Her Russian Millionaire

“Now that the boys are gone, let’s do some fun girl stuff!” She wobbled as she stood up and Jalisa noticed the collection of empty beer cans next to her chair. “Let’s get drunk and paint each other’s nails!”

“We don’t drink,” Jalisa said. Marie looked at her like she was crazy, so she reminded Marie that they were both underage.

“That doesn’t matter!” Marie laughed and went off to collect nail polish.

“I like it here,” Nikita said. “Are these people going to give you a job? Can I stay here and play sometimes?”

“Nikita.” Jalisa sighed. “Nothing is certain yet.”

A small part of Jalisa hoped that Stone would turn them down. He did not seem like the kind of person Jalisa wanted to work for. Right now, he didn’t have that much power over her life. She could collect Nikita and walk out to find something better. The more she took from him, the more power he would have. Stone gave off bad vibes and giving him power made Jalisa very uncomfortable. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place.

Marie came back out with a box of nail polish, nail polish remover, and a towel. She spread the towel over the white shag rug Nikita was sitting on before calling Jalisa over. The three girls sat around the towel and dug through the nail polish bottles.

“You work for Stone, right?” Jalisa asked as she eyed the bright red nail polish in Nikita’s hand.

“Yeah.” Marie hummed. “Oh, baby, you don’t want red. Boys will get the wrong idea. Try a beautiful blue or a pink. Pastels look the best on dark skinned women like you, in my opinion. On light-skinned people, they just look like how watered down soda tastes. That’s why I only wear bold colors.”

“Try a light yellow. You always look good in that,.” Jalisa said. For her, it wasn’t about what colors went with what skin, she just didn’t want men to think Nikita was older than fourteen.

Nikita was already starting to develop curves and wearing bras. She hadn’t started her period yet, but it could happen at any moment. Jalisa noticed the way men looking at Nikita had changed. Too many young women grew up too fast, and Jalisa would make sure that didn’t happen to Nikita.

“How is Stone?” Jalisa asked as she held out a pastel yellow to Nikita.

“He’s okay. I mean…he’s got his good and bad, just like any other boss.” Marie shook up a couple bottles of what was basically the same shade of red before carefully selecting one.

“And you’re a bartender? Is that difficult?” Jalisa didn’t want to deal with drunks all day, but if it kept them off the streets than it was worth it.

“It’s pretty easy most of the time. Sometimes there’s a party going on, and you’ve got to get, like, a hundred drinks done now, but most of the time it’s slow. The Semya isn’t as popular as some other bars in L.A.. This neighborhood hasn’t been gentrified yet, so tourists don’t usually come around. Those are the customers who su*k the worst. ‘Oh, we just got here. Oh, what’s good? Oh, I heard this was the bar they shot some music video in.’” Marie put her hands up and mocked tourists in a high pitched voice before she remembered that the sisters had just got here today. “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Nikita smiled. “We aren’t tourists. We’re living in Los Angeles now, same as you.”

“Is Stone a good boss? Has he fired many people unfairly? Ever been sued for s*xual harassment?” Jalisa asked, mostly wanting to know the answer to the last question.

“Oh, he’s fine.” Marie waved around her hands while Jalisa selected the bottle of polish on top, a dark blue with some flecks of glitter in it. “We only get employees here and there. Mostly, it’s just me and Stone who run the bar.”

“But I thought that the two of you took girls off of the streets a lot?” Jalisa painted Nikita’s nails while trying to make sense of the conflicting stories.

“We do , uh, they just usually have jobs of their own.” Marie stumbled on her explanation a bit, and Jalisa started to worry that it wasn’t the goodness of their heart that was driving Marie and Stone to help young women off of the streets.

“Can you do stripes?” Nikita asked, oblivious to what was happening in Jalisa’s mind.

“I can!” Marie grabbed Nikita’s hand. “You focus on your own nails, Jalisa.”

Jalisa didn’t really want to paint her nails, but she played along. Marie chatted with Nikita like one might talk with a child. They mostly talked about softball and school, nothing of consequence. Eventually, the door opened, and Erik and Stone came back in. Erik took a seat in the corner and said nothing.

“So, Erik and I were talking, and we think it would be best if you come and work for us. We know you don’t have any bartending experience since you’re underage, but Marie can show you the ropes.” Stone sat on the couch near the girls and watched them getting along with a big smile.

“That’s great. I can start work anytime you want.” Jalisa told herself that it was just until something better came along.

“We’ll have you start tomorrow.” His voice got softer, and he laid a hand on Jalisa’s shoulder. “I also think you and Nikita should move in. There’s a spare room with a queen bed and a closet.”

“Really?” Nikita said. “Praise God.”

“How much for rent?” Jalisa asked. There had to be a catch somewhere.

“It’s free.” Stone squeezed her shoulder. “You can feel free to think of this as your home, too. Any food, clothing, or things we have are yours, too.”

“How much is the pay?” Jalisa asked. Free rent and food sounded good, but she also needed money to send Nikita to school eventually. Not to mention fake IDs so they could build up a whole new life.

“How does-” Stone started.

“Five hundred,” Erik said from his corner. “Weekly.”

“Erik,” Stone growled. “This is my employee, not yours.”

“Payday is Friday.” Erik ignored Stone. “You will have to work for it, though. I expect you to be a full-time bartender. Your little sister will work, too. She will clean the bar during the day, and you will work the bar at night.”

“I’m okay with that,” Nikita said, giving Jalisa a reassuring look.

“We need Sunday off.” Jalisa was firm. “My sister and I are very religious. That day belongs to God.”

“Of course.” Stone shrugged. “Sunday off is fine.”

“I accept. I would shake your hand, but my nails are wet.” Jalisa laughed, a weight lifting from her shoulders.