New York Crime Kings Box Set: Books 1-4 by Skyla Madi

two been together?”
    “A day and a half.”
    I pause, confused. Did I hear her correctly? Did she say a day and a half? “You met here?”
    She nods. “It took me a long time to realize it, but it’s best move to find lover and protector down here.”
    I frown. “Why?”
    Her bright, green eyes brighten with laughter and she swats at me.
    “For safety and to secure position. It’s not safe for women down here. We must survive.”
    She retrieves her bottle of shampoo and holds it out. I don’t hesitate holding out my hand, and she squeezes a generous amount inside my palm. With a warm smile, she gathers the rest of her stuff and trots across the room to her ‘lover’. He swats her on the ass the second she gets within arm’s reach and I frown. Ew. Imagine being touched so intimately by someone you barely know. I catch on to my train of thought just as it finishes. I can’t talk. I’ve known Jai a few days and he’s already touched my most intimate place.
    I tip my head back and let the water dampen my hair, then, I run the shampoo through the strands and let it soak for a few minutes. While that’s doing its thing, I gather rogue shampoo bubbles from the top of my hair onto my wipe and scrub the rest of my body with it. When I close my eyes, I imagine I’m alone and in my apartment, enjoying a nice warm shower.
    After I wash out my hair, I make an attempt to get my panties off without taking off my shorts. Somehow, I manage it. I even manage to borrow a squirt of body wash from the girl to my left to clean them with. I don’t know what’s more disturbing, the fact I’m cleaning my underwear with body wash or that I’m excited I get to wear the unappealing cotton fabric again in a few hours’ time. Who knew it’d take getting trapped underground with no toiletries for me to love my cotton underwear.
    I contemplate stuffing my panties into the pocket of my shorts, but decide against it. Instead, I head back in the direction of our little space so I can lay them out on my bed. I want them aired out and I want to change my clothes while I’m at it too. Now my skin is clean, the fabric that grazes it feels...soiled. I’ll change into something else, then meet Jai in the bar for a drink.
    I cross my fingers hoping the drinks are alcoholic because booze is the only thing that will help me keep a straight face when I sit before Jai, panty-less and clean.

 
    Words
     
    Warm air blows around my exposed calves. Oh God, it feels good to be clean. Is there a feeling better than cool, damp hair on your warm back when you’re struggling to breathe through the hot air?
    I brush my fingertips along my bare stomach. I’ve never dressed like this before. I’ve never shown my belly button or exposed my hips. Still, I keep my head high and walk with confidence as I make my way back into the washroom. More people are showering now than they were before. They look happy, completely relaxed, and it makes me want to take off my clothes and do it all over again. I watch the quick succession of droplets that fall from the pipe. It’s amazing how such little allowance feels like a torrential downpour when you need it most. I, for one, will never complain about the pressure of my shower at home ever again.
    I keep walking and head into the tunnel Jai pointed out earlier. A mile down, I pop out the end and right into a bar area. Of course, it doesn’t actually look anything like a bar, but I get the point. It’s a place you come to buy drinks. I scan the large area, looking over people that crowd around crates and shake their tin cups as they tell epic stories. There is no music, only the sound of cheerful conversation. My favorite kind.
    On the other side of the room, I see a hand go up and it leads me directly to Jai. On the crate he leans on, two tin cups sit, filled with synthetic confidence in liquid form. I peer into them as I approach.
    “Whiskey,” he announces, nudging my cup as his eyes flit to my bare