of her ass. She looked good. If I ever thought about swinging the gate the other way, she might just convince me. I think I had a girl crush on Trish. She was funny and smart and beautiful.

"Then what's the verdict? Am I good to go on my own?" Trish frowned slightly at that and looked at our large party.

"I'd say yes right now, but I'm afraid Dick would saddle you with that chaos. The club is not as busy tonight and Jasmine seems like she's got the rest of her section handled. I'd appreciate the help with the gangbangers till close." I froze a little. I didn't realize our tables were gang members. They were polite for the most part and dressed decently. I wouldn't have pegged any of them of running with the local gangs.

"I didn't realize." I eyed the guys with caution. Trisha squeezed my hand encouragingly.

"They won't start anything tonight. We're the only club in the area that will let them in still and they don't have anything to prove. It only gets crazy on Fridays and Saturdays when members of the other gangs come in. These boys are from the neighborhood. They grew up around here. This is their turf. They protect their own, I can say that at least. These are just the underlings. When the big boys come in, then you have to watch yourself. They get grabby." Trisha warned me. I sighed heavily. Did the Toma team know this? How much trouble am I in out here on the floor? I thought these guys were grabby. The big guys must be really bad.

I grabbed my tray with beer and mixed drinks while Trisha grabbed hers, filled with shots. We walked back over to the guys and set everything down. There were probably fifteen of them and they constantly kept us busy.

"Hey sugar." A built guy, the crew we were serving kept calling Machete, spoke to me.

"Yeah, Darlin?"I drawled to him. I had to keep in character as much as I hated the subtle flirting we'd been doing all night, it was mostly harmless and it kept the tips bigger to help Trisha with. I wasn't concerned about the money. I didn't need it. But, I knew Trisha did. She was trying to take care of herself and her kid brother and put herself through college. Their dad took off when she was four and little Jamal was just a few months old. Their mom died in a car accident with their grandmother and aunt, their only living relatives. Luckily, Trisha was eighteen and took custody of her brother who was fourteen at the time. She's now twenty-one and he's going to be eighteen with a full scholarship to a college a few towns over. She impressed me. I wasn't sure what I would have done. Marie certainly didn't take care of me when our parents were out of the picture. If it weren't for my new family, I could have been on the streets or dead.