“Don’t ask.” Said Marie, tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

Jubilee just snapped her gum; simultaneously hooking a booted foot onto the wall behind her, “So that bad huh?”

Marie looked at Jubilee annoyed, “I said don’t ask.”

Both girls remained silent for awhile until a car pulled up.

A man rolled down the window and leaned over the passenger side, “Hey ladies, I’m lookin’ for a date… I was hopin’ maybe one of you could help me out.”

Marie gave the guy a quick head-to-chest once over before turning to her friend, “I’m gonna pass, he looks like a kink… what about you?”

The Asian girl shrugged, “Well, kink or no kink, Kitty’s gonna have a bitch fit if I don’t come up with this month’s rent.”

Marie leaned her back against the wall, “I know, but… just be careful okay?”

Jubilee smiled mischievously, “Aren’t I always?” She asked walking the few yards to the man’s car.

“Hey babe, I would love to be your date…” Her voiced trailed off as she hopped into the car and it sped off.
----------------------------------------------------------
"I want him." Said an older woman as she pulled out a wad of bills from her purse.

Logan stepped forward; looking his new client in the eyes.

She returned the gaze heatedly with an off handed comment to the owner of ‘Males 4 Sale’.

“I like him, he’s rugged… like Tarzan.”

Logan led her to his room as some of the other men made a few less than subtle comments.

“Show dat chere where to *get off*, eh?” Whispered Remy as he passed. Piotr nodded in agreement before adding “Yeah, don’t forget who *comes* first.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Marie stood outside the deli with some of the other regulars after Jubilee left; waiting for another car to pull up, but it was a slow night.

Eventually, she headed back to her apartment to find Kitty asleep in front of the TV.

“You know, there’s a new trend taking over Hollywood these days... water birthing. In fact, super model Heidi Klum wants to do it for her first child. I think that’s great, this way she can have a Navy Seal!”

Marie sat in her armchair to watch the rest of Leno before taking a shower and going to bed.
----------------------------------------------------------
It was some time in the early morning when Logan came out of his room; eight hundred dollars tucked into the back pocket of his jeans.

Gary, the owner, was the first to see him.

“What's the take?” He said, eyeing a small group of woman that had just arrived for an impromptu birthday bash.

Logan took the bills out and counted off four, “Here’s your cut.”

Gary took the money while trying to calculate the total in his head, “Eight hundred? Shit, whaddya’ do? Swallow her damn cunt?!”

Logan smirked, raising an eyebrow.

“Never mind.” Said Gary, “Hannah called in advance and asked specifically for you… rest up.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Jubilee traipsed into the apartment she shared with Marie and Kitty in a much better mood than usual.

It was only 5 am, but she woke her roommates up anyway.

“Wake up hos!” She yelled, “I’m rich!”

Kitty was the first to acknowledge Jubilee’s presence; poking her head out from underneath the covers just in time to see a roll of bills hit her in the face.

“What the fuck?” She asked before sitting up and opening unfolding the roll.

It was six one-hundred dollar bills.

Kitty looked up and Jubilee smiled, “There’s the rent and then some.”

Marie came out of her room staggering, “Jubes it's fuckin’ five in the mornin’! What the Hell’s wrong with you?!”

Jubilee tossed another roll over the TV set to Marie.

“Remember that twenty I owe you? Well, I’ve givin’ it back… with interest.”

The money hit Marie in the chest and fell to the floor comically.

Upon picking them up, her eyes grew wide as saucers.

“Where’d you get all this?” She asked, still staring at the contents of her hand.

Jubilee plopped herself down on the couch next to Kitty and set her feet up on the nearby table.

“From Mr. Kink.”

Kitty furrowed her brows in confusion, “Who?”

Marie jumped in, “The creepy guy from last night?”

Jubilee dramatically polished her nails against the shirt she wore, “Yup, and you were right; he was a major kink… but for almost two grand, I can see past that.”

Both Kitty and Marie shot a neck-breaking glance at their friend. Kitty was the first to speak.

“Two grand?! What did you do?!”

