The kid pointed to the north side of the building. "That way."
"Cool. Bathroom?" I asked.
Still keeping an eye on Bones, the kid pointed in the opposite direction. "Down that hall. First door on the right."
I tossed him the ball. "Go find a few of your little friends and meet us in the gym in ten minutes."
"But you're wearing suits."
"Don't worry about it. Not your problem." We had gym clothes in the Hummer so we could work out as soon as we got home.
The kid didn't move.
"You look scared," Bones said. "What's wrong? Your mouth writin' checks your game can't cash?"
"Just thinkin' we should make this interesting. Let's talk stakes. What's in it for me when we wipe the floor with your tired old asses?"
Tired old asses?
Bones was trying to keep a straight face, and failing miserably.
Trying to get into business mode without him, I crossed my arms and eyed the kid. "What do you want?"
"If I win, you take me and my friends to play paintball."
"Paintball?" I asked. "You sure you're old enough for that?"
He snickered. "Yeah. I'm good."
"Okay, I'll bite, but what do I get if we win?"
The kid eyed me for a minute longer before answering, "I'll put in a good word for you with Markie."
Bones coughed.
I almost swallowed my tongue. It took me a minute to recover, and then I asked, "What makes you think I need a good word with Markie?"
He blinked. "How dumb do you think I am?"
"You tell me."
"I could call her right now. I got her phone number."
My jaw dropped.
"Ah, you want her number, huh? I'll give it to you if you can take us on the court."
I seriously considered beating the little punk and taking it from him. "Markie and I are tight. If I wanted her number, I'd askherfor it," I lied.
He laughed. "Uh-huh, sure. Markie's been in this city all of ten minutes and she comes here lookin' to help us out. Then you and your bodyguard come strollin' in askin' for her. I bet you lived here your whole life and you never thought about volunteering at no orphanage. You're tryin' to get that ass."
The casual way he sexualized Markie pissed me off. I tensed. "You better watch your mouth and stop talking about her like that. It's disrespectful."
He raised his hands in defense. "Okay man, chill. We got a deal or not?"
Oh yeah, I wanted to get the little punk on the court. "Fine, kid, you got a deal." I held my hand out.
He slapped it. "The name's Myles."
