Not withKelsea.
CHAPTER 11
KELSEA
Bresh never calls us in one-on-one unless something’s gone sideways.
So when Rina finds me backstage after my set—still sweat-slick and breathless, scarf hanging loose around my throat—and says, “Boss wants a word,” I already know I’m not gonna like it.
His office smells like stale cigars and too much money. The kind of place where secrets go to die and come back cheaper. The synthwood desk’s too big for the room, cluttered with ledgers he probably doesn’t read and drink glasses he never washes.
He’s pacing when I walk in. That’s new. Bresh doesn’t pace. Bresh plants and commands.
“Kels,” he says without looking at me.
“Boss.”
“You sit?”
“I’d rather stand.”
He stops, finally meets my eyes. Something twitchy lingers in his shoulders—tension wrapped in silk. He’s wearing one of those faux-mink coats that smells like desperation and mothballs, and it makes the whole moment feel more ridiculous than it should.
Still, my gut’s tight. Something’s coming.
“You legal?”
I blink. “Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
My throat goes dry. “I work under the name you filed. You’ve seen my certs.”
He shakes his head. “I meanrealpapers. Coalition issue. Green seal, retinal lock, all that.”
I hold his gaze. “Why?”
“Word is we might be getting visitors. High-collar types. Coalition inspectors.”
My stomach drops, but I keep my face still.
He keeps going. “They’re doing random sector sweeps. Paper checks. Worker logs. And I’m not getting fined or shut down ‘cause one of my girls’s got a shady past.”
I shrug like it’s nothing. “You want me gone?”
“No,” he says, too fast. “I want you covered. I like you, Kelsea. You make the house money. You keep the room full. But I can’t protect what I can’t vouch for.”
I smirk. “Since when do you vouch for anyone?”
He scowls. “Don’t get cute.”
“Then don’t get threatening.”
We stare at each other. Just long enough to confirm neither of us is blinking first.
Then he sighs. Runs a thick hand through thinning hair. “Look. I’m just saying—if you’ve got a contact who can get you clean, now’s the time. I don’t care what it costs or who you gotta bribe. You don’t want to be caught holding nothing when the flashlights come out.”
I nod once, slow. “Got it.”