Jubilee patted her on the shoulder, “Believe me Kit, you don’t wanna know... I’m gonna go take a shower.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Logan opened the bathroom door to let some of the steam out before shaving. He was in the middle of lathering up when he thought he heard something; stepped out into the bedroom, he found Hannah sitting on his bed.

She smiled; feigning innocence, “Hi… nice towel.”

Logan wiped the shaving cream from his face, “Weren’t you supposed to come by later?” He asked a bit harsher than he’d meant.

Hannah’s expression saddened for a moment before changing into a playful grin, “Well… yes but, my husband called and told me that he’d be home tonight. So…” She trailed off looking for the right transition.

“S’okay, I get it.” Logan said as he moved toward her, “Sorry about the mess.”

Hannah laughed awkwardly, “No, it’s fine.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Kitty and Marie sat on the couch together; coffee cups in hand, counting their money repeatedly.

At some point Jubilee came in and snapped them out of their trance.

"Hey, come on, this money’s not gonna spend itself!”

Marie looked up, “The Mall?” She asked; still not entirely in the moment.

Jubilee smiled wickedly, “No, I’ve got a much better idea. Have you ever heard of... ‘Males 4 Sale’?”

“No.” Said Marie; putting the money in her pajama pants’ pocket.

Jubilee grinned widely, “Well, it’s this place-”

Marie cut her off, “I know what it is, I meant 'No' as in I’m not going.”

Both her roommates were stunned, “What?! Why not?!” Asked Kitty.

Marie looked at her as if she’d grown another head.

“Whaddaya’ mean ‘Why not?!’ For' Christ’s sake Kit, guys use us as their personal humping posts on a daily basis and you wanna throw away your extra cash on *another* meaningless fuck?!”

Jubilee intervened before Kitty could reply, “Wait a minute! ‘Meaningless’ is not the word… when’s the last time you had a *good* lay?!”
----------------------------------------------------------
Jubilee led the way to the main lobby; stopping to take note of the ‘funky’ décor.

An older man sat behind a high counter reading a newspaper and not bothering to greet them.

“Hey!” Said Jubilee; snapping her fingers for attention.

The man merely continued perusing his paper.

Marie pulled her friend to the side, “We should just forget about it Jubes, maybe this isn’t even the place.”

Jubilee rolled her eyes, “There’s a sign outside that says, and I quote: 'Males 4 Sale'… this guy’s just being a hard ass, hold on a sec.”

A stack of crisp, clean bills landed onto the desk, catching the older man’s attention.

Jubilee put her hand down on it, “Look, I know how this works, but we’ve got money and lots of it. So you’re gonna get us a coupla guys and you’re gonna make it snappy cuz I’m losin’ my patience *real* quick.”

Kitty looked at her friend in awe as she peripherally eyed the stack of bills for the umpteenth time that day.

The older man got up quickly once he saw the cash; running into the hallway and yelling something incoherent.

Within minutes, a line of good looking men stood in front of the three women; waiting to be picked.

After much deliberation, Jubilee settled on a tall, thin, brown haired charmer with an accent.

“Come on chere, Remy gon’ show you a good time.” He said as he offered her his hand.

Kitty was next to chose and eventually went for a burly guy with chiseled features and soft eyes, “My name’s Piotr.” He said; Russian oozing from his speech, “But you can call me Pete.”

After they left it was just Marie and she had yet to see anyone that sparked her interest, until…
----------------------------------------------------------
Logan awoke to the sound of Gary’s yelling and rolled out of bed wondering what the Hell was going on.

He walked into the main room to see all the guys lined up and grimaced, but before he could turn away, he was caught.

“Can I choose him?” Asked Marie somewhat hesitant.

Gary nodded, “You can choose anyone you want sweetheart.”

She ignored the fact that the man’s hospitality was about as see through as saran wrap and continued to stare at Logan.

He took Gary to the side, “I’m all fucked out today, let her pick someone else… I’m going back to bed.”

Marie nodded to herself as if agreeing with her own decision, “Okay, I choose him then.”

Gary moved to stand in front of Logan; stopping him from leaving.

“Look,” He whispered harshly, “I don’t give a rat’s ass how tired you are, that girl's friend just put down a little over a grand and you’re not gonna lose me any of that money. So go to bed, but she’s goin’ with you. Do I make myself clear?”

Normally, Logan would have given Gary the finger and went back to his room, but out of the corner of his eye he could she the girl in question; beautiful, young and too innocent looking to be in a whore house… so he thought.

He decided to go with his instincts.

“Look, I know I’m supposed to be getting laid, but this isn’t really my scene. I’m only here because my crazy friends Jubes and Kitty talked me into it.”

Logan smirked, “I coulda' guessed, you don’t look the type.”

Marie suppressed a laugh, “Really? I’ve never heard that one before.” She said settling into a nearby chair.

The light emanating from the two lamps in Logan's room played on Marie's features as he studied her.

“You say that like you’ve heard it all.”

She gave him a sexy Southern smile and ran a hand through her straight, but tousled hair, “Well, believe it baby, I have... and then some.”

Logan had to admit that he was enjoying their little game of flirtation; even though he knew, and frankly didn’t mind, that it wouldn’t lead to anything.

“Care to let me in on some of it?” He asked reaching behind the nightstand for a beer.

He offered her one and she obliged, welcoming the alcoholic beverage with a warming sigh.

A few sips later, Marie answered, “Maybe.”

Logan almost laughed, “Well, I've got all night.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Jubilee and Kitty sat outside in the lobby waiting for Marie to at least make an appearance.

“It’s been two hours, do we have to pay more for all the 'extra' M’s getting?” Asked Kitty, looking at her watch.

Jubilee didn’t so much as blink, instead she stared nearly stupified in the general direction of Logan’s room.

“Yeah… it’s been two hours, we sure picked the wrong guys. Wait… what?!”
----------------------------------------------------------
Marie's best friends stared at her as she went about daily tasks like nothing had happened.

The silence was finally broken when Jubilee lobbed a pillow at the kitchen counter where Marie stood, “Hello! Earth to M, when the fuck are you gonna tell me and Kit all the juicy details of your little romp in the sack?!”

Marie rolled her eyes, “Jubes… you won’t believe me when I tell you that we just talked, so what's the point? I’m not gonna make up this lame story of how he fucked me eight ways from Sunday.”
----------------------------------------------------------
Gary knocked on Logan’s door practically salivating at the idea of all the money he was going to get.

“What?!” Asked a dishelved and angry Logan as he answered the door.

Gary wasn’t impressed, “Hey! Take your underwear outta’ your ass, I’m here for my cut.”

Logan left the doorway and came back a few moments later with a wad of cash, “Here.”

Before he could slam the door, Gary grabbed his arm, “This is all of it… why? You seein’ this chick or somethin'?”

Logan pushed Gary’s hand away, “Fuck you! We didn’t do shit, so I ain’t gonna take what I’m not owed. Probably shoulda gave it back.”

Gary scoffed, “The Hell you are, those fuckin’ scruples are gonna get you in trouble someday.” He said as he walked down the hall to collect the rest of his money.

"Remy wan' buy dis' new jacket that he saw in the window at, whas' it called… Evisu?"

"Yeah, so and you need me to come with you, why?"

"Because, Remy need an audience to let im' know how it look."

"No dice Frenchy, you tell me what you really want."

Remy shifted uncomfortably in his place next to Logan's door, "… There's sometin' Remy think you be wantin' to see."

Logan was starting to get annoyed, "Look, either spill it or get out!"

Remy simply made a pleading face with his best puppy dog eyes, "Come on, please? Remy ask you nice."
----------------------------------------------------------
It was around eleven at night when Logan and Remy pulled up to the store. There was, in fact, a nice looking jacket in the front window, but it was the three girls standing outside that got Logan's attention... one girl in particular.

"Marie…"

The whisper was barley audible, but Remy acknowledged it, "It be that nice girl and her friends from the other night, no?"

Logan felt like hurting someone; namely Remy, "Why would you bring me hear?"

Remy shrugged, "They just like us... thas' what make em' better than de rich cheres. Go oer' there, Remy think dis' one wit' the brown eyes be your one and only." He pointed at Marie who oblivious to the sudden attention.

Logan looked at Remy as though he had lost his mind, "What?!"

"Remy see de way you look at her… she yours, Remy knows so."
----------------------------------------------------------
Rogue, Jubilee and Kitty stood in their usual spot waiting for the night's takers. One of the other women walked by on the way to her own corner and gave a little wave.

"Hey girls, hope your moneys good tonight."

Rogue smiled at the passerby, "Thanks Jean, and by the way... your lookin' good."

As Jean walked past, Rogue's eyes followed her red-leather clad sashaying hips until a truck came into view.

Suddenly, she had the eerie feeling that she was being watched.

“Marie… what are you doin’ out here?”

She made eye contact and immediately wished that the Earth would open up and swallow her whole.

“Logan?”

Jubilee and Kitty both drew their eyebrows up in confusion.

"You know this guy?"

Marie barely heard her friend, but waved a hand in reply.

“Yeah, just- give us a sec.”

Kitty nodded and walked away; dragging Jubilee behind her.

She gave Marie a wink, “Make that money babe.”

Marie cringed, “Of all the things…” She mumbled, trailing off.

Logan brought her attention back to the matter at hand, “Let’s try this again… what are you doing out here?”

As much as Marie felt the need to shield him from the truth, Logan’s accusatory tone was grating on her nerves.

“What does it look like? I ain't waitin' for a bus.”

Logan glared at the clothes she wore… tight all over and sparse to begin with.

“Why?”

There was a rolling of the eyes and the over dramatic (and somehow inappropriate) polishing of nails against lycra.

“I don’t know… for money, food… shelter. Pick one.”

Sarcasm dripped from every word, but at some point passed, Marie had stopped caring.

Logan’s anger grew considerably, but he kept it in check; clenching his jaw tighter as he struggled to understand the situation.

“… You know what I mean… why didn’t you tell me?”

“Well, it’s not just something you blurt out when you first meet someone. Besides, I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”

“... You’re too good for this.”

“Yeah maybe, but I don’t have a lot of other options.”

“That’s bullshit Marie and you know it!”

“What the Hell do you care anyway?! I don’t see you puttin’ money in my pocket!”

Logan thought about that for a moment. A second passed, then two, until the silence became almost unbearable. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a wad of cash. It was money from Hannah and others just like her and maybe even worse… money from girlfriends, fiancés, wives and divorcés.

He handed it to Marie, “Here, we're even. Now go home… you deserve better.”

Logan and Remy got back to the house just in time for yet another ‘Summers Intervention’.

“Look Scott, you come here every few months expecting me to pack up my life and move back to Westchester, but I’m not interested… this is my home now.”

“Home?! Wake up and smell the sex, you live in a stable!”

Alex didn’t flinch at his brother’s harsh words, “So I should be more like you then, huh? Living off of Dad’s money?”

Scott’s face went stone cold as he addressed the accusation, “Careful.”

Gary who’d heard yelling, came running in. He stopped when he saw the two brothers at a stand-off.

“Hey kid, get outta’ here! I told you before, you’re bad for business.”

“Fuck you and your business Gary! I‘m tired of you exploiting my little brother for profit.”

“Exploiting?! Alex came to me! And that was *after* your bastard father left him without a leg to stand on!”

Gary had hardly finished the sentence before Scott landed a punch to his right eye.

Logan, Remy and the others who’d been watching the scene play out, rushed in to help; pulling Gary out of harms way and separating Alex’s hands from Scott’s throat.

“Don’t be comin’ round de house no more.” Yelled Remy, as Scott was thrown out onto the front stoop.

A group of women who were approaching, thought better of it and returned to their cars. Piotr tried to call out to them, but the damage was already done… they had all lost out on money because of Alex’s rich boy brother.

Through an open window, Gary could see Scott; nose bloody and sun-shades broken, getting into a town car. He turned back for a moment, giving each one of the men (including Alex) a look of disgust.

“Keep it movin’ prick.” Said Logan, hitching his thumb in the other direction for emphasis.

Scott got in, but rolled down the window as the engine started up.

“You were always a little fuckin’ havoc Alex, that’s why Dad never loved you!”
-----------------------------------------------------------
Marie sat on her bed, folding an unfolding the money that Logan had given her.

~Something for nothing.~ She thought.

It was a new concept, especially in the world of prostitution where 'touch me here' and 'suck me there' was more important that 'please' and 'thank you.'

The opening of doors and clanging of jewelry, jarred Marie out of her thoughts in time to watch Jubilee and Kitty barge into her room.

“What the fuck M?!” Was the first question out of Jubilee’s mouth.

Marie stared at her in confusion and annoyance, “What?!”

“You know damn well ‘What?!’”

Kitty chimed in, “We were looking all over for you!”

Leaning against the headboard, Marie shrugged, “Well, I’m here now, so you can chill.”

Jubilee glared at her, then turned to Kitty, “Oh okay, she’s here now, so I guess the fact that she disappeared for two hours and had me popping blood vessels left and right looking for her sorry ass doesn’t matter… It’s not fuckin' okay M! You said to give you a sec and the next thing I know, you’re gone! I swear the first thought to cross my mind had me and Kit finding you dead in the fuckin’ deli dumpster! And who the fuck was that guy?!”

A long moment passed before Marie, seemingly unaffected by Jubilee’s rant, gave a name, “It was Logan.”

Kitty was the first to sober, “Who?”

“The guy I met that night at 'Males for Sale'.”

“The one you ‘didn’t’ fuck?”

Marie got defensive, “We didn’t! I know it’s hard to believe that two people can be in a room together and have sex, but it’s wasn’t like that!” She started to cry and Jubilee began to regret her choice of words.

“I’m sorry, if you say it didn’t happen then I believe you, I do. But what did he want?”

Drying her eyes, Marie tried to tell her friends what happened, “I hadn’t told him what I did for a living, but he found out. I don’t know how, maybe he was just driving by and saw my face, but he was so angry. Told me that I was too good for the job and gave me this.” She handed Kitty the money.

Kitty gasped, “This is five-hundred dollars… why?”

Marie looked up, “So I’d quit, I guess... said we were even.”

"For what?"

"The other night... told you we didn't do nothin'."

Jubilee looked over at the semi-crinkled twenties, wondering what such a donation really meant.

“It’s like… for the first time since my first time… I felt dirty. Maybe I should get outta’ this while I still can.”

Neither Jubilee nor Kitty knew the right answer and both shared a glance; confirming that the entire situation seemed more ‘Hollywood’ than reality.

Finally one of them had the solution… or what they thought was one, “Babe… we’re goin’ to get you drunk.”
-----------------------------------------------------------
Despite the commotion that had disrupted his brooding, Logan couldn’t get the image of Marie in all her street walking glory, out of his head. And even though she was pure sex in her outfit, he was more confused then aroused.

~What went wrong?~ He thought, knowing that a prostitute wasn’t usually what little girls aspired to be.

Logan knew how he ended up at ‘Males’, but assumed Marie’s story was much different.

At 23, he met an older woman by the name of Emma Frost who ran a profitable 'business' in New York City. She offered Logan a job, and not having many options at the time... he took it. Years later, when Emma died of cancer, Gary, her son, took over.

Yet, Logan wanted to save Marie from, essentially, the same profession he was involved with.
-----------------------------------------------------------
In the common area, Alex sat sulking; switching channels on the TV set like it was going out of style. He hadn’t talked to anyone since Scott left and Gary was beginning to worry about it’s affect on the rest of the guys, and essentially the business. He went up to Remy who sat at a table playing solitaire.

“Hey, how de eye feelin’?”

“Hurts like a fuckin’ bitch, but I’ll live. I, uh… need to ask you a favor.”

“Anythin’, Remy got you.”

“Good. Then you won’t mind taking Alex out.”

Remy’s brows drew up in confusion, “Out?”

Gary clarified, “Yeah, you know, get his mind off that prick brother of his. Take him out for a beer or somethin’.”

Remy smirked, “Oh, Remy not know what you mean before. We take him out.”

“We?”

“Yeah man, Remy get Pete, Logan and de boys to go too.”